And when He was alone, His disciples who were around Him with the twelve asked Him concerning the parables, what this parable of the sower might mean. And He saith to them, "Perceive ye not this parable? and how shall ye understand all the parables? Hear ye then the parable of the sower. Now the parable is this: The seed is the Word of God. The sower soweth the word. And those by the wayside, where the word is sown, are those who have heard the word of the kingdom and understand it not; and when they have heard, immediately Satan, the evil one, cometh and taketh away from their heart, the word which hath been sown in them, lest they should believe and be saved. "And these likewise are they that are sown on the rocky places, who, when they have heard the word, immediately with joy receive it; and they have no root in themselves, but are unstable; then when tribulation or persecution ariseth on account of the word, immediately they stumble. And others are those sown among the thorns. These are they that have heard the word, and as they go on, the anxieties of the age, and the deceitfulness of riches and pleasures of life, and the lusts respecting other things, entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful and bringeth nothing to maturity. "And these are they that were sown upon the good ground: such as, in an honest and good heart, hear the word, understand it, accept it, hold it fast, and bear fruit with endurance, some thirtyfold, some sixtyfold, and some a hundredfold,"