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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Mat_13:36-43
36Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field." 37And He said, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, 38and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one; 39and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels. 40So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. 41The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness,42 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."
Mat_13:36-43 This was Jesus' interpretation of the parable of Mat_13:24-30 given in private to the disciples.
Mat_13:37 "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man" These parables relate to both Jesus as God's Messiah, who brings life and truth, and the gospel message as the content of that truth. God's truth is both a person (sower) and a message (seed).
Mat_13:38 "the field is the world" This is a key for understanding these parables. It is not the Church but the world (cf. Mat_13:47). Only the parable of the sower seems to deal with those who have heard the gospel message and even then it could refer to (1) Palestine of Jesus' day or (2) the places where the gospel was preached (i.e., the world, cf. Mat_28:19; Luk_24:46; Act_1:8).
▣ "the sons of the kingdom. . .the sons of the evil one"
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Mat_13:39-40 "the end of the age" This is an eschatological setting. The kingdom is both "already" but "not yet," as is judgment.
▣ "fire" See Special Topic at Mat_3:12.
Mat_13:41 This is a partial quote from Zec_1:3. Notice that in this verse the Kingdom is called "His kingdom." There are several places where the kingdom is attributed to the Son (cf. Mat_16:28; Luk_22:30; Luk_23:42; Joh_18:36; 2Ti_4:1; 2Ti_4:18). There are also several places where the kingdom is attributed to both the Father and the Son (cf. Mat_13:43; Eph_5:5; Rev_11:15).
The kingdom of the Son is not temporal (Joh_18:36), but eternal (cf. Dan_7:14; Luk_1:33; 2Ti_4:18; 2Pe_1:11). See Frank Stagg, New Testament Theology, pp. 164-165.
Mat_13:42 See note at Mat_8:12. See Special Topic: Where Are the Dead? at Mat_5:22.
Mat_13:43 "shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father" This was similar to the statements of Dan_12:3.
▣ "He who has ears, let him hear" Those whom God has allowed to understand the gospel must respond to it now! This cryptic phrase occurs many times in the NT (cf. Mat_11:15; Mat_13:9; Mat_13:43; Mar_4:9; Mar_4:23; Luk_8:8; Luk_14:35; Rev_2:7; Rev_2:11; Rev_2:29; Rev_3:6; Rev_3:13; Rev_3:22; Rev_13:9). These parables strike a note of urgency in the immediate need to hear, trust and respond to Him, and respond now!