Friday, 18 March 2016

The Parables: Jewish Tradition and Christian Interpretation,
Brad H Young, Hendricksen, 1998
Chapter 11, "The Find", page 199-221

Brad Young, one of the scholars involved in the Jerusalem School of the Synoptic Gospels, speaks about two back-to-back parables related in Matthew's gospel alone. Forming the centre section of a six-part chiasm, in a section known as the Parables of the Kingdom, these take vey simple parable forms, with only one actor each and the minimum of narrative. The first is:

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44)

while the second is:

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matthew 13:45-46)

Over the next few days, let's work through some ideas that Young suggests to work out what these parables are really saying to us today.