⁴⁹ Then I said, “Sovereign Lord,^(A) they are saying of me, ‘Isn’t he just telling parables?^(B)’”^[a]

²⁵ “Though I have been speaking figuratively,^(A) a time is coming^(B) when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.

¹⁸ A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news^(A) about Jesus and the resurrection.^(B)

¹³ This is why I speak to them in parables:

¹⁴ In them is fulfilled^(B) the prophecy of Isaiah:

² “Son of man, set forth an allegory and tell it to the Israelites as a parable.^(A)