Mark 4:3-13

3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.

4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.

6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.

7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain.

8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”

9 Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

10 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables.

11 He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables

12 so that, “ ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’^[a] ”

13 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?

Cross References

• 1. ver 26
• 2. John 15:5; Colossians 1:6
• 3. ver 23; S Matthew 11:15
• 4. S Matthew 3:2
• 5. 1 Corinthians 5:12,13; Colossians 4:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:12; 1 Timothy 3:7
• 6. Isaiah 6:9,10; S Matthew 13:13-15

Footnotes

• [a]. Isaiah 6:9,10