WHAT a beautiful and inspiring scene is portrayed in the thirteenth chapter of Matthew's Gospel, where Jesus gave to his disciples and the multitude the much beloved parable of the sower! The record states that Jesus had gone out of the house, and sat by the seaside. When a great multitude gathered around him, he went into a ship, and from there talked to the multitude on the shore.
At the conclusion of this enlightening parable, Jesus admonished his hearers to heed well the words he had spoken. In answer to the disciples' query as to why he had spoken in a parable, Jesus said that the people did not comprehend the spiritual lesson his words contained. He further added that the prophecy of Isaiah was being fulfilled, the substance of which was that because their eyes were closed and their ears dull, in consequence of their darkened condition of thought, ignorance of God and His laws, they were unmindful of their rightful heritage as children of God, and were not experiencing the blessing which the true understanding of Him bestows. He also endeavored to impress upon them the spiritual import of his parable, and to open their thoughts for the reception of the truth.
To the disciples, however, who had daily listened to their Master's teachings, Jesus said, "Blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear," implying that they had grasped some measure of spiritual understanding, and indicating the immeasurable value of such understanding by these words, "For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
