Matthew 13
13
Simple Stories, Profound Truths
1On that day after Yeshua left the house, He was sitting by the sea.
2And large crowds gathered around Him; so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood on the shore.
3And He told them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a sower went out to spread some seed.
4As he was scattering the seed, some seeds fell by the road; and the birds came and ate them up.
5Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they didn’t have much soil. They sprang up immediately, because the soil wasn’t deep.
6But when the sun came up, they were scorched; and because they had no roots, they withered away.
7Other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked them out.
8But others fell on good soil and were producing fruit. They yielded a crop—some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
9He who has ears, let him hear.”
10Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”
11And He replied to them, “To you has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
12For whoever has, to him more will be given and he will have plenty. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
13For 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 in them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘You will keep on hearing but will never understand; you will keep looking, but will never see.
15For the heart of this people has become dull, their ears can barely hear, and they have shut their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts. Then they would turn back, and I would heal them.’
16“But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
17Amen, I tell you, many a prophet and tzaddik longed to see what you are seeing and did not see, and to hear what you are hearing and did not hear.”
Parable of the Sower Explained
18“You then, hear the parable of the sower.
19When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the one having been sown along the road.
20“The one sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy.
21Yet he has no root himself but lasts only a short while; and when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.
22“But the one sown among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word; and the worries of the world and the seduction of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
23“Now the one sown on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands. He indeed bears fruit, yielding a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty times what was sown.”
Yeshua Tells More Parables
24He presented to them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
25But while the men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.
26Now when the stalk sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared.
27So the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Master, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’
28But he replied, ‘An enemy did this.’ Now the slaves say to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go out and gather them up?’
29But he says, ‘No, for while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.
30Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time, I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the weeds and tie them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.’”
31He presented to them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.
32It’s the smallest of all seeds; yet when it’s full grown, it’s greater than the other herbs. It becomes like a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
33He told them another parable, “The kingdom of heaven is like hametz, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
34All these things Yeshua spoke to the crowds in parables. And apart from a parable, He wasn’t speaking to them,
35in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying, “I will open My mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”
36Then He sent the crowds away and went into the house. His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”
37He answered, “The one sowing the good seed is the Son of Man,
38and the field is the world. And the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the weeds are the sons of the evil one.
39The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.
40Therefore just as the weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age.
41The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks and those who practice lawlessness.
42They will throw them into the fiery furnace; in that place will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
43Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear!
44“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid. And because of his joy, he goes out and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.
46Upon finding a pearl of great value, he went out and sold all that he had and bought it.
47“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea, gathering things of every kind.
48When it was filled, they pulled it ashore; and they sat down and gathered up the good into containers, but threw the bad away.
49So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth and separate the wicked from among the righteous
50and throw them into the fiery furnace; in that place will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51“Have you understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes.”
52Then He said to them, “Therefore every Torah scholar discipled for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure both new things and old.”
Unbelief in the Hometown Synagogue
53Now when Yeshua had finished these parables, He left that place.
54Coming into His hometown, He began to teach them in their synagogue so that they were amazed. “Where did this fellow get this wisdom and these mighty works?” they said.
55“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother called Miriam, and His brothers Jacob and Joseph and Simon and Judah?
56And His sisters, aren’t they all with us? So where does He get all these things?”
57And they took offense at Him. But Yeshua said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own house.”
58And He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
Matthew 13
13
The Parable of the Sower
(Mark 4:1–9; Luke 8:4–8)
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while all the people stood on the shore.
3And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
5Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun rose, the seedlings were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.
7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the seedlings.
8Still other seed fell on good soil and produced a crop—a hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold.
9He who has ears,#13:9 BYZ and TR ears to hear; also in verse 43 let him hear.”
The Purpose of Jesus’ Parables
(Isaiah 6:1–13; Mark 4:10–12; Luke 8:9–10)
10Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why do You speak to the people in parables?”
11He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13This is why I speak to them in parables:
‘Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.’#13:13 See Deuteronomy 29:4, Isaiah 42:20, Jeremiah 5:21, and Ezekiel 12:2.
14In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled:
‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15For this people’s heart has grown callous;
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 also LXX)
16But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17For truly I tell you, 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.
The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Mark 4:13–20; Luke 8:11–15)
18Consider, then, the parable of the sower: 19When anyone hears the message of the kingdom but does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown #13:19 Literally the one sown; also in verses 20, 22, and 23 along the path.
20The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since he has no root, he remains for only a season. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.
22The seed sown among the thorns is the one who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
23But the seed sown on good soil is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and produces a crop—a hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold.”
The Parable of the Weeds
(Ezekiel 17:1–10)
24Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25But while everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and slipped away. 26When the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the weeds also appeared.
27The 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.
So the servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
29‘No,’ he said, ‘if you pull the weeds now, you might 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 into my barn.’”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
(Mark 4:30–34; Luke 13:18–19)
31He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. 32Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
The Parable of the Leaven
(Luke 13:20–21)
33He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and mixed into three measures of flour, until all of it was leavened.”
I Will Open My Mouth in Parables
(Psalms 78:1–72)
34Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables. He did not tell them anything 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 foundation of the world.”#13:35 Psalms 78:2 (see also LXX); SBL, NE, and WH do not include of the world.
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
(Zephaniah 1:1–6)
36Then Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37He replied, “The One who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world, and the good seed represents the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons 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.
40As the weeds are collected and burned in the fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. 42And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.#13:43 See Daniel 12:3.
He who has ears, let him hear.
The Parables of the Treasure and the Pearl
44The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and in his joy he went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. 46When he found one very precious pearl, he went away and sold all he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Net
47Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the men pulled it ashore. Then they sat down and sorted the good fish into containers, but threw the bad away.
49So will it be at the end of the age: The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous, 50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51Have you understood all these things?”
“Yes,” they answered.
52Then He told them, “For this reason, every scribe who has been discipled in the kingdom of heaven is like a homeowner who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
The Rejection at Nazareth
(Mark 6:1–6; Luke 4:16–30)
53When Jesus had finished these parables, He withdrew from that place. 54Coming to His hometown, He taught the people in their synagogue, and they were astonished. “Where did this man get such wisdom and 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,#13:55 BYZ and TR Joses; see Mark 6:3. Simon, and Judas? 56Aren’t all His sisters with us as well? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57And they took offense at Him.
But Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown and in his own household is a prophet without honor.” 58And He did not do many miracles there, because of their unbelief.
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The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.