The Wise and Foolish Builders
A house on the rock, a house on the sand
Two things you can tap
- A verse number shows the Bible’s exact words.
- An underlined word shows what it means.
Story
What happened?
Tap a verse number, like , to read the Bible’s exact words.
Who’s who and what came beforePeople, places, and the story so far. Open it anytime.
Scene Card
Cast
- Jesus: The one the Gospels present as the promised Messiah and the Son of God. He is finishing a long teaching.
- The disciples: Jesus's followers. They came to him on the mountain (5:1).
- The crowds: People from many towns who came to hear Jesus and to be healed.
- In Jesus's story: A wise builder and a foolish builder.
Setting
- A mountainside in Galilee, the area in northern Israel where Jesus grew up. The Bible does not say which mountain.
When
- Early in Jesus's work, about 2,000 years ago.
Before the Story
This is the end of the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5 to 7 hold one long teaching of Jesus. It began with blessings for people who were hurting (5:3-12).
Jesus had asked a lot. He said to love enemies (5:44), to pray in secret, and to stop worrying. He summed it up: "do to others as you would have them do to you" (7:12).
Jesus had promised a lot too. God knows what you need before you ask (6:8). The Father gives good things to those who ask him (7:11).
Here's what you know that almost nobody in this story knows: This teacher will not only give these words. He will give his life for the people listening.
Map of the Story
| Scene | Verses | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The narrow gate | 7:13-14 | Jesus describes two gates and two roads |
| 2. Trees and fruit | 7:15-20 | Jesus warns about false prophets |
| 3. "Lord, Lord" | 7:21-23 | Jesus warns about empty words |
| 4. The house on the rock | 7:24-25 | A house stands through a storm |
| 5. The house on the sand | 7:26-27 | A house falls in the same storm |
| 6. The crowds are amazed | 7:28-29 | The Sermon ends |
Plain Retelling
Scene 1 of 6The Narrow Gate
Jesus was still sitting on the mountainside in Galilee. The crowds were listening. He had talked about blessings, prayer, worry, and asking God for good gifts. Now he was near the end.
"Enter through the narrow gate," Jesus said (7:13). A wide gate and a broad road lead to destruction, he said. Many people go that way.
"But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it" (7:14).
This is a comparison. Jesus is talking about two ways to live. One way leads to destruction, away from God. The other way leads to life with God.
Earlier in this same teaching, Jesus had made a promise about finding. "Seek, and you will find" (7:7).
Scene 2 of 6Trees and Fruit
Next Jesus gave a warning. "Beware of false prophets" (7:15). A prophet speaks for God. A false prophet only claims to.
They come in sheep's clothing, Jesus said, but inside they are hungry wolves. This is a comparison. They look gentle, but they hurt people.
Jesus told how to recognize them. "By their fruit you will recognize them" (7:16). Nobody picks grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles.
A good tree bears good fruit. A bad tree bears bad fruit. Fruit here is a comparison for what a life grows: words, actions, and how a person treats others.
In Jesus's picture, the tree comes first. Then the fruit grows.
Jesus said a tree without good fruit is cut down and burned. This picture was a serious warning about teachers who lead people away from God.
Scene 3 of 6"Lord, Lord"
Then Jesus said something even harder. Not everyone who calls him "Lord, Lord" will enter the kingdom of heaven (7:21). The kingdom of heaven means God's rule. It is the way God runs things.
Only the one "who does the will of My Father in heaven" will enter (7:21).
Jesus described a day in the future. Many people would say to him, "Lord, Lord, didn't we speak for God in your name? Didn't we drive out demons and do many miracles?"
Then Jesus would tell them, "I never knew you; depart from Me" (7:23). He called them workers of lawlessness. Lawlessness means ignoring God's law.
Look at what those people pointed to. They listed their own big deeds. Jesus did not answer their list. He said he never knew them. And he called the way they lived lawlessness.
These are some of the most frightening words in the Sermon. If they scare you, you are not alone. The "Wait, what?" section below looks at them closely.
Scene 4 of 6The House on the Rock
Then Jesus told a parable. A parable is a short story that teaches something.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock" (7:24).
"These words of Mine" means the whole Sermon. The blessings. Salt and light. Loving enemies. The Lord's Prayer. Not worrying. Asking, seeking, and knocking.
Jesus's listeners knew about building in their land. Many valleys were dry for most of the year. In the rainy season, water could rush through them fast.
Then the storm came. "The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house" (7:25). A torrent is a rushing flood of water.
The house stood. "It did not fall, because its foundation was on the rock" (7:25). A foundation is the solid base a house sits on.
Scene 5 of 6The House on the Sand
Then Jesus told the other half. Some people hear his words and do not act on them. They are like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
The same storm came. The same rain. The same floods. The same wind.
"And it fell—and great was its collapse!" (7:27).
Both builders heard the same words. Both houses got the same storm. Jesus did not promise the wise builder a life without storms. The difference was what each house was built on.
The wise builder did not hold his house up. The rock did.
Scene 6 of 6The Crowds Are Amazed
Jesus finished speaking. The crowds were astonished at his teaching.
Here is why. Jesus taught "as one who had authority, and not as their scribes" (7:29). Scribes were teachers of Moses's law. They often taught by quoting teachers who came before them. Jesus spoke in his own name. Again and again he had said, "But I tell you."
Think back over the whole Sermon. It began with blessings for people who had nothing to bring (5:3). It asked for a lot in the middle. It ended with a house in a storm.
Before Jesus asked anyone to act on his words, he told them God's favor rested on them. The teacher who ended with a warning had begun with a blessing.
Meaning
What does it mean?
Read It
What Does This Mean?
| The text says | It means |
|---|---|
| "Enter through the narrow gate" (7:13) | This is a comparison for two ways to live. In John's Gospel, Jesus says, "I am the gate" (John 10:9). Christians hear this as good news: the gate is a person, Jesus himself, not a test of effort. |
| "Only a few find it" (7:14) | This is a warning not to follow the crowd without thinking. Jesus does not give a count of who is saved. Elsewhere he says "many will come from the east and the west" to God's great banquet (Matthew 8:11). |
| "By their fruit you will recognize them" (7:16) | You can tell a teacher by what their life grows. Fruit grows from a tree. It does not make the tree good. Paul calls love, joy, and peace "the fruit of the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22). |
| "Who does the will of My Father" (7:21) | In John's Gospel, Jesus says what the Father's will is: "that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life" (John 6:40). |
| "I never knew you" (7:23) | The problem was not a short list of deeds. It was that these people did not know Jesus. Jesus says of his own, "I know My sheep" (John 10:14). |
| "Hears these words of Mine and acts on them" (7:24) | Hearing that turns into living. In the Bible, trust and action grow together. |
| "Its foundation was on the rock" (7:25) | Israel's psalms already called God a rock: "The LORD is my rock" (Psalm 18:2). LORD in capital letters stands for God's personal name. Jewish readers traditionally don't say it aloud, out of respect. Paul later wrote that the only foundation is "Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:11). Writing about the rock that gave Israel water in the wilderness, he said "that rock was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:4). This is how Christians read the parable: the rock is Christ himself and his word. |
| "Not as their scribes" (7:29) | Jesus did not rely on quoting other teachers. He spoke as the one with the right to say what God's words mean. |
Back Then
Dry valleys and sudden floods. The land of Israel has a rainy season in late fall and winter, and a long dry summer. (Smith's Bible Dictionary) Many streambeds are dry for much of the year. Heavy rain can turn them into rushing torrents, sometimes very suddenly. (Easton's Bible Dictionary)
Houses. Poor families' houses were often made of mud or sun-dried brick. In some places, stone was used. (Smith's Bible Dictionary) One likely reason Jesus used this picture: a house on loose ground could wash away. This could happen when a dry streambed flooded.
Scribes. Jewish teachers often taught by quoting the teachers who came before them. That was a careful and respectful way to teach. (Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah) Jesus's way of speaking was different because he did not do this.
Literal Reader Alert
"Only a few find it." Am I one of the few? Jesus is not handing out a number or a scorecard. He is warning people not to follow the crowd away from God. A few verses earlier he promised, "seek, and you will find" (7:7). And the gate is not a hidden puzzle. Jesus says, "I am the gate" (John 10:9).
What if Jesus says "I never knew you" to me? This is a real warning, and Jesus means it. It is for people who use his name while living against God's will (7:21, 7:23). The Bible doesn't say how these people felt. But remember: they pointed to their own big deeds, not to Jesus (7:22). Being afraid is not a sign that Jesus does not know you. Many people who trust Jesus feel this fear. Jesus says of his sheep, "No one can snatch them out of My hand" (John 10:28). And what is the Father's will? Jesus says it is "that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life" (John 6:40). Faith is not something you make yourself. Paul writes that no one can say "Jesus is Lord" "except by the Holy Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:3). In Baptism, God calls you by name. Martin Luther himself was terrified for years that he was not good enough for God. What freed him was learning that Jesus is the one who makes us right with God.
Will bad trees really be burned? This is a comparison. Jesus uses a farmer's picture to warn about false teachers who hurt people. Christians have struggled with Jesus's warnings about judgment for a long time. When God seems frightening, look to Jesus. He is the clearest picture of who God is.
Does the wise builder get storms too? Yes. Both houses got the same storm (7:25, 7:27). Trusting Jesus does not stop hard things from coming. Jesus is the rock that holds when they do.
If this story brings up big feelings, talk with a parent, pastor, or trusted adult.
How People Feel
| Who | Feeling | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The people in Jesus's warning | The Bible doesn't say | They listed what they had done in Jesus's name (7:22) |
| The crowds | Astonished | Jesus taught "as one who had authority" (7:29) |
For you
What does it mean for me?
Your Turn
What does your foundation feel like today? Tap one.
Pretty solid
Thank God for it. The rock holds you, not your own strength. Keep hearing Jesus's words.
Shaky
Jesus spoke this Sermon to people who were hurting and unsure. The house stood because of the rock, not because the builder felt sure.
Scared I'm not enough
You are not the rock. Jesus is. He says, "I know My sheep." Faith is the Holy Spirit's gift, not a test you pass.
Hearing, not doing
No one does all of this perfectly. Jesus even put "forgive us" in the Lord's Prayer. Doing grows out of being loved. Ask the Holy Spirit to help.
It's really bad right now
You can pray, "Jesus, hold me up." Please also tell a trusted adult today. If you are in danger, call 911 or your local emergency number. In the U.S., you can call or text 988 any time. Outside the U.S., findahelpline.com lists free helplines.
You Might Have Heard
"Be the wise builder. Try hard to obey Jesus, and your life will stand firm."
What's true: Jesus really does call us to hear and to act (7:24). Many children learn a song about this parable, with hand motions for the rain coming down and the house falling flat. It is a good way to remember the story.
What the story is mainly about: The house stands because of the rock, not because of the builder's skill (7:25). Jesus already told us how good fruit grows. The tree comes first (7:17). Lutherans say it this way: good works are fruit, not foundation. They grow out of faith. They never hold the house up.
Where Jesus is: He is the one speaking these words with authority (7:29). And Christians believe he is also the rock. Paul wrote, "no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:11).
Good News
You did not lay this foundation. God laid it in Jesus. Paul says we are saved by grace through faith, and this is "the gift of God, not by works" (Ephesians 2:8-9). The Holy Spirit gives faith, and the Spirit grows the fruit. Jesus said, "The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit" (John 15:5).
Hard times will still come, like the storm in the story. Hard times came for Jesus too, all the way to the cross. He went through them for you, and he rose again.
The house stands because of the rock, and in Jesus, God has set you on the rock.
From the Wider Church
Augustine, a church leader who lived about 1,600 years ago, wrote Our Lord's Sermon on the Mount. In plain words, he began like this. Anyone who studies this Sermon carefully will find a complete picture of the Christian life in it. To show this, he quoted Jesus's own closing words, the parable of the house on the rock (Our Lord's Sermon on the Mount, Book 1, chapter 1).
Big Idea
God sets our lives on Jesus, the rock, and the Holy Spirit turns our hearing into doing.
If this story brings up big feelings, talk with someone you trust, like a parent, pastor, or counselor.
For leaders and parentsLuther, church readings, and notes for teaching.
From Luther
In the Small Catechism (1529), Luther explains the Third Article of the Creed. Here is a plain paraphrase (Concordia Triglotta English, 1921): I cannot believe in Jesus or come to him by my own understanding or strength. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel and keeps me in the true faith.
Luther also preached on Matthew 5 to 7. His sermons were later printed as a commentary (Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, translated by Charles A. Hay, 1892). On the Beatitudes, he said good works are fruit. They "must be preceded by faith, as the tree" (on Matthew 5:6). This is the same picture Jesus uses in 7:17. The tree comes first, then the fruit.
In Church
Many churches follow a reading plan called the Revised Common Lectionary. It reads Matthew 7:21-29 in Year A on the Sunday between May 29 and June 4, called Lectionary 9. In years when Easter comes late, it is read instead on the Ninth Sunday after the Epiphany. Some years it is not read at all.
We quote Luther for what he got right about grace. He also wrote terrible things about Jewish people. Read our note on that.
Memorize
How do I keep it?
One line from this story to learn by heart. Practice a little now. It will come back later so it sticks.
Everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
How did that feel?