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The Parable of the Weeds

KhwarizmiKhwarizmi
edited 2011-06-26 07:21:33 in Philosophy
Because you never know what you might see.
This was the reading in church this morning.
24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. 27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”
36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.


The interpretation in church was that we should strive to be God's people, not the devil's, but I don't think that's supported by the text. It seems bleak and deterministic.

More to the point, though, what's the deal with the enemy going into a field and sowing weeds there?  Who does that?  What's his next dastardly scheme, breaking into the sower's house and scattering dust all over the place?  Breaking into the fridge and swapping the good food for mouldy food?

Comments

  • NovaNova
    If you must eat a phoenix, boil it, do not roast it. This only encourages their mischievous habits.
    What's his next dastardly scheme, breaking into the sower's house and scattering dust all over the place?  Breaking into the fridge and swapping the good food for mouldy food?

    So THAT'S where my left sock went.
  • Tnu1138Tnu1138
    I do that.
  • Wicked223Wicked223
    We Played Some Open Chords and Rejoiced, For the Earth Had Circled the Sun Yet Another Year
    I interpreted that as "do everything that God tells you or be burned to death at the end of the harvest", which is really just standard Christian dogma.
  • MyrmidonMyrmidon
    There's also the implication that you should wait until the end of the harvest to pull out the weeds.
  • BeholderessBeholderess
    More to the point, though, what's the deal with the enemy going into a
    field and sowing weeds there?  Who does that?  What's his next dastardly
    scheme, breaking into the sower's house and scattering dust all over
    the place?  Breaking into the fridge and swapping the good food for
    mouldy food?

    Oh my. A dastardly scheme indeed!

    But  yes, it does sound somewhat deterministic, and also implies that "bad  people" are actually created by something other than god.
  • MagusMagus
    I'LL STAY MAI HAUNDS...WITH YAU BLAHT
    Truth be told, I had never heard this parable before.

    I'm starting to realize why.
  • BeholderessBeholderess
    Why would that be?
  • IanExMachinaIanExMachina
    I am Dr. Ned who is totally not Dr. Zed in disguise.
    Being a Dastardly Villain in biblical times doesn't seem as fun as it could be.
  • MagusMagus
    I'LL STAY MAI HAUNDS...WITH YAU BLAHT
    Because it's really cheesy and doesn't make much of a point. The Fox and the Grapes is much better.
  • IaculusIaculus
    I guess that if anything, it's an explanation for the non-intervention policy of the Divine. Them actively fighting evil in the world as-is would cause too much collateral damage, so it's best to wait until the End of Days to sort things out.

    Basically, Jesus was saying "Don't worry, guys, we're on top of the whole evil-people thing, and we'll fix it when we're ready. Just sit tight, OK?"

    Not his best parable, though.
  • BeholderessBeholderess
    Umm, it's not like god  worried much about collateral damage before, I'm afraid. But better late than never, I guess
  • ┻━┻ ︵ ヽ(`Д´）╯︵ ┻━┻┻━┻ ︵ ヽ(`Д´）╯︵ ┻━┻
    Tableflipper
    what's the deal with the enemy going into a field and sowing weeds there?  Who does that?  What's his next dastardly scheme, breaking into the sower's house and scattering dust all over the place?  Breaking into the fridge and swapping the good food for mouldy food?

    If I was against someone ridiculously powerful i'd probably do those cause more damaging ones might get me in too much trouble.
  • IaculusIaculus
    Wasn't the whole point of the New Testament that he was trying to go for a kinder, gentler approach? Even before that, though, things like the Flood got a 'sorry, won't do that again' promise from him. One could argue that the entire Bible is about God's character development from murderous, judgmental dick to tolerable deity through his interactions with humanity.
  • FrodoGoofballCoTVFrodoGoofballCoTV
    edited 2011-06-26 12:41:59

    More to the point, though, what's the deal with the enemy going into a field and sowing weeds there?  Who does that?
    The Devil.

    What's his next dastardly scheme, breaking into the sower's house and scattering dust all over the place?  Breaking into the fridge and swapping the good food for mouldy food?
    From God's point of view, the devil is a Harmless Villain.

    I guess that if anything, it's an explanation for the non-intervention policy of the Divine. Them actively fighting evil in the world as-is would cause too much collateral damage, so it's best to wait until the End of Days to sort things out.
    The Bible shows what happens when God adopts a pro-intervention policy at Sodom and Gamorra, as well as the flood.

  • BeholderessBeholderess
    One could argue that the entire Bible is about God's character
    development from murderous, judgmental dick to tolerable deity through
    his interactions with humanity.

    That's the point of view  that would make it  much more acceptable for this one

    But as far as this one knows, God is supposed to never change
  • IaculusIaculus
    Possibly, but we do have evidence of him changing. Again, see his apology for the Flood and his decision to grant his people a more laid-back (though still, admittedly, strict in its own ways) New Testament. If God can change his mind, then it stands to reason that he can develop somewhat.
  • KhwarizmiKhwarizmi
    Because you never know what you might see.
    I guess it depends on how you interpret the text.  Traditionally, God is believed to be unchanging, though.
  • KhwarizmiKhwarizmi
    edited 2011-06-26 14:16:16
    Because you never know what you might see.
    No, it will end up in the sower's belly, in some form or other.

    Uh.  It is possible to over-extend a metaphor to the point of breaking it.
  • MyrmidonMyrmidon
    edited 2011-06-26 14:34:53
    I suppose "some people are just born evil, but don't waste time finding and exterminating them because they'll be thrown into a pit of hellfire come the end of days" would lead to less negative consequences than "Some people are just born evil, and it's your duty to cleanse the earth of these vermin".
  • RottweilerRottweiler
    Inside, too dark to read
    That's the point of view  that would make it  much more acceptable for this one

    But as far as this one knows, God is supposed to never change

    How would He? In idealist terms, God is pure being, not becoming.

    A God who undergoes character development would have to be Hobbes' omnipotent material being who lives somewhere in the cosmos.
  • BeholderessBeholderess
    This one is aware  of that.  And that's  the problem.
  • BobBob
    God undergoing character development? Wouldn't that imply that God isn't perfect?
  • BeholderessBeholderess
    It  would. That's why it's not an idea that is widely  accepted.
  • vacasamavacasama
    Woki mit deim Popo.
    Wouldn't that mean God evolves?
  • BobBob
    So my theory is right, and God really was a complete dick in the beginning for no clear reason? WOO, SUCK IT CHRISTIANS!
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