This Parable is written by David ben Yisrael.
There once lived a Father who had two sons. He dearly loved both of them and loved nothing more than spending time with them. He was the King of a large and wealthy country, whose beauty was often sung of, and whose fame was known throughout all the lands. The Kingdom was so prosperous because the King had incredibly high standards, and would settle for nothing but perfection. His subjects knew this and strove to deliver nothing less, as He was a good King and loved by all. His two sons loved Him as well, as He was a kind and gracious Father. But to be allowed to live in the palace with Him, they first had to achieve perfection. This was done by following the rules of the Father, which prepared them for life in the palace by showing them the standard of living they could expect. They were not difficult rules to follow, don’t stay out after dark, eat all your vegetables, simple things. The sons loved the rules of the Father as they knew their purpose was to protect and guide them, not bind them up and keep them from having any fun. Rather it helped them have fun safely. If they stayed out after dark they might get hurt, or if they didn’t eat all their vegetables they might get sick. Obviously keeping the rules without loving the Father was pointless, but the sons did their best to keep the rules because they loved their Father and wanted to show Him their love by being pleasing sons.
The Eldest Son was able to keep all the rules perfectly from the very beginning, and was allowed into the palace with His Father as He had shown Himself to be perfect. But the second son was weaker and struggled with temptation, and though he did his best to keep the rules, sometimes the temptation was just too strong. The Father would often visit to delight in His beloved son and to encourage him in his efforts to gain access to the palace, and the son loved this time with his Father, but it was not the same as living with Him, there was always a separation that came again. The Eldest Son loved His younger brother, and could see the pain it caused him and His Father that they were continually separated. Therefore He offered the ultimate sign of love. He offered to give up His place in the palace and live away from the Father so that the younger son could live there instead. The Eldest Son had followed all the rules and had lived a perfect life; therefore His perfection would be sufficient to cover the younger son’s imperfection. He went to His Father with this proposal. His Father was delighted at the prospect of His younger Son being allowed entry, but could not bear the thought of His Eldest leaving His side forever. Therefore He amended the proposal. By His willingness to sacrifice everything for both His Father as well as His brother, the Eldest Son had displayed a love above all others. So He would only need to leave the palace for three days, during which time He would stay with His younger brother, and teach him all about the palace and how to behave once there. He would also strengthen His brother and help him to overcome temptation so he could keep the rules better. The three days would be long enough for the Eldest Sons perfection to enwrap the younger son, after which time they would both be invited into the palace to delight in their Fathers presence, never to be separated again. They still obeyed the rules as they were still good and protected them, but also because they loved their Father and longed to please Him. He would always love them and they could not lose their place in the palace thanks to the Eldest Sons sacrifice, but why should they not want to be pleasing children to the Father that loves them so much?
Many years later a third son was born. This son was allowed instant access to the Father and the palace as He was born after the Eldest Sons sacrifice. Because of this he did not spend time learning the rules of the Father with the same zeal as his eldest brothers. To him they were unnecessary. He loved the Father and the Father knew it, so why did he have to prove his love when he could just say it? Also he already had access to the palace and it was not like the Father would just kick him out if he did not follow the rules. Thanks to his Eldest Brothers sacrifice he could relax and do what he wanted. He obeyed some of the rules but only the ones he wanted to, and only when it suited him. He still loved his Father and enjoyed spending time with Him, but would often be too busy with other things when the Father wanted to spend time with him.
Eventually, word got out about the youngest sons behaviour, and others began to take notice. Foreign kings began to mutter to themselves that the Kingdom of the Father must be full of others like the youngest son. Others said that if a son of the King conducted himself in such a manner, then they did not want anything to do with the Kingdom. Still others asked how the Kingdom could say it stood for so many good things when its subjects did the opposite. The youngest son was not bad, he did a lot of good and did try to be a pleasing son, but he always tried to do it in his own way and on his terms, and when he failed it was always this that others remembered.
The time eventually came when the palace became too small, so the Father began construction of a new, grander one. He gathered His sons together and told them they would all be moving there soon, but that things would be different in the new palace. He said the sons had now come of age and would be allowed to co-rule with Him. The Eldest Son would be given equal status with the Father, if He gave a command it would be as if it had come from the Father. The second son, who had always followed his Elder Brother’s example and had strived to be like Him, would be given authority directly below his Brother. He would follow after his Brother and see to it that His will was carried out by the servants and citizens. But to the youngest son, who had only tri
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d with half a heart to be a good and pleasing son, and had shown himself to be unreliable, to him was given only the task to watch his brothers, as he had proven himself unfit to rule. Though like the others he was in the most beautiful of palaces, he was unable to enjoy it to its fullest like his brothers. They, however, spent their days with the Father, helping Him rule the greatest Kingdom the world has ever known.
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d with half a heart to be a good and pleasing son, and had shown himself to be unreliable, to him was given only the task to watch his brothers, as he had proven himself unfit to rule. Though like the others he was in the most beautiful of palaces, he was unable to enjoy it to its fullest like his brothers. They, however, spent their days with the Father, helping Him rule the greatest Kingdom the world has ever known.
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