In this article, I will argue that Jesus’ parables should be seen in the tradition of Wisdom literature and that all Wisdom literature share a common epistemological framework that provides the key to their interpretation. For the sake of clarity, I will make use of semiology to identify the structural components of parables as well as their relationship to the Wisdom framework. I will demonstrate that Jesus’ words in Matthew 13:10-17 affirm this Wisdom paradigm and the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:3-9,18-23) expands on it. I will draw out the Christological ramification of this approach, explore its impact on parabolic studies and conclude with some thoughts on extending this framework to other aspects of Jesus’ life and ministry.
Semiotics can be defined as ‘The study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation’.[1] What is of interest in this paper are the three component branches of semiotics, their relationship with each other [2] (see figure 1) and their application to parables. There is a direct relationship between meaning (semantics) and the signs (syntactics) in which meaning is encoded. There is also a direct relationship between the signs (syntactics) and their interpretation (pragmatics). However the relationship between the interpretation and meaning is indirect and can only be inferred through the signs or symbol. Consequently, the syntactic component can be deemed ambiguous in the sense that the sign or symbol may mean different things to the encoder and the decoder.[3]
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Andrew Chua is Managing Director, Lives that Prosper
[1] Oxford Dictionaries, http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/semiotics (n.d.)
[2] Daniel Chandler, “Semiotics for Beginners,” http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/S4B/ (1994-2016)
[3] Daniel Chandler, “Semiotics for Beginners,” http://visual-memory.co.uk/daniel/Documents/S4B/ (1994-2016)
What a great paper, and articulation of the epistemological requirements of discipleship: We must be changed (from the inside out I expect), to rightly understand the parables.
The author helpfully suggests we apply this framework to all of Jesus’s not just his parables. How true! Then the scriptures truly become life-giving and applicable to me personally, and an icon of Jesus Himself.
I also thought that the same epistemological requirement is exactly why the search for the “historical Jesus” is so misguided: The early Church had to become the sort of community that could rightly discern Jesus is not just a man but God in the flesh. He did not reveal this directly (not even to his friend and cousin John the baptist), because it is not something that can *properly* be known except by change of heart in the ‘interpreter’.
May God help me to perceive just what sort of god it is who became flesh, by the same epistemological framework.
-M