The Parable of the Sower^(A)

13 On the same day Jesus went out of the house ^(B)and sat by the sea. ^2 (C)And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that ^(D)He 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: ^(E)“Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And as he sowed, some seed fell 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: some ^(F)a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ^9 (G)He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Purpose of Parables^(H)

¹⁰ And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

¹¹ He answered and said to them, “Because ^(I)it has been given to you to know the ^[a]mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. ^12 (J)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:

¹⁶ But ^(P)blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; ¹⁷ for assuredly, I say to you ^(Q)that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Parable of the Sower Explained^(R)

^18 (S)“Therefore hear the parable of the sower: ¹⁹ When anyone hears the word ^(T)of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes 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 immediately ^(U)receives it with joy; ²¹ yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when ^(V)tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately ^(W)he stumbles. ²² Now ^(X)he who received seed ^(Y)among 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 understands it, who indeed bears ^(Z)fruit 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, but ^(AA)gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed^(AB)

³¹ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: ^(AC)“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 a ^(AD)tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

The Parable of the Leaven^(AE)

^33 (AF)Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three ^[c]measures of meal till ^(AG)it was all leavened.”

Prophecy and the Parables

^34 (AH)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:

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 (AK)The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are ^(AL)the sons of the wicked one. ³⁹ The enemy who sowed them is the devil, ^(AM)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, ^(AN)and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, ^42 (AO)and will cast them into the furnace of fire. ^(AP)There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. ^43 (AQ)Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ^(AR)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 and ^(AS)sells all that he has and ^(AT)buys 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 found ^(AU)one 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 and ^(AV)gathered 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, ^(AW)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 [d]Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?”

They said to Him, “Yes, ^[e]Lord.”

⁵² Then He said to them, “Therefore every ^[f]scribe instructed ^[g]concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure ^(AX)things new and old.”

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth^(AY)

⁵³ Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there. ^54 (AZ)When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? ^55 (BA)Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And ^(BB)His brothers ^(BC)James, ^[h]Joses, Simon, and Judas? ⁵⁶ And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?” ⁵⁷ So they ^(BD)were offended at Him.

But Jesus said to them, ^(BE)“A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” ⁵⁸ Now ^(BF)He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

The Parable of the Lost Sheep^(A)

15 Then ^(B)all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. ² And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man ^[a]receives sinners ^(C)and eats with them.” ³ So He spoke this parable to them, saying:

^4 (D)“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? ⁵ And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ^(E)‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep ^(F)which was lost!’ ⁷ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents ^(G)than over ninety-nine ^[b]just persons who ^(H)need no repentance.

The Parable of the Lost Coin

⁸ “Or what woman, having ten silver ^[c]coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? ⁹ And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ ¹⁰ Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The Parable of the Lost Son

¹¹ Then He said: “A certain man had two sons. ¹² And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them ^(I)his livelihood. ¹³ And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with ^[d]prodigal living. ¹⁴ But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. ¹⁵ Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. ¹⁶ And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the ^[e]pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.

¹⁷ “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! ¹⁸ I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, ^(J)I have sinned against heaven and before you, ¹⁹ and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” ’

²⁰ “And he arose and came to his father. But ^(K)when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. ²¹ And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven ^(L)and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²² “But the father said to his servants, ^[f]‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. ²³ And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; ^24 (M)for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.

²⁵ “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. ²⁷ And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’

²⁸ “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. ²⁹ So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. ³⁰ But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’

³¹ “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. ³² It was right that we should make merry and be glad, ^(N)for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ”