Matthew 13
Tree of Life Version
Simple Stories, Profound Truths
13 On that day after Yeshua left the house, He was sitting by the sea. 2 And large crowds gathered around Him; so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood on the shore. 3 And He told them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a sower went out to spread some seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some seeds fell by the road; and the birds came and ate them up. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they didn’t have much soil. They sprang up immediately, because the soil wasn’t deep. 6 But when the sun came up, they were scorched; and because they had no roots, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked them out. 8 But others fell on good soil and were producing fruit. They yielded a crop—some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears,[a] let him hear.”
10 Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”
11 And He replied to them, “To you has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For whoever has, to him more will be given and he will have plenty. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13 For this reason I speak to them in parables,
because seeing they do not see,
and hearing they do not hear nor do they understand.
14 “And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘You will keep on hearing
but will never understand;
you will keep looking,
but will never see.
15 For the heart of this people has become dull,
their ears can barely hear, and they have shut their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts.
Then they would turn back,
and I would heal them.’[b]
16 “But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 Amen, I tell you, many a prophet and tzaddik longed to see what you are seeing and did not see, and to hear what you are hearing and did not hear.”
Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “You then, hear the parable of the sower. 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the one having been sown along the road.
20 “The one sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. 21 Yet he has no root himself but lasts only a short while; and when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.
22 “But the one sown among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word; and the worries of the world and the seduction of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
23 “Now the one sown on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands. He indeed bears fruit, yielding a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty times what was sown.”
Yeshua Tells More Parables
24 He presented to them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while the men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 Now when the stalk sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared. 27 So the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Master, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’ 28 But he replied, ‘An enemy did this.’ Now the slaves say to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go out and gather them up?’ 29 But he says, ‘No, for while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time, I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the weeds and tie them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.’”
31 He presented to them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 It’s the smallest of all seeds; yet when it’s full grown, it’s greater than the other herbs. It becomes like a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”[c]
33 He told them another parable, “The kingdom of heaven is like hametz, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
34 All these things Yeshua spoke to the crowds in parables. And apart from a parable, He wasn’t speaking to them, 35 in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying,
“I will open My mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”[d]
36 Then He sent the crowds away and went into the house. His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”
37 He answered, “The one sowing the good seed is the Son of Man, 38 and the field is the world. And the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Therefore just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks[e] and those who practice lawlessness. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace[f]; in that place will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun[g] in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear!
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid. And because of his joy, he goes out and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. 46 Upon finding a pearl of great value, he went out and sold all that he had and bought it.
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea, gathering things of every kind. 48 When it was filled, they pulled it ashore; and they sat down and gathered up the good into containers, but threw the bad away. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth and separate the wicked from among the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace;[h] in that place will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?”
They said to Him, “Yes.”
52 Then He said to them, “Therefore every Torah scholar discipled for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure both new things and old.”
Unbelief in the Hometown Synagogue
53 Now when Yeshua had finished these parables, He left that place. 54 Coming into His hometown, He began to teach them in their synagogue so that they were amazed. “Where did this fellow get this wisdom and these mighty works?” they said. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother called Miriam, and His brothers Jacob and Joseph and Simon and Judah? 56 And His sisters, aren’t they all with us? So where does He get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at Him.
But Yeshua said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own house.” 58 And He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Footnotes
- Matthew 13:9 Some mss. add to hear.
- Matthew 13:15 Isa. 6:9-10.
- Matthew 13:32 Ps. 104:12 (103:12 LXX).
- Matthew 13:35 Ps. 78:2.
- Matthew 13:41 cf. 1 Cor. 1:23.
- Matthew 13:42 Dan. 3:6.
- Matthew 13:43 cf. Dan. 12:3.
- Matthew 13:50 cf. Dan. 3:6.
Matthew 13
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting beside the sea.
2 But such great crowds gathered about Him that He got into a boat and remained sitting there, while all the throng stood on the shore.
3 And He told them many things in parables (stories by way of illustration and comparison), saying, A sower went out to sow.
4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and ate them up.
5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they had not much soil; and at once they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil.
6 But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they dried up and withered away.
7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out.
8 Other seeds fell on good soil, and yielded grain—some a hundred times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some thirty.
9 He who has ears [to hear], let him be listening and let him [a]consider and [b]perceive and comprehend by hearing.
10 Then the disciples came to Him and said, Why do You speak to them in parables?
11 And He replied to them, To you it has been given to know the secrets and mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
12 For whoever has [spiritual knowledge], to him will more be given and he will [c]be furnished richly so that he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
13 This is the reason that I speak to them in parables: because [d]having the power of seeing, they do not see; and [e]having the power of hearing, they do not hear, nor do they grasp and understand.
14 In them indeed is [f]the process of fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, which says: You shall indeed hear and hear but never grasp and understand; and you shall indeed look and look but never see and perceive.
15 For this nation’s heart has grown gross (fat and dull), and their ears heavy and difficult of hearing, and their eyes they have tightly closed, lest they see and perceive with their eyes, and hear and comprehend the sense with their ears, and grasp and understand with their heart, and turn and I should heal them.(A)
16 But blessed (happy, fortunate, and [g]to be envied) are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear.
17 Truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous men [men who were upright and in right standing with God] yearned to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
18 Listen then to the [meaning of the] parable of the sower:
19 [h]While anyone is hearing the Word of the kingdom and does not grasp and comprehend it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the roadside.
20 As for what was sown on thin (rocky) soil, this is he who hears the Word and at once welcomes and accepts it with joy;
21 Yet it has no real root in him, but is temporary (inconstant, [i]lasts but a little while); and when affliction or trouble or persecution comes on account of the Word, at once he is caused to stumble [he is repelled and [j]begins to distrust and desert Him Whom he ought to trust and obey] and he falls away.
22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is he who hears the Word, but the cares of the world and the pleasure and delight and glamour and deceitfulness of riches choke and suffocate the Word, and it yields no fruit.
23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is he who hears the Word and grasps and comprehends it; he indeed bears fruit and yields in one case a hundred times as much as was sown, in another sixty times as much, and in another thirty.
24 Another parable He set forth before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
25 But while he was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed also darnel (weeds resembling wheat) among the wheat, and went on his way.
26 So when the plants sprouted and formed grain, the darnel (weeds) appeared also.
27 And the servants of the owner came to him and said, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Then how does it have darnel shoots in it?
28 He replied to them, An enemy has done this. The servants said to him, Then do you want us to go and weed them out?
29 But he said, No, lest in gathering the wild wheat (weeds resembling wheat), you root up the [true] wheat along with it.
30 Let them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will say to the reapers, Gather the darnel first and bind it in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my granary.
31 Another story by way of comparison He set forth before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field.
32 Of all the seeds it is the smallest, but when it has grown it is the largest of the garden herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and find shelter in its branches.
33 He told them another parable: The kingdom of heaven is like leaven ([k]sour dough) which a woman took and covered over in three measures of meal or flour till all of it was leavened.(B)
34 These things [l]all taken together Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, without a parable He said nothing to them.
35 This was in fulfillment of what was spoken by the prophet: I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things that have been hidden since the foundation of the world.(C)
36 Then He left the throngs and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him saying, Explain to us the parable of the darnel in the field.
37 He answered, He Who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, and the good seed means the children of the kingdom; the darnel is the children of the evil one,
39 And the enemy who sowed it is the devil. The harvest is the close and consummation of the age, and the reapers are angels.
40 Just as the darnel (weeds resembling wheat) is gathered and burned with fire, so it will be at the close of the age.
41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all causes of offense [[m]persons by whom others are drawn into error or sin] and all who do iniquity and act wickedly,
42 And will cast them into the furnace of fire; there will be weeping and wailing and grinding of teeth.
43 Then will the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God) shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let him who has ears [to hear] be listening, and let him [n]consider and perceive and understand by hearing.(D)
44 The kingdom of heaven is like [o]something precious buried in a field, which a man found and hid again; then in his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field.
45 Again the kingdom of heaven is like a man who is a dealer in search of fine and [p]precious pearls,
46 Who, on finding a single pearl of great price, went and sold all he had and bought it.
47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a [q]dragnet which was cast into the sea and gathered in fish of every sort.
48 When it was full, men dragged it up on the beach, and sat down and sorted out the good fish into baskets, but the worthless ones they threw away.
49 So it will be at the close and consummation of the age. The angels will go forth and separate the wicked from the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God)
50 And cast them [the wicked] into the furnace of fire; there will be weeping and wailing and grinding of teeth.
51 Have you understood [r]all these things [parables] taken together? They said to Him, Yes, Lord.
52 He said to them, Therefore every [s]teacher and interpreter of the Sacred Writings who has been instructed about and trained for the kingdom of heaven and has [t]become a disciple is like a householder who brings forth out of his storehouse treasure that is new and [treasure that is] old [the fresh as well as the familiar].
53 When Jesus had finished these parables (these comparisons), He left there.
54 And coming to His own country [Nazareth], He taught in their synagogue so that they were amazed with bewildered wonder, and said, Where did this [u]Man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?
55 Is not this the carpenter’s Son? Is not His mother called Mary? And are not His brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?
56 And do not all His sisters live here among us? Where then did this Man get all this?
57 And they took offense at Him [they were repelled and hindered from acknowledging His authority, and caused to stumble]. But Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.
58 And He did not do many works of power there, because of their unbelief (their lack of faith [v]in the divine mission of Jesus).
Footnotes
- Matthew 13:9 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:9 G. Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:12 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:13 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:13 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:14 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Matthew 13:16 Alexander Souter, Pocket Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:19 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Matthew 13:21 John Wycliffe, The Wycliffe Bible.
- Matthew 13:21 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:33 John Wycliffe, The Wycliffe Bible.
- Matthew 13:34 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:41 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:43 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:44 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:45 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:47 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Matthew 13:51 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:52 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 13:52 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Matthew 13:54 See footnote on Matt. 2:8.
- Matthew 13:58 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
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