The parable of the net in Matthew 13:49–50 means the same as the parable of the weeds among the wheat in Matthew 13:41–42. The Greek word aphorizó, rendered in the English Standard Version as separate,
means to separate completely. At his return, Christ will separate godless from godly: those who belong to him and those who do not .
In the parable’s application, the angels are the ones who will do the separating. The apostles and their successors are the preachers, the fishers casting the net, but in the end, it is not the fishers (the apostles) who act, but it is the angels. This mention of the angels shows how the focus lies on the separating, not on the persons involved, so the parable is a warning to its audience.
The explanation given for the parable of the net in Matthew 13:49–50 is the same as the one given for the parable of the weeds among the wheat in Matthew 13:41–42. The Greek word aphorizó, translated in the English Standard Version as separate,
literally means to separate completely. At the end of history there will be a clear separation of the godless from the godly—those who belong to Christ and those who do not.1
Here in the application of the parable, the angels are named as the ones who will carry out the separation. The apostles and their successors are the preachers—the fishermen who cast the net—but in the end, it is not the fishermen, that is, not the apostles, who act. Rather, it is the angels who appear. From this mention of the angels we may conclude that the emphasis here in this parable lies on the act of separation itself, not on the persons involved. In other words, the parable is meant as a warning to the audience.2
49 Il en sera de même à la fin du monde. Les anges viendront séparer les méchants d'avec les justes,