First, Matthew has Jesus change the focus of this Sukkoth celebration from gratitude for the harvest that feeds one’s body, to the idea of heavenly food that satisfies one’s deepest hunger as one journeys to the messianic age. The harvest itself has been transformed into a symbol for the final judgment. The theme of these parables is not the meaning of Jesus, but the need for the expansion of the Christian movement. As such, these parables address the concerns of the early Christian church and thus must have originated in that period of history when the growth of the church was a primary
...more
