< Matthew 13 >
1 And on that day, having departed from the house, Jesus was sitting beside the sea.
That same day Jesus, [along with us] disciples, left the house [where he was teaching and went] to [Galilee lake]. He sat down there,
2 And many multitudes were gathered to him, so as for him (having entered in) to sit in the boat, and all the multitude had stood on the shore.
and a very large crowd gathered around him to [listen to his teaching]. So, [in order that they would not jostle him] (OR, [to speak to the people better]), he got into a boat and sat down [to teach them]. The crowd stood on the shore [and was listening].
3 And he spoke many things to them in parables, saying, Behold, the man who sows went forth to sow.
He was telling them many parables. [One of the parables] that he told them was this: “Listen! A man went out [to his field] to sow [some seeds].
4 And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside, and the birds came and devoured them.
As he was scattering [them over the soil], some [of the] seeds fell on the path. Then some birds came and ate those seeds.
5 But others fell upon the rocky places, where they had not much soil, and straightaway they sprang up because they had no depth of soil.
Other [seeds] fell on ground where there was not much soil [on top of the] rock. Those seeds sprouted very soon, [because the sun quickly warmed] the shallow soil.
6 But when the sun was risen, they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered.
But when [the young plants came up], they were scorched by the sun, and they withered because they did not have [deep] roots.
7 And others fell in the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.
Other seeds fell on [ground that contained roots of] thorny [weeds]. The thorny weeds grew [together with the young plants], and [they] crowded out [the plants].
8 But others fell upon the good ground, and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
[But] other seeds fell on good soil, and [the plants grew and] produced [a lot of] grain. Some [plants produced] 100 times [as many seeds as were planted]. Some [plants produced] 60 times [as much]. Some [plants produced] 30 times [as much].
9 He who has ears, let him hear.
If you want to understand this [MTY], you should consider [carefully what I have just said].”
10 And the disciples having come, they said to him, Why do thou speak to them in parables?
[We] disciples approached Jesus and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you speak to the crowd?”
11 And having answered, he said to them, Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens, but to those men it has not been given.
He answered [us] saying, “God [EUP/MTY] is revealing to you what he did not reveal before, about [how he wants to] rule [over people’s lives]. But he has not revealed it to others.
12 For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever has not, even what he has will be taken away from him.
Those who [think about what I say and] understand [it], God will enable them to understand more. But those who do not [think carefully about what I say] will forget even what they already know.
13 Because of this I speak to them in parables, because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, nor do they understand.
That is why I use parables when I speak to people, because although they see [what I do], they do not perceive [what it means], and although they hear [what I say], they do not really understand [what it means].
14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which says, By hearing ye will hear, and will, no, not understand, and seeing ye will see, and will, no, not perceive.
What these people do completely fulfills what [God told] the prophet Isaiah [to say long ago to the people who did not] try to understand what he said, You will hear [what I say], but you will not understand it. You will keep seeing [what I do], but you will not understand [what it means] [DOU].
15 For this people's heart became fat, and their ears hear heavily, and their eyes are shut, lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should turn, and I will heal them.
[God also said to Isaiah], These people have become unresponsive [MTY] [to what they see me do and to what they hear me say]. They listen unwillingly [MTY] [to what I say], and they do not pay attention to [MTY] [what I do]. If it were not so, they would perceive [MTY] [what I am doing], they would understand [MTY] [what I say to them], and they would turn [away from their sinful lives] and turn [to me], and I would save them [from being punished for their sins] [MET].
16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear.
But as for you, God is pleased with you because you [SYN] have seen [what I have done] and because you [SYN] understand [what I say] [DOU].
17 For truly I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men longed to see the things that ye see, and did not see them, and to hear the things that ye hear, and did not hear them.
Note this: Many prophets and righteous people [who lived long ago] longed to see what you are seeing [me do], but they did not see it. They longed to hear the things that you have been hearing [me say], but they did not hear [what you hear me say].” [DOU]
18 Hear ye then the parable of the man who sows.
“[Since God wants] you [to understand what I am teaching you], listen as I [explain] the parable about the man who sowed [seeds in various kinds of soil].
19 Of every man who hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, evil comes, and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is that which was sown by the wayside.
The people who hear about how God rules over people’s lives and do not understand [what they have heard] are [like] the path where [some of] the seeds fell. [Satan], the Evil One, comes and causes these people to forget [MET] what they have heard [MET].
20 And that which was sown upon the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and straightaway receiving it with joy,
[Some people are like the] shallow soil on top of rock. When they hear God’s message, they immediately accept it joyfully.
21 yet he has no root in himself, instead it is temporary. And when tribulation or persecution develops because of the word, straightaway he is caused to stumble.
[But because it does not penetrate deeply into their inner beings, they believe it for only] a [short] time. [They are like the plants that] did not have [deep] roots. When they are treated badly and caused to suffer because they believe [God’s message], they soon stop believing [it].
22 And that which was sown in the thorns, this is he who hears the word, and the care of this age, and the deceitfulness of wealth, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. (aiōn )
[Some people are like the soil that had the roots of] thorny [weeds] in it. They hear God’s message, but they desire to be rich, [so they] worry [only] about [MTY, PRS] material things. As a result, they [PRS] forget [God’s] message, and they do not do [IDM] the things that God wants them to do. (aiōn )
23 But that which was sown upon the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, who indeed bears fruit, and is productive, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
But [some people are like the] good soil where [some of the seeds] fell. [Just like the plants that grew in this soil] produced a lot of grain, [these people] hear my message and understand it. [Some of them] do many things [IDM] [that please God, some do] even more [things that please God, and some do] very many [things that please God].”
24 He set forth another parable to them, saying, The kingdom of the heavens is compared to a man sowing good seed in his field.
Jesus also told the crowd another parable, [by which he tried to explain that although] God [MTY/EUP] is a king, [he will not immediately judge and punish all the wicked people]. Jesus said, “[God] is like a landowner [who sent his servants] to sow good [wheat] seed in his field.
25 But while the men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares in the midst of the wheat, and went away.
While those servants were sleeping [and not watching the field], an enemy of the landowner came and scattered weed [seeds] in the midst of the wheat. Then he left.
26 And when the blade sprouted and produced fruit, then the tares also appeared.
After [the seeds] sprouted and the green plants [grew], the heads of grain began to form. But the weeds also grew.
27 But the bondmen of the house-ruler having come, they said to him, Sir, did thou not sow good seed in thy field? From where then does it have tares?
So the servants of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, you [RHQ] [gave us good seeds and those are the ones we] [RHQ] [planted] in your field. So where did the weeds come from?’
28 And he said to them, A hostile man did this. And the bondmen said to him, Do thou desire therefore, after going, we would gather them up?
The landowner said to them, ‘[My] enemy did this.’ His servants said to him, ‘So, do you want us to pull up [the weeds and] put them in a pile?’
29 But he said, No, lest while gathering up the tares, ye uproot the wheat together with them.
He said [to them], ‘No, [do not do that, because] you might pull up [some of] the wheat at the same time.
30 Allow both to grow together until the harvest. And at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares, and bind them in bundles in order to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.
Let the wheat and the weeds grow together until harvest [time].’ At that time I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather the weeds, tie them into bundles to be burned. Then gather the wheat [and put it] into my barns.’”
31 He set forth another parable to them, saying, The kingdom of the heavens is like a grain of mustard plant, which having taken, a man sowed in his field.
Jesus also told this parable: “The [number of] (OR, [God’s influence in the lives of]) [people whose] lives God rules over [will continue to grow. It is very much] like mustard seeds grow after a man plants them in his field.
32 Which indeed is smaller than all seeds, but when it is grown, it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so as for the birds of the sky to come and lodge in the branches of it.
Although mustard seeds are among the smallest of all the seeds [that people plant, here in Israel they become large plants. When the plants have fully grown, they are larger than the other garden plants. They become shrubs that are large enough for birds to build nests in their branches.”]
33 He spoke another parable to them. The kingdom of the heavens is like leaven, which having taken, a woman hid in three measures of meal until it was all leavened.
Jesus also told this parable: “[The way people who let] God [MTY/EUP] rule their lives [MET] [can influence the world] is like yeast that a woman mixed with about 50 pounds of flour. [That small amount of yeast made] the whole batch of dough swell up.”
34 Jesus spoke all these things in parables to the multitudes, and he did not speak to them independent of a parable,
Jesus told the crowd parables [to teach them] all these things. When he spoke [HYP] to them, he habitually used such illustrations.
35 so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled, which says, I will open my mouth in parables. I will utter things concealed from the foundation of the world.
By doing that, [he] fulfilled what [God told one of] the prophets to write [long ago]: I will speak [MTY] in parables; I will tell [parables to teach] what I have kept secret since I created the world.
36 Then having sent the multitudes away, Jesus came into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.
After Jesus dismissed the crowds, he went inside. Then [we] disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable about the weeds [that grew] in the [wheat] field.”
37 And having answered, he said to them, He who sows the good seed is the Son of man,
He answered, “The one who sows the good seed represents [me], the one who came from heaven.
38 and the field is the world, and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of evil.
The field represents this world [MTY], [where people live]. The seeds [that grew] well represent the people who let God rule their lives [MET]. The weeds represent the people who do what [the devil], the Evil One, [tells them to do].
39 And the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are agents. (aiōn )
The enemy who sowed the weed seeds represents the devil. The [time when the reapers will] harvest [the grain] represents the time when the world will end. The reapers represent the angels. (aiōn )
40 As therefore the tares are gathered up and burned in fire, so it will be at the end of this age. (aiōn )
The weeds are gathered and burned. {The reapers gather the weeds. Then they burn them.} That represents [the judging of people, which God will do] when the world will end. [It will be like this]: (aiōn )
41 The Son of man will send forth his agents, and they will gather out of his kingdom all the stumbling-blocks, and those doing lawlessness,
I, the one who came from heaven, will send my angels, and they will gather [from everywhere the people] who cause others to quit believing in me [MET] and all those who disobey [God’s] commands.
42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.
They will throw those people into the fires of [hell]. There those people will weep and grind their teeth [because of the great pain that they are suffering]. ()
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.
[God’s] brightness will shine [on] the people who have lived as he wants them to. It will shine [on them as brightly] as the sun [shines]. It will shine on them in the place where [God], their Father, rules over them. If you want to understand this [MTY], you should think [carefully] about what I have just said.”
44 Again the kingdom of the heavens is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man having found, he hid. And from the joy of it, he goes and sells all, as many things as he has, and buys that field.
“[What people do who begin to allow] God [MTY/EUP] to rule their lives is like [what a certain man did to acquire a treasure]. A treasure was hidden in a field by someone {Someone hid a treasure in a field [and never dug it up again]}. When [another] man found it, he hid it [by burying it again in order that no one else would find it]. Being very happy [that he had found something very valuable, he went and] sold all his possessions [to obtain money to buy the field the treasure was in]. He then went and bought the field, [and so he was able to acquire that treasure].
45 Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a man, a merchant, seeking fine pearls.
Also, what [people do who begin to allow] God [MTY/EUP] to rule their lives is like [what] a merchant [did who was] looking for good quality pearls [to buy].
46 Who, having found one very valuable pearl, after departing, sold all, as many things as he had, and bought it.
When he found one very costly pearl [that was for sale], he sold all his possessions [to acquire enough money to buy that pearl]. Then he [went and] bought it.
47 Again, the kingdom of the heavens is like a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered from every kind,
What God [MTY/EUP] [will do to people who falsely say that they are letting him] rule their lives is like what certain [fishermen] did [with the fish they caught] in a lake, using a large net. They caught all classes [of fish, both useful and worthless fish].
48 which, when it was full, after dragging to the shore, having sat down, they gathered the good into vessels, but they cast out the useless.
When the net was full, the [fishermen] pulled it up onto the shore. Then they sat there and put the useful [fish] into buckets, and threw the worthless ones away.
49 So it will be at the end of the age. The agents will come forth, and separate the bad from among the righteous, (aiōn )
[What they did in separating the good fish from the bad ones] is like [what will happen to people] when the world ends. The angels will come [to where God is judging people], and will separate the wicked [people] from the righteous [ones]. (aiōn )
50 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.
They will throw the wicked people into the fire [in hell]. And those wicked people will weep and gnash their teeth [because of the intense pain they are suffering].” ()
51 Jesus says to them, Have ye understood all these things? They say to him, Yes, Lord.
[Then Jesus asked us], “Do you understand all these [parables I have told you]?” We said to him,
52 And he said to them, Because of this every scholar who has been instructed in the kingdom of the heavens is like a man, a house-ruler, who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old.
“Yes, [we understand them].” Then he said to us, “Because [you understand all these parables], [you will understand the following parable: You, along with] all others, will teach people what [you heard me say] about God ruling people’s lives. [You will add that to what you formerly learned. You will be] like a manager of a household who takes both new things and old things out of his storage room.”
53 And it came to pass, when Jesus finished these parables, he departed from there.
When Jesus had finished [telling] these parables, he took [us] and left that [area].
54 And having come into his fatherland he taught them in their synagogue, so as for them to be astonished, and say, From where is this wisdom and powers in this man?
We went to [Nazareth, his hometown. (On the Sabbath/On the Jewish rest day]) he began to teach the people in the Jewish worship house. The result was that the people there were astonished. But [some] said, “[This man is just an ordinary person like us. So] how is it that he knows so much and understands so much [RHQ]? And how is it that he is able to do [such] miracles [RHQ]?
55 Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers, James and Joses and Simon and Judas?
(He is [just] the son of the carpenter!/Isn’t he [just] the son of the carpenter [that lived here]?) [RHQ] His mother is Mary, and his younger brothers are James, Joseph, Simon and Judas [RHQ]!
56 And his sisters, are they not all near us? From where then are all these things in this man?
(And his sisters [also live] here in our [town]./Do not his sisters [live] in our [town]?) [RHQ] So how is he able to do all these [miracles]?”
57 And they were offended by him. But Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor, except in his fatherland, and in his house.
The people were unable to accept [that] he [was the Messiah. So] Jesus said to them, “[People] honor [me and other] prophets [everywhere else we go], but in [our] hometowns [we are] not [honored], and [even] our own families do not [honor us!]”
58 And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Jesus did not perform many miracles there because the people did not believe [that he was the Messiah].