The temple establishment and religious leaders get their comeuppance, in contrast to the commoners and expendables.
Obedience is better than disobedience, even when obedience comes in late.
Before we begin the exegesis ……
Quick definition of a parable:
Literally, the word parable (parabolē in Greek) combines para– (pronounced pah-rah and means “alongside”) and bolē (pronounced boh-lay and means “put” or even “throw”). Therefore, a parable puts two or more images or ideas alongside each other to produce a new truth. […] The Shorter Lexicon says that the Greek word parabolē can sometimes be translated as “symbol,” “type,” “figure,” and “illustration,” the latter term being virtually synonymous with parable.
For more information, click on this link:
The translation is mine. If you would like to see other translations, click here:
If you don’t read Greek, ignore the left column.
Let’s begin.
|
Parable of the Two Sons (Matt. 21:28-32) |
|
| 28 Τί δὲ ὑμῖν δοκεῖ; ἄνθρωπος εἶχεν τέκνα δύο. καὶ προσελθὼν τῷ πρώτῳ εἶπεν· τέκνον, ὕπαγε σήμερον ἐργάζου ἐν τῷ ἀμπελῶνι. 29 ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν· οὐ θέλω, ὕστερον δὲ μεταμεληθεὶς ἀπῆλθεν. 30 προσελθὼν δὲ τῷ ἑτέρῳ εἶπεν ὡσαύτως. ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν· ἐγώ, κύριε, καὶ οὐκ ἀπῆλθεν. 31 τίς ἐκ τῶν δύο ἐποίησεν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός; λέγουσιν· ὁ πρῶτος. λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι οἱ τελῶναι καὶ αἱ πόρναι προάγουσιν ὑμᾶς εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ. 32 ἦλθεν γὰρ Ἰωάννης πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν ὁδῷ δικαιοσύνης, καὶ οὐκ ἐπιστεύσατε αὐτῷ, οἱ δὲ τελῶναι καὶ αἱ πόρναι ἐπίστευσαν αὐτῷ· ὑμεῖς δὲ ἰδόντες οὐδὲ μετεμελήθητε ὕστερον τοῦ πιστεῦσαι αὐτῷ. | 28 What do you think? A man had two sons, and he came up to the first one and said, “Go today, child, and work in the vineyard. 29 In reply, he said, “I am unwilling.” But later he changed his mind and went. 30 Coming up to the other one, he said the same thing. In reply, he said, “I will, sir,” and he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of the father? They said, “The first one.” Jesus said to them: “I tell you the truth: the tax collectors and prostitutes are going ahead of you into the kingdom of God. 32 For John came to you in the pathway of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. But when you saw this, you did not repent later in order to believe in him. |
Quick introduction
Jesus had challenged the temple system by the four signs of the Messiah, and now he challenges the temple establishment with this parable and the next one.
The four signs that the Messiah entered the holy city: (1) Triumphal entry; (2) Cleansing of the temple; (3) Healing the blind and lame; (4) Destruction of a fruitless tree. They are about his rightful place as King and Messiah over Jerusalem and the temple, but the authorities over those longstanding institutions will soon reject him (see France pp. 770-96, though I modify his idea, who calls them three action parables and omits my third point).
The first son = tax collectors and prostitutes who refused at first, but then changed their minds and repented.
The second son = the Jerusalem establishment, who said they would work, but disobeyed and did nothing.
Now let’s look into the parable as one block.
This parable links to the previous dialogue between Jesus and the two groups of religious leaders. He is still talking to them.
It is amazing that Jesus could tell the parable “on the fly” or ex tempore or spontaneously. Have you ever tried to tell a story, just like that, out of the blue? It’s very difficult. I see Jesus as very intelligent–a genius–on a human level.
This short parable is clear enough. The tax collectors and prostitutes heard John the Baptist’s preaching and at first said no, but then repented or changed their minds. The religious leaders say a loud yes, but then don’t do what God wants, which will be revealed in more detail in the Great Denunciation (Matt. 23). In this parable, the religious leaders should have repented as John told them to.
“changed his mind”: It comes from the Greek verb metamelomai (pronounced meh-tah-mehl-oh-my and is used only six times in the NT). BDAG is considered by many to be the authoritative lexicon of the Greek NT, and it defines the verb thus: (1) “to have regrets about something, in the sense that one wished it could be undone, be very sorry, regret”; (2) “to change one’s mind about something, without focus on regret, change one’s mind, have second thoughts.” It is yet another verb for repentance. The second definition works best here, though the phrase “his mind” does not appear in Greek, but I include it because it is built into the definition.
“I tell you the truth”: “Truth” comes from the word amēn (pronounced ah-main and comes into English as amen). Used thirteen times in Mark, it expresses the authority of the one who utters it. The Hebrew root ’mn means faithfulness, reliability and certainty. It could be translated as “truly I tell you” or I tell you with certainty.” Jesus’s faith in his own words is remarkable and points to his unique calling. In the OT and later Jewish writings is indicates a solemn pronouncement. It means we must pay attention to it, for it is authoritative. He is about to declare an important and solemn message or statement. The clause appears only on the lips of Jesus. That is, in Paul’s epistles, for example, he never says, “I truly say to you.” That phrasing had too much authority, which only Jesus had. The clause only appears on the lips of Jesus in the NT. The word appears in a Jewish culture and means “let it be so.” So Jesus speaks it out with special, divine emphasis. “Let this happen!” “Let what I’m about to say happen!” We better take it seriously and not just walk by it or read over it with a casual air.
Tax collectors: You can learn more about them at this link:
Quick Reference to Jewish Groups in Gospels and Acts
Regardless of these historical details, the main point is that tax collectors were considered bad in the eyes of the people.
“prostitutes”: the old Law of Moses had ambiguous commands about prostitutes. Leviticus 21:9 says the daughter of a priest who turned herself into a prostitute shall be burned with fire, because she shamed her priestly father. And v. 7 says that a priest shall not marry a prostitute. It does not say that she shall be put to death for being one, even though she was unconnected to priests. And Deuteronomy 23:17 says that no one shall bring the fee of a prostitute into the house of the Lord. It does not say she shall be hunted down and executed for adultery. It is almost as if the prostitute was tolerated or recognized as part of ancient Israelite society, and apparently here too. Jesus assumed they existed and wanted them to repent.
“kingdom”: Let’s look more broadly into the kingdom. As noted in other verses that mention the kingdom in this commentary, the kingdom is God’s power, authority, rule, reign and sovereignty. He exerts all those things over all the universe but more specifically over the lives of people. It is his invisible realm, and throughout the Gospels Jesus is explaining and demonstrating what it looks like before their very eyes and ears. It is gradually being manifested from the realm of faith to the visible realm, but it is not political in the human sense. It is a secret kingdom because it does not enter humanity with trumpets blaring and full power and glory. This grand display will happen when Jesus comes back. In his first coming, the kingdom woos people to surrender to it. We can enter God’s kingdom by being born again (John 3:3, 5), by repenting (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:5), by having the faith of children (Matt. 18:4; Mark 10:14-15), by being transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son whom God loves (Col. 1:13), and by seeing their own poverty and need for the kingdom (Matt. 5:3; Luke 6:20; Jas. 2:5). The kingdom has already come in part at his First Coming, right now, during his incarnation, but not yet with full manifestation and glory and power until his Second Coming.
5 The Kingdom of God: Already Here, But Not Yet Fully
Bible Basics about the Kingdom of God
Questions and Answers about Kingdom of God
Basic Definition of Kingdom of God
1 Introducing the Kingdom of God (begin a ten-part series)
GrowApp for Matthew 21:28-32
A.. Time for a soul checkup. How is your will and obedience? Do you say “yes!” but not do what he says? Or do you say “no!” and change your mind and then do it?
B.. In other words, are you a little stubborn and a little deceptive or compliant and softhearted? What would instant obedience to the Lord look like in your life?
SOURCES
At this link you will find a bibliography at the very bottom:
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 