Who is the Merchant Who Finds Fine Pearls in Matthew 13?
📰The Bible is one of the best-selling and most widely distributed books in history, yet it is also considered to be among the least understood. The Bible, which is referred to as the New Covenant and Promise of God, in which 'the way to heaven and salvation' is presented, differs in theologians' interpretations that make it difficult to understand. These differing interpretations have been the cause of the rise of denominations with each one establishing their own doctrine. With the increase in online church services and gatherings resulting from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, there has been growing interest in the comparison of various church doctrine. This paper, therefore, attempts to provide readers with the opportunity to compare differing Biblical teachings without interpretation. Among a host of online sermons and Bible-based teachings, the contrasting doctrine between the established Church and Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which has drawn public interest throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, is hereby compared and summarised. Best efforts have been made to provide a summary of Shincheonji Church of Jesus' understanding of the Bible. Judgment as to what is right or wrong is left to the reader’s discernment.
"A fine pearl is the word of truth. The merchant who finds fine pearls is a person who seeks the truth"
Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony
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The pearl in the parable recorded in Matthew 13 is God's word of truth. Since God's word promises, above all else, the kingdom of heaven and eternal life, in Psalm 12 (Psalm 12:6) God likens His word to treasure - that is, precious gold, silver and pearls.
In Proverbs 3 and 20, God said that wisdom cannot be compared to anything more precious than pearls. Therefore, wisdom is the word of God. In Deuteronomy 28 and 33, the rain and dew of heaven are called 'bounty', 'precious' and 'the best'. This is because, according to the physical order of things, water is as precious as treasure.
However, in Deuteronomy 32, the rain and dew from heaven is not literal water, but words and teachings - that is, the word of God.
Therefore, the treasures and pearls spoken of in the Bible have an incredibly important spiritual meaning which represent the unchanging truth of God's word. Who is the merchant looking for fine pearls? In this parable, the fine pearls represent the word. It refers to a person who thirsts and seeks after the word of truth. Therefore, the spiritual merchants are evangelists and pastors who spread the word.
What does it mean that he sells all that he had and buys the field? It means that this person came upon God's supreme Word of truth and threw away the false knowledge and his own understanding of the Bible that he had until then, and instead accepted and followed the word of truth. Possessing the truth is to possess heaven. It is like Apostle Paul, who met Jesus, received the greatest revealed word of truth, which he regarded as valuable as life, and then threw away the law he considered excrement.
The fine pearls at the first coming of Jesus was the word of revelation that had been fulfilled according to the prophecies of the Old Testament. Hearing these words, they threw away their knowledge and followed the words that Jesus testified. Jesus came to them, selling what he had, and they bought pearls. This is what it meant to possess heaven at the first coming.
The fine pearls at the Second Coming of the Lord is the word of revelation that is being fulfilled according to the prophecies of the Book of Revelation of the New Testament. To come to the messenger Jesus sent, who is the promised pastor of new heaven new earth, in order to listen to and learn the word of the fulfilment of Revelation of the New Testament, is to abandon one's knowledge and buy pearls of great value. This is what it means to possess heaven at the Second Coming.
Conversely, in Revelation 17, a great Prostitute riding on a beast with seven heads and ten horns is said to be adorned with gold, precious stones and pearls. This Prostitute is a figurative (spiritual) woman, referring to a false pastor who received Satan's seed of lies and united with Satan. Her name is called Babylon.
Why is this Prostitute named Babylon? The reason why this prostitute is likened to Babylon in the Old Testament is because, like Babylon in the old days, she is a land of foreign demons who destroy the chosen people, and is the dwelling place of demons. It is written that this group belonging to the prostitute entered the tabernacle of heaven in Revelation 13 and destroyed not only the chosen people, but also all nations.
With what pearls is this Prostitute adorned? Just as the spiritual pearl is the Word, the pearls in Revelation 17 is not God's word of truth, but Satan's doctrine, which is lies. 'To be adorned' means to cherish lies as if they were pearls, and to brag about it. Words that are not according to the Bible are fake pearls.
In Matthew 7, a command is given not to give holy or sacred things, or pearls, to dogs and pigs. Why is this said? In the parables of 2 Peter 2 and Isaiah 56, we see that the dogs and pigs are the lost shepherds.
They are like dogs that return to their vomit and pigs that return to dirty places after being washed. In other words, they represent pastors who received a duty and the word of truth from God, but who then betrayed like Balaam and acted out of their own pride and greed. The command not to throw away one's pearls to dogs and pigs means to not share the word of life to pastors who betray. This is because, just as dogs and pigs trample on pearls without understanding their value, there can be pastors who do not understand the true value of God's Word and trample all over it.
In summary, fine pearls are the word of truth, and the merchants who seek fine pearls are those who seek the truth, or evangelists. To buy a pearl of great value means to throw away one's false knowledge of the Bible, and accept the greatest word of truth and go to heaven.
Today, when the promised Revelation is being fulfilled, this pearl can only be obtained through one pastor who has seen and heard the reality of the promised fulfilment, and delivers this reality. Moreover, only those who possess the word of truth from God will enter the kingdom of heaven and will shine like pearls forever.
"A fine pearl is churchgoers and the church. The one who buys pearls is God"
Korean Church
Pastor A of the Presbyterian Church
"God is the one who seeks for fine pearls, and the good pearls are the saints. Selling everything that he had and buying it is a metaphor to say that he gave up his only begotten son and bought us. This was God's great salvation that saves our lives."
Pastor B of the Presbyterian Church
"Pearls are sacrifices which cover our shame. If you put something like shard into a shell and make a cut, the sap comes out. Isn't this a pearl that is hardened? Yes. That very precious pearl, Jesus, was wounded on the cross. covered in blood. That means to find it and buy it. In Acts 20:28, what does it say that God's blood bought? What was bought is the church. The pearl of great value is the church. What was it bought with? It was bought with the blood of God, the blood of Jesus."
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