A Compilation of Grace

The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

“The kingdom of heaven is like a [very precious] treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid again; then in his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field [securing the treasure for himself].” Matthew 13:44 AMP

This parable is one of seven told by Jesus in this chapter of Matthew. Four of these are centered on fields. Two of those parables are the only ones in this chapter that are explained. In those stories, the field is said to represent the world. If the field in this parable also represents the world, who is the man, and what does the treasure represent?

At some point, I was taught that Jesus is the treasure, and we are the ones who must buy the field to gain the treasure. It was a metaphor for surrendering everything to follow Jesus. Although that could be a possibility, I don’t think that is what Jesus is saying here.

Who Is The Man?

In the explanation of one of the parables, the wheat and the tares, the person sowing the wheat is called the Son of Man, who is Jesus. Also, three key words in the parable of the hidden treasure are found, sells, and buys. If the field is the world, Jesus is the man who finds the treasure and buys the field where it is hidden. In Luke 19:10, Jesus says, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.” (CSB)

Adam and Eve sold their birthright as children of God when they ate the fruit in the Garden of Eden. In doing so, they put all of creation under the influence of sin and the devil. They traded the best that God had given them, for a cheap imitation. They became separated from God and lost. But, God had a plan to redeem them and the world back to himself. This plan culminated in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Jesus “sold everything”… gave up his glory and power in heaven to become a man and pay the price of his shed blood on the cross to buy back or redeem us as children of God.

Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8 CSB

He entered the most holy place once for all time, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. Hebrews 9:12 CSB

What Is The Treasure?

Even if we were to bring Jesus all—everything about ourselves and in ourselves, everything we have—it would not be enough to purchase abundant life in him. His salvation is a free gift for us and not anything we can gain from our own works (Ephesians 2:8,9). The purchased items are the field—and so too the treasure. It follows then, that the hidden treasure is us.

Just like the man in the parable who had joy over the treasure, Jesus had joy that enabled him to endure his suffering on the cross (Hebrews 12:2), knowing he was doing the will of the Father, redeeming us, and restoring us to fellowship with him. We are Jesus’ treasures, and he takes immense joy in each one of us.

If the field is the world and we are the treasure, did Jesus just happen to find us? Did he stumble across us by accident? Or maybe he had to search really hard to find us? No. Jesus has always known where the treasure is.

Trying To Hide

From the beginning, people have tried to hide… from God, from others, from circumstances, from callings. Adam & Eve hid from God after they sinned. Still, God still sought them out. Even though he asked, “Where are you?”—he knew right where they were. God saw Hagar when she fled from Sarah’s wrath into the wilderness. It was there that she encountered God, and she called him El Roiy, “The God Who Sees Me.” Gideon—the least of the least family—hid from the enemy in a winepress threshing wheat, but God saw him and knew he was a warrior to deliver Israel. God saw Saul among the luggage where he’d tried to hide from his calling as king. God saw Jonah hiding from his calling in the hold of a ship. Jesus saw Peter—who probably feeling lost and ashamed—tried to hide himself in his old work of fishing.

Unseen, Forgotten, Insignificant

Sometimes people aren’t trying to hide, but they may feel unseen, forgotten, or insignificant in their life circumstances. Leah found herself the least favored of two wives. Yet God saw her, and she would become an ancestor of David and Jesus. God saw Joseph when he was in the depths of prison and blessed him there—eventually calling him out to help rule Egypt and save his family from a great famine. God saw the young widow, Ruth, gleaning wheat in a strange country to support herself and her mother-in-law. She also came to be an ancestor of David and of Jesus. God saw David—the youngest of eight sons—out in the fields watching over the sheep by himself, and called him from there to be king. Before he met Nathanael, Jesus saw him sitting under a fig tree and knew that he was a man of integrity.

There are seeming endless examples of people in the Bible who either tried to hide from God or who may have felt unseen, forgotten, or insignificant. Just as he saw those people then, God sees each and every one of us here and now.

Known

Jesus knows where we are and what we’re about, because he created each and every one of us. He planned everything about us long before we were conceived (Ephesians 1:4). He even planned when and where we would live (Acts 17:26-28).

Lord, you know everything there is to know about me… You formed my innermost being, shaping my delicate inside and my intricate outside… How thoroughly you know me, Lord! …carefully, skillfully you shaped me from nothing to something. You saw who you created me to be before I became me! Psalms 139:1,13-16 TPT

Always With Us

He knows where we are, and he is always with us. Before he went back to heaven, Jesus said that he would always be with us—every day—even until the very end of the ages (Matthew 28:20). Hebrews 13:5 is a quote about him saying that he will never leave or forsake us.

Lord, you know everything there is to know about me… You know every step I will take before my journey even begins. You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past… Every single moment you are thinking of me! How precious and wonderful to consider that you cherish me constantly in your every thought! Psalm 139:1,4b-12,17 TPT

God not only knows where we are and is always with us, but his Spirit also comes to live in us when we accept Jesus as our Savior. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says that we are the temple of God and his Spirit dwells in us.

Can’t Hide From God

If he is always with us and is in us, it is obvious that we cannot hide from God.

Where could I go from your Spirit? Where could I run and hide from your face? If I go up to heaven, you’re there! If I go down to the realm of the dead, you’re there too! If I fly with wings into the shining dawn, you’re there! If I fly into the radiant sunset, you’re there waiting! Wherever I go, your hand will guide me; your strength will empower me. It’s impossible to disappear from you or to ask the darkness to hide me, for your presence is everywhere, bringing light into my night. There is no such thing as darkness with you. The night, to you, is as bright as the day; there’s no difference between the two. Psalm 139:5-12 TPT

The field is the world, you are the treasure, and Jesus is the man who finds the treasure and buys the field where it is hidden. Jesus doesn’t need a treasure map to find you… Jesus knows where the treasure is!

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.