[1] He began to teach again by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat in the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land.
[2] And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching,
[3] “Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow;
[4] as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up.
[5] Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of soil.
[6] And after the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
[7] Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.
[8] Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”
[9] And He was saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
[10] As soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve, began asking Him about the parables.
[11] And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables,
[12] so that WHILE SEEING, THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND WHILE HEARING, THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND, OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT RETURN AND BE FORGIVEN.”
[13] And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all the parables?
[14] The sower sows the word.
[15] These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them.
[16] In a similar way these are the ones on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy;
[17] and they have no firm root in themselves, but are only temporary; then, when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they fall away.
[18] And others are the ones on whom seed was sown among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word,
[19] but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
[20] And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”
[21] And He was saying to them, “A lamp is not brought to be put under a basket, is it, or under a bed? Is it not brought to be put on the lampstand?
[22] For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light.
[23] If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”
[24] And He was saying to them, “Take care what you listen to. By your standard of measure it will be measured to you; and more will be given you besides.
[25] For whoever has, to him more shall be given; and whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.”
[26] And He was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil;
[27] and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know.
[28] The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head.
[29] But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
[30] And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it?
[31] It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil,
[32] yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR can NEST UNDER ITS SHADE.”
[33] With many such parables He was speaking the word to them, so far as they were able to hear it;
[34] and He did not speak to them without a parable; but He was explaining everything privately to His own disciples.
[35] On that day, when evening came, He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.”
[36] Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him.
[37] And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up.
[38] Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”
[39] And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm.
[40] And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
[41] They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”