Matthew 13:11 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you (Jewish disciples and apostles), but not to them (Israelites of Judaism under the law).. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables.
11
Do not cast me from your presenceAfter the cross the Holy Spirit is sealed in the believer:
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Psalms 51:11 & 12
And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:13 & 14So the parable applies to Israelites before the cross. We need to start our interpretation here before we look for secondary applications to preaching the gospel in this dispensation and the Christian life.
The seed is "knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven " and not about the Christian life after salvation and the fruit they are to produce. It is about Israelites of Judaism under the law and their response to the "kingdom" Jesus offered them and if they responded by faith or rejected it.
The kingdom of God is universal, including all moral intelligences willingly subject to the will of God, whether angels, the Church, or saints of past or future dispensations (Luke 13:28-29); (Hebrews 12:22-23) while the kingdom of heaven is Messianic, mediatorial, and Davidic, and has for its object the establishment of the kingdom of God in the earth
For this reason many parables and other teachings are spoken of the kingdom of heaven in Matthew, and of the kingdom of God in Mark and Luke. It is the omissions which are significant. The parables of the wheat and tares, and of the net (Matthew 13:24-30); (Matthew 13:36-43); (Matthew 13:47-50) are not spoken of the kingdom of God. In that kingdom there are neither tares nor bad fish. But the parable of the leaven (Matthew 13:33) is spoken of the kingdom of God also, for, alas, even the true doctrines of the kingdom are leavened with the errors of which the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Herodians were the representatives.
Matthew 6:33 - Scofield Reference Notes
Soil 1: As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path...the soil is compacted by the treading of legalism that hardens their hearts.For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:“He has blinded their eyesand hardened their hearts,so they can neither see with their eyes,nor understand with their hearts,nor turn—and I would heal them.”[a]Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him. John 12:39-41What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened, Romans 11:7I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, Romans 11:25
Soil 2: Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil....there is some soil among the rocks for the seed to fall among to take root.Soil 3: Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up...there is soil to grow among the competing thorns.Soil 4: Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop...this is cultivated soil, prepared to receive the seed.
Remember the root that grows in the soil produces fruit, multiple seeds or fruitfulness. What does this mean in the contest of the Old Testament before the cross?
Produce fruit in keeping with metanoia. Matthew 3:8“But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.“Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Shub! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live! Ezekiel 18 whole chapter
Shub
This term is the twelfth most common word in the OT.33 It has a basic sense of "to turn," "to turn back," "to go back," or "to return."34 In the vast majority of its uses it refers to literal changes of direction.
The term shub was used in the OT to refer to Israel's turning toward or away from the Lord and also to His turning toward the nation with blessings or away from her with curses. In most contexts temporal blessings or curses were in view. In a few passages, however, the expression "turning to the Lord" was used in reference to the future eternal salvation of the nation. In such contexts "turning to the Lord" was used as a circumlocution for faith.
2. The Doctrine of Repentance In the Old Testament
Robert Wilkin
Repent, and turn [yourselves] from all your transgressions; this is to be understood of a national repentance for national sins, to prevent national judgments, being an address to the whole house of Israel; and not of evangelical repentance, which is the gift of God, and of an external reformation, as the fruit of it; and not of the first work of internal conversion, which is by the powerful and efficacious grace of God; though, were both exhorted to, it would not prove that these are in the power of men, only show the want and necessity of them, and so be the means of God's bringing his chosen people to them. The phrase, "yourselves", is not in the original; both words used signify "to turn"; and may be rendered and explained thus, "turn" yourselves, and "cause [others] to turn" p; let every man turn himself from his evil courses, and do all he can to turn his brother, or his neighbour, from the same;
Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
What was righteousness under the Law
Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.” Romans 10:5
As for the righteousness of the law, that is plainly described by Moses, Leviticus 18:5; and it tells us expressly: That the man who doth personally, perfectly, and constantly observe and do whatsoever the law requires, shall be rewarded with eternal life: see Romans 2:13, and the notes there. And on the contrary, it implies thus much: That whoso fails, or falls short, shall incur death and damnation. This also it declares in other places, Deu 27:26 Galatians 3:10. This is a hard saying; who can hear it? It shuts us all out of heaven, it turns us into hell, it lays upon us impossible conditions. Let us hearken therefore to the righteousness of faith; of which in the next, Matthew Poole's Commentary
So for an Israelite that is saved by faith must live in obedience according to the law to be righteous. The salvation was secure, but the righteousness by the law could be lost and they would be condemned by the law. This is what we see in Ezekiel 18. The only restoration was to turn from sin
The issue here is not eternal life versus eternal condemnation. The issue here is physical life versus physical death.
If Ezekiel were talking about everlasting life, then he would be teaching that one can lose everlasting life by turning from his righteous ways. But that is impossible (Gen 15:6; John 3:16; 5:24; 11:26).
The wicked does not refer to unbelievers. It refers to anyone, including believers, who are walking in spiritual darkness. The righteous refers to anyone, including unbelievers, who are walking in the light of God’s Word (e.g., Cornelius, Acts 10).
The same idea occurs all through the Bible. All aged 20 and over died in the wilderness because they listened to the ten spies and not to Joshua and Caleb. They rebelled against God, and all the adults but two died in the next 38 years.
Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 present the blessing and cursing motif.
Proverbs 4:10-19 speaks of the blessedness of the righteous man who walks in the wisdom of God’s Word and the cursedness of the wicked man who walks contrary to God’s Word.
Nadab and Abihu offered up strange fire at the start of the Law of Moses, and they died (Leviticus 10).
Ananias and Saphira lied about the gift they were giving at the start of the church age, and they died (Acts 5).
Walk in the light and you will experience the abundant life God desires you to experience. Turn away from the light and you will experience pain and suffering that those who walk in the darkness experience; and if you stay on that path long enough, you will die prematurely.
https://faithalone.org/blog/what-did-ezekiel-mean-by-turn-and-live-ezekiel-1832-3311/
God was not saying (in Ezekiel 18) that a saved Israelite would lose his [eternal] salvation if he fell into sin. Both the blessing and the judgment in view here are temporal, not eternal. The judgment was physical death (cf. vv 4, 20, 26), not eternal damnation.
Charles H. Dyer, "Ezekiel," in The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament Edition (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985), 1261, edited by John Walvoord and Roy Zuck.
Hard hearts: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
Rocky hearts: The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.Hearts with other interests: The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.The heart cultivated: But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. Hosea 10:2“For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.” Jeremiah 4:3
The expression, "Break up your fallow ground" ( Hosea 10:12 ; Jeremiah 4:3 ) means, "Do not sow your seed among thorns", i.e., break off all your evil habits; clear your hearts of weeds, in order that they may be prepared for the seed of righteousness. Land was allowed to lie fallow that it might become more fruitful; but when in this condition, it soon became overgrown with thorns and weeds. The cultivator of the soil was careful to "break up" his fallow ground, i.e., to clear the field of weeds, before sowing seed in it. So says the prophet, "Break off your evil ways, repent of your sins, cease to do evil, and then the good seed of the word will have room to grow and bear fruit." https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/fallow-ground/
This cultivation occurred when John the Immerser began his ministry:
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Luke 1:13-17
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