The Reason Jesus Used Parables (Mark 4:10-12)

“But when He [Jesus] was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. And He said to them, ‘To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables,so that ‘Seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand; lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them’” (Mark 4:10-12).

Calvinists claim this passage proves God does not want all people to be saved. That’s why Jesus spoke in parables, so that certain people—the non-elect—would not understand and be saved. Are Calvinist right about this, or are they completely missing the point of the passage?

The Fuller Context

Admittedly, if one just reads Mark 4:10-12, then the Calvinist interpretation seems plausible. However, we can be sure that interpretation is incorrect by (1) reading Matthew’s longer account of the conversation, and (2) understanding the passage Jesus quoted.

Here’s how Matthew 13’s longer account reads:

“And the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ He answered and said to them, ‘Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.’” (Matt. 13:10-15).

Parables Act as Judgment

To understand why Jesus used parables, it helps to consider Jesus’ statement: “For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him” (Matt. 13:12).

Those who “have” refers to the faithful. Jesus described these as “good ground” (Matt. 13:8). The faithful are blessed with wisdom to understand greater spiritual truths. As Jesus said, “whoever has, to him more will be given.”

Those who “have not,” on the other hand, refers to the wicked; and Jesus said even what little they had will be taken away—in judgment. Parables act as a judgment on the wicked, as Jesus makes clear in saying, “Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand” (Matt. 13:13).

Isaiah 6:9-10

Jesus then quotes Isaiah:

“And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them’” (Matt. 13:14-15; quoted from Isaiah 6:9-10).

The reason Jesus quoted this passage is because the wicked people in his day were just like the wicked in Isaiah’s day. They had “closed their eyes” to God’s truth, and their “hearts had grown dull” because of their willful, repeated sinning. Thus, they could no longer understand spiritual truth.

That’s what willful, repeated sin does. It makes one’s heart callous to sin. Eventually, the person won’t even recognize he is sinning (because he’s so used to it). And once someone doesn’t understand he is sinning, he won’t repent; and, therefore, God won’t heal/save him. (God doesn’t heal/save unrepentant people—see Acts 2:37-38.)

This was the state of many in Jesus’ day, which is why he quoted Isaiah.

Conclusion: The reason Jesus spoke in parables is not because he didn’t want to save the non-elect, as Calvinists claim. God does not wish that any would perish but that all would come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9)! Rather, the reason Jesus spoke in parables was because it was a judgment on those who had willfully and repeatedly chosen to reject God. Their hearts had grown dull, and thus would not repent—so that God would heal/save them.

By Alex Polyak, Answering Calvinism, 10/11/26