Matthew 13:14

"Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they don’t see, and hearing, they don’t hear, neither do they understand."

Key Reflection

Jesus spoke in parables to hide deeper truths from those who were not ready to receive them, while revealing those truths to his disciples who had the ears to hear and eyes to see. This method allowed Jesus to address both the spiritual and the hardened hearts of his listeners simultaneously.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Verses 14,15. And in them is fulfilled, etc. This place is quoted substantially from Isa 6:9,10. It was literally fulfilled in the time of Isaiah. In the time of Christ the people had the same character. Like them, they closed their eyes upon the truth, and rejected the Divine teaching. The words of Isaiah were, therefore, as well fitted to express the character of the people in the time of Christ, as in that of the prophet. In this sense they were fulfilled, or filled up, or a case occurred that corresponded to their meaning. See Barnes "Mt 1:22". It is not by any means intended that Isaiah, when he spoke these words, had any reference to the time of Christ.

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