He said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand? 22 For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible; nothing is secret except to come to light. 23 Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.” 24 He also told them, “Take care what you hear. The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given to you. 25 To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
The instructions contained in the parable of the Lamp (v. 21) and the Measure (v. 24) are primarily for the benefit of Jesus’ disciples. Jesus explained that the purpose of the parables is to enlighten not to conceal. The proclamation about the Kingdom of God given to his disciples (Mk. 4:11) will eventually be revealed to all. In the same way that a lamp gives light to the whole house, the disciples are to be the “Light of the world (Mt. 5:14),” and are to proclaim Jesus and the Kingdom of God to the whole world. Knowledge of the coming of the Kingdom that is being rejected by those outside the kingdom will eventually be proclaimed from the rooftops (Mt. 10:26-27).
The disciples have been granted the gift of knowledge of the coming of the Kingdom and they are expected to cooperate with God’s grace and bear fruit for the Kingdom (vv. 24-25). The Parable of the Talents gave similar teaching (Mt. 25:14-30). Those who make use of the knowledge and understanding that God gives them will be given more, but the one who rejects the knowledge of the Kingdom after hearing Jesus will end up in even greater spiritual ignorance (v. 25).
Almighty God, your beloved Son left us the good news of salvation in his living Word as handed down to us in the Bible. Help us to keep your precepts and grant us the spiritual insight to grow daily in understanding as we read and ponder your Word. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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