THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT HASHMAL: CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 8

¹And it came to pass, that Ajora walked upon the hills and valleys of the land, and great multitudes followed Him, for His word was as a fountain of living water to their thirsty souls.
²And He spake unto them in parables, teaching them the mysteries of the Kingdom of the Father, that they might hear and understand according to their hearts.
³He said therefore, “Hearken, O ye children of men, and give ear unto My words.”
⁴“The Kingdom of the Light is like unto a man who sowed seed in his field.”
⁵“And while he slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat.”
⁶“But when the blade sprang up and brought forth fruit, the tares appeared also.”
⁷“Then the servants of the man came, and said unto him, ‘Master, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it tares?’”
⁸“He answered them, ‘An enemy hath done this.’ And the servants said unto him, ‘Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?’”
⁹“But he said, ‘Nay; lest while ye gather the tares, ye root up also the wheat.’”
¹⁰“Let both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say unto the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”
¹¹And His disciples came unto Him, and asked the meaning of this parable.
¹²And He said unto them, “He that soweth the good seed is the Son of Man.”
¹³“The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the evil one.”
¹⁴“The enemy that sowed them is the adversary, and the harvest is the end of the age.”
¹⁵“The reapers are the messengers of the Almighty, who shall separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire.”
¹⁶And Ajora spake again unto them, saying, “Again I tell you, the Kingdom of the Heavens is like unto a grain of seed, which a man took and sowed in his field.”
¹⁷“Which indeed is the least of all seeds, but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.”
¹⁸And He said, “So also shall the Kingdom grow from small beginnings to vast dominion, sheltering many beneath its shadow.”
¹⁹Another parable He spoke, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.”
²⁰And the disciples marvelled, and asked Him, “Why speakest Thou unto the people in parables?”
²¹And Ajora answered, “Because unto thee it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of the Heavens, but to them that are without, all things are spoken in parables.”
²²“That seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand, lest they should be converted, and their sins forgiven them.”
²³And He opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and He expounded unto them the meaning of the parables.
²⁴“The sower soweth the word of the Father.”
²⁵“Some receive it by the wayside, and the evil one cometh and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.”
²⁶“Some receive it on stony places, where they have not much earth; and forthwith they receive it with joy.”
²⁷“But they have no root in themselves, and endure but a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, immediately they stumble.”
²⁸“Some receive it among thorns; and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.”
²⁹“But they that receive the seed into good ground, are they which hear the word and understand it.”
³⁰“These bring forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
³¹And Ajora spake many other parables, that He might reveal the mysteries of the Kingdom in forms easy to remember and hard to forget.
³²He said, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a treasure hid in a field; which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.”
³³“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls.”
³⁴“Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.”
³⁵And He said unto them, “Many that are called shall not be chosen, for the Kingdom is given to such as bring forth the fruits thereof.”
³⁶And He exhorted them to watch and pray, that they enter not into temptation, for the evil one goeth about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
³⁷“Take heed therefore, and be sober; for thy adversary Amphisbaena, as a serpent, hath gone out into the world to deceive the nations.”
³⁸And many who heard Him marvelled at His wisdom, and said, “Never spake any one like this man.”
³⁹Yet some hardened their hearts, and took offence at His words, for they desired a kingdom of power and glory, not a kingdom of humility and truth.
⁴⁰And He said unto them, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of the Light.”
⁴¹“Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
⁴²“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit Ivalice.”
⁴³“Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.”
⁴⁴“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”
⁴⁵“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see the Father.”
⁴⁶“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”
⁴⁷“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of the Heavens.”
⁴⁸And Ajora taught them to love their enemies, to do good to those who hated them, and to pray for those who despitefully used them.
⁴⁹“For if ye love them which love thee, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?”
⁵⁰“But love thy enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and thy reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Most High.”
⁵¹“For He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain upon the just and upon the unjust.”
⁵²And thus Ajora revealed the nature of the Kingdom: not of might and vengeance, but of mercy, truth, and everlasting peace.
⁵³And many who heard were astonished, and followed Him with gladness, while others turned away in bitterness and scorn.
⁵⁴But Ajora continued teaching, and healing, and preparing His disciples for the days that were to come.
⁵⁵And His word spread throughout the land, as a fire in dry stubble, lighting many hearts with hope.
⁵⁶Thus was fulfilled the promise that He should speak in parables, that the wise might understand, and the simple be made wise.

▷THE SEVEN SCRIPTURES OF THE CHURCH OF GLABADOS
    ▷THE HOLY GOSPEL OF OUR LORD, SAINT AJORA
        ▷THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT HASHMAL
            ▶1—2—3—4—5—6—7—8—9—10—11—12—13

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