Texts in Conversation
In Matthew, Jesus says those who have will receive more, a theme also found in Rabbinic teaching, which connects careful listening to deeper learning. Both traditions teach that understanding grows by paying attention and wanting to learn, while those who ignore instruction lose even what they once knew.
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Matthew 13:12
New Testament
10 Then the disciples came to him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 He replied, “You have been given the opportunity to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but they have not. 12 For whoever has will be given more, and will have an abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 For this reason I speak to them in parables: Although they see they do not see, and although they hear they do not hear nor do they understand. 14 And concerning them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: “‘You will listen carefully yet will never understand, you will look closely yet will never comprehend. 15 For the heart of this people has become dull; they are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes, so that they would not see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 “But your eyes are blessed because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
Date: 70-90 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Sukkah 46b
Babylonian Talmud
Rabbinic
holds that which is placed within it, while a full vessel does not hold it. However, the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, is: If God adds to someone who is a full vessel in terms of knowledge or good attributes, he holds it; a person who is an empty vessel will not hold it. This is alluded to by the verse where it is stated: “And it shall come to pass, if you will hearken diligently [shamoa tishma] unto the voice of the Lord your God, to observe to do all his commandments” (Deuteronomy 28:1). This verse is interpreted homiletically: If you hearken [shamoa] in the present, you will hearken [tishma] in the future as well; and if not, you will not hearken. Alternatively: If you hearkened to the old, i.e., if you review what you already learned, you will hearken to the new as well. “But if your heart turns away” (Deuteronomy 30:17), you will no longer be able to hearken.
Date: 450-550 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... If, then, you obey (Deuteronomy 11:13) ... 'If' here logically follows verse 11. The land soaks up its water 'if you obey.' The double form of the verb 'obey' in Hebrew indicates: If you 'hearken' (OJPS) to the original commandments, then you will hearken to later ones as well ..."
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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