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.”
Jesus’ messages contained in the parables of the Lamp (v. 21) and the Measure (v. 24) are primarily for the benefit of the Apostles and disciples. Jesus explained that the purpose of the parables is to enlighten, not conceal. His teachings are not meant to be hidden or kept secret. Knowledge about the Kingdom of God that is given to his disciples (Mk. 4:11) is not for them to keep to themselves. They must pay careful attention to his teaching because just as a lamp gives light to the whole house, the disciples are to be the “Light of the world (Mt. 5:14),” and proclaim Jesus and his teachings to the whole world.
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). Those who make good use of the knowledge and understanding that God gives them and are fruitful will be given an abundance of spiritual understanding, but those who reject the knowledge of the Kingdom after hearing Jesus will end up in even greater spiritual ignorance. The Parable of the Talents gave similar teaching (Mt. 25:14-30). Knowledge of the coming of the Kingdom that is being rejected by those outside will eventually be proclaimed from the rooftops (Mt. 10:26-27).
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
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References
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.
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.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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