The
disciples came, and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
He answered them, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it is not given to them. For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever doesn’t have, from him will be taken away even that which he has.
Matthew 13:10-12
Matthew 13 [1.] On that day Jesus went out of the house, and sat by the seaside. Great multitudes gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat, and sat, and all the multitude stood on the beach. He spoke to them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a farmer went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them. Others fell on rocky ground, where they didn’t have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of earth. When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell among thorns. The thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Matthew 13 [10.] The disciples came, and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
Matthew 13 [11.] He answered them, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it is not given to them. For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever doesn’t have, from him will be taken away even that which he has. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they don’t see, and hearing, they don’t hear, neither do they understand. In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says,
‘By hearing you will hear,
and will in no way understand;
Seeing you will see,
and will in no way perceive:
for this people’s heart has grown callous,
their ears are dull of hearing,
they have closed their eyes;
or else perhaps they might perceive with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their heart,
and would turn again;
and I would heal them.’
Matthew 13 [16.] “But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. For most certainly I tell you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see the things which you see, and didn’t see them; and to hear the things which you hear, and didn’t hear them.
Meaning:
Jesus had just told the crowds the parable of the farmer and closed with the call, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 13:9). The disciples were puzzled. Why would Jesus teach the multitudes in stories instead of speaking plainly? His answer reveals both a privilege and a warning.
- “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
Until now Jesus had often taught openly, as in the Sermon on the Mount. But as opposition grew and many hearers remained unchanged, he began to speak to the crowds mainly in parables. The disciples noticed the change. Mark tells us that they asked when Jesus was alone with them (Mark 4:10-11). Their question shows a good instinct: they came to Jesus for understanding rather than walking away confused.
- “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven”
In the Bible a mystery is not a puzzle that clever people can solve. It is a truth about God’s plan that people could never discover by themselves, but which God chooses to reveal. Paul writes of such things: “Things which an eye didn’t see, and an ear didn’t hear… these God has prepared for those who love him”, and adds, “But to us, God revealed them through the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10).
The mystery here is that God’s Kingdom had come in Jesus, but in an unexpected way: not with armies and immediate judgment, but like seed sown quietly in the ground. The disciples were not wiser than others. Understanding was “given” to them, a gift of grace, because they had come to Jesus and stayed with him.
- “But it is not given to them”
“Them” refers to the crowds who heard but did not follow, and especially to those who had hardened themselves against Jesus. The parables both reveal and conceal. To those who seek, they open up the truth in memorable pictures. To those who are indifferent or hostile, they remain only stories. Jesus goes on to explain this with words from Isaiah (Matthew 13:13; 13:14-15).
- “For whoever has, to him will be given”
This is a spiritual principle. Those who receive and act on the light they have are given more. Those who neglect or reject what they have will lose even that. Jesus repeated the saying in the parable of the talents: “For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him who doesn’t have, even that which he has will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29). Luke adds the warning, “Be careful therefore how you hear” (Luke 8:18).
The Significance of Matthew 13:10-12
- Understanding is a gift
Spiritual understanding comes from God. We should humbly ask him to open our eyes, and come to Jesus with our questions as the disciples did.
- Use what you are given
Truth received is meant to be lived. When we obey what God has shown us, he gives us more; when we ignore it, our understanding shrinks.
Cross-References:
Mark 4:11: "To you is given the mystery of God’s Kingdom, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables," Mark’s account of the same answer.
Matthew 25:29: "For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have abundance," The same principle in the parable of the talents.
Luke 8:18: "Be careful therefore how you hear." Luke’s warning about listening.
Conclusion: When the disciples asked why he spoke in parables, Jesus answered that the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven were given to them to know, but not to those who had closed their hearts. Whoever has will be given more, and whoever does not have will lose even what he has. Understanding is God’s gift to those who come to Jesus and receive his word.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible