More than a Pearl: Matthew 13:45-46

As we continue moving through the short set of parables in the second part of Matthew chapter 13, we come to a parable about as long as our previous one about the Kingdom of heaven being represented by treasure hidden in a field. However, while this parable sounds very similar on the surface, when we look a little closer at the details that are described, we discover this parable has a slightly different focus and a slightly different perspective.

With this in mind, let’s read the second parable in this set. Our parable and passage for this episode are found in Matthew, chapter 13, and we will again read from the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 45, Jesus continued sharing, saying:

⁴⁵ “Also, the Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man is looking for fine pearls, ⁴⁶ and when he finds one that is unusually fine, he goes and sells everything he has, and buys that pearl.

On the surface, this parable sounds almost identical to the previous parable. The similarities are powerful, because in both parables the man sells everything in order to gain what he sees as valuable.

However, whenever I read this pearl parable, I am left wondering about what happened next. Many translations describe the man seeking the fine pearls as a merchant. As a merchant, this man would be more able to recognize pearls that were valuable verses ones that were not. In this parable, the man sells everything he has in order to buy this very valuable pearl.

At the end of this parable, the merchant is left with nothing except for the one thing he desired the most. The merchant doesn’t have many options at this point. The man who found the treasure in a field could use some of that treasure to rebuild his life and repurchase some of the things he sold. In that case, he still would have most of the treasure, but also a life too.

But in the merchant’s case, the only equivalent option would be to sell the pearl, perhaps for a greater price than he purchased it, except that this option doesn’t result in the merchant keeping the pearl. A pearl cannot be divided like the treasure chest full of coins that I imagine was what the man in the previous parable stumbled upon.

The merchant gives up everything he has in order to purchase this pearl.

On one hand, we are called to give up everything for Jesus. However, when we read this parable a little more closely, there is an interesting shift in how this parable is framed that the Good News Translation misses.

If we read this parable from the New American Standard Bible, which is my first “go to” translation for study and cross-checking between translations, we discover exactly what in this parable is framed as the Kingdom of heaven. The New American Standard Bible translates verses 45 and 46 as:

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

While the two translations are very similar with describing the details of this parable, the New American Standard Bible prompts us to view the kingdom of heaven like the merchant and not like the treasure.

This is a subtle distinction with huge results. One might see the kingdom of heaven being a place or a location we could choose to be. We might be tempted to see it as something both passive and valuable, similar to a bar of gold or a diamond. But this is the treasure way of looking at the kingdom, which was the focus of the “Treasure in a Field” parable.

The “Kingdom as a Merchant” parable gives God’s kingdom an active role, and this description causes us to begin to see God’s kingdom as being more like a movement that is seeking valuables of its own.

While we are tempted to think that we should be the merchant in this parable, the way this parable is shared places us more likely as pearls that are being searched for. We are more like the pearl of great price than the merchant who sold everything!

With these two parables, we have two angles on the same thing. God’s kingdom is an incredibly valuable treasure that we should desire, but God’s kingdom is also looking for treasures that it sees as valuable. One might think of God’s kingdom being like an exclusive club that only admits certain people, and a club like this is seen by many as desirable.

While God’s kingdom is not exclusive in the typical sense of the word, it is instead inclusive for all who want to be a part of it. God’s kingdom welcomes those who accept the invitation into it, and God’s kingdom knows that not everyone has to choose to be a part of it. God is not going to force someone into His kingdom who does not want to be there.

This thought makes me ask myself if I am living in a way that God would see me as a treasure. While I know that nothing I do will make God love me any less, at the same time I know that God views different actions/choices differently. In my own life, am I choosing to live in a way that reveals how I am valued and valuable in God’s eyes? This is a tricky question, but it comes down to self-worth.

God loved you and I so much that Jesus came into the world to take the punishment we deserved onto Himself. This simple truth displays how much we are valued in God’s eyes. The big challenge I see is how to best respond to this amazing display of value. If God values you and I that He would be willing to give His own life for us, who are we to think we are worthless or cheap? Jesus came to show us how much God loves us, and to invite us to be sons and daughters of the King of the Universe!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to remember and recognize that God sees each of us, you and I included, as so valuable that Jesus came to take the punishment we deserved for our sin. Because God valued us this much, let’s choose to live in a way that says we value ourselves because we are God’s pearl of great price!

Also, as I always challenge you to do, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through regular prayer and Bible study, we open our hearts to God’s Holy Spirit and we let Him take us and transform us into the people He created us to be!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or walk away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!