| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. | 1Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water's edge. |
| 2And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine, | 2He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: |
| 3Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: | 3"Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. |
| 4And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. | 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. |
| 5And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: | 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. |
| 6But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. | 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. |
| 7And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. | 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. |
| 8And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. | 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times." |
| 9And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. | 9Then Jesus said, "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear." |
| 10And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. | 10When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. |
| 11And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: | 11He told them, "The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables |
| 12That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. | 12so that, "'they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!'" |
| 13And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? | 13Then Jesus said to them, "Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? |
| 14The sower soweth the word. | 14The farmer sows the word. |
| 15And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. | 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. |
| 16And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; | 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. |
| 17And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. | 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. |
| 18And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, | 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; |
| 19And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. | 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. |
| 20And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred. | 20Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop--some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown." |
| 21And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick? | 21He said to them, "Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don't you put it on its stand? |
| 22For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. | 22For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. |
| 23If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. | 23If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear." |
| 24And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given. | 24"Consider carefully what you hear," he continued. "With the measure you use, it will be measured to you--and even more. |
| 25For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath. | 25Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them." |
| 26And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; | 26He also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. |
| 27And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. | 27Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. |
| 28For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. | 28All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. |
| 29But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. | 29As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." |
| 30And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? | 30Again he said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? |
| 31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: | 31It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. |
| 32But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it. | 32Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade." |
| 33And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it. | 33With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. |
| 34But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples. | 34He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything. |
| 35And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. | 35That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." |
| 36And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. | 36Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. |
| 37And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. | 37A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. |
| 38And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? | 38Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" |
| 39And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. | 39He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. |
| 40And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? | 40He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" |
| 41And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? | 41They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" |
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