Parable of the Sower

1The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

2And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

3And he spoke many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

4And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the wayside, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

5Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and immediately they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

6And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

7And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

8But others fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

9Who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Why Parables Are Used

10And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why do you speak unto them in parables?

11He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

12For whosoever has, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever has not, from him shall be taken away even what he has.

13Therefore speak I to them in parables: because seeing they see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

14And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, who said, By hearing you shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing you shall see, and shall not perceive:

15For this people's heart has become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

16But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

17For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which you hear, and have not heard them.

Jesus Explains the Parable of the Sower

18Hear you therefore the parable of the sower.

19When any one hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one, and catches away that which was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the way side.

20But he that received the seed in stony places, the same is he that hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it;

21Yet has he not root in himself, but endures for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he is offended.

22He also that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

23But he that received seed in the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; who also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Parable of the Tares

24Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man who sowed good seed in his field:

25But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

26But when the plant was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.

27So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? from where then has it tares?

28He said unto them, An enemy has done this. The servants said unto him, Will you then that we go and gather them up?

29But he said, Nay; lest while you gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat with them.

30Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather you together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

Parable of the Mustard Seed

31Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:

32Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Parable of the Leaven

33Another parable spoke he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

34All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spoke he not unto them:

35That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

The Parable of the Tares Explained

36Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.

37He answered and said unto them, He that sows the good seed is the Son of man;

38The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

39The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

40As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

41The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

42And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

43Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Parable of the Hidden Treasure

44Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; which when a man has found, he hides, and for joy thereof goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field.

Parable of the Pearl of Great Price

45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking fine pearls:

46Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Parable of the Net

47Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:

48Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

49So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,

50And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

51Jesus said unto them, Have you understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.

52Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe who is instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a householder, who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

53And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed from there.

54And when he came into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, From where has this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?

55Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brothers, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?

56And his sisters, are they not all with us? from where then has this man all these things?

57And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and in his own house.

58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.