Matius 13:11

13:11 He replied, ¹  “You have been given ²  the opportunity to know ³  the secrets ⁴  of the kingdom of heaven, but they have not.

Matius 13:24

The Parable of the Weeds

13:24 He presented them with another parable: ⁵  “The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in his field.

Matius 13:31

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

13:31 He gave ⁶  them another parable: ⁷  “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed ⁸  that a man took and sowed in his field.

Matius 13:33

The Parable of the Yeast

13:33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with ⁹  three measures ¹⁰  of flour until all the dough had risen.” ¹¹ 

Matius 13:44-45

Parables on the Kingdom of Heaven

13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field, that a person found and hid. Then because of joy he went and sold all that he had and bought that field.

13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.

Matius 13:47

13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea that caught all kinds of fish.

Matius 13:52

13:52 Then he said to them, “Therefore every expert in the law ¹²  who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his treasure what is new and old.”

Matius 16:19

16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will have been released in heaven.”

Matius 18:1

Questions About the Greatest

18:1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Matius 18:3-4

18:3 and said, “I tell you the truth, ¹³  unless you turn around and become like little children, ¹⁴  you will never ¹⁵  enter the kingdom of heaven! 18:4 Whoever then humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Matius 18:23

The Parable of the Unforgiving Slave

18:23 “For this reason, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. ¹⁶ 

[13:11]  ¹ tn Grk “And answering, he said to them.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[13:11]  ² tn This is an example of a “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ExSyn 437-38).

[13:11]  ³ tn Grk “to you it has been given to know.” The dative pronoun occurs first, in emphatic position in the Greek text, although this position is awkward in contemporary English.

[13:11]  ⁴ tn Grk “the mysteries.”

[13:11]  sn The key term secrets (μυστήριον, musthrion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17-23, 27-30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1-4; Heb 1:1-2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because it suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).

[13:24]  ⁵ tn Grk “He set before them another parable, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.

[13:31]  ⁶ tn Grk “put before.”

[13:31]  ⁷ tn Grk “He set before them another parable, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.

[13:31]  ⁸ sn The mustard seed was noted for its tiny size.

[13:33]  ⁹ tn Grk “hid in.”

[13:33]  ¹⁰ sn This measure was a saton, the Greek name for the Hebrew term “seah.” Three of these was a very large quantity of flour, since a saton is a little over 16 pounds (7 kg) of dry measure (or 13.13 liters). So this was over 47 lbs (21 kg) of flour total, enough to feed over a hundred people.

[13:33]  ¹¹ tn Grk “it was all leavened.”

[13:33]  sn The parable of the yeast and the dough teaches that the kingdom of God will start small but eventually grow to permeate everything. Jesus’ point was not to be deceived by its seemingly small start, the same point made in the parable of the mustard seed, which preceded this one.

[13:52]  ¹² tn Or “every scribe.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4. It is possible that the term translated “expert in the law” (traditionally, “scribe”) here is a self-description used by the author, Matthew, to represent his role in conveying the traditions about Jesus to his intended audience. See David E. Orton, The Understanding Scribe [JSNTSup].

[18:3]  ¹³ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[18:3]  ¹⁴ sn The point of the comparison become like little children has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit, as well as willingness to be dependent and receive from others, than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[18:3]  ¹⁵ tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

[18:23]  ¹⁶ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 8:9.