¹⁰ Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. ¹¹ What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them,^(A) but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”^(B)

¹² Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”

¹³ He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted^(C) will be pulled up by the roots.

The Parable of the Weeds

²⁴ Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like^(A) a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. ²⁶ When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

²⁷ “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

²⁸ “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

²⁹ “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”^(B)

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

³⁶ Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable^(A) of the weeds in the field.”

³⁷ He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man.^{(B) 38} The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one,^{(C) 39} and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest^(D) is the end of the age,^(E) and the harvesters are angels.^(F)

⁴⁰ “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. ⁴¹ The Son of Man^(G) will send out his angels,^(H) and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. ⁴² They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.^(I)

² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit,^(A) while every branch that does bear fruit^(B) he prunes^[a] so that it will be even more fruitful.

⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.^(A)

¹² If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³ their work will be shown for what it is,^(A) because the Day^(B) will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.^{(C) 14} If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.^{(D) 15} If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.^(E)