A Story About Planting Seed

13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. ² Large crowds gathered around him, so he got into a boat and sat down, while the people stood on the shore. ³ Then Jesus used stories to teach them many things. He said: “A farmer went out to plant his seed. ⁴ While he was planting, some seed fell by the road, and the birds came and ate it all up. ⁵ Some seed fell on rocky ground, where there wasn’t much dirt. That seed grew very fast, because the ground was not deep. ⁶ But when the sun rose, the plants dried up, because they did not have deep roots. ⁷ Some other seed fell among thorny weeds, which grew and choked the good plants. ⁸ Some other seed fell on good ground where it grew and produced a crop. Some plants made a hundred times more, some made sixty times more, and some made thirty times more. ⁹ Let those with ears use them and listen.”

Why Jesus Used Stories to Teach

¹⁰ The followers came to Jesus and asked, “Why do you use stories to teach the people?”

¹¹ Jesus answered, “You have been chosen to know the secrets about the kingdom of heaven, but others cannot know these secrets. ¹² Those who have understanding will be given more, and they will have all they need. But those who do not have understanding, even what they have will be taken away from them. ¹³ This is why I use stories to teach the people: They see, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really hear or understand. ¹⁴ So they show that the things Isaiah said about them are true:

¹⁶ But you are blessed, because you see with your eyes and hear with your ears. ¹⁷ I tell you the truth, many prophets and good people wanted to see the things that you now see, but they did not see them. And they wanted to hear the things that you now hear, but they did not hear them.

Jesus Explains the Seed Story

¹⁸ “So listen to the meaning of that story about the farmer. ¹⁹ What is the seed that fell by the road? That seed is like the person who hears the message about the kingdom but does not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away what was planted in that person’s heart. ²⁰ And what is the seed that fell on rocky ground? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching and quickly accepts it with joy. ²¹ But he does not let the teaching go deep into his life, so he keeps it only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching he accepted, he quickly gives up. ²² And what is the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching but lets worries about this life and the temptation of wealth stop that teaching from growing. So the teaching does not produce fruit^[a] in that person’s life. ²³ But what is the seed that fell on the good ground? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching and understands it. That person grows and produces fruit, sometimes a hundred times more, sometimes sixty times more, and sometimes thirty times more.”

A Story About Wheat and Weeds

²⁴ Then Jesus told them another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who planted good seed in his field. ²⁵ That night, when everyone was asleep, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat and then left. ²⁶ Later, the wheat sprouted and the heads of grain grew, but the weeds also grew. ²⁷ Then the man’s servants came to him and said, ‘You planted good seed in your field. Where did the weeds come from?’ ²⁸ The man answered, ‘An enemy planted weeds.’ The servants asked, ‘Do you want us to pull up the weeds?’ ²⁹ The man answered, ‘No, because when you pull up the weeds, you might also pull up the wheat. ³⁰ Let the weeds and the wheat grow together until the harvest time. At harvest time I will tell the workers, “First gather the weeds and tie them together to be burned. Then gather the wheat and bring it to my barn.”’”

Stories of Mustard Seed and Yeast

³¹ Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. ³² That seed is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it is one of the largest garden plants. It becomes big enough for the wild birds to come and build nests in its branches.”

³³ Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and hid in a large tub of flour until it made all the dough rise.”

³⁴ Jesus used stories to tell all these things to the people; he always used stories to teach them. ³⁵ This is as the prophet said:

Jesus Explains About the Weeds

³⁶ Then Jesus left the crowd and went into the house. His followers came to him and said, “Explain to us the meaning of the story about the weeds in the field.”

³⁷ Jesus answered, “The man who planted the good seed in the field is the Son of Man. ³⁸ The field is the world, and the good seed are all of God’s children who belong to the kingdom. The weeds are those people who belong to the Evil One. ³⁹ And the enemy who planted the bad seed is the devil. The harvest time is the end of the age, and the workers who gather are God’s angels.

⁴⁰ “Just 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 will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all who cause sin and all who do evil. ⁴² The angels will throw them into the blazing furnace, where the people will cry and grind their teeth with pain. ⁴³ Then the good people will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let those with ears use them and listen.

Stories of a Treasure and a Pearl

⁴⁴ “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. One day a man found the treasure, and then he hid it in the field again. He was so happy that he went and sold everything he owned to buy that field.

⁴⁵ “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a man looking for fine pearls. ⁴⁶ When he found a very valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.

A Story of a Fishing Net

⁴⁷ “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was put into the lake and caught many different kinds of fish. ⁴⁸ When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put all the good fish in baskets and threw away the bad fish. ⁴⁹ It will be this way at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. ⁵⁰ The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace, where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.”

⁵¹ Jesus asked his followers, “Do you understand all these things?”

They answered, “Yes, we understand.”

⁵² Then Jesus said to them, “So every teacher of the law who has been taught about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house. He brings out both new things and old things he has saved.”

Jesus Goes to His Hometown

⁵³ When Jesus finished teaching with these stories, he left there. ⁵⁴ He went to his hometown and taught the people in the synagogue, and they were amazed. They said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and this power to do miracles? ⁵⁵ He is just the son of a carpenter. His mother is Mary, and his brothers are James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. ⁵⁶ And all his sisters are here with us. Where then does this man get all these things?” ⁵⁷ So the people were upset with Jesus.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his hometown and in his own home.”

⁵⁸ So he did not do many miracles there because they had no faith.

The Group with Jesus

8 After this, while Jesus was traveling through some cities and small towns, he preached and told the Good News about God’s kingdom. The twelve apostles were with him, ² and also some women who had been healed of sicknesses and evil spirits: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out; ³ Joanna, the wife of Cuza (the manager of Herod’s house); Susanna; and many others. These women used their own money to help Jesus and his apostles.

A Story About Planting Seed

⁴ When a great crowd was gathered, and people were coming to Jesus from every town, he told them this story:

⁵ “A farmer went out to plant his seed. While he was planting, some seed fell by the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate it up. ⁶ Some seed fell on rock, and when it began to grow, it died because it had no water. ⁷ Some seed fell among thorny weeds, but the weeds grew up with it and choked the good plants. ⁸ And some seed fell on good ground and grew and made a hundred times more.”

As Jesus finished the story, he called out, “Let those with ears use them and listen!”

⁹ Jesus’ followers asked him what this story meant.

¹⁰ Jesus said, “You have been chosen to know the secrets about the kingdom of God. But I use stories to speak to other people so that:

¹¹ “This is what the story means: The seed is God’s message. ¹² The seed that fell beside the road is like the people who hear God’s teaching, but the devil comes and takes it away from them so they cannot believe it and be saved. ¹³ The seed that fell on rock is like those who hear God’s teaching and accept it gladly, but they don’t allow the teaching to go deep into their lives. They believe for a while, but when trouble comes, they give up. ¹⁴ The seed that fell among the thorny weeds is like those who hear God’s teaching, but they let the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life keep them from growing and producing good fruit. ¹⁵ And the seed that fell on the good ground is like those who hear God’s teaching with good, honest hearts and obey it and patiently produce good fruit.

Use What You Have

¹⁶ “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. Instead, the person puts it on a lampstand so those who come in will see the light. ¹⁷ Everything that is hidden will become clear, and every secret thing will be made known. ¹⁸ So be careful how you listen. Those who have understanding will be given more. But those who do not have understanding, even what they think they have will be taken away from them.”

Jesus’ True Family

¹⁹ Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but there was such a crowd they could not get to him. ²⁰ Someone said to Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”

²¹ Jesus answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who listen to God’s teaching and obey it!”

Jesus Calms a Storm

²² One day Jesus and his followers got into a boat, and he said to them, “Let’s go across the lake.” And so they started across. ²³ While they were sailing, Jesus fell asleep. A very strong wind blew up on the lake, causing the boat to fill with water, and they were in danger.

²⁴ The followers went to Jesus and woke him, saying, “Master! Master! We will drown!”

Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the waves. They stopped, and it became calm. ²⁵ Jesus said to his followers, “Where is your faith?”

The followers were afraid and amazed and said to each other, “Who is this that commands even the wind and the water, and they obey him?”

A Man with Demons Inside Him

²⁶ Jesus and his followers sailed across the lake from Galilee to the area of the Gerasene^[a] people. ²⁷ When Jesus got out on the land, a man from the town who had demons inside him came to Jesus. For a long time he had worn no clothes and had lived in the burial caves, not in a house. ²⁸ When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him. He said with a loud voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don’t torture me!” ²⁹ He said this because Jesus was commanding the evil spirit to come out of the man. Many times it had taken hold of him. Though he had been kept under guard and chained hand and foot, he had broken his chains and had been forced by the demon out into a lonely place.

³⁰ Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

He answered, “Legion,”^[b] because many demons were in him. ³¹ The demons begged Jesus not to send them into eternal darkness.^{[c] 32} A large herd of pigs was feeding on a hill, and the demons begged Jesus to allow them to go into the pigs. So Jesus allowed them to do this. ³³ When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs, and the herd ran down the hill into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴ When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and told about this in the town and the countryside. ³⁵ And people went to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they found the man sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind, because the demons were gone. But the people were frightened. ³⁶ The people who saw this happen told the others how Jesus had made the man well. ³⁷ All the people of the Gerasene country asked Jesus to leave, because they were all very afraid. So Jesus got into the boat and went back to Galilee.

³⁸ The man whom Jesus had healed begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹ “Go back home and tell people how much God has done for you.” So the man went all over town telling how much Jesus had done for him.

Jesus Gives Life to a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman

⁴⁰ When Jesus got back to Galilee, a crowd welcomed him, because everyone was waiting for him. ⁴¹ A man named Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, came to Jesus and fell at his feet, begging him to come to his house. ⁴² Jairus’ only daughter, about twelve years old, was dying.

While Jesus was on his way to Jairus’ house, the people were crowding all around him. ⁴³ A woman was in the crowd who had been bleeding for twelve years,^[d] but no one was able to heal her. ⁴⁴ She came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his coat, and instantly her bleeding stopped. ⁴⁵ Then Jesus said, “Who touched me?”

When all the people said they had not touched him, Peter said, “Master, the people are all around you and are pushing against you.”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone did touch me, because I felt power go out from me.” ⁴⁷ When the woman saw she could not hide, she came forward, shaking, and fell down before Jesus. While all the people listened, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. ⁴⁸ Jesus said to her, “Dear woman, you are made well because you believed. Go in peace.”

⁴⁹ While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of the synagogue leader and said to him, “Your daughter is dead. Don’t bother the teacher anymore.”

⁵⁰ When Jesus heard this, he said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Just believe, and your daughter will be well.”

⁵¹ When Jesus went to the house, he let only Peter, John, James, and the girl’s father and mother go inside with him. ⁵² All the people were crying and feeling sad because the girl was dead, but Jesus said, “Stop crying. She is not dead, only asleep.”

⁵³ The people laughed at Jesus because they knew the girl was dead. ⁵⁴ But Jesus took hold of her hand and called to her, “My child, stand up!” ⁵⁵ Her spirit came back into her, and she stood up at once. Then Jesus ordered that she be given something to eat. ⁵⁶ The girl’s parents were amazed, but Jesus told them not to tell anyone what had happened.