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Jesus answered, "The man who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man;
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the field is the world; the good seed is the people who belong to the Kingdom; the weeds are the people who belong to the Evil One;
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and the enemy who sowed the weeds is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvest workers are angels.
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Just as the weeds are gathered up and burned in the fire, so the same thing will happen at the end of the age:
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the Son of Man will send out his angels to gather up out of his Kingdom all those who cause people to sin and all others who do evil things,
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and they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where they will cry and gnash their teeth.
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Then God's people will shine like the sun in their Father's Kingdom. Listen, then, if you have ears!
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"The Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man happens to find a treasure hidden in a field. He covers it up again, and is so happy that he goes and sells everything he has, and then goes back and buys that field.
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"Also, the Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man is looking for fine pearls,
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and when he finds one that is unusually fine, he goes and sells everything he has, and buys that pearl.
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"Also, the Kingdom of heaven is like this. Some fishermen throw their net out in the lake and catch all kinds of fish.