The Parable of:
“The One Pearl of Great Price”
(Jesus gave Everything For Us )
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The Parable of:
“The One Pearl of Great Price”
(Matthew 13:45, 46)
Matthew 13:45, 46 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.”
Comments:
There are no similar parables from which we could get help in understanding this parable. We will have to look at the real objects in the parable and try to find other Bible texts using these objects in order to learn more about why Jesus used them in this parable.
Identifying the Real Objects:
- Merchant man, pearls, pearl (of great price)
The actions in the parable are:
- Seeking, finding, selling, and buying
Comparing Scripture:
Pearl
Matthew 13:45 “…found one pearl of great price.”
Revelation 21:21 “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several* gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city [New Jerusalem] was pure gold…”
* several – Greek #303 – each
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Comments:
These two texts are the only texts in the Bible using the word “pearl”. There are other texts using “pearls” which we will look at later.
Matthew 13:45 tells us that the one pearl was of great price or very valuable.
Revelation 21:21 tells us that each of the gates of the Holy City is of one pearl.
Conclusions:
There is one Pearl more valuable than any other.
The only way to enter into the Holy City is through the gate of one Pearl.
The use of the word “one” in both texts is significant. The Bible is stressing the point that this Pearl is different from all other pearls.
The word “gate” or “gates” in the Greek (#4440 – ) means “gate-way” or “door-way”. Thus the word “door” could be used instead of the word “gate”. The addition of the word “way” to the words “door” or “gate” also seems to be significant.
Jesus said in John 10:9 “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved…” And John 10:1 says, “He that entereth not by the door… the same is a thief and a robber.”
Jesus said in John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
If we put what the Bible teaches in John 10:9 and John 14:6 together, Jesus was saying, I am the “door-way”. Jesus also made it very plain that the only way to “enter in” or be saved was through Him.
Thus the Bible evidence all points to Jesus being the one Pearl of great price!
Now we will look at the word “pearls”.
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Pearls
Job 28:12,13 “But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.”
Vs. 18 “No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.”
Vs. 20,21 “Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living…”
Vs. 23 “God understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.”
Matthew 7:6 “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine…”
Matthew 13:45 “…a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls”
Conclusion:
“Pearls” represent the valuable “hidden” wisdom or truths of God that are only found by “seeking” or searching the Scriptures.
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Merchant Man
Matthew 13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls.”
When we substitute the Spiritual meaning for “pearls” into this text and paraphrase it, it says:
Paraphrase: …a merchant man seeking the “hidden wisdom“ or truths (goodly pearls) found only by searching the Scriptures.
Thus, the “merchant man” represents a person who is searching the Scriptures to find the truth!
A “merchant man” is someone who “buys and sells”.
Prov. 23:23 “Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.”
Isaiah 55:1 “…he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine [doctrine] and milk [gospel] without money and without price.”
Conclusion:
The “merchant man” who”buys” represents someone who “without money” can obtain the truth if he will search the Scriptures.
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Sold (sell) all
Acts 2:44,45 “And all that believed were together, and had all things common; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.”
Matthew 19:16 “And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?”
Vs. 21,22 “Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.”
Vs. 27-29 “Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them, … Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.”
Comments:
The “believers” mentioned in Acts 2:44,45 had literally “sold their possessions” and had distributed the money to those who had need.
The disciples (like Peter) had also “forsaken all” for the Lord.The “rich young man” that came to Jesus had “great possessions” which he was not willing to sell in order to “have treasure in heaven”.
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Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21,
“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth… But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
This shows that what Jesus is really interested in is the condition of the heart, not the possessions! Many of the Bible characters, like Abraham and Job, were very rich men! Yet, their hearts were totally focused on the Lord and they put Him first in their lives. In other words, they were converted in their hearts and they had “no other gods before God” (Exodus 20:3).
Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Jesus wants us to put Him first in our lives, above all our possessions. Then He has promised that He will give us the “possessions” that we need. He is not against “possessions”, except when they are placed in the heart above Him!
Conclusion:
Thus, to “sell all that you have” spiritually means to “withhold nothing from the Lord” or to be willing to do anything He says! This is what true Conversion of the heart means!
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In the past many people have had to leave their homes or loved ones or “give up” something in order to follow the Lord. Today the Lord expects no less from us! If we are to be saved we must put Jesus and “following Him” above all else! This “price” which we must “pay” is small indeed when compared to the price that Jesus paid for us when he died on the Cross to save us!
Phil. 2:5-8 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
John 15:13 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
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Summary (meaning 1)
- The “one Pearl” (of great price) represents Jesus.
- The “pearls” represent the “hidden” truths of God that are found only by “seeking” or searching the Scriptures.
- The “merchant man” who is “seeking pearls” represents a person who is searching the Scriptures to find truth.
- The finding of the “one Pearl” of Great Price by the “merchant man” represents a person “finding” Jesus as his Savior as he searches the Scriptures.
- The selling of “all that he had” by the
“merchantman”, represents a person making the decision to put Jesus first in his life, withholding nothing from Him, and being willing to “follow Him completely” and do whatever He says! This is true conversion.
Comments:
Before we complete our study we need to explore the possibility of this parable having a double significance or a second meaning. (Recall that we discovered the parable of the “treasure hid in a field” had a second meaning.”
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Comparing Scripture
Pearls
Job 28:16-18 “It cannot be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire. The gold and the crystal cannot equal it: and the exchange of it shall not be for jewels of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies.”
The above text clearly shows that “pearls” are considered to be “jewels” by the Bible. Let us see what the Bible says that spiritual “jewels” represent so that we will know what the second meaning for pearls is.
Malachi 3:17 “And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.”
Thus, the Bible says:
A pearl is a jewel. (Job 28:16-18)
A jewel is a person. (Mal. 3:17)
A pearl = a jewel = a person
So the pearls in the parable represent people.
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Merchant Man (seeking goodly pearls)
In the parable the “merchant man” was seeking “pearls”. If we substitute the Spiritual meaning of “pearls” = people into the parable and paraphrase it:
Paraphrase: (Matthew 13:45)
Again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant man, seeking goodly people (pearls): who when he hath found one person (pearl) of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought him (it).
Thus, the merchant man was seeking goodly* people.
* goodly -- #2573 – well, fully well.
#2570 – good, honest, virtuous
Seeking (seek)
Luke 19:10 “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Matthew 18:11-14 “For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? … Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.”
Thus, seeking is associated with Jesus “seeking” to save even one lost person (sheep)
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Summary (meaning 2)
The Bible says that a pearl is a “jewel”.
A spiritual “jewel” represents a person.
Thus, “pearls” or “jewels” in the parable represent people.
The one “pearl” (of great price) in the parable represents one person (greatly loved).
The “merchant man” represents Jesus.
The “merchant man” seeking goodly pearls represents Jesus (merchant man) seeking to save people (goodly pearls).
The one pearl of great price that the “merchant man” sold all that he had and bought represents the value of one lost person to Jesus! He paid a great price (He died on the Cross) to redeem (buy) even one person.
John 15:13“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
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Doctrinal Truth (Taught by Jesus in the Parable of “The one Pearl of Great Price”)
There are valuable truths (pearls) in the Bible that are found only by searching the Scriptures.
These valuable truths (pearls) are hidden from the surface seeker.
When a person “searches the Scriptures” and finds Jesus as his Savior, he has found the “Pearl of Great Price”!
When a person makes the decision to put Jesus first in his life, withholding nothing from Him, and willing to “do whatever He says”, he has “sold all that he has”! This person is truly converted.
People (pearls) are like valuable jewels to God.
Even one person is extremely valued by God.
Jesus came to earth seeking to save people (goodly jewels) who were lost in their sins.
Jesus paid a Great Price (died on the cross) to redeem (buy) them.
Jesus “gave up everything” (sold all) to save people, because of His love.
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