The Pearl of Great Price
Morgan Dix, D. D. Matthew 13:45-46 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like to a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:… No gem, in the estimation of the ancients, surpassed the pearl in value. The old writers speak of it as altogether wonderful, and to be honoured above all jewels that the eyes of man have beheld. Nothing else was so pure, so rare, so exquisite. As for its origin, they thought it was at first a drop of dew from heaven, condensed within the sea-shell, and doubling there its native perfections. They thought, moreover, that though born beneath the waves, it retained some unknown connection with its home in the sky, taking its beauty from the aspect of the heavens, and drawing virtue from them, limpid and clear when they were serene, turbid and cloudy when they were overcast. Its irridescence seemed the result of sympathy with the seven colours of the sunbeam: even the -hell which enclosed it partook of its silver beauty and many-hued reflections; while it was accounted the very queen of gems, as that to which no graver's tools nor implement of man can add a charm. (Morgan Dix, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: WEB: "Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a merchant seeking fine pearls,