⁴ Yet to this day ^(A)the Lord has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear.

¹³ Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while ^(A)seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. ^14 [a]In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

^16 (D)But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. ¹⁷ For truly I say to you that ^(E)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.

The Sower Explained

¹⁸ “^(F)Hear then the parable of the sower. ¹⁹ When anyone hears ^(G)the ^[e]word of the kingdom and does not understand it, ^(H)the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. ²⁰ The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; ²¹ yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the ^[f]word, immediately he ^[g](I)falls away. ²² And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of ^(J)the ^[h]world and the ^(K)deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. ²³ And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some ^(L)a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”

Tares among Wheat

²⁴ Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “^(M)The kingdom of heaven ^[i]may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed ^[j]tares among the wheat, and went away. ²⁶ But when the ^[k]wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. ²⁷ The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? ^[l]How then does it have tares?’ ²⁸ And he said to them, ‘An ^[m]enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ ²⁹ But he *said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but ^(N)gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Mustard Seed

³¹ He presented another parable to them, saying, “^(O)The kingdom of heaven is like ^(P)a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; ³² and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that ^(Q)the birds of the ^[n]air come and nest in its branches.”

The Leaven

³³ He spoke another parable to them, “^(R)The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in ^(S)three ^[o]pecks of flour until it was all leavened.”

³⁴ All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them ^(T)without a parable. ³⁵ This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

The Tares Explained

³⁶ Then He left the crowds and went into ^(V)the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “^(W)Explain to us the parable of the ^[p]tares of the field.” ³⁷ And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is ^(X)the Son of Man, ³⁸ and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are ^(Y)the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are ^(Z)the sons of ^(AA)the evil one; ³⁹ and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is ^(AB)the ^[q]end of the age; and the reapers are angels. ⁴⁰ So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at ^(AC)the ^[r]end of the age. ^41 (AD)The Son of Man ^(AE)will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom ^[s]all ^(AF)stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, ⁴² and ^(AG)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(AH)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ^43 (AI)Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ^(AJ)He who has ears, ^[t]let him hear.

Hidden Treasure

⁴⁴ “^(AK)The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and ^(AL)sells all that he has and buys that field.

A Costly Pearl

⁴⁵ “Again, ^(AM)the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, ⁴⁶ and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.

A Dragnet

⁴⁷ “Again, ^(AN)the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; ⁴⁸ and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. ⁴⁹ So it will be at ^(AO)the ^[u]end of the age; the angels will come forth and ^[v]take out the wicked from among the righteous, ⁵⁰ and ^(AP)will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place ^(AQ)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

⁵¹ “Have you understood all these things?” They *said to Him, “Yes.” ⁵² And ^[w]Jesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”

Jesus Revisits Nazareth

^53 (AR)When Jesus had finished these parables, He departed from there. ^54 (AS)He came to ^[x]His hometown and ^(AT)began teaching them in their synagogue, so that ^(AU)they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these ^[y]miraculous powers? ⁵⁵ Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not ^(AV)His mother called Mary, and His ^(AW)brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? ⁵⁶ And ^(AX)His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” ⁵⁷ And they took ^(AY)offense at Him. But Jesus said to them, “^(AZ)A prophet is not without honor except in his ^[z]hometown and in his own household.” ⁵⁸ And He did not do many ^[aa]miracles there because of their unbelief.