Jesus Explains the Story About Seed^(A)

¹⁸ “So listen to the meaning of that story about the farmer:

¹⁹ “What about the seed that fell by the path? That is like the people who hear the teaching about God’s kingdom but do not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away what was planted in their hearts.

²⁰ “And what about the seed that fell on rocky ground? That is like the people who hear the teaching and quickly and gladly accept it. ²¹ But they do not let the teaching go deep into their lives. They keep it only a short time. As soon as trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching they accepted, they give up.

²² “And what about the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That is like the people who hear the teaching but let worries about this life and love for money stop it from growing. So it does not produce a crop in their lives.

²³ “But what about the seed that fell on the good ground? That is like the people who hear the teaching and understand it. They grow and produce a good crop, sometimes 100 times more, sometimes 60 times more, and sometimes 30 times more.”

Jesus Explains the Story About Seed^(A)

¹³ Then Jesus said to the followers, “Do you understand this story? If you don’t, how will you understand any story? ¹⁴ The farmer is like someone who plants God’s teaching in people. ¹⁵ Sometimes the teaching falls on the path. That is like some people who hear the teaching of God. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the teaching that was planted in them.

¹⁶ “Other people are like the seed planted on rocky ground. They hear the teaching, and they quickly and gladly accept it. ¹⁷ But they don’t allow it to go deep into their lives. They keep it only a short time. As soon as trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching they accepted, they give up.

¹⁸ “Others are like the seed planted among the thorny weeds. They hear the teaching, ¹⁹ but their lives become full of other things: the worries of this life, the love of money, and everything else they want. This keeps the teaching from growing, and it does not produce a crop^[a] in their lives.

²⁰ “And others are like the seed planted on the good ground. They hear the teaching and accept it. Then they grow and produce a good crop—sometimes 30 times more, sometimes 60 times more, and sometimes 100 times more.”