The Parables of Our Lord

The Parables of Our Lord, by
William Arnot

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Title: The Parables of Our Lord
Author: William Arnot
Release Date: May 5, 2007 [EBook #21328]
Language: English
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THE PARABLES OF OUR LORD.

WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR.
I.
NEW EDITION, COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME,
LAWS FROM HEAVEN FOR LIFE ON EARTH: Illustrations of the
Book of Proverbs. Crown 8vo, cloth. Price 7s. 6d.
II.
ROOTS AND FRUITS OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. Crown 8vo. Price
7s. 6d.
III.
THE RACE FOR RICHES, AND SOME OF THE PITS INTO
WHICH THE RUNNERS FALL. Foolscap 8vo. Price 1s. 6d.

T. NELSON AND SONS. LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW
YORK

THE
PARABLES

OF
OUR LORD.
By the
REV. WILLIAM ARNOT.
LONDON: T. NELSON AND SONS, PATERNOSTER ROW;
EDINBURGH; AND NEW YORK.
1874.

CONTENTS.
Page INTRODUCTION, 11
I. The Sower, 43
II. The Tares, 75
III. The Mustard Seed, 101
IV. The Leaven, 111
V. The Hidden Treasure, 128
VI. The Pearl, 144
VII. The Draw-Net, 160
VIII. The Unmerciful Servant, 185
IX. The Vineyard Labourers, 204
X. The Two Sons, 223
XI. The Wicked Husbandmen, 237

XII. The Royal Marriage Feast, 254
XIII. The Ten Virgins, 282
XIV. The Entrusted Talents, 299
XV. The Seed Growing Secretly, 312
XVI. The Two Debtors, 326
XVII. The Good Samaritan, 341
XVIII. The Friend at Midnight, 357
XIX. The Rich Fool, 369
XX. The Barren Fig-Tree, 378
XXI. The Excuses, 387
XXII. The Lost Sheep, 402
XXIII. The Lost Coin, 422
XXIV. The Prodigal Son, 427
XXV. The Prudent Steward, 451
XXVI. The Rich Man and Lazarus, 465
XXVII. Unprofitable Servants, 483
XXVIII. The Importunate Widow, 497
XXIX. The Pharisee and the Publican, 509
XXX. The Servants and the Pounds, 520

INTRODUCTION.
We have been accustomed to regard with affectionate veneration the
life-work of the Reformers, and the theology of the Reformation. Of a
later date, and in our own vernacular, we have inherited from the
Puritans an indigenous theology, great in quantity and precious in
kind,--a legacy that has enriched our age more, perhaps, than the age is
altogether willing to acknowledge. At various periods from the time of
the Puritans to the present, our stock of sacred literature has received
additions of incalculable value. So vast and varied have our stores
become at length, that an investigator of the present day can scarcely
expect to find a neglected spot where he may enjoy the luxury of
cultivating virgin soil: so ably, moreover, have our predecessors
fulfilled their tasks, that a modern inquirer, obliged to deal with
familiar themes, cannot console himself with the expectation of dealing
with them to better purpose. It does not follow, however, that a
contribution to the literature of theology is useless, because it neither
touches a new theme, nor treats an old more ably.
The literature of one century, whether sacred or common, will not,
when served up in the lump, satisfy the craving and sustain the life of
another. The nineteenth century must produce its own literature, as it
raises its own corn, and fabricates its own garments. The intellectual
and spiritual treasures of the past should indeed be reverently preserved
and used; but they should be used as seed. Instead of indolently living
on the stores which our fathers left, we should cast them into the
ground, and get the product fresh every season--old, and yet ever new.
The intellectual and spiritual life of an age will wither, if it has nothing
wherewith to sustain itself, but the food which grew in an earlier era; it
must live on the fruits that grow in its own time, and under its own eye.
Nor will a servile imitation