In this little parable, Jesus introduces us to several items of interest. Two thousand years ago there were no herbicides or pesticides. 'Wonderful' you might reply, but on the other hand, it meant that crops had to compete with a whole range of natural predators, disease and other plants.

It is interesting that when we come to define a weed, there is not one sort of plant which can be called a weed and another which is not. Technically 'a weed is a plant in the wrong place'.

In any farm or garden, plants growing where they should not be growing are more than a nuisance, they are actually thieves and interlopers, snatching vital food and water from the precious crop plants. They are enemies to be eliminated before they destroy the crop. At least this is the normal human reaction to the problem of weeds!

Having introduced the subject of weeds, let us consider the parable;

"The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed ' in his field. But while men slept his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. When the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares? An enemy has done this, 'he replied. "The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up? But he said, 'No, lest while you are gather up the tares, you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers: 'First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.' (Matthew 13:24-30)

Jesus is suggesting something quite different to what a farmer would normally practise. Why should this be so and what is Jesus really meaning? It is interesting to note that this parable followed immediately after his teaching of the Parable of the Sower, as if Jesus is indicating to his hearers and subsequent readers that both good plants and weeds represent people who are trying to follow the teaching of himself with some being successful and others failing. Secondly, on research into the meaning of the word 'weed' used in this text, it is apparent that Jesus was referring to a particular weed which was very similar to the wheat plant (termed 'tares in many Bible versions). In this situation therefore, it was necessary to leave both crop and weed to grow together until harvest, otherwise unnecessary damage would be incurred whilst rooting out the weeds.

But what did the parable really mean? The interpretation is given for us by Jesus;

"He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of man will send out his angels, and they will gather all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them info the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father." (Matthew 13:37-43)

Like many of the parables, Jesus uses a very mathematical form of interpretation, each component of the parable is given a 'one-for-one interpretation' which can be easily expressed in tabular form;

sower	=	Son of Man
field	=	the world
good seed	=	sons of the kingdom
tares/weeds	=	sons of the wicked one
enemy	=	the devil
harvest	=	end of age
servants	=	angels
destruction	=	fire

At its face value, the message is clear; it is a sumrnary of the events of the world, from the preaching of Christ until the judgement. But within this interpretation there are a number of details which need at least a brief mention:

The sower is of course not only Jesus but also his Apostles and followers. Just as the farmer had many servants, so Jesus has had many followers to assist in the work. The field is not only the Jewish world of the first century but also the world of today The good seed is not only the product of the seed in the sense of those who produce characters with which God is well pleased, but also the actual message - the Gospel which enables the response.

It is easy to understand the devil in terms of the popular supernatural devil, otherwise known as Satan and the serpent. In fact the notion of such a being is alien to the rest of Bible teaching. Firstly note that in the parable, Jesus actually described the devil as 'a man, an enemy has done this'. (cp Matthew 13:28 RV Mg.) Secondly, the word 'devil' refers to anyone who is evil, who seduces others away from the truth. It is a descriptive term for an evil person and in one sense we are all 'devils' because we are all evil, selfish and sinful. However, it is also a term used particularly to describe a person opposed to the truth, a person who by their evil ways takes people away from discipleship of Jesus.

The end of the age ought to be understood as the end of human civilisation as we know it, when Christ returns, when there will be a resurrection from the dead and a judgement of those alive and those resurrected. The angels will have a very important role in the events of those days as elsewhere we are told 'they will go forth to gather his elect from the four corners of the earth.'

The other item in the interpretation which demands some comment is the fire which will destroy the enemies of God in that day. Notice that this is at 'the end of the age' and not at the end of a person's life, there is no mention here of Hell Fire, only of a final death by fire for those who are not acceptable by God in that day. This destruction could be related to other Bible passages which describes the final judgement by God in terms of a cleansing fire - to remove all evil from this fair earth.

A simple parable but with teaching which is significant and awesome for all men everywhere in all ages. We are trying to be the 'sons of the kingdom' but we can so easily be influenced and ultimately destroyed by the 'sons of the wicked one' - may we have faith and determination to survive!

"Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently ... You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand." (James 5:7 - 8)