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Chapter 13
(Matthew 13 NKJV) On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat
by the sea. {2} And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so
that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the
shore. {3} Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying:
"Behold, a sower went out to sow. {4} "And as he sowed, some seed fell
by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. {5} "Some fell on
stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately
sprang up because they had no depth of earth. {6} "But when the sun was
up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.
{7} "And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked
them. {8} "But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a
hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. {9} "He
who has ears to hear, let him hear!" {10} And the disciples came and
said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" {11} He answered
and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
{12} "For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have
abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken
away from him. {13} "Therefore I speak to them in parables, because
seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they
understand. {14} "And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which
says: 'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, And seeing you
will see and not perceive; {15} For the hearts of this people have grown
dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they
should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal
them.' {16} "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for
they hear; {17} "for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and
righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to
hear what you hear, and did not hear it. {18} "Therefore hear the
parable of the sower: {19} "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom,
and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away
what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.
{20} "But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears
the word and immediately receives it with joy; {21} "yet he has no root
in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or
persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. {22}
"Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and
the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word,
and he becomes unfruitful. {23} "But he who received seed on the good
ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears
fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." {24}
Another parable He put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is
like a man who sowed good seed in his field; {25} "but while men slept,
his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. {26}
"But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares
also appeared. {27} "So the servants of the owner came and said to him,
'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have
tares?' {28} "He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants
said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' {29} "But
he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the
wheat with them. {30} 'Let both grow together until the harvest, and at
the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together
the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat
into my barn."' " {31} Another parable He put forth to them, saying:
"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and
sowed in his field, {32} "which indeed is the least of all the seeds;
but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so
that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." {33} Another
parable He spoke to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a
woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened."
{34} All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and
without a parable He did not speak to them, {35} that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: "I will open My mouth
in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the
world." {36} Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house.
And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the
tares of the field." {37} He answered and said to them: "He who sows the
good seed is the Son of Man. {38} "The field is the world, the good
seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the
wicked one. {39} "The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is
the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. {40} "Therefore as
the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end
of this age. {41} "The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they
will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who
practice lawlessness, {42} "and will cast them into the furnace of fire.
There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. {43} "Then the righteous
will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has
ears to hear, let him hear! {44} "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like
treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over
it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. {45} "Again,
the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, {46}
"who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that
he had and bought it. {47} "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a
dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, {48}
"which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and
gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. {49} "So it will
be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the
wicked from among the just, {50} "and cast them into the furnace of
fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." {51} Jesus said to
them, "Have you understood all these things?" They said to Him, "Yes,
Lord." {52} Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed
concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of
his treasure things new and old." {53} Now it came to pass, when Jesus
had finished these parables, that He departed from there. {54} And when
He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so
that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom
and these mighty works? {55} "Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not
His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?
{56} "And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man
get all these things?" {57} So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said
to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and
in his own house." {58} Now He did not do many mighty works there
because of their unbelief.
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