13
The Parable of the Sower
1 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 And great crowds were gathered together to Him, so that He got into the boat and sat; and the crowd stood on the shore.
3 And He spoke to them many things in parables, saying: “Behold, the sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell alongside the road; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 But others fell on the stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun rose, it was scorched, and because it had no root, it withered away. 7 But others fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them out. 8 But others fell on good ground and it was yielding fruit: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
10 And the disciples approached and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11 He answered and said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he shall have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which says:
‘Hearing you shall hear and by no means understand,
and seeing you shall see and by no means perceive.
15 For the heart of this people has become dull,
and their ears are hard of hearing,
and their eyes have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
lest they should understand with their hearts and turn back,
that I should heal them.’
16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears, because they hear. 17 For assuredly I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and they did not see, and to hear what you hear, and they did not hear.”
18 “Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand, then the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed that was sown beside the road. 20 But the seed sown on stony ground, is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but is short-lived. For when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 But the seed sown in the thorns is he who hears the word, and the anxiety of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches chokes out the word, and it becomes fruitless. 23 But the seed sown on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold some sixty, some thirty.”
The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares
24 Another parable He set before them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man sowing good seed in his field. 25 But while the men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went away. 26 But when the stalk had sprouted and produced fruit, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the master of the house approached and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? From where then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Do you wish then that we should go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest gathering up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Leave both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares, and bind them into bundles to burn them, but gather together the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
31 Another parable He set before them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, 32 which indeed is smaller than all the seeds; but whenever it is grown, it is greater than the garden vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
The Parable of the Leaven
33 Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until it was all leavened.”
34 Jesus spoke all these things in parables to the crowds, and without a parable He did not speak to them, 35 so that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:
“I will open My mouth in parables;
I will utter things having been hidden
from the foundation of the world.”
The Parable of the Tares Explained
36 Then having dismissed the crowds, Jesus went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.” 37 He answered and said to them: “He that sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 And the field is the world, and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the evil one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40 Therefore just as the tares are gathered and burned with fire, thus it will be at the end of this age. 41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who work iniquity, 42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
The Hidden Treasure
44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure having been hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it, he went and sold everything he had, and bought that field.”
The Pearl of Great Price
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, 46 who, when he found one very precious pearl, went and sold everything he had and bought it.”
A Dragnet
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet having been cast into the sea, and gathering some of every kind, 48 which, when it was filled, they pulled up on the shore; and sitting down, they collected the good into vessels, but the rotten they threw out. 49 Thus it shall be at the end of the age: the angels shall go forth and separate the evil from among the righteous, 50 and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 51 Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” 52 Then He said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a house who brings out of his treasure both new things and old.”
Jesus Rejected at Nazareth
53 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, He went away from there. 54 And coming into His hometown, He began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and the powerful works? 55 Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Jude? 56 And His sisters, are they not all with us? From where then did this Man get all these things?” 57 So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown, and in his own house.” 58 And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.