When our Lord cursed the fig tree, did He know that there was no fruit on it, or was knowledge withheld temporarily?<\/p>\n\t
The account is found in Matthew 21:18-19 and Mark 11:12-14.<\/p>\n
Early in the morning, Jesus left Bethany for Jerusalem. Seeing a leafy fig tree beside the road and being hungry, Jesus went to it to pluck a fig. Finding none on it, Jesus pronounced a curse, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Matthew remarks that the tree immediately showed signs of withering.<\/p>\n
We are accustomed to miracles being beneficial, but here, Jesus destroys a tree for simply not bearing fruit when expected. Figs typically bear fruit before the plant’s leaves appear. So, although it was normally too early for figs at this time of year, a few trees were known to produce extra early, and the leaves indicated that this plant was a promising prospect. Yet the tree had no fruit at all, not even unripe ones.<\/p>\n
Although nothing is directly stated about this event or why Jesus did it, it is recorded for a purpose that is important enough for two authors to include it in their accounts. We can also conclude that since Jesus is God and has demonstrated the ability to know things humans cannot know, Jesus did know the tree had no figs. In other words, Jesus purposely did this to teach a lesson.<\/p>\n
One lesson from this event is that people look at God’s loving favor and cannot imagine God being severe with anyone, let alone sending someone to hell for eternity. Everyone needs to remember that we are here by God’s good grace and that we are here for a purpose (Romans 11:17-22). God dealt severely with the Jews when they failed to be productive (Isaiah 5:1-7). Can we expect anything less? Jesus will return to this point when we read John 15.<\/p>\n
Another lesson is that far too many people only appear to be godly (II Timothy 3:5). Some claim to follow God, but their actions belie their words (Titus 1:16). We must prove ourselves doers of the word (James 1:22-25); otherwise, we, too, will face God’s wrath.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: When our Lord cursed the fig tree, did He know that there was no fruit on it, or was knowledge withheld temporarily? Answer: The account is found in Matthew 21:18-19 and Mark 11:12-14. Early in the morning, Jesus left Bethany for Jerusalem. Seeing a leafy fig tree beside the road and being hungry, Jesus…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[73,491],"class_list":["post-86703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-jesus","tag-omniscient"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9542,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-the-fig-tree-refer-to-israel\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":0},"title":"Does the fig tree refer to Israel?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 23, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it true that the fig tree Jesus refers to is Israel?\u00a0 Can you explain this? Answer: You really did not give me much of a clue as to what you were referring to, but I did a quick search on the Internet in order to discover what is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":62191,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/death-of-a-fig-tree\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":1},"title":"Death of a Fig Tree","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 9, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Matthew 21:18-22 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I get uncomfortable reading this passage. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Here is a fig tree, that happens to lack figs when Jesus walks by. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a02.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Then Jesus kills it \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The disciples are caught up in amazement that by simply speaking, Jesus killed a fig tree. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0But why destroy a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/DenominationalLeadersViewOfTheBible.gif?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/DenominationalLeadersViewOfTheBible.gif?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/DenominationalLeadersViewOfTheBible.gif?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10275,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-the-sycamore-tree-still-have-fruit-today-as-it-did-in-biblical-times\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":2},"title":"Does the sycamore tree still have fruit today as it did in biblical times?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 7, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Does the sycamore tree still have fruit today as it did in biblical times? Answer: There are actually several plants know as sycamore in today's world. In the middle east region, where most of the Bible takes place, sycamore is a type of fig. Its formal name today is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Old-Sycamore-Fig-Tree.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24576,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/could-jesus-have-been-flawed-like-other-men\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":3},"title":"Could Jesus have been flawed like other men?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 18, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I wanted to speak more with you. I hope not to offend you. I know that we are very different people and have made different choices for different reasons. I do believe in a god, but he's obviously different than yours. I have read passages of the Bible too,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8956,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-a-child-be-warned-about-bad-adults\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":4},"title":"Should a child be warned about bad adults?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 9, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Should parents explain to children that there are adults out there who may have bad reasons for wanting to spank them (even though\u00a0the adults may tell the child it's punishment for something bad he or she did)? Is so, what's the best way to address the subject so that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58357,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/no-sense-in-pretense\/","url_meta":{"origin":86703,"position":5},"title":"No Sense in Pretense","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Author Unknown via\u00a0Of America, Volume 1 (copyright 1999 Pensacola Christian College), page 224 You tell what you are by the friends you seek, By the manner in which you speak. By the way you employ your leisure time, By the use you make of dollar and dime. 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