Not every Parable needs a Divine Explanation

Many of the parables were understood by the intended audience. When Jesus was confronting the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, he used parables to point out their hypocrisy; something that the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law understood.

The Parable of the Two Sons (Matthew 21:28-32)

Synopsis: A man asks his two sons to work in his vineyard. The first son initially refuses but later goes to work, while the second son agrees to work but then does not go.

Message: This parable criticizes the religious leaders for their failure to follow God’s will, compared to tax collectors and prostitutes who, despite initial disobedience, ultimately repent and obey God. Jesus points out that these sinners believed John the Baptist and changed their ways, unlike the religious leaders who saw John’s righteousness but did not repent.

The Parable of the Vineyard (Matthew 21:33-46)

Synopsis: A landowner plants a vineyard and leases it to tenants. When he sends servants and later his son to collect the fruit, the tenants beat the servants and kill the son.

Message: The vineyard represents Israel, the landowner is God, the servants are the prophets, and the son is Christ. This parable serves as a direct indictment of the leaders’ mistreatment of God’s messengers and their ultimate rejection of Jesus. It prophesies the punishment that will befall them and the passing of the kingdom of God to others who will produce its fruits.

Matthew 21:45 – When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them.

Parable of the Wedding Banquet (mentioned later in Matthew 22:1-14, but often linked in theme to the teachings of Matthew 21)

Synopsis: A king hosting a wedding feast for his son sends out invitations, but the invited guests refuse to come, mistreat the messengers, and are ultimately punished. The king then invites others from the streets to fill the wedding hall.

Message: This parable further elaborates on the themes of rejection by the original invitees (Israel’s leaders) and the inclusion of the Gentiles in the kingdom of God.

The Secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, Matthew 13:11-15

Shincheonji counter:

While Shincheonji would acknowledge that not every parable is “obscured” or “hidden” secret language, they would point to Matthew 13:11-15, showing that the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven are only given to a select few.

Christian Response

When looking at the context of Matthew 13:11-15, it is true, Jesus was only giving his “secrets” to his inner circle, why? Because his inner circle were asking him questions, and he was answering them. This is why at the end of Matthew 13, when asked about the parable of the wheat and the tares, Jesus gave them a straightforward answer.

While it is true that there are some parables that are more obscured, to make the claim that every parable is not understandable, and that every prophecy is written in parables, is just flat out wrong.

Also, another thing to keep in mind, a lot of the parables were given to a Jewish audience, like the Father declaring the hour in Mark 13:32, and the Jewish audience would have a full understanding of what that meant without the need of having a special, secretive, Promised Pastor to explain it to them.