Author : Keith Sharp
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it” (Matthew 13:44-46).
Two men each found an object of surpassing, even preeminent value, each recognized the worth of what he had found, and each joyfully made the necessary sacrifice to obtain the valuable object.
Hidden Treasure
Ancient Palestine lacked real banks as safe places to deposit money, and the country had the problem of being repeatedly overrun by enemies and infested by brigands and thieves. Money could be deposited with money changers in the Temple for a low rate of interest (Matthew 25:27, King James Version), but there was certainly no FDIC to insure deposits. It appears that people often hid valuables in various places in hope of keeping them safe, died, and left no record of the treasure. People thus engaged in “treasure hunts” (cf. Job 3:21; Proverbs 2:4; Jeremiah 41:8). It was common in America after the bank failures of 1929 for people to hide their valuables and money rather than employing a bank.
So the Master tells the story of a man who found a treasure hidden in a field. There is no indication the man had been treasure hunting. Joyfully he hid the treasure again, sold everything he had, bought the field as his own, and thus gained possession of the fortune. The 19th centuryscholar Aldred Edersheim maintained that the man’s actions were legal under Jewish law2, but this is really irrelevant to the story. Christ is defending neither the legality nor morality of the finder’s course. He is using him as an example of placing correct valuation and acting accordingly.
Pearl of Great Price
Pearls were as prized in ancient society as diamonds are today. Myths circulated about how pearls were formed. Of course, without cultured pearls or modern diving equipment, they were much harder to acquire than today, and thus their value was greater.
The Master related how a pearl merchant, one who would have a trained eye for pearls, found one jewel of surpassing value. He was actively seeking pearls, recognized the preeminent worth of the pearl he had found, and made the appropriate sacrifice.
Value
Both short parables illustrate the value of the heavenly kingdom. Of course, the kingdom of heaven is the rule of God through His Son Christ Jesus in the hearts of His people (Luke 17:20-21). But here the parables emphasize the blessings of kingdom citizenship, every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm (Ephesians 1:3; Romans 14:17).
The value of the kingdom of heaven surpasses that of anything the world has to offer or even of the entirety of this world (Matthew 16:26-28). The benefits of the kingdom exceed in worth all earthly wealth (Matthew 6:19-21,33), pleasures (Ecclesiastes 2:1-2; Galatians 6:7-8), and popularity (Romans 3:3-4; 8:31).
Sacrifice
Some people, as the woman at the well of Sychar in Samaria (John 4:5-29) more or less accidentally encounter the gospel. Others, as the eunuch of Ethiopia (Acts 8:26-39) and Cornelius (Acts chapter 10) are actively seeking salvation. But each, in order to obtain the righteousness of the kingdom, must be willing to sacrifice everything, even his own life (Matthew 16:24-25).
Joy
The man who found the treasure did not mourn at the sale of all his possessions, nor did the merchant weep at giving up everything he had previously owned. Because he realized the preeminent value of the hidden treasure, the man who found it joyfully sold all that he had in order to gain it.
Paul, recognizing the preeminent worth of the blessings in Christ, willingly sacrificed all that had formerly been his reason for living (Philippians 3:3-11). Rather than looking back longingly on the things he had given up, rather than mourning, weeping, and complaining over his sacrifices, as he contemplated the possibility of a violent death for his service to Christ, he declared, “I am glad and rejoice with you all” (Philippians 2:17).
Conclusion
We will have made the shrewdest of all transactions if we sacrifice all the world has to offer for the kingdom of Christ (Matthew 16:24-27). “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” So much the more so when that which he cannot lose is of preeminent worth.
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1 From Glimpses of Eternity by Paul Earnhart, 66.
2 The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 1:595-6.
