1Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. (Mt 13:1; Mr 3:9; Lu 5:1; Lu 8:4)2And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: (Mr 4:33)3“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. (Isa 55:10; Am 9:13)4And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.5Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil.6And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. (Joh 15:6; Jas 1:11)7Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. (Jer 4:3)8And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” (Ge 26:12; Mr 4:20)9And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mt 11:15)
The Purpose of the Parables
10And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. (Mr 4:34)11And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, (Mt 11:25; Mt 19:11; Ro 16:25; 1Co 2:6; 1Co 5:12; Col 1:27; Col 4:5; 1Th 4:12; 1Ti 3:7; 1Jo 2:20; 1Jo 2:27)12so that “‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.’” (De 29:4; Isa 6:9; Isa 42:19; Jer 5:21; Eze 12:2; Lu 22:32; Ro 11:8; 2Co 3:14; 2Co 4:4)13And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? (Mt 13:18; Lu 8:11)14The sower sows the word. (Mt 13:37; Mr 2:2; Mr 4:33; Lu 1:2; Joh 4:36; Ac 8:4; Jas 1:21)15And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them.16And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. (Isa 58:2; Eze 33:31; Mr 6:20; Joh 5:35)17And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.[1] (Ho 6:4; Mt 11:6; Ga 1:6; Ga 5:7)18And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word,19but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. (Mt 6:25; Mt 19:23; Mr 10:23; Ac 5:1; 1Ti 6:9; 1Ti 6:17; 2Ti 4:10; Heb 3:13)20But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” (Ho 14:8; Mr 4:8; Joh 15:5; Joh 15:16; Php 1:11; Col 1:6)
A Lamp Under a Basket
21And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? (Mt 5:15; Lu 8:16; Lu 11:33)22For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. (Mt 10:26; Lu 12:2; 1Ti 5:25)23If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mr 4:9)24And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. (Mt 7:2; Lu 6:38)25For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” (Mt 13:12)
The Parable of the Seed Growing
26And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. (Mt 13:24)27He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. (Ec 11:5)28The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.29But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Joe 3:13; Re 14:15)
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? (Mt 13:31; Lu 13:18)31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, (Mt 17:20; Lu 17:6)32yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”33With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. (Mt 13:34; Mr 4:14; Joh 16:12; 1Co 3:2; Heb 5:12)34He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything. (Mr 4:10; Mr 13:3; Joh 16:25; 2Pe 1:20)
Jesus Calms a Storm
35On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” (Mt 8:18; Mt 8:23; Lu 8:22; Joh 6:16)36And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.37And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. (Ac 27:14)38But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”39And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. (Job 38:11; Ps 65:7; Ps 104:7; Mt 14:32; Mr 6:51; Lu 4:39)40He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” (Joh 14:27)41And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mr 1:27; Lu 5:9)