Matthew 13:13

13 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

Matthew 13:13 in Other Translations

13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

13 That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.

13 That's why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they're blue in the face and not get it.

13 For this reason I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see, and hearing they do not listen or understand.

Matthew 13:13 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 13:13

Therefore speak I to them in parables
Because it was the will and pleasure of his Father to give the knowledge of divine mysteries to some, and not to others; and because even the outward good things they had, being wrongly used or abused by them, would be taken away from them:

and because they seeing, see not:
they saw Christ with their bodily eyes, but not with an eye of faith; they saw the miracles he did, but did not discern, at least did not acknowledge the evidence of them, proving him to be the true Messiah.

And hearing, they hear not, neither do they understand:
they heard externally, but not internally; they heard the sound of Christ's voice, but did not understand his words, even when he spake in the plainest and most intelligible manner; nor were they concerned to know the meaning of them: wherefore he spoke to them in this abstruse and parabolical way, that they might be what they really were, seers and not seers, hearers and not hearers, at least not understanding ones; and that what he said might remain sealed and hidden to them, as the things contained in the sealed book were to the Jews of old; the reason of which was, as a writer of their's ^F11 says, and which agrees with our Lord's reason and conduct here, (hdyxw lvmb wyhv) , "because they were in parable and riddle".

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FOOTNOTES:

F11 Abarbinel in Isa. 29. 11.

Matthew 13:13 In-Context

11 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.

13 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.

15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’

Cross References

• 1. Deuteronomy 29:4; Jeremiah 5:21; Ezekiel 12:2