The Parable of the Sower
(Mark 4:1-9; Luke 8:4-15)

1In that same day, Jesus, having gone forth from the house, was sitting by the sea. 2And great crowds were gathered together to Him, so that He having entered into a boat, sat down, and all the crowd stood on the shore.

3And He spoke to them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, the one sowing went out to sow. 4And in his sowing, indeed some fell along the road, and the birds having come, devoured them.

5And other fell upon the rocky places where it did not have much soil. And it sprang up immediately, through having no depth of soil. 6And the sun having risen, they were scorched, and through not having root, were dried up.

7And other fell upon the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.

8And other fell upon the good soil and were yielding fruit—indeed some a hundredfold, and some sixty, and some thirty.

9The one having ears,a let him hear!”

The Purpose of Jesus' Parables
(Mark 4:10-12)

10And the disciples having approached, said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

11And answering He said to them, “Because it has been granted to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens, but to them it has not been granted. 12For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will be in abundance. And whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13Because of this I speak to them in parables:

‘Because seeing they do not see,

and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.’

14And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, saying:

‘In hearing you will hear and never understand;

and in seeing you will see and never perceive.

15For the heart of this people has grown dull,

and they barely hear with the ears,

and they have closed their eyes,

lest ever they should see with the eyes,

and they should hear with the ears,

and they should understand with the heart,

and should turn,

and I will heal them.’b

16But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see, and did not see; and to hear what you hear, and did not hear.

The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Mark 4:13-20)

18You, therefore, hear the parable of the one having sown: 19Everyone hearing the word of the kingdom and not understanding, the evil one comes and snatches away that having been sown in his heart. This is the one having been sown on the path.

20And the one having been sown upon the rocky places, this is the one hearing the word and immediately receiving it with joy. 21And he has in himself no root, but is temporary. And having come tribulation or persecution on account of the word, immediately he falls away.

22And the one having been sown among the thorns, this is the one hearing the word, but the care of this present age and the deceit of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

23But the one having been sown on the good soil, this is the one hearing the word and understanding, who indeed brings forth fruit and produces—indeed, some a hundredfold, and some sixty, and some thirty.”

The Parable of the Weeds
(Ezekiel 17:1-10)

24He put before them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of the heavens has become like a man having sown good seed in his field. 25And while the men are sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds in the midst of the wheat, and went away. 26And when the plants sprouted and produced fruit, then the weeds also appeared.

27And the servants, having approached the master of the house, said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’

28And he said to them, ‘An enemy did this.’

And the servants said to him, ‘Then do you desire that having gone forth, we should gather them?’

29And he said, ‘No, lest gathering the weeds, you would uproot the wheat with them. 30Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the harvesters, “First gather the weeds, and bind them into bundles in order to burn them; then gather together the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed
(Mark 4:30-34; Luke 13:18-19)

31He put before them another parable, saying: “The kingdom of the heavens is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man having taken, sowed in his field, 32which indeed is smallest of all the seeds; but when it is grown, it is greater than the garden plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and encamp in its branches.”

The Parable of the Leaven
(Judges 20:18-23; 2 Samuel 2:12-32; 2 Chronicles 13:4-19; Luke 13:20-21)

33He spoke to them another parable: “The kingdom of the heavens is like leaven, which a woman having taken, hid in three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”

I will Open My Mouth in Parables
(Psalm 78:1-72)

34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables, and He was not speaking to them without a parable, 35so that it might be fulfilled that having been spoken by the prophet, saying:

“I will open My mouth in parables;

I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.”c

The Parable of the Weeds Explained
(Zephaniah 1:1-6)

36Then having dismissed the crowds, He went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”

37And answering He said, “The One sowing the good seed is the Son of Man; 38and the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one; 39and the enemy having sown them is the devil; and the harvest is the consummation of the age; and the harvesters are angels.

40Therefore, as the weeds are gathered and consumed in fire, so will it be in the consummation of the age. 41The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all the stumbling blocks and those practicing lawlessness, 42and they will cast them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

The one having ears,d let him hear!

The Parables of the Treasure and Pearl
(Matthew 6:19-21)

44The kingdom of the heavens is like treasure having been hidden in the field, which a man having found, hid. And for joy over it, he goes and he sells all that he has, and buys that field.

45Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a merchant seeking fine pearls. 46And having found one very precious pearl, having gone away, he has sold all things as many as he had, and bought it.

The Parable of the Net
(Matthew 4:18-22; Mark 1:16-20; Luke 5:1-11; John 1:35-42)

47Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a dragnet having been cast into the sea, and having gathered together of every kind, 48which when it was filled, they having drawn it up on the shore and having sat down, collected the good into vessels, and they cast out the bad.

49Thus will it be in the consummation of the age: The angels will go out and will separate the evil from the midst of the righteous, 50and will cast them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of the teeth.

51Have you understood all these things?”

“Yes,” they say to Him.

52And He said to them, “Because of this, every scribe having been discipled into the kingdom of the heavens is like a man, a master of a house, who puts forth out of his treasure new and old.”

The Rejection at Nazareth
(Isaiah 61:1-11; Matthew 2:19-23; Mark 6:1-6; Luke 2:39-40; Luke 4:16-30)

53And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, He withdrew from there. 54And having come into His own region, He was teaching them in their synagogue, so that they are astonished and are saying, “From where came to this One this wisdom and these miraculous powers? 55Is this not the son of the carpenter? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56And are not all His sisters with us? Then from where came to this One all these things?” 57And they were offended at Him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in the hometown and in his own household.” 58And He did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.