Luke 8:12

12 and those beside the path are the ones who have heard. Then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they may not believe [and] be saved.

Luke 8:12 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 8:12

Those by the wayside are they that hear
The word of God, though only by accident, and very carelessly, and without understanding what they hear:

then cometh the devil;
signified by the fowls of the air:

and taketh away the word out of their hearts,
or memories; that little of it, which is retained there, and diverts their minds from it by other objects; so that they quite forget what they have heard;

lest they should believe, and be saved:
this clause is only in Luke; and with it may be compared ( 2 Corinthians 4:4 ) for with true faith in Christ the sum and substance of the word salvation is connected; and Satan being an enemy to the salvation of souls, does all he can to hinder their faith in him.

Luke 8:12 In-Context

10 And he said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest [they are] in parables, so that 'Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'

11 Now the parable means this: the seed is the word of God,

12 and those beside the path are the ones who have heard. Then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they may not believe [and] be saved.

13 And those on the rock [are those] who receive the word with joy when they hear [it], and these do not have [enough] root, who believe for a time and in a time of testing fall away.

14 And the [seed] that fell into the thorn plants--these are the ones who hear and [as they] go along are choked by the worries and riches and pleasures of life, and they do not bear fruit to maturity.

Footnotes

• [a]. *Here "[and]" is supplied because the previous participle ("believe") has been translated as a finite verb