The Parable of the Sower^(A)(B)(C)

13 That same day Jesus went out of the house^(D) and sat by the lake. ² Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat^(E) and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ³ Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴ As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵ Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶ But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸ Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred,^(F) sixty or thirty times what was sown. ⁹ Whoever has ears, let them hear.”^(G)

In Lystra and Derbe

⁸ In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth^(A) and had never walked. ⁹ He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed^{(B) 10} and called out, “Stand up on your feet!”^(C) At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.^(D)

¹¹ When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”^{(E) 12} Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.^{(F) 13} The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes^(G) and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ¹⁵ “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human,^(H) like you. We are bringing you good news,^(I) telling you to turn from these worthless things^(J) to the living God,^(K) who made the heavens and the earth^(L) and the sea and everything in them.^{(M) 16} In the past, he let^(N) all nations go their own way.^{(O) 17} Yet he has not left himself without testimony:^(P) He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons;^(Q) he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”^{(R) 18} Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

¹⁹ Then some Jews^(S) came from Antioch and Iconium^(T) and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul^(U) and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. ²⁰ But after the disciples^(V) had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.