Matthew 13
13
Jesus Teaches in Parables
1On that day Jesus had gone out of the house and was sitting by the sea. 2And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.
3And He told them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; 4and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. 5Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and they sprang up immediately, because they had no depth of soil. 6But after the sun rose, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7Others fell #13:7 Lit uponamong the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. 8But others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much. 9The one who has ears, #13:9 Or hear! Or listen!let him hear.”
An Explanation for Parables
10And the disciples came up and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11And #13:11 Lit HeJesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14And #13:14 Lit for themin their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘ # 13:14 Lit With a hearing you shall hear; a Heb idiom You shall keep on listening, # 13:14 Lit and but shall not understand;
And # 13:14 Lit Seeing you shall see you shall keep on looking, # 13:14 Lit and but shall not perceive;
15 For the heart of this people has become dull,
With their ears they scarcely hear,
And they have closed their eyes,
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
Understand with their heart, and return,
And I would heal them.’
16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
The Sower Explained
18 “Listen then to the parable of the sower. 19When anyone hears the #13:19 I.e., messageword of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one sown with seed beside the road. 20The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the #13:21 I.e., messageword, immediately he #13:21 I.e., from the faithfalls away. 22And the one sown with seed among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of the #13:22 Or ageworld and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it #13:22 Or proves to be unfruitfulbecomes unfruitful. 23But the one sown with seed on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much.”
Weeds among Wheat
24Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven #13:24 Lit has been compared tois like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed #13:25 Prob. darnel, a weed resembling wheatweeds among the wheat, and left. 26And when the #13:26 Lit grasswheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident. 27And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? #13:27 Lit From whereHow then does it have weeds?’ 28And he said to them, ‘#13:28 Lit A hostile personAn enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ 29But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
The Mustard Seed
31He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a person took and sowed in his field; 32and this is smaller than all the other seeds, but when it is fully grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”
The Leaven
33He spoke another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like #13:33 I.e., fermented doughleaven, which a woman took and hid in three #13:33 A Gr term for a Heb measure, totaling about 48 lb. or 22 kg of floursata of flour until it was all leavened.”
34All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak anything to them without a parable. 35This was so that what was spoken through the prophet would be #13:35 Lit fulfilled, sayingfulfilled:
“I will open My mouth in parables;
I will proclaim things hidden since the foundation of the world.”
The Weeds Explained
36Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the #13:36 Prob. darnel, a weed resembling wheatweeds of the field.” 37And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, 38and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one; 39and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the #13:39 Or consummationend of the age; and the reapers are angels. 40So just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the #13:40 Or consummationend of the age. 41The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom #13:41 Or everything that is offensiveall stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, 42and they will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. The one who has ears, #13:43 Or hear! Or listen!let him hear.
Hidden Treasure
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from # 13:44 Or his joy, he goes joy over it he goes and sells everything that he has, and buys that field.
A Costly Pearl
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, 46and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold everything that he had and bought it.
A Dragnet
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; 48and when it was filled, they pulled it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. 49So it will be at the #13:49 Or consummationend of the age: the angels will come forth and remove the wicked from among the righteous, 50and they will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?” They *said to Him, “Yes.” 52And #13:52 Lit HeJesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure new things and old.”
Jesus Revisits Nazareth
53When Jesus had finished these parables, He departed from there. 54And He came to #13:54 Or His own part of the countryHis hometown and began teaching them in their synagogue, with the result that they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man acquire this wisdom and these #13:54 Or miraclesmiraculous powers? 55Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is His mother not called Mary, and His brothers, James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? 56And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man acquire all these things?” 57And they took offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not dishonored except in his #13:57 Or own part of the countryhometown and in his own household.” 58And He did not do many #13:58 Or works of powermiracles there because of their unbelief.
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Matthew 13: NASB2020
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Matthew 13
13
The Parable of the Sower
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
10The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”
11He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13This is why I speak to them in parables:
“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:
“ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15 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.’ # 13:15
Isaiah 6:9,10 (see Septuagint)
16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
The Parable of the Weeds
24Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
27 “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?’
28 “ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
29 “ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30Let 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.’ ”
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
31He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
33He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds#13:33 Or about 27 kilograms of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35So 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.”#13:35 Psalm 78:2
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
36Then 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.”
37He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41The 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. 42They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.
The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl
44 “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.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Net
47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When 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. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51 “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
52He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
A Prophet Without Honor
53When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54Coming 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. 55“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”
58And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
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