Why Did Jesus Speak in Parables?
A reflection on God’s truth and revelation
There were times when Jesus spoke directly.
He spoke directly to Peter and Andrew when He invited them to be His disciples. He spoke directly to the evil spirits when He commanded them to come out. And He spoke directly to the repentant thief when He said that he would be with Jesus that day in paradise.
But when He taught the crowds, He often spoke in parables. He spoke in parables so often that even the disciples noticed it and asked Him for the reason why.
“Why do you speak to them in parables?” (Matthew 13:10, NABRE)
And to this, Jesus profoundly replied:
“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted. To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because ‘they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.’” (Matthew 13:11–13, NABRE)
With this reply, we can infer that not everyone who listens to these parables will understand. Some will and some will not. Some would sincerely want to understand while some would utterly refuse to do so.
Isn’t this the way of faith?
Even in this life, God gives us enough light to see the truth. The truth is that God exists, and that He loves us. And only by accepting His love can we ever find eternal happiness and peace.
Yet not everyone sees this light. To others, this light shines so brightly that it blinds them to the truth.
They cannot see because they do not wish to see.
Understanding the parables requires spiritual grace that comes from God. But how can others receive this grace if they do not even want to ask?
God does not wish to stifle our freedom. We can use that freedom to seek for the truth, but we can also use it to deceive ourselves and believe only in illusions.
And perhaps that is why Jesus was so stern about hypocrisy. Because hypocrites are those who lie to themselves, not wanting to see the truth.
Jesus is not a tyrant who will violently impose the truth upon us. He values our decision and respects our choices.
To those who sincerely seek for the truth, the promise is there that it can be found. But for those who desire to turn away from the light, all that they will ever see is darkness. And the parables they hear would fall on deaf ears indeed, never hearing, and enclosed in that dark prison they have built for themselves for all eternity.
If you would like to read these parables in the light of another person’s perspective, you can read Jesus’ Parables Interpreted by Elena Horas San Martin. You may not understand these parables in the exact same way she did, but if you open your heart and pray, you will find a light in these pages that you have never seen before.
Jocelyn Soriano is an author, book reviewer and social media manager. She is currently single and happy, and writes about faith and freelance writing in her Substack Newsletter “The Diary of a Single Catholic Writer”. To avail of her professional services, please proceed to her Contact Page.
