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Another parable he put before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field;
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it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."
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He told them another parable. "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened."
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All this Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed he said nothing to them without a parable.
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This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world."
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Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field."
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He answered, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of man;
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the field is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the kingdom; the weeds are the sons of the evil one,
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and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels.
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Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age.
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The Son of man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers,
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and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
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Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
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"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
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"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls,
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who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
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"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind;
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when it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad.
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So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous,
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and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
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"Have you understood all this?" They said to him, "Yes."
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And he said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old."