Saying 40: The Vine Planted Apart
A grapevine has been planted away from the Father; it has no strength, and it will be pulled up by the root and destroyed.
Commentary
Probably aimed at a rival religious group, though Thomas never names one. The horticultural test is simple: whatever is not rooted in the source will not last.
Parallels
Matthew 15:13; John 15:1–6
Sayings on the same themes
- Saying 31 Saying 31: No Prophet in His Own Village No prophet is welcome in his own village; no doctor heals the people who know him.
- Saying 65 Saying 65: The Wicked Tenants A man leased his vineyard to farmers. He sent a servant for the produce and they beat him; he sent another and…
- Saying 96 Saying 96: The Leaven The Father's kingdom is like a woman who took a little yeast, hid it in dough, and made large loaves of bread.
- Saying 53 Saying 53: Is Circumcision Useful? If circumcision were useful, fathers would produce sons already circumcised; the true circumcision, in spirit, is what profits.
- Saying 39 Saying 39: The Keys of Knowledge The Pharisees and scholars have taken the keys of knowledge and hidden them; they did not go in themselves and did not…
- Saying 91 Saying 91: You Cannot Read This Moment They ask him to say who he is so they can believe; he replies that they examine the face of the sky…