A Parable

I attended a church in Jerusalem about a month ago. The following is an adaptation of an Iraqi (I think he said Iraqi..) parable that the pastor included in his sermon.

The Interpreter

Once there was a small kingdom. In this beautiful kingdom, there was only one man who was literate. Because he was literate, he was considered the wisest man in the land. Whenever anyone received a message, they would bring it to him to interpret. Because this man, The Interpreter, could read, his wisdom was never questioned.

One night the King had a disturbing dream. He dreamt that the sky turned red and began raining swords down on his kingdom. The king was very troubled and wondered what his dream meant. Naturally, he sent for the Interpreter.

The king’s guards knocked on the Interpreter’s door. He gingerly opened the door. As the Interpreter followed the guards to the palace, he wracked his brain for a suitable explanation of the king’s nightmare. He had nothing. How shameful. He was as good as dead. As he neared the castle, the Interpreter became more concerned. Suddenly he heard a low, gravely old voice. He looked around. There in the alley, about three feet to his left was an old man with white hair and a long beard.

“I can interpret the dream for you”

He must have imagined that.

"What?" The Interpreter asked.

The old man's shrewd eyes twinkled as he responded, “I can interpret the king’s dream. He will surely give you gold and silver if you decipher his dream. If you agree to share half of your prize with me, I will tell you what the dream means”

The Interpreter was at a loss. 

“Ok.” 

The old man smiled ever so slightly. “The swords raining from the sky represent the violence and evil that will come upon the kingdom. Everyone in the kingdom will act out violently against one another.”

The Interpreter nodded solemnly, thanked the old man, straightened out his clothes and walked into the palace to meet with the king. After explaining the dream to the king, the Interpreter left the palace. As he left, he began to resent the old man. He began to think evil thoughts and devised a plan to kill the old man so that he would not have to share his new riches. The wise old man learned of the Interpreter’s plan and went into hiding—avoiding the wrath of the fickle fool. Because he could not find the old man, the Interpreter continued home. He enjoyed his new riches and fabricated prestige. 

Then the king had another dream. This time, the sky opened up and rained down thousands of shepherd’s staffs. The king was again distressed and remembered the Interpreter.

As the Interpreter made his way back to the king, he again ran into the wise old man. The old man forgave the Interpreter’s violent fit of vengeance and offered again to help him in return for a portion of the king’s reward. The Interpreter, desperate for help, agreed.

“The king’s most recent dreams warn that the kingdom will be filled with cheaters and liars,” explained the old man.  

The Interpreter again went and told the meaning of the dream to the king. After being richly rewarded again, the Interpreter set off towards his house. As he left the palace, however, he began to dread seeing the old man. I don’t want to share with him. He didn’t risk his reputation to help the king. I did all the hard work. And so he devised a plan to avoid the alleyway where the old man waited for him, and thus cheated the old man out of  the gold and silver.

A few months later, the king had a third dream. In this dream, scepters rained down from a golden sky. The perplexed king sent for the Interpreter a third time. The Interpreter slowly began his trek towards the castle. Again the old man appeared and offered help. The Interpreter shamelessly agreed.

“This dream promises hope. The people of the kingdom will show love and generosity to each other.”

The Interpreter pranced into the palace and interpreted the king’s dream. The king was pleased and rewarded him lavishly. As the Interpreter descended the steps of the palace and headed out of the gates, he began to look for the old man. He saw him sitting just inside the little alleyway.  The Interpreter proudly walked up to him. “Thank you for your kindness. Here is all the gold and silver that the king gave me. It is yours. Take it.”

The old man angrily stood up and shook his fist at the Interpreter:

“I don’t want anything to do with you! Nothing you say or do means anything. I told you that the first dream promised violence: you devised a plan to kill me. I told you the second warned about lying: you cheated me out of my portion of the reward. Finally, I told you the third dream represented love and generosity: you offered me all that the king gave you. You are too easily swayed by circumstance. Get out of my sight. Leave me in peace.”

This simple story offers a profound message. Don’t let your circumstances determine your actions. Do not hate because others hate. Do not lie because others lie. 

God wants us to be genuinely loving, kind, and generous. Not because it is easy. But because it is right. Not because it is popular. But because it is how we were created to behave. If we only love and care for others when it is convenient or expected, our lives will be marked by inconsistency. Our love will seem meaningless and our generosity duplicitous. Be genuine lovers of God who consistently show compassion to others.