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That same day Jesus
went out of the house and sat by the lake. |
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Such large crowds
gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the
people stood on the shore.
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Then he told them
many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went
out to sow his seed.
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As he was scattering the seed, some fell along
the path, and the birds came and ate it up.
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Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have
much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.
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But when the sun came up, the plants were
scorched, and they withered because they had no root.
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Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and
choked the plants.
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Still other seed fell on good soil, where it
produced a crop––a
hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
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He who has ears, let him hear.” |
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The disciples came
to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”
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He replied,
“The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of
heaven has been given to you, but not to them.
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Whoever has will be given more, and he will have
an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from
him.
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This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though
seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
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In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing
but never perceiving.
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For this people’s
heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have
closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with
their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’
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But blessed are your eyes because they see, and
your ears because they hear.
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For I tell you the truth, many prophets and
righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear
what you hear but did not hear it.
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“Listen then to what the parable of the sower
means: |
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When anyone hears the message about the kingdom
and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was
sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
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The one who received the seed that fell on rocky
places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.
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But since he has no root, he lasts only a short
time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly
falls away.
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The one who received the seed that fell among
the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and
the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.
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But the one who received the seed that fell on
good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a
crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
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Jesus told them
another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like
a man who sowed good seed in his field.
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But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came
and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.
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When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then
the weeds also appeared.
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“The owner’s
servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t
you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’
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‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. The
servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
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‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are
pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them.
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Let both grow together until the harvest. At
that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them
in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ”
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He told them another
parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a
mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.
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Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet
when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so
that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”
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He told them still
another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like
yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it
worked all through the dough.”
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Jesus spoke all
these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them
without using a parable.
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So was fulfilled
what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables, I
will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”
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Then he left the
crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain
to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
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He answered,
“The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of
Man.
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The field is the world, and the good seed stands
for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
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and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The
harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
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“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the
fire, so it will be at the end of the age.
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The Son of Man will send out his angels, and
they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do
evil.
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They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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Then the righteous will shine like the sun in
the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
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“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden
in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went
and sold all he had and bought that field.
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“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
looking for fine pearls.
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When he found one of great value, he went away
and sold everything he had and bought it.
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“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net
that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish.
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When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on
the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but
threw the bad away.
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This is how it will be at the end of the age.
The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous
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and throw them into the fiery furnace, where
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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“Have you understood all these things?”
Jesus asked. “Yes,” they replied.
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He said to them,
“Therefore every teacher of the law who has been
instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who
brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
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When Jesus had
finished these parables, he moved on from there. |
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Coming to his
hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were
amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?”
they asked.
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“Isn’t
this the carpenter’s
son? Isn’t
his mother’s
name Mary, and aren’t
his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?
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Aren’t
all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”
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And they took
offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “Only
in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honour.”
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And he did not do
many miracles there because of their lack of faith. |
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