Luke 13:1-9

The slow-growing tree

            Luke 13:1-9 occurs in the context of Luke presenting Jesus as one who teaches that judgment is coming and that people need to repent. In particular, he emphasizes the importance of Israel, God's people, recognizing their need for a savior lest they experience the judgment of God.

The passage begins with some people approaching Jesus with a question about those unfortunate Galileans and Jerusalemites. They confront him with two random acts of violence.  Scholars are not sure why they told Jesus of this event. Are the informers attempting to trick Jesus into saying something evil about Pilate in order to bring a charge against him later? Alternatively, are they attempting to provide Jesus with a real-life example of the type of judgment about which he has been speaking? Pilate brought one about, among the millions killed by oppressive dictators who think nothing of killing some of the population in order to keep them in line.  The other was a random act of nature, among the millions in human history who die the result of earthquakes or tornadoes.  Were the ones who experienced random acts of violence greater sinners than others were?  Jesus rejects the idea that one can make a simple equation between suffering and sin. We might have some puzzlement over why Jesus does not condemn Pilate for engaging in such evil behavior. In any case, the questioners presuppose that God mainly punishes people for sin. Bad things happen to people because people do bad things. As we think about this, we can grant that this may be true sometimes, but not as a rule. You know that, and Jesus knows that as well. Yet, he reminds them "unless you repent, you will all perish as they did."  Jesus reveres the direction of the questions. They may want to question a God who allows such random acts of violence.  Jesus, however, turns the issue back to them. His point is that such deaths really ask a question of those who left behind.  He seems to grant that seeing how suffering and death fits into the totality of human life is beyond our perception. However, each of us can be sure that we stand before God, always giving an account of what we do with the time we have here. In a sense, the passage reminds us that life continues by a slender thread that can break at any moment. What will we do with the time remaining to us?

In this context, Jesus relays a parable about an unfruitful fig tree, a tree that in the estimation of its owner has had more than enough time. Rather than cut it down, Jesus tells us of a gracious vinedresser who intercedes for the tree saying, "Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it" (Luke 13:8).

It may seem insignificant but this one sentence from Jesus is an essential reminder to how God does the important, painfully slow work, of changing lives. The restraining of divine wrath is a sign of divine patience that has conversion as its goal. When examining these words, most people immediately jump to the verbs, to the action. The vinedresser (Jesus) wants to dig and fertilize. In relational terms, we could think of this as the essential components of truth and love. To bring about change, God tills the soil of our hearts and minds with truth -- ripping out the weeds of lies and the old roots of sin and making way for us to plant good things. God then adds in the fertilizer, or in real terms love, the truth of the gospel and the promise of unrelenting divine compassion in Christ, which serves to enrich our soil, begins to take root and spurs on new growth. Life change takes truth and love.

Jesus does not say that no accounting or judgment is ahead for us. We are accountable for the lives we lead and the choices we make. Yet, the inevitability of divine judgment occurs in the context of divine mercy. That is why Jesus relates the parable at this time.  The fig tree is hopelessly barren and ready for judgment.  Yet, the parable implies an exaggerated hope.  A period of grace, though brief, can be a time in which fruitfulness can redeem the tree.  God offers mercy, with the understanding that repentance is to follow. The parable speaks of a God with amazing forbearance whose nature is to give us the time we need to repent of our sin.

This passage further demonstrates John the Baptist's words at the beginning of the gospel, "Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire" (3:9 NRSV). Judgment is at hand. John the Baptist may have thought of that judgment coming now. Jesus says that while judgment is coming, divine patience is present now, giving an opportunity to repent.