Matthew 13:1-23

New King James Version

The Parable of the Sower^(A)

13 On the same day Jesus went out of the house ^(B)and sat by the sea. ²^(C)And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that ^(D)He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

³Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: ^(E)“Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. ⁵Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. ⁶But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. ⁷And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. ⁸But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some ^(F)a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ⁹^(G)He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Purpose of Parables^(H)

¹⁰And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

¹¹He answered and said to them, “Because ^(I)it has been given to you to know the ^[a]mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. ¹²^(J)For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. ¹³Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. ¹⁴And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:

^(K)‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not ^(L)perceive;
¹⁵For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears ^(M)are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have ^(N)closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I ^[b]should ^(O)heal them.’

¹⁶But ^(P)blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; ¹⁷for assuredly, I say to you ^(Q)that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Parable of the Sower Explained^(R)

¹⁸^(S)“Therefore hear the parable of the sower: ¹⁹When anyone hears the word ^(T)of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. ²⁰But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately ^(U)receives it with joy; ²¹yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when ^(V)tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately ^(W)he stumbles. ²²Now ^(X)he who received seed ^(Y)among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. ²³But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears ^(Z)fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

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Footnotes

Matthew 13:11 secret or hidden truths
Matthew 13:15 NU, M would

Acts 18:18-28

New King James Version

Paul Returns to Antioch

¹⁸So Paul still remained ^[a]a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. ^(A)He had his hair cut off at ^(B)Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow. ¹⁹And he came to Ephesus, and left them there; but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. ²⁰When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent, ²¹but took leave of them, saying, ^(C)“I^[b] must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem; but I will return again to you, ^(D)God willing.” And he sailed from Ephesus.

²²And when he had landed at ^(E)Caesarea, and ^[c]gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch. ²³After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of ^(F)Galatia and Phrygia ^[d]in order, ^(G)strengthening all the disciples.

Ministry of Apollos

²⁴^(H)Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. ²⁵This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being ^(I)fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, ^(J)though he knew only the baptism of John. ²⁶So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. ²⁷And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, ^(K)he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; ²⁸for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, ^(L)showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

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Footnotes

Acts 18:18 Lit. many days
Acts 18:21 NU omits I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem
Acts 18:22 To Jerusalem
Acts 18:23 successively

Psalm 30

New King James Version

The Blessedness of Answered Prayer

A Psalm. A Song ^(A)at the dedication of the house of David.

30 I will extol You, O Lord, for You have ^(B)lifted me up,
And have not let my foes ^(C)rejoice over me.
²O Lord my God, I cried out to You,
And You ^(D)healed me.
³O Lord, ^(E)You brought my soul up from the grave;
You have kept me alive, ^[a]that I should not go down to the pit.

⁴^(F)Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His,
And give thanks at the remembrance of ^[b]His holy name.
⁵For ^(G)His anger is but for a moment,
^(H)His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But ^[c]joy comes in the morning.

⁶Now in my prosperity I said,
“I shall never be ^[d]moved.”
⁷Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong;
^(I)You hid Your face, and I was troubled.

⁸I cried out to You, O Lord;
And to the Lord I made supplication:
⁹“What profit is there in my blood,
When I go down to the pit?
^(J)Will the dust praise You?
Will it declare Your truth?
¹⁰Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me;
Lord, be my helper!”

¹¹^(K)You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off ^[e]my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
¹²To the end that my ^[f]glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Footnotes

Psalm 30:3 So with Qr., Tg.; Kt., LXX, Syr., Vg. from those who descend to the pit
Psalm 30:4 Or His holiness
Psalm 30:5 a shout of joy
Psalm 30:6 shaken
Psalm 30:11 The sackcloth of my mourning
Psalm 30:12 soul

Exodus 19-20

New King James Version

Israel at Mount Sinai

19 In the third month after the children of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on the same day, ^(A)they came to the Wilderness of Sinai. ²For they had departed from ^(B)Rephidim, had come to the Wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness. So Israel camped there before ^(C)the mountain.

³And ^(D)Moses went up to God, and the Lord ^(E)called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: ⁴^(F)‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how ^(G)I ^[a]bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. ⁵Now ^(H)therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and ^(I)keep My covenant, then ^(J)you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is ^(K)Mine. ⁶And you shall be to Me a ^(L)kingdom of priests and a ^(M)holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”

⁷So Moses came and called for the ^(N)elders of the people, and ^[b]laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. ⁸Then ^(O)all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord. ⁹And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I come to you ^(P)in the thick cloud, ^(Q)that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe you forever.”

So Moses told the words of the people to the Lord.

¹⁰Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and ^(R)consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. ¹¹And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. ¹²You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves that you do not go up to the mountain or touch its base. ^(S)Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. ¹³Not a hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot with an arrow; whether man or beast, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come near the mountain.”

¹⁴So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes. ¹⁵And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; ^(T)do not come near your wives.”

¹⁶Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were ^(U)thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp ^(V)trembled. ¹⁷And ^(W)Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. ¹⁸Now ^(X)Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon ^(Y)it in fire. ^(Z)Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and ^[c]the ^(AA)whole mountain quaked greatly. ¹⁹And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, ^(AB)Moses spoke, and ^(AC)God answered him by voice. ²⁰Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

²¹And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through ^(AD)to gaze at the Lord, and many of them perish. ²²Also let the ^(AE)priests who come near the Lord ^(AF)consecrate themselves, lest the Lord ^(AG)break out against them.”

²³But Moses said to the Lord, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai; for You warned us, saying, ^(AH)‘Set bounds around the mountain and consecrate it.’ ”

²⁴Then the Lord said to him, “Away! Get down and then come up, you and Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the Lord, lest He break out against them.” ²⁵So Moses went down to the people and spoke to them.

The Ten Commandments^(AI)

20 And God spoke ^(AJ)all these words, saying:

²^(AK)“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, ^(AL)out of the house of ^[d]bondage.

³^(AM)“You shall have no other gods before Me.

⁴^(AN)“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; ⁵^(AO)you shall not bow down to them nor ^[e]serve them. ^(AP)For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, ^(AQ)visiting^[f] the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, ⁶but ^(AR)showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

⁷^(AS)“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord ^(AT)will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

⁸^(AU)“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹^(AV)Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰but the ^(AW)seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, ^(AX)nor your stranger who is within your gates. ¹¹For ^(AY)in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

¹²^(AZ)“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be ^(BA)long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.

¹³^(BB)“You shall not murder.

¹⁴^(BC)“You shall not commit ^(BD)adultery.

¹⁵^(BE)“You shall not steal.

¹⁶^(BF)“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

¹⁷^(BG)“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; ^(BH)you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

The People Afraid of God’s Presence

¹⁸Now ^(BI)all the people ^(BJ)witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain ^(BK)smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. ¹⁹Then they said to Moses, ^(BL)“You speak with us, and we will hear; but ^(BM)let not God speak with us, lest we die.”

²⁰And Moses said to the people, ^(BN)“Do not fear; ^(BO)for God has come to test you, and ^(BP)that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.” ²¹So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near ^(BQ)the thick darkness where God was.

The Law of the Altar

²²Then the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘You have seen that I have talked with you ^(BR)from heaven. ²³You shall not make anything to be ^(BS)with Me—gods of silver or gods of gold you shall not make for yourselves. ²⁴An altar of ^(BT)earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, ^(BU)your sheep and your oxen. In every ^(BV)place where I ^[g]record My name I will come to you, and I will ^(BW)bless you. ²⁵And ^(BX)if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you ^(BY)use your tool on it, you have profaned it. ²⁶Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your ^(BZ)nakedness may not be exposed on it.’