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10 When Jesus was alone, those who were around him with the Twelve asked him about the parables. 11 He said to them, “The mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but everything comes in parables to those who are outside, 12 so that

they will certainly see but not perceive,
and they will certainly hear but not understand.
Otherwise, they might turn and be forgiven.”[a]

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The Reason for the Parables

10 And when he was alone, those around him together with the twelve began asking[a] him about the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been granted the secret of the kingdom of God, but to those who are outside everything is in parables, 12 so that

they may look closely[b] and not perceive,
    and they may listen carefully[c] and not understand,
lest they turn and it be forgiven them.’”[d]

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Footnotes

  1. Mark 4:10 The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here (“began asking”)
  2. Mark 4:12 Literally “seeing they may see”
  3. Mark 4:12 Literally “hearing they may hear”
  4. Mark 4:12 A quotation from Isa 6:9–10