Matthew 13:1-32 ▼

1 On that day Jesus went out of the house, and sat by the seaside.

2 And large crowds gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat, and sat, and all the crowd stood on the beach.

3 And he spoke to them many things in parables, saying, |Look, a farmer went out to sow.

4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them.

5 And others fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of earth.

6 But when the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away.

7 Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.

8 Still others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty.

9 He who has ears, let him hear.|

10 Then the disciples came, and said to him, |Why do you speak to them in parables?|

11 And answering, he said to them, |To you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but it is not given to them.

12 For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever does not have, from him will be taken away even that which he has.

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

14 And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says, 'In hearing you will hear, but will not understand, and seeing you will see, but not perceive.

15 For the heart of this people has grown dull, and their ears are sluggish in hearing, and they have closed their eyes, otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn back, and I would heal them.'

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

17 For truly I tell you that many prophets and righteous people desired to see the things which you see, and did not see them; and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.

18 |Hear, then, the parable of the farmer.

19 When anyone hears the word of the Kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes, and snatches away that which has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown by the roadside.

20 And what was sown on the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it;

21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

22 And what was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

23 And what was sown on the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, who truly bears fruit, and brings forth, some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty.|

24 He set another parable before them, saying, |The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in his field,

25 but while everyone slept, his enemy came and sowed tares also among the wheat, and went away.

26 But when the blade sprang up and brought forth fruit, then the tares appeared also.

27 So the servants of the householder came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where did these tares come from?'

28 |And he said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' |And the servants asked him, 'Then do you want us to go and gather them up?'

29 |But he said, 'No, lest perhaps while you gather up the tares, you root up the wheat with them.

30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, |First, gather up the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.|'|

31 He set another parable before them, saying, |The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field;

32 which indeed is smaller than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.|