Matthew 13
13
1 In that day, Jesus, departing from the house, sat down beside the sea.
2 And such great crowds were gathered to him that he climbed into a boat and he sat down. And the entire multitude stood on the shore.
3 And he spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow seed.
4 And while he was sowing, some fell beside the road, and the birds of the air came and ate it.
5 Then others fell in a rocky place, where they did not have much soil. And they sprung up promptly, because they had no depth of soil.
6 But when the sun rose up, they were scorched, and because they had no roots, they withered.
7 Still others fell among thorns, and the thorns increased and suffocated them.
8 Yet some others fell upon good soil, and they produced fruit: some one hundred fold, some sixty fold, some thirty fold.
9 Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear."
10 And his disciples drew near to him and said, "Why do you speak to them in parables?"
11 Responding, he said to them: "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but it has not been given to them.
12 For whoever has, it shall be given to him, and he shall have in abundance. But whoever has not, even what he has shall 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 so, in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, who said, 'Hearing, you shall hear, but not understand; and seeing, you shall see, but not perceive.
15 For the heart of this people has grown fat, and with their ears they hear heavily, and they have closed their eyes, lest at any time they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and then I would heal them.'
16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear.
17 Amen I say to you, certainly, that many of the prophets and the just desired to see what you see, and yet they did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and yet they did not hear it.
18 Listen, then, to the parable of the sower.
19 With anyone who hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, evil comes and carries away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received the seed by the side of the road.
20 Then whoever has received the seed upon a rocky place, this is one who hears the word and promptly accepts it with joy.
21 But he has no root in himself, so it is only for a time; then, when tribulation and persecution occur because of the word, he promptly stumbles.
22 And whoever has received the seed among thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this age and the falseness of riches suffocate the word, and he is effectively without fruit.
23 Yet truly, whoever has received the seed into good soil, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, and so he bears fruit, and he produces: some a hundred fold, and another sixty fold, and another thirty fold."
24 He proposed another parable to them, 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 amid the wheat, and then went away.
26 And when the plants had grown, and had produced fruit, then the weeds also appeared.
27 So the servants of the Father of the family, approaching, said to him: 'Lord, did you not sow good seed in your field? Then how is it that it has weeds?'
28 And he said to them, 'A man who is an enemy has done this.' So the servants said to him, 'Is it your will that we should go and gather them up?'
29 And he said: 'No, lest perhaps in gathering the weeds, you might also root out the wheat together with it.
30 Permit both to grow until the harvest, and at the time of the harvest, I will say to the reapers: Gather first the weeds, and bind them into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather into my storehouse.' "
31 He proposed another parable to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field.
32 It is, indeed, the least of all seeds, but when it has grown, it is greater than all the plants, and it becomes a tree, so much so that the birds of the air come and dwell in its branches."
33 He spoke another parable to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of fine wheat flour, until it was entirely leavened."
34 All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the crowds. And he did not speak to them apart from parables,
35 in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying: "I will open my mouth in parables. I will proclaim what has been hidden since the foundation of the world."
36 Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. And his disciples drew near to him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field."
37 Responding, he said to them: "He who sows the good seed is the Son of man.
38 Now the field is the world. And the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom. But the weeds are the sons of wickedness.
39 So the enemy who sowed them is the devil. And truly, the harvest is the consummation of the age; while the reapers are the Angels.
40 Therefore, just as weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the consummation of the age.
41 The Son of man shall send out his Angels, and they shall gather from his kingdom all who lead astray and those who work iniquity.
42 And he shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
43 Then the just ones shall shine like the sun, in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.
44 The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man finds it, he hides it, and, because of his joy, he goes and sells everything that he has, and he buys that field.
45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking good pearls.
46 Having found one pearl of great value, he went away and sold all that he had, and he bought it.
47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net cast into the sea, which gathers together all kinds of fish.
48 When it has been filled, drawing it out and sitting beside the shore, they selected the good into vessels, but the bad they threw away.
49 So shall it be at the consummation of the age. The Angels shall go forth and separate the bad from the midst of the just.
50 And they shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 Have you understood all these things?" They say to him, "Yes."
52 He said to them, "Therefore, every scribe well-taught about the kingdom of heaven, is like a man, the father of a family, who offers from his storehouse both the new and the old."
53 And it happened that, when Jesus had completed these parables, he went away from there.
54 And arriving in his own country, he taught them in their synagogues, so much so that they wondered and said: "How can such wisdom and power be with this one?
55 Is this not the son of a workman? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers, James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Jude?
56 And his sisters, are they not all with us? Therefore, from where has this one obtained all these things?"
57 And they took offense at him. 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 work many miracles there, because of their unbelief.
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Matthew 13
13
A Story About a Farmer Sowing Seed
(Mk. 4:1–9; Lk. 8:4–8)
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2A large crowd gathered around him. So he got into a boat and sat down. All the people stayed on the shore. 3Then Jesus used stories to teach them many things. He told them this story:
“A farmer went out to sow seed. 4While he was scattering the seed, some of it fell by the road. The birds came and ate all that seed. 5Other seed fell on rocky ground, where there was not enough dirt. It grew very fast there, because the soil was not deep. 6But when the sun rose, it burned the plants. The plants died because they did not have deep roots. 7Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. The weeds grew and stopped the good plants from growing. 8But some of the seed fell on good ground. There it grew and made grain. Some plants made 100 times more grain, some 60 times more, and some 30 times more. 9You people who hear me, listen!”
Why Jesus Used Stories to Teach
(Mk. 4:10–12; Lk. 8:9–10)
10The followers came to Jesus and asked, “Why do you use these stories to teach the people?”
11Jesus answered, “Only you can know the secret truths about God’s kingdom. Those other people cannot know these secret truths. 12The people who have some understanding will be given more. And they will have even more than they need. But those who do not have much understanding will lose even the little understanding that they have. 13This is why I use these stories to teach the people: They see, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really hear or understand. 14So they show that what Isaiah said about them is true:
‘You people will listen and listen,
but you will not understand.
You will look and look,
but you will not really see.
15Yes, the minds of these people are now closed.
They have ears, but they don’t listen.
They have eyes, but they refuse to see.
If their minds were not closed,
they might see with their eyes;
they might hear with their ears;
they might understand with their minds.
Then they might turn back to me and be healed.’ Isaiah 6:9-10
16But God has blessed you. You understand what you see with your eyes. And you understand what you hear with your ears. 17I can assure you, many prophets and godly people wanted to see what you now see. But they did not see it. And many prophets and godly people wanted to hear what you now hear. But they did not hear it.
Jesus Explains the Story About Seed
(Mk. 4:13–20; Lk. 8:11–15)
18“So listen to the meaning of that story about the farmer:
19“What about the seed that fell by the path? That is like the people who hear the teaching about God’s kingdom but do not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away what was planted in their hearts.
20“And what about the seed that fell on rocky ground? That is like the people who hear the teaching and quickly and gladly accept it. 21But they do not let the teaching go deep into their lives. They keep it only a short time. As soon as trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching they accepted, they give up.
22“And what about the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That is like the people who hear the teaching but let worries about this life and love for money stop it from growing. So it does not produce a crop in their lives.
23“But what about the seed that fell on the good ground? That is like the people who hear the teaching and understand it. They grow and produce a good crop, sometimes 100 times more, sometimes 60 times more, and sometimes 30 times more.”
A Story About Wheat and Weeds
24Then Jesus used another story to teach them. Jesus said, “God’s kingdom is like a man who planted good seed in his field. 25That night, while everyone was asleep, the man’s enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat and then left. 26Later, the wheat grew, and heads of grain grew on the plants. But at the same time the weeds also grew. 27Then the man’s servants came to him and said, ‘You planted good seed in your field. Where did the weeds come from?’
28“The man answered, ‘An enemy planted weeds.’
“The servants asked, ‘Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?’
29“He answered, ‘No, because when you pull up the weeds, you might also pull up the wheat. 30Let the weeds and the wheat grow together until the harvest time. At the harvest time I will tell the workers this: First, gather the weeds and tie them together to be burned. Then gather the wheat and bring it to my barn.’”
What Is God’s Kingdom Like?
(Mk. 4:30–34; Lk. 13:18–21)
31Then Jesus told the people another story: “God’s kingdom is like a mustard seed that a man plants in his field. 32It is the smallest of all seeds. But when it grows, it is the largest of all garden plants. It becomes a tree big enough for the birds to come and make nests in its branches.”
33Then Jesus told them another story: “God’s kingdom is like yeast that a woman mixes into a big bowl of flour to make bread. The yeast makes all the dough rise.”
34Jesus used stories to tell all these things to the people. He always used stories to teach them. 35This was to make clear the full meaning of what the prophet said:
“I will speak using stories;
I will tell things that have been secrets since the world was made.” Psalm 78:2
Jesus Explains a Hard Story
36Then Jesus left the people and went into the house. His followers came to him and said, “Explain to us the meaning of the story about the weeds in the field.”
37He answered, “The man who planted the good seed in the field is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world. The good seed are the people in God’s kingdom. The weeds are the people who belong to the Evil One. 39And the enemy who planted the bad seed is the devil. The harvest is the end of time. And the workers who gather are God’s angels.
40“The weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire. It will be the same at the end of time. 41The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will find the people who cause sin and all those who do evil. The angels will take those people out of his kingdom. 42They will throw them into the place of fire. There the people will be crying and grinding their teeth with pain. 43Then the godly people will shine like the sun. They will be in the kingdom of their Father. You people who hear me, listen!
Stories About a Treasure and a Pearl
44“God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field. One day a man found the treasure. He hid it again and was so happy that he went and sold everything he owned and bought the field.
45“Also, God’s kingdom is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46One day he found a very fine pearl. He went and sold everything he had to buy it.
A Story About a Fishing Net
47“Also, God’s kingdom is like a net that was put into the lake. The net caught many different kinds of fish. 48It was full, so the fishermen pulled it to the shore. They sat down and put all the good fish in baskets. Then they threw away the bad fish. 49It will be the same at the end of time. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the godly people. 50They will throw the evil people into the place of fire. There the people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.”
51Then Jesus asked his followers, “Do you understand all these things?”
They said, “Yes, we understand.”
52Then Jesus said to the followers, “So every teacher of the law who has learned about God’s kingdom has some new things to teach. He is like the owner of a house. He has new things and old things saved in that house. And he brings out the new with the old.”
Jesus Goes to His Hometown
(Mk. 6:1–6; Lk. 4:16–30)
53When Jesus finished teaching with these stories, he left there. 54He went to the town where he grew up. He taught the people in the synagogue, and they were amazed. They said, “Where did this man get such wisdom and this power to do miracles? 55Isn’t he just the son of the carpenter we know? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? 56And don’t all his sisters still live here in town? How is he able to do these things?” 57So they had a problem accepting him.
But Jesus said to them, “People everywhere give honor to a prophet, but in his own town or in his own home a prophet does not get any honor.” 58Jesus did not do many miracles there, because the people did not believe in him.
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