An Atheistic Bible Study Of The Gospels The Parable Of The Pearl

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A short parable Matthew kept to himself, presenting it at 13:45-46, and not mentioned at all by Mark, Luke and Ringo (I mean John). Jesus compares someone who recognizes the Kingdom Of Heaven to a merchant who is an expert in buying and selling pearls. One day, the merchant finds a pearl of exceptional value, buys it and keeps it for himself. The problem with a great fortune not spent or shared is that it might as well be worthless. There is something selfish about not letting others benefit from the gift of the Kingdom, or the wealth the pearl could generate. The idea of the parable is that once you have found Jesus, you don’t let him go, or seek alternatives. This rules out the possibility that there could be better pearls, or letting others benefit from what can be bought with the pearl. Jesus denounces material wealth, but sees the spiritual wealth as comparable to a material asset like an absurdly valuable pearl, (which is actually congealed oyster saliva). While a pearl might be easy to spot for a trained merchant, the Kingdom Of Heaven is harder to identify for anyone. We could easily be following something of less or even no value. Arthur Chappell