Seder 93: Luke 13:6-9---The Parable of the Unproductive Fig Tree

 In the parable of Luke 13:6-9, a man has a fig tree in his vineyard that has not borne fruit for three years.  When he asks his vinedresser to cut it down, the vinedresser recommends giving the tree one more year while he applies some additional fertilizer.  

In Luke's narrative, the parable appears right after a discussion of people in Judea and Galilee who have suffered misfortune.  Jesus explains that those people were not worse than anyone else; they had not been singled out for punishment.  But anyone who did not repent would be subject to judgment.  

The parable reminds us of John the Baptist's words in Luke 3:9 as part of his call to repentance:  "Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

The context of the parable in Luke 13 and some elements of the parable suggest that the parable is, at least in part, saying something about national judgment.  Certainly a fig tree and a vineyard can be symbols for Israel in the prophets (Isa 5:1-7; Jer 24:1-8; Hosea 9:10; Micah 7:1).. 

It is possible, though, to take the search for symbolism too far, trying to find some kind of symbolic meaning in every detail of the parable.  This is a hermeneutic inappropriate for the parable genre.  Scholar Allan W. Martens gives an example, noting that some have stretched things too far in proposing that

• vineyard = Israel
• fig tree = Jerusalem
• vinedresser = Jesus
• three years = Jesus' ministry

But we can say that the parable is about the need for repentance, a message applicable to all readers of the parable.   

In a sermon at Church of the Messiah on November 22, 2025, Kyle Kettering asked another question about the parable:  Is the parable implying that the interceding vinedresser is more merciful than the fig tree's owner?  In other words, is the one symbolized by the vinedresser more merciful than God?  

Certainly the answer is no.  Those who have played the intercessory role, like Abraham (Ge 18:23-33), Moses (Ex 32:10-12), and Jesus (Lk 23:34), do so because God is merciful (Lk 6:35-36).  Kyle urged us to bear fruit and help others to do so.  

Seder 93: Leviticus 19:23-25----More on "Uncircumcised" Fruit

  When the Israelites planted a new tree in the Promised Land, they were not to eat any fruit that happened to grow during the first three years.  This initial fruit was considered to be "uncircumcised."  

The adjective "uncircumcised" (Hebrew arel) is applied in a figurative way to several things in the Bible:

• fruit (Lev 19:23);
• lips (Ex 6:12, 30);
• hearts (Lev 26:41; Jer 9:26; Eze 44:7, 9);
• ears (Jer 6:10).

In each case there is some "blockage" that needs to be removed or improvement that needs to be carried out. 

Jewish teacher Sharon Rimon relates a midrash in which a Roman official asks Rabbi Akiva why boys are not born circumcised.  Akiva observes that there are a number of instances where God gives people things to do.  He gives us grain, from which we make bread; he gives us flax, from which we make linen, etc.  In general, God gives us these things to do so that we can be partners with him in creation and grow in the process.  

Seder 93: Lev 20---More on Holy Living in the Promised land

 Leviticus 20 repeats much material that is already recorded in Lev 18 on forbidden sexual unions.  In describing the difference between the two chapters, commentators often point out that the laws in Lev 18 are apodictic ("don't do x"), while those in Lev 20 are casuistic ("if someone does x, then .....).  

A number of the cases in Lev 20 mention the death penalty.  In such cases, we should keep several things in mind.  

It is often pointed out that the Hebrew word "Torah" means "instruction" rather than law, but in reading the Pentateuch, we still have a tendency to revert to things familiar from our own culture.  So it's helpful to remember that chapters like Lev 20 are not part of an "Israelite Revised Criminal Code".  Ancient Israel did not have jails or a police force.  There wasn't a vice squad that hauled in sex offenders to be executed. 

The punishments mentioned in connection with various offenses in the Pentateuch express how serious these offenses are to God.  The penalties mentioned are maximum penalties, not required ones, except in the case of first-degree murder (as implied by Num 35:31).  And in practice, the death penalty was not often carried out in Israel, as far as we know, partly because there was a high bar for the evidence required to  convict someone of a capital crime.  

Seder 93: Lev 19---Fruit Trees, Fig Trees, the Cross, and the Tree of Life

 Leviticus 19:23-25 gives instructions about the planting of fruit trees in the Promised Land.  During the first three years a tree would be considered "uncircumcised"---not yet dedicated to God--and any buds that developed would be broken off.  The fourth year's production would be the "firstfruits" from that tree and would be donated to the tabernacle or temple.  The planter would begin to enjoy the fruit in the fifth year.  

Behind these instructions seems to the be principle that God is the owner of everything and the provider of all our food.  Commentators also observe that the instructions make horticultural sense.  The tree will be a better producer in the long run if it its buds are broken off during the first three years.  

In a sermon at Church of the Messiah on February 26, 2022, Rob Wilson noted a connection between Lev 19:23-25 and Jesus' parable of the fig tree in Luke 13:6-9.  In both Leviticus and the parable, a five-year time frame is envisioned.  The implication seems to be that disciples of Jesus, like trees in the Promised Land, should be producing fruit within five years. 

Another important biblical fruit tree is the tree of life, which was briefly available in the Garden of Eden and will be available again in a future new Eden.  In the letter to the church at Ephesus in Rev 2:7, God promises, "To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."  The Greek word for "tree" here is xylon, a word elsewhere used for the cross (Acts 5:30; 10:39; 13:29).  Here we get a hint that the cross is a tree of life (HT:  William Grissom).