OUT-OF-SEASON FIG SANDWICH

theologeat
Apr 11, 2025
5 min read

A fresh and filling open faced sandwich full of Middle Eastern flavours. If you are fortunate enough to find fresh, ripe, in-season figs, use those in place of the marmalade; they are delicious quartered and drizzled with honey!

Eat

Yields 4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup whipped ricotta spread, made from:

1 cup full-fat ricotta

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lemon, zest and juice of

1 teaspoon zaatar spice blend

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

4 thick slices rustic whole-grain bread, toasted

1/4 cup pistachio nuts

1 cup fig marmalade

1/2 cup alfalfa sprouts

Instructions

Prepare whipped ricotta 1 hour to 1 week in advance. Whip all ingredients in blender or food processor at high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to covered container and chill for at least 1 hour. Can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Roughly chop pistachios and set aside.
In a small saucepan heat marmalade over low heat until thin. Remove from heat.
Thickly spread the ricotta mixture across each slice of prepared toast.
Drizzle a spoonful of marmalade atop the ricotta.
Sprinkle with pistachio and top with sprouts.

Theology

Inspired Word

Mark 11: 12-14a

The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.”

Bite Sized Theology

Chiasm (or chiasmus) is a literary device often employed by biblical writers to create a pleasing structure and convey meaning. The chiastic structure is like a sandwich where the outer sections parallel one another and emphasize the significance of the central section. This is demonstrated as A B A’ where the A’ is a repetition of A. The repetition may be the same word, line, or even concept as in the extended chiasm of Mark 11: 12-26.

The Main Meal

There can be something delightful about finding relatable moments in the Bible. Stories where our heroes show that they are human just like us. It is tempting to think that the story of Jesus cursing a fig tree when it doesn’t have any fruit is one such example. Was Jesus just having a hangry human moment combined with his divine power to vent frustration? When viewed through that lens, the story of Jesus cursing the fig tree (found in both Matthew and Mark) has led many to question Jesus’ morality in that moment. Post-enlightenment scholars are particularly quick to critique Jesus’ response in this passage as they find it both unreasonable to expect fruit out of season and a display of self-centeredness that is unfitting for Jesus’ overall character. The episode was so offensive to one such scholar (Bertrand Russel) that it wholly altered his view of Christ and contributed to his rejection of Christianity!

Given its capacity to produce such a response, it is wise that we take a closer look at the passage in its entirety (Mark 11: 12-26). Though the story seems complete in the first two verses with a disappointed Jesus cursing the tree, it actually picks up again in verse 20 where the disciples notice that the cursed tree has indeed withered at its roots. What happens in between may seem disconnected, but it is actually what explains the whole passage. Mark has employed a chiastic structure where the cursing of the fig tree sandwiches the climactic event – Jesus’ cleansing of the temple! By situating the events in a larger section all oriented around the temple (chapter 11-13), Mark has primed his readers to have the temple on their mind, a notion which he makes all the clearer by having the dramatic temple clearing interrupt the story. Reading the cursing of the fig tree with the temple in mind we can begin to see how Jesus’ destructive actions towards the tree mirror his destructive actions at the temple. We see from Jesus’ words at the temple that his actions there are justified, but what of the tree? What did it do to warrant his wrath?

Mark seems to have exonerated the tree by noting that it was not the season for figs, but it is not quite that simple. His original readers would have known that Palestinian fig trees do not produce full ripe fruit during the time of Passover, but they do begin to bear edible immature fruits called taksh. These little green knobs were popular for peasants and the sign of their presence was when the tree began to leaf. Thus, when Jesus approached the leafy tree, it ought to have taksh available for those in need, and yet it did not. Likewise, when he entered the temple so full of activity, he should have seen His Father’s house welcoming the nations and fostering prayer, but he did not. Instead, he finds that the only space where non-Jewish believers are permitted to worship has been turned into a shortcut and an exploitative market. Those most in need of religious food have been left to starve.

Both Jesus and the Old Testament prophets used fruit producing plants as a metaphor for Israel’s spiritual well-being. The gospel of Luke even records Jesus telling a parable wherein the owner of a vineyard threatens to cut down a fruitless fig tree taking up space on his land. In Matthew, and Mark, he enacts the parable to visually demonstrate the gravity of the situation. In the Old Testament, the prophets speak of God inspecting Israel only to find “no grapes on the vine nor figs on the fig tree” (Jeremiah 8:13) and cursing “their root is dried up; they shall bear not fruit” (Hosea 9:16)! Jesus fulfills this inspection. He looks over the fig tree and then the temple. In both, he finds nothing but show. There is no fruit. It is only fitting that they be cursed to wither.

Such an assessment of the temple would have been shocking. In Jesus’ day, it was undergoing a massive renovation project and its beauty was a point of pride. We see the disciples admiring the temple later in Mark, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” (Mark 13:1) but Jesus’ response there, and in the cursing of the fig tree, makes clear that no amount of religious show will make up for a lack of fruit. The attitude towards the financially, and spiritually, poor makes clear that the beautiful temple is not truly fruitful. The cursing of the fig tree made for a stark warning to the religious establishment of Jesus’ day and ought to do the same for every proclaiming Christian today.

References

Edwards, James R. The Gospel According to Mark. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eeerdmans Publishing Co., 2002.

Geddert, Timothy J. Believer’s Church Bible Commentary: Mark. Scottdale, Pa: Herald Press, 2001.

Guthrie, D. ed, J. A. Motyer ed, A. M. Stibbs, ed, and D. J. Wiseman ed. The New Bible Commentary: Revised. Grand Rapids, MI: WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970.

Klein, William W., Craig L. Blomberg, and Robert L. Hubbard. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc., 2017.

Lanier, Greg. “Why Did Jesus Curse the Fig Tree?” The Gospel Coalition. October 2, 2018. Accessed April 2, 2022. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/jesus-curse-fig-tree/