Texts in Conversation
In the Gospel of Thomas, the harvest is large but there are few workers. In the Gospel of Philip, truth is the harvest and few people see it, changing the problem from a shortage of workers to a shortage of people who recognize the truth.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Gospel of Thomas 73
Nag Hammadi
72 A man said to him, “Tell my brothers to divide my father’s possessions with me.” He said to him, “Man, who has made me a divider?” He turned to his disciples and said to them, “I am not a divider, am I?” 73 Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few; therefore, beg the Lord to send out laborers for the harvest.” 74 He said, “Lord, there are many around the well, but there is nothing in the well.”
Gospel of Philip 2:31
Nag Hammadi
The archons were thinking it was through their power and their desire that they were acting as they did. However, the holy Spirit in secret was bringing about everything by means of them as she wished. Truth, which has existed from the beginning, is sown in all places, and many are they who see it when it is sown. However, few there are who see it when it is reaped.
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Notes and References
“... But the workers are few. The reference to the few as ‘workers’ may also have been part of the appeal of this saying, given the ‘few’ elect (cf. GTh 23) and the importance of ‘labouring’ in Thomas (see note on GTh 20 above). In addition to the Synoptic parallel noted above, a very similar sentiment with the same imagery is found in the Gospel of Philip: ‘Truth, which existed since the beginning, is sown everywhere. And many see it being sown, but few are they who see it being reaped.’ (Gos. Phil. 55,19–22). ...”
* 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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