Mat 13:3-50 | ESV | STEP | And he told them many things in parables , saying : A sower went out to sow .

3 And ^ahe told them many things in parables, saying: ^b“A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but ^cwhen the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, ^dthey withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among ^ethorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some ^fa hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 ^gHe who has ears, ^{▼▼Some manuscripts add here and in verse 43 to hear} let him hear.”

The Purpose of the Parables

10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, ⁱ“To you it has been given to know ^jthe secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 ^kFor to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, ^leven what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because ^mseeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, ⁿnor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

^o“‘“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
15 For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears ^pthey can barely hear,
and ^qtheir eyes they have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and ^runderstand with their heart
and ^sturn, and I would heal them.’
16 But ^tblessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 ^uFor truly, I say to you, ^vmany 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 Parable of the Sower Explained

18 ^w“Hear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of ^xthe kingdom and ^ydoes not understand it, ^zthe evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately ^aareceives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but ^abendures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately ^ache falls away. ^{▼▼Or stumbles} 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but ^aethe cares of ^afthe world and ^agthe deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and ^ahunderstands it. He indeed ^aibears fruit and yields, in one case ^aja hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, ^ak“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds ^{▼▼Probably darnel, a wheat-like weed} among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants ^{▼▼Greek bondservants; also verse 28} of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ^an‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, " ^aoGather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn."’”

The Mustard Seed and the Leaven

31 He put another parable before them, saying, ^ap“The kingdom of heaven is like ^aqa grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

33 He told them another parable. ^ar“The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in ^asthree measures of flour, till it was ^atall leavened.”

Prophecy and Parables

34 ^auAll these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: ^{▼▼Some manuscripts Isaiah the prophet}

^aw“I will open my mouth in parables;
^axI will utter what has been hidden ^aysince the foundation of the world.”

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowds and went into ^azthe house. And his disciples came to him, saying, ^ba“Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is ^bbthe sons of the kingdom. The weeds are ^bcthe sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. ^bdThe harvest is ^bethe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds ^bfare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at ^bgthe end of the age. 41 ^bhThe Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all ^bicauses of sin and ^bjall law-breakers, 42 ^bkand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^blthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then ^bmthe righteous will shine like the sun ^bnin the kingdom of their Father. ^boHe who has ears, let him hear.

The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

44 “The kingdom of heaven ^bpis like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy ^bqhe goes and sells all that he has and ^brbuys that field.

The Parable of the Pearl of Great Value

45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding ^bsone pearl of great value, ^btwent and sold all that he had and ^bubought it.

The Parable of the Net

47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is ^bvlike a net that was thrown into the sea and ^bwgathered fish of every kind. 48 When it was full, ^bxmen drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at ^bythe end of the age. The angels will come out and ^bzseparate the evil from the righteous 50 ^caand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^cbthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.