Thoughts on The Narrow Gate and Broad Gate using Scripture to interpret Itself.
By Tuese Ahkiong
The Narrow Gate is Jesus,
The Broad Gate is Judaism/ The Law.
The timing of this is the 1st Century.
The Judgment/Harvest would fall upon that generation in 70 A.D.
30-70A.D. were the last days and that generation of 40 years Christ was addressing!
Matt 7
13"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.
14"For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
15"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
21"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
**Below, notice Luke's account of how Jesus was going through towns and villages to Jerusalem. This is the context of who He is addressing about the narrow and broad gate.
Luke 13
22Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?"
He said to them, 24"Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, 'Sir, open the door for us.' "But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where you come from.'
26"Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.'
27"But he will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!'
28"There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out.29People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 30Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last."
***The historical context and audience relevance are those whom Yeshua ate and drank with and taught in their streets.
Notice how entering the narrow gate brings one into the feast in the kingdom of God. When was the feast? When was the door shut? 70AD at the destruction of Jerusalem.
This is the wedding supper of the lamb and His bride, the church which takes place after the destruction of Jerusalem.
MATTHEW 8 -
5 When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, 6 “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” 7 And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.”8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.9 For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.
**This is the same banquet as the wedding supper of the lamb. The sons of the kingdom in this context are the old covenant jews.
Matthew 22:
And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son,3 and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. 4 Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ 5 But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,6 while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.7 The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ 10 And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. 12 And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.”
***The city of Jerusalem was burned in 70AD by God using His servants, The Roman Army.
Matthew 25:1-13 Parable of Ten Virgins
1"Then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins, who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
2"Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.
3"For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,
4but the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.
5"Now while the bridegroom was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.
6"But at midnight there was a shout, 'Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'
7"Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.
8"The foolish said to the prudent, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
9"But the prudent answered, 'No, there will not be enough for us and you too; go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.'
10"And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut.
11"Later the other virgins also came, saying, 'Lord, lord, open up for us.'
12"But he answered, 'Truly I say to you, I do not know you.'
13"Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.
***They didn't know the day or the hour but they knew the generation; their generation. Matt 24:34
Matt 8
5And when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him,
6and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented."
7Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."
8But the centurion said, "Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.
9"For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it."
10Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, "Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.
11"I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven;
12but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be WEEPING AND GNASHING of teeth."
13And Jesus said to the centurion, "Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed that very moment.
***Notice how Matt 8:11-12 corresponds with Luke 13:28-29 above in that the nations are coming into the kingdom and the unbelieving Jews are cast out into outer darkness.
MATT 13
24Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, " The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.25"But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.26"But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. 27"The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' 28"And he said to them, 'An enemy has done this!' The slaves said to him, 'Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?' 29"But he said, 'No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.
30'Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn."'"
[*The harvest was at the end of the age, the end of the Jewish / old covenant age which ended in 70AD.]
The Mustard Seed
31He presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like (a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field;
32and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES."
[Daniel 4:10 The visions of my head as I lay in bed were these: I saw, and behold, a tree in the midst of the earth, and its height was great. 11 The tree grew and became strong, and its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth. 12 Its leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, and the birds of the heavens lived in its branches, and all flesh was fed from it.
*This is poetic language describing the growth and provisions of a kingdom.]
The Leaven
33He spoke another parable to them, "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in ()three pecks of flour until it was all leavened."
34All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable.
35This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: "I WILL OPEN MY MOUTH IN PARABLES; I WILL UTTER THINGS HIDDEN SINCE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD."
The Tares Explained
36Then He left the crowds and went into )the house And His disciples came to Him and said, "(Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field."
37And He said, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, 38and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one;39and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels.
40"So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at )the end of the age.41The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness,
42and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
43"Then THE RIGHTEOUS WILL SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the kingdom of their Father He who has ears, let him hear.
[Daniel 12:“At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book. 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, shut up the words andseal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”
5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream. 6 And someone said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, “How long shall it be till the end of these wonders?” 7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; he raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and swore by him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time, and that when the shattering of the power ofthe holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished.
*Yeshua says the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom. Daniel is told it would happen, the wise shining like the brightness of the sky... at the shattering of the power of the holy people. The holy people of Daniel's time were the Jews. Their power was shattered at the destruction of the Temple in 70AD. This is when the Resurrection took place and God had a new people, born from above, made up of Jew and gentile.]
Hidden Treasure
44" The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
A Costly Pearl
45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls,46and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
A Dragnet
47"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; 48and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away.
49"So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous,50and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51"Have you understood all these things?" They said to Him, "Yes."
52And Jesus said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old."
*"The end of the age" is NOT the end of the Christian age but the Jewish Age or Old Covenant Age. The NT speaks of the end of the age and last days being present when The Bible writers were penning Scripture.
Matthew 22:13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be WEEPING AND GNASHING of teeth.'
Matthew 24:51 and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be WEEPING AND GNASHING of teeth.
Matthew 25:30 "Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be WEEPING AND GNASHING of teeth.
Luke 13:28 " In that place there will be WEEPING AND GNASHING of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out.
Matthew 7:22 " [Matt 25:11; Luke 13:25-ff] Many will say to Me on [Matt 10:15] THAT DAY, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
Matthew 24:36 "But [Mark 13:32; Acts 1:7] of THAT DAY and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
Matthew 26:29 "But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until THAT DAY when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom."
Mark 13:32 " [Matt 24:36; Acts 1:7] But of THAT DAY or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
Mark 14:25 (Whole Chapter) "Truly I say to you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until THAT DAY when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."
Luke 6:23 (Whole Chapter) "Be glad in THAT DAY and [Mal 4] leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven For [2 Chr 36:16; Acts 7:52] in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.
Luke 10:12 "I say to you, [Gen 19:24-28; Matt 10:15; 11:24] it will be more tolerable in THAT DAY for [Matt 10:15] Sodom than for that city.
Luke 17:31 "On THAT DAY, the one who is [Matt 24:17, 18; Mark 13:15; Luke 21:21] on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back.
Luke 21:34 ( " [Matt 24:42-44; Mark 4:19; Luke 12:40, 45; 1 Thess 5:2-ff] Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and THAT DAY will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
John 14:20 " [John 16:23, 26] In THAT DAY you will know that [John 10:38; 14:11] I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.
John 16:23 [ Prayer Promises ] " [John 14:20; 16:26] In THAT DAY [John 16:19, 30] you will not question Me about anything Truly, truly, I say to you, [John 15:16] if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.
John 16:26 " [John 14:20; 16:23] In THAT DAY [John 16:19, 30] you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf;
2 Thessalonians 1:10 when He comes to be [Is 49:3; John 17:10; 1 Thess 2:12] glorified in His saints on that [Is 2:11-ff; 1 Cor 3:13] day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed--for our [1 Cor 1:6; 1 Thess 2:1] testimony to you was believed.
2 Timothy 1:12 For this reason I also suffer these things, but [2 Tim 1:8, 16] I am not ashamed; for I know [Titus 3:8] whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to [1 Tim 6:20; 2 Tim 1:14] guard what I have entrusted to Him until [1 Cor 1:8; 3:13; 2 Tim 1:18; 4:8] THAT DAY.
2 Timothy 1:18 the Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on [1 Cor 1:8; 3:13; 2 Tim 1:12; 4:8] THAT DAY--and you know very well what services he rendered at [Acts 18:19; 1 Tim 1:3] Ephesus.
2 Timothy 4:8 in the future there [Col 1:5; 1 Pet 1:4] is laid up for me [1 Cor 9:25; 2 Tim 2:5; James 1:12] the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on [2 Tim 1:12] THAT DAY; and not only to me, but also to [Phil 3:11] all who have loved His [2 Tim 4:1] appearing.
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