5.20
Parables as Allegories
A couple of Jesus’s better-known parables are explicitly presented as allegories.
He explains the parable of the sower (Mark 4:2–9; cf. 4:13–20) this way:
|
seed |
= |
the word |
|
birds eating seed on path |
= |
Satan snatching away the word |
|
rocky ground |
= |
trouble or persecution |
|
thorns |
= |
cares of the world, lure of wealth |
|
good soil |
= |
those who accept the word and bear fruit |
He explains the parable of the weeds (Matt. 13:24–30; cf. 13:36–43) this way:
|
sower |
= |
Son of Man |
|
field |
= |
the world |
|
good seed |
= |
children of the kingdom |
|
weeds |
= |
children of the evil one |
|
enemy sower |
= |
the devil |
|
harvest |
= |
end of the age |
|
reapers |
= |
angels |
Inspired by these explanations, biblical interpreters once wondered if all the parables might be allegories, and they devised elaborate explanations that unveiled secret theological or spiritual messages. For example, Origen (third century) read the parable of the good Samaritan as providing an allegorical account of God’s plan of salvation:
|
man who fell among robbers |
= |
Adam |
|
Jerusalem |
= |
heaven |
|
Jericho |
= |
the world |
|
the robbers |
= |
the devil |
|
the priest |
= |
the law |
|
the Levite |
= |
the prophets |
|
the Samaritan |
= |
Christ |
|
the donkey |
= |
Christ’s body |
|
the inn |
= |
the church |
|
the two coins |
= |
the Father and the Son |
|
promise to return |
= |
second coming of Christ |
Augustine (fourth century) proposed a similar reading, with additions:
|
binding of wounds |
= |
Christ’s restraint of sin |
|
pouring of oil |
= |
comfort of good hope |
|
pouring of wine |
= |
exhortation to spirited work |
|
the innkeeper |
= |
the apostle Paul |
But Augustine disagreed with Origen on the two coins. They were not “the Father and the Son,” but rather Christ’s twofold commandment to love God and neighbor.
While creative, such interpretations are rejected by most scholars today. Jesus did not originally intend for his parables to be read in this way, nor did the Gospel authors anticipate that their readers would interpret them in such a fashion. Furthermore, most scholars would caution that if construals such as these are allowed, clever interpreters will be able to make parables mean almost anything they please.