| Highlights of Dawn | June 1967 |
The Wheat and the Tares
“Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” —Matthew 13:43
THIS is a day of disintegration in human society. The former standards of righteousness are being flouted, and traditional viewpoints are in disfavor. This is particularly true in the religious world. In an attempt to stand up against the “fire” of this time of change the churches are getting together to increase their strength in the face of a common enemy which threatens their destruction. The ecumenical spirit of good will and co-operation is leading to a breakdown of doctrinal standards, and slowly reducing denominationalism to what amounts to a vast social club in which the vital teachings of the Bible are given almost no consideration. While this is especially true of Protestantism, the Catholic Church is also being shaken from within and without by the “fire” which is enveloping the whole world.
One of the prophecies which foretold this situation is the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares. This parable is recorded in Matthew 13:24-30, and Jesus’ explanation is set forth in verses 38-43 of the same chapter. In the parable Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field.” His explanation is, “He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom.”
In the Parable of the Sower—just preceding this one—Jesus identified the “seed” as “the word of the kingdom,” which of course is the Gospel of the kingdom. But in the wheat and tares parable he identifies the seed as “the children of the kingdom.” It is important to keep this difference in mind in order to understand some of the later lessons of the parable. The “sowing” of this good seed—the children of the kingdom—by the Son of man, is an obvious reference to Jesus’ work of establishing the church, beginning with his apostles.
And what a meaningful title Jesus gave to his faithful followers—“the children of the kingdom.” Jesus came to earth to fulfill all the wonderful kingdom promises of the Bible. His death as the Redeemer, his resurrection, his second coming, and the establishing of his kingdom, are all related to the divine kingdom plan. Those called to follow Jesus are promised that, if faithful, they will live and reign with him in his kingdom. We can think of no other title which would so aptly identify the wheat class of the parable.
Tares Sown
The parable continues: “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.” Jesus explains: “The tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the Devil.” The Devil is the prince of this world, and has opposed the outworking of the divine plan in every way he could. In this parable he is seen sowing tares among the wheat in an effort to choke out and destroy “the children of the kingdom.”
Tares are an imitation of wheat, and the contrast in the parable is between those who are imbued with the true hope of Christ’s kingdom, and those who, throughout the age, have espoused efforts to set up a kingdom of their own. The church-state systems of Europe were part of the fruitage of these efforts. The social gospel of today is another. Noble men and women throughout the age have devoted time and energy to the various efforts which have been designed to set up Christ’s kingdom without him. They have called their institutions “Christendom”—Christ’s kingdom—but in reality these efforts have not had the divine approval. Those who have unwittingly served Satan in these various undertakings are quite properly described in the parable as “children of the wicked one”—not because they are morally wicked, but because they have co-operated, and continue to co-operate, in efforts instigated by Satan.
The Harvest
In the parable the servants of the householder ask if they should uproot the tares from the field, to which the reply is given, “Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.” Jesus’ explanation of this segment of the parable is, “The harvest is the end of the world [age]; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world [age]. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth [great disappointment]. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.”
The closing lines of the parable are of special importance to us because they relate to the culmination of the Lord’s work during the period of time in his plan which we speak of as the Gospel Age. Jesus said that in the end of this age there would be a “harvest” in which the tares would be gathered into bundles and burned, and the wheat class ultimately would “shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.”
The tares are said to be burned in a furnace of fire. Fire is one of the symbols used in the Bible to portray the great time of destructive trouble which would come upon the world at the end of the age. Every aspect of Satan’s world is destroyed in this trouble, including the tares of the parable. This does not imply their destruction as individuals, but as tares. When the “fire” of this day of the Lord shall have accomplished its full purpose there will no longer be those who, in the name of Christ, attempt to reform and rule the world through their own efforts.
When wheat is harvested and put in the barn the season’s work is accomplished, for the wheat is now ready to be used. The work of the Gospel Age has been to develop a class who would prove worthy to live and reign with Christ, and in the parable Jesus explains the culmination and objective of this work as the wheat shining forth “as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” This will be the happy lot of all the wheat class, “the children of the kingdom.”
The parable shows that there are two aspects of the work of harvest—the gathering and burning of the tares, and the harvesting of the wheat. According to the parable both these aspects of the harvest are accomplished by “the angels.” The Greek word here translated “angels” simply means “messengers.” In a number of instances in the New Testament it is applied to human servants of God, and it is also used as a name for those on the spirit plane who are “sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.” (Heb. 1:13,14) This word is properly used to describe any messenger of God, regardless of the plane of life on which he exists.
Jewish Age Harvest
There was a “harvest” at the close of the Jewish Age. Jesus referred to this when he said to his disciples, “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest.” (Matt. 9:37,38) The laborers, or “messengers,” in that harvest were the faithful disciples of Christ, Jesus being the Chief Reaper. The work of harvest was accomplished largely by the proclamation of the Gospel of the kingdom. This kingdom Gospel appealed to the devout of Israel who cherished the messianic kingdom hope. These were the wheat of that harvest, and they were also the laborers in the harvest.
John the Baptist said of Jesus, the Chief Reaper in the Jewish Age harvest, that he would “gather his wheat into the garner; [and] … burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” (Matt. 3:12) The Scriptures do not refer to wheat and tares in the Jewish Age harvest, but to wheat and “chaff.” and the chaff is shown to be destroyed by fire. This undoubtedly is a reference to the severe trouble brought upon the nation of Israel by Titus and his army, and in John’s prophecy he speaks of Jesus, the Chief Reaper, as being responsible for it. The pure wheat of that time became the nucleus of “the children of the kingdom,” who have been developed during the Gospel Age.
Just as the harvesting of the wheat at the close of the Jewish Age was accomplished by the proclamation of the kingdom Gospel by Jesus’ disciples, so it is at the close of the Gospel Age. The wheat class now are the angels, or messengers, to gather the wheat, just as it was then. We believe that this work has been going on in the earth for many years, the evidence of this being that there are now groups of believers throughout the world who are better identified by the expression, “the children of the kingdom,” than in any other way. While churchianity in general has turned to the social gospel, civil rights activities, political lobbying, and other activities aimed at bettering the world, this little flock of “children of the kingdom” busy themselves in continuing to proclaim the Gospel of the kingdom, rejoicing in the hope that the messianic kingdom in all its power and great glory is near.
Jesus Again the Chief Reaper
Just as Jesus was present at the close of the Jewish Age, and was then the Chief Reaper, so it is now. He was then present in the flesh; but he gave his flesh for the life of the world, and in his resurrection was exalted to the divine nature. The Scriptures indicate that his second presence was to be as a powerful divine being, invisible to human eyes. As the Chief Reaper in the present harvest he has directed the efforts of his people in the flesh as they have gone forth as “angels,” or messengers, to reach those whose ears of understanding have been opened to hear and appreciate the harvest message, the Gospel of the kingdom.
One of the prophecies of our Lord’s second presence is recorded in Revelation 14:14: “And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud sat one like unto the Son of man [the sower of the good seed], having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.” This is highly symbolic language. Having a “crown” on his head suggests that “The Son of man” returns as a king to set up his long-promised kingdom; having a sharp sickle in his hand indicates that he is indeed the Chief Reaper in the harvest, which is the end of the age. In verse 15 he is bidden to thrust in the sickle and reap, “for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”
As we noted in connection with the Jewish Age harvest, Jesus was the Chief Reaper in the case of both the wheat and the chaff. This, we think, is also true now with respect to the wheat and the tares. Just as the disciples had no part in the burning of the chaff at the end of the Jewish Age, it would seem that “the children of the kingdom” this side the veil have little part in the bundling and burning of the tares at the present time. However, there are scriptures which seem to suggest that those who have passed beyond the veil are co-operating with Jesus in this work.
I Thessalonians 4:16 reads, “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven … and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” This clearly indicates that shortly after our Lord’s return the sleeping saints were awakened, and are now with him. Then Paul speaks of those who would be alive at that time, and says that they would “remain” to be exalted later, so that they too would be with the Lord.—I Thess. 4:17
Writing further on this point, the Apostle Paul said, “Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep [as did those who had gone into sleep prior to our Lord’s return, and who were awakened soon after his return], but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.” (I Cor. 15:51,52) This indicates that a time would come in the outworking of the divine plan when the faithful followers of the Master, upon finishing their course in death, would not remain asleep in death, but would be immediately exalted to glory, honor, and immortality. We believe that we are now living in that time.
It is concerning this same group of favored ones at the end of the age that John writes in Revelation 14:13. It is in the following verse that Jesus is pictured as the Chief Reaper with a sickle in his hand. The 13th verse reads, “I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth [from the time of our Lord’s return]: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.”
This is a blessed promise, one that has not applied to the Lord’s people throughout the age, but does apply now at the end of the age. How comforting the thought that they “rest from their labors”; that is, they are no longer wearied by serving the Lord, for they have been exalted to the divine nature. But they do not rest in the sense of being idle, for “their works do follow them.” What has been the “works” of these faithful ones, which they continue to do? Has it not been the harvest work? Have not these been the Lord’s messengers sent forth with the Gospel of the kingdom to reap the wheat of the parable?
As we have already noted, the harvest work includes the bundling and burning of the tares. While this side the veil, and still in the flesh, “the children of the kingdom” are not qualified to participate in the “tare” aspect of the harvest work, but it is different when they are exalted to the divine nature and associated with the exalted Jesus, the Chief Reaper. Our finite minds cannot understand the manner in which divine beings conduct their work. Undoubtedly, Jesus is definitely taking a hand in world events today, directing in ways unknown to us their continuing disintegration; and since the harvest work in which the saints participate in the flesh continues to be their activity beyond the veil, it would seem reasonable that in some manner they are now co-operating with the Chief Reaper in the tare feature of that work.
It is not necessary for us to know just how this is done. It is enough to realize that the plans and purposes of God are moving forward, and to be assured that when all the wheat is gathered into the “barn,” “the children of the kingdom” will “shine forth as the sun” in that wonderful messianic kingdom of promise, and that through that kingdom all the families of the earth will be blessed. Having this blessed assurance, we need not fret over the increasing chaos of the world, whether in religious circles or elsewhere, for we know that the Chief Reaper, who is also the King of kings, will, in his work of preparation, direct all circumstances to a glorious conclusion through the full establishment of his kingdom.