{"id":1687,"date":"2016-03-17T16:31:03","date_gmt":"2016-03-17T21:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/?page_id=1687"},"modified":"2025-08-18T07:12:59","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T12:12:59","slug":"symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/thewaywesee.com\/religiondetoxnetwork\/mystery\/symbols-signs-types-copies-shadows-and-patterns","title":{"rendered":"Symbols, Signs, Types, Parables, Allegories, Copies, and Shadows"},"content":{"rendered":"

MORE THAN THE NATURAL EYE CAN SEE OR MIND CAN UNDERSTAND<\/strong>
\nIn God’s wisdom, he has seen fit to load the Bible with mysteries<\/a> and symbolism. Mysteries in the Bible are found in its symbols<\/a>, parables<\/a>, signs<\/a>, types<\/a>, allegories<\/a>, copies<\/a> and shadows<\/a>.<\/p>\n

STUDY TIPS:<\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of symbols.<\/a><\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of signs<\/a><\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of types and figures<\/a>.<\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of allegories and figures of speech<\/a>.<\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of copies and shadows<\/a>.<\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of patterns<\/a>.<\/p>\n

See this link for discussion of the sign of Jonah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Greek word “Parabole” is always translated as parable in English. Looking at the definition of\u00a0Parabole<\/a> we see that it means to place one thing beside another or to compare one thing to another. In the bible, parables always compare physical things or acts that can be seen to spiritual things or actions that cannot be seen.<\/p>\n

We begin, therefore with a few scriptures about parables:<\/p>\n

Matthew 13:3<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;<\/p>\n

COMMENTARY: The Greek word “polus” translated here as “many” is also translated as “majority” and “most” in other scriptures.<\/p>\n

STUDY TIP: See this link for understanding of the parable of the sower.<\/a><\/p>\n

COMMENTARY: Here Jesus compares a farmer sowing his field with physical seed to God sowing spiritual seeds through his servants. The spiritual seeds are God’s spoken words spoken through Jesus and other messiahs.<\/p>\n

It is impossible to interpret the literal words of the parable of the sower in a way that is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness<\/a>. But, people who can hear God’s spoken voice will understand the deep, hidden meanings of this and other parables.<\/p>\n

Matthew 13:13<\/span><\/a> This is why I speak to them in parables:\u00a0<\/span>\u201cThough seeing, they do not see;\u00a0<\/span>though hearing, they do not hear or understand.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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COMMENTARY: This is Jesus telling religious people that he always speaks in parables. This means that everything Jesus said and all stories about him are parables.<\/div>\n
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Jesus also says, in effect, that religious people who are spiritually blind and spiritually deaf always interpret his words and bible stories as parables — not as spiritual truth that will be profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness<\/a> to them personally.<\/p>\n

In other words, the understanding of religious people who insist on interpreting the words and stories of the bible literally will be limited to the physical things and acts. Furthermore, religious people will not understand the invisible, spiritual meanings of those literal words and stories because they cannot hear God’s words explaining the spiritual meaning to their hearts S<\/p>\n

STUDY TIPS: See this link<\/a> to understand spiritual blindness and see this link<\/a> to understand spiritual deafness.<\/p>\n

MORE COMMENTARY: When Jesus says that people don’t see, or hear or understand, he is not talking about their ability to see, hear and understand with their natural, human eyes, ears and minds. Rather, he is referring to the failure of religious people to see, hear and understand the spiritual meaning of bible stories with their hearts.<\/p>\n

In the example of the so-called miracle at Cana, all religious people can see and understand is a physical miracle. They do not understand that the story of the transformation of water to wine is a parable in the same sense that Jesus’ words are parables that reveal spiritual truth through human words. In other words, religious people who are spiritually blind and spiritually deaf can only interpret the Cana story as a physical miracle and cannot understand the spiritual meaning of the events in the story.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Matthew<\/strong> 13:31-<\/b><\/span>33 <\/b><\/span>He told them another parable:\u00a0\u201cThe kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.\u00a0<\/span>32Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>33\u00a0He told them still another parable: \u201cThe kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds<\/span>\u00a0of flour until it worked all through the dough.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

COMMENTARY: When Jesus said “the Kingdom of heaven is like …” he is speaking a parable. He compares a physical object or physical act to a something spiritual. In in verses 31 and 32 Jesus compares physical trees and their seeds to spiritual trees and seeds.<\/p>\n

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STUDY TIP: See this link<\/a> and this link for understanding of spiritual seeds. <\/a>Also see\u00a0this link for understanding of spiritual trees.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Matthew 13:34-35<\/strong> Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 <\/a>So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: \u201cI will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.<\/p>\n

COMMENTARY: Verse 34 says clearly that Jesus always spoke in parables. Since Jesus spoke for God, we can assume that God approved of this practice. From this statement, we can also assume that bible stories are parables.<\/p>\n

Matthew\u00a0<\/strong>22:1 <\/b>And<\/span> Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,<\/p>\n

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COMMENTARY: When the scripture says “again” it conveys the clear meaning that it was common for Jesus to speak in parables.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Luke 8:4-11 <\/span><\/a>When a large crowd was coming together, and those from the various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable: 5 “The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 “Other seed fell on rocky soil, and as soon as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. 7 “Other seed fell among the thorns; and the thorns grew up with it and choked it out. 8 “Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great.” As He said these things, He would call out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” 9 His disciples began questioning Him as to what this parable meant. 10 And He said, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is in parables, so that SEEING THEY MAY NOT SEE, AND HEARING THEY MAY NOT UNDERSTAND. 11 “Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God.<\/div>\n
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Knowing that the Bible is full of these symbolic references, disciples are challenged to understand the spiritual meanings of natural people, places, events and things so they can understand what God is trying to communicate. Doing this is a like assembling a zillion-piece puzzle<\/a>. It is a big project, and it will take time,\u00a0but you and those who work at it with<\/a> you will all benefit immensely from your effort.<\/div>\n
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It must be said, however, that success in efforts to understand bible mysteries and symbols does not depend on fleshly<\/a> effort (i.e., physical effort and intellect). People who read using only their intellectual minds cannot understand the spiritual truth contained in the literal words of the bible because they don’t listen with their hearts for spiritual wisdom and understanding that comes from the spirit of God (i.e. his voice)<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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The principle of listening with your heart while reading the words is revealed in Isaiah 29:18<\/a>: “On that day<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0deaf<\/span>\u00a0will\u00a0hear<\/span>\u00a0words<\/span>\u00a0of a\u00a0book<\/span>, And out of their\u00a0gloom<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0darkness<\/span>\u00a0the\u00a0eyes<\/span>\u00a0of the\u00a0blind<\/span>\u00a0will\u00a0see<\/span>.”<\/div>\n
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STUDY TIPS: To appreciate the full meaning of this verse, it is first necessary to understand the symbolic meanings of deafness<\/a> and blindness<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When reading Isaiah 29:18<\/a> we are prompted to ask “what, or when is that day when the deaf will hear and the blind will see?” The answer to this question is found in this link that tells us that the day in question is the day we hear God’s spoken voice.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

People who lack the ability to hear God’s spoken voice are limited in their understanding of bible symbols<\/a>, parables<\/a>, signs<\/a>, types<\/a>, allegories<\/a>, copies<\/a> and shadows<\/a>. Using their intellect and reason they may convince themselves that they understand the bible, but they do not understand God. The only way to understand and know God is to hear God’s spoken voice.<\/a><\/p>\n

People who do not hear God’s spoken voice may understand the literal truth of the Bible, but they do not have the spiritual truth that will set them free from religion. <\/a>Thus, they remain slaves to religion<\/a>. They may have the intellectual truth of the literal Bible in their minds, but the spiritual truth of the Bible is not in their hearts.<\/a><\/p>\n

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STUDY TIP: Only\u00a0New Covenant<\/a> disciples are able to interpret<\/a> the mysteries<\/a> and secrets<\/a> hidden in the symbolic language of the Bible. They are able to interpret the many\u00a0Symbols, Signs, Types, Parables, Copies, and Shadows <\/a>found in\u00a0the Bible because\u00a0God has written his laws on their hearts.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Hearing God’s spoken voice<\/a> is the evidence that indicates God has written his laws on the hearts of people. It can be said, therefore, that people who deny the ability to hear God’s voice also deny that God’s laws are written on their hearts. That denial confirms that those people are Old\/First Covenant<\/a> religionists who interpret the Bible literally — not symbolically<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The ability to hear God’s spoken voice is evidence that someone has been born again. Only people who have been born by the spirit<\/a> are able to hear the words of the spirit of God<\/a> spoken to the heart. All others are born of the flesh. They only understand human wisdom and are unable to understand spiritual words<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Religious leaders try to explain Bible mysteries with intellectual explanations embellished with clever human knowledge<\/a> and no small amount of imaginative speculation<\/a>. Religious people who are hungry to know more about God, but unable to hear his voice, eat up this unclean food<\/a> thinking that their leaders are anointed with special knowledge and insights that are not available to them.<\/p>\n

Religious people consume the words (i.e. teachings and writings) of false prophets<\/a> thinking that doing so makes them righteous. They wrongly believe that taking human words into the human mind is the same as hearing God’s spoken voice in the heart. Therefore, they do not realize that they are actually sinning by eating the unclean food served to them by trees of knowledge of good and evil.<\/a><\/p>\n

The point is worth repeating: We must listen to God’s voice<\/a> while we read the Bible. If we only read and process with our natural eyes and intellectual minds, we are in the category of people who have dull hearts that handicap them <\/a>from listening to God’s voice<\/a>. The principle here is that we must listen with our hearts in order to have the law written on our hearts.<\/p>\n

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STUDY TIP: See LISTEN FOR GOD\u2019S VOICE WHILE READING <\/a>and How to Hear God\u2019s Spoken Voice.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/a>Reading with the full expectation and hope\u00a0for unseen revelations<\/a> of the symbolic meanings of Biblical mysteries<\/a> and secrets<\/a> is an act of pure faith. When we read with this expectation, we demonstrate in the most powerful way our belief that God exists and that he rewards believers<\/a> who seek him with their heart, mind, soul and strength.<\/a><\/p>\n

Here is a short list of the rewards that God gives to people who earnestly seek him with their heart and soul<\/a> and learn how to hear his spoken voice:<\/a><\/p>\n

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