The Story of the Farmer

13 That same day Jesus left the house and sat by the Sea of Galilee. ² Large crowds gathered around him. So he got into a boat and sat down. All the people stood on the shore. ³ Then he told them many things using stories. He said, “A farmer went out to plant his seed. ⁴ He scattered the seed on the ground. Some fell on a path. Birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some seed fell on rocky places, where there wasn’t much soil. The plants came up quickly, because the soil wasn’t deep. ⁶ When the sun came up, it burned the plants. They dried up because they had no roots. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorns. The thorns grew up and crowded out the plants. ⁸ Still other seed fell on good soil. It produced a crop 100, 60 or 30 times more than what was planted. ⁹ Whoever has ears should listen.”

¹⁸ “Listen! Here is the meaning of the story of the farmer. ¹⁹ People hear the message about the kingdom but do not understand it. Then the evil one comes. He steals what was planted in their hearts. Those people are like the seed planted on a path. ²⁰ The seed that fell on rocky places is like other people. They hear the message and at once receive it with joy. ²¹ But they have no roots. So they last only a short time. They quickly fall away from the faith when trouble or suffering comes because of the message. ²² The seed that fell among the thorns is like others who hear the message. But then the worries of this life and the false promises of wealth crowd it out. They keep the message from producing fruit. ²³ But the seed that fell on good soil is like those who hear the message and understand it. They produce a crop 100, 60 or 30 times more than the farmer planted.”