The Parable of the Sower
1 On the same day Jesus went out of the houseand sat by the sea.
2 And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so thatHe got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying:“Behold, a sower went out to sow.
4 And as he sowed, someseedfell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.
5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.
6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.
7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.
8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: somea hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
The Purpose of Parables
10 And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”
11 He answered and said to them,“Becauseit has been given to you to know themysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
12 For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will 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 the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:
# ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
# And seeing you will see and notperceive;
15 For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
# Theirearsare hard of hearing,
# And their eyes they haveclosed,
Lest they should see withtheireyes and hear withtheirears,
Lest they should understand withtheirhearts and turn,
# So that Ishouldheal them.’
16 Butblessedareyour eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear;
17 for assuredly, I say to youthat many prophets and righteousmendesired to see what you see, and did not seeit,and to hear what you hear, and did not hearit.
The Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “Therefore hear the parable of the sower:
19 When anyone hears the wordof the kingdom, and does not understandit,then the wickedonecomes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.
20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediatelyreceives it with joy;
21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For whentribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediatelyhe stumbles.
22 Nowhe who received seedamong the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.
23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understandsit,who indeed bearsfruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares
24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying:“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field;
25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.
26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared.
27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’
28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’
29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them.
30 Let both 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 in bundles to burn them, butgather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
31 Another parable He put forth to them, saying:“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field,
32 which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes atree, 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 threemeasuresof meal tillit was all leavened.”
Prophecy and the Parables
34 All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them,
35 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:
# “I will open My mouth in parables;
# I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.”
The Parable of the Tares Explained
36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away and 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 who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares arethe sons of the wickedone.
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 as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age.
41 The Son of Man will send out His angels,and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness,
42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire.There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
The Parable of the Hidden Treasure
44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes andsells all that he has andbuys that field.
The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls,
46 who, when he had foundone pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Dragnet
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea andgathered some of every kind,
48 which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away.
49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth,separate the wicked from among the just,
50 and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing 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 everyscribe instructedconcerningthe kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasurethingsnew and old.”
Jesus Rejected at Nazareth
53 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.
54 When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did thisManget this wisdom andthesemighty works?
55 Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? AndHis brothersJames, Joses, Simon, and Judas?
56 And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did thisManget all these things?”
57 So theywere offended at Him.
# But Jesus said to them,“A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.”
58 NowHe did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.