Matthew 13

That same day Jesus left the house and sat down beside the sea.

1The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.

Note"The sea" is the Sea of Galilee, a freshwater lake about thirteen miles long, ringed by fishing villages. The Gospels also call it a lake.

2So many people crowded around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the shore.

2And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.

NoteThe King James "ship" simply meant any boat in 1611. This is a small open fishing boat. Pushing a little offshore let a speaker face a crowd on a sloping beach, which carries sound well.

3He told them many things using parables. He said, "Listen. A farmer went out to plant seed.

3And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

NoteA parable is a comparison: a short story or image drawn from ordinary life and set beside the point being made. The underlying Hebrew idea, mashal, covers proverbs, riddles and figures of speech as well as stories, so a parable is not always transparent by design.

4As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

4And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

NoteIn this farming method the seed went down before the plow, not after. The sower walked the field scattering handfuls broadside, and the field was plowed afterward to turn the seed under. That is why seed lands on the footpath that runs through the field, on rock and among weeds: he is covering the whole ground and sorting it out later.

5Some fell on rocky ground, where there was not much soil. It came up fast because the soil was shallow.

5Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

Note"Stony places" does not mean soil with stones in it. In Galilee a thin skin of earth often lies over a shelf of limestone. Such ground warms quickly, so seed sprouts fast, but the roots hit rock and the plant has no reserve of moisture.

6But when the sun came up, the young plants were burned, and they dried up because they had no roots.

6And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

7Some seed fell among thorny weeds, and the weeds grew up and choked the plants.

7And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

8But other seed fell on good soil and produced a crop. Some plants gave a hundred times what was planted, some sixty times, and some thirty times.

8But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

NoteAncient grain yields ran roughly five to ten times the seed sown, and a tenfold harvest was considered good. Thirty, sixty and a hundred times are extraordinary figures, not ordinary farming.

9Anyone who has ears to hear should listen."

9Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

10The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?"

10And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?

11He answered, "You have been given the ability to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but they have not.

11He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

Note"Mysteries" translates a Greek word meaning a secret that has now been let out to some people. It does not mean a puzzle nobody can solve, or anything mystical.

12Whoever has something will be given more, and will have plenty. But whoever has nothing will lose even what he has.

12For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

13That is why I speak to them in parables. They look, but they do not really see. They listen, but they do not really hear, and they do not understand.

13Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

14What the prophet Isaiah said comes true in them: 'You will listen and listen, but never understand. You will look and look, but never see what is there.

14And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

NoteEsaias is the Greek spelling of Isaiah. The quotation is Isaiah 6:9-10, given in its Greek form, where the words are a description of what will happen rather than a command to make it happen.

15For this people's heart has grown hard. Their ears barely hear, and they have shut their eyes. Otherwise they might see, hear, understand in their hearts, turn back to me, and I would heal them.'

15For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Note"Waxed gross" means has grown fat, and so has grown insensitive or unfeeling; the Hebrew image is of a heart thickened over like a callus. "Converted" in 1611 English kept its plain sense of turned around, turned back, without the modern overtone of changing religions.

16But your eyes are blessed, because they see. And your ears are blessed, because they hear.

16But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

17I tell you the truth: many prophets and good people wanted to see what you are seeing, and did not see it, and to hear what you are hearing, and did not hear it.

17For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Note"Verily" renders the Hebrew word amen, placed here at the front of a sentence rather than at the end. Normally amen endorses what someone else has said; used this way it vouches in advance for what the speaker is about to say.

18So listen to what the story about the farmer means.

18Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

19When someone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was planted in his heart. This is the seed that fell on the path.

19When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

Note"The wicked one" is a title for the devil, as verse 39 spells out. The King James phrase reads as a general description of a bad person, which it is not.

20The seed that fell on rocky ground stands for the person who hears the message and right away accepts it with joy.

20But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;

Note"Anon" in 1611 English meant at once, straight away. It did not mean later on.

21But he has no root in himself, so he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the message, he immediately gives up.

21Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

NoteThree King James words have shifted. "Dureth" means endures or lasts. "By and by" meant immediately, the reverse of its modern sense of eventually. "Is offended" translates a Greek verb meaning to be tripped up or made to stumble, so it means he drops away, not that his feelings are hurt.

22The seed that fell among the thorny weeds stands for the person who hears the message, but the worries of this life and the false promises of money choke the message, and he produces nothing.

22He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

Note"Care" in 1611 English meant anxiety or worry, not caring about something.

23But the seed that fell on good soil stands for the person who hears the message and understands it. He does produce a crop: a hundred times, or sixty times, or thirty times what was planted."

23But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

24Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who planted good seed in his field.

24Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:

25But while everyone was asleep, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, and then slipped away.

25But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

Note"Tares" are darnel, a weed that mimics wheat so closely that the two cannot be told apart until the heads form, and whose roots tangle with the wheat's. Sowing it in another man's field was a recognized act of sabotage and was punishable under Roman law, so the story describes a crime the first hearers would have known about.

26When the wheat came up and formed grain, the weeds showed up too.

26But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.

Note"Brought forth fruit" here means the wheat headed up and formed grain. That is the moment the darnel becomes visible, because its seed heads are dark and the wheat's are not.

27The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you plant good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?'

27So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?

28He said to them, 'An enemy did this.' The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull the weeds out?'

28He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?

29But he said, 'No. If you pull out the weeds, you might pull up the wheat along with them.

29But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.

30Let both grow together until harvest time. Then I will tell the harvest workers: First gather the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned. Then gather the wheat into my barn.'"

30Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

NoteBurning was not only punishment. Darnel stalks were fuel in a country short of firewood, and the weed's seed is toxic, so it had to be kept out of the grain.

31Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his field.

31Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:

32It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it is grown it is the largest of the garden plants. It becomes a tree, and birds come and make their nests in its branches."

32Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Note"The least of all seeds" reflects a proverbial expression: a mustard seed was the standard comparison for something tiny, much as we say a grain of sand. Black mustard grows into a shrub eight to ten feet high, large for a garden plant though not a tree in the strict botanical sense. "Herbs" in 1611 meant garden plants in general, not seasonings.

33He told them still another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until all of the dough had risen."

33Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

NoteLeaven is not packaged yeast. It is a lump of dough held back from the previous batch and left to ferment, then worked into the new flour. "Three measures" renders three satons, roughly forty to fifty pounds of flour, which would bake enough bread for a hundred people or more. The verb behind "hid" means to conceal or bury: she works the leaven in until it vanishes into the dough.

34Jesus said all these things to the crowd in parables. He did not say anything to them without using a parable.

34All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:

35This happened so that what the prophet said would come true: "I will open my mouth in parables. I will speak of things kept secret since the world was made."

35That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

NoteThe quotation is Psalm 78:2. The psalm is headed as Asaph's, and Asaph is called a seer in Chronicles, which is why a psalm can be introduced here as spoken "by the prophet."

36Then Jesus sent the crowd away and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, "Explain to us the parable about the weeds in the field."

36Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.

37He answered, "The one who plants the good seed is the Son of Man.

37He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

Note"Son of man" is the title Jesus regularly uses for himself in the Gospels. In ordinary Hebrew and Aramaic the phrase just means a human being, but it also echoes Daniel 7:13, where "one like the Son of man" is brought before God and given authority, so the expression carries both senses at once.

38The field is the world. The good seed stands for the people who belong to the kingdom. The weeds stand for the people who belong to the evil one.

38The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

39The enemy who planted them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvest workers are angels.

39The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

Note"The end of the world" translates a phrase that means the completion of the age: the close of the present era of history, not the destruction of the planet. The same phrase stands behind the wording in verses 40 and 49.

40Just as the weeds are gathered and burned in the fire, that is how it will be at the end of this age.

40As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

41The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom everything that causes people to sin, and everyone who does wrong.

41The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

Note"All things that offend" means everything that trips people up or causes them to fall. "Them which do iniquity" translates a phrase meaning those who practice lawlessness, that is, who live as though the law did not apply to them.

42They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where people will cry and grind their teeth.

42And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

NoteGrinding the teeth together is a standard Hebrew image for fury or extreme distress, used in the Psalms of enemies snarling in rage. It is not a picture of shivering or fear.

43Then the good people will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Anyone who has ears to hear should listen.

43Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

44"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and he was so happy that he went and sold everything he had and bought that field.

44Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.

NoteWith no banking system, burying valuables in the ground was the normal way to protect them, and invasion or sudden death left caches unclaimed. Under the property customs of the time a find in the ground belonged with the land, so buying the field was how the man made the treasure legally his own.

45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader looking for fine pearls.

45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:

NoteA "merchant man" is a wholesale dealer who travels to buy stock, not a shopkeeper. Pearls were among the most expensive goods in the Roman world, ranked alongside gold, and a single fine one could be worth a fortune.

46When he found one very valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.

46Who, 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 net that was thrown into the sea and caught all kinds of fish.

47Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:

NoteThis is a dragnet: a long weighted net let down from a boat and hauled to the beach, sweeping up everything in its path rather than selecting a catch as a hook or cast net does. Some of what it brings in is always unusable.

48When it was full, the men pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and put the good fish into containers, and threw the bad ones away.

48Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.

Note"Bad" fish would include those without fins and scales, which the law of Moses ruled out as food (Leviticus 11:9-12), along with anything too small or otherwise worthless.

49That is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked people from the good people,

49So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,

50and will throw them into the blazing furnace, where people will cry and grind their teeth.

50And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

51Jesus asked them, "Have you understood all these things?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord."

51Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.

52Then he said to them, "So every teacher of the law who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house, who brings out of his storeroom both new things and old things."

52Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

NoteA "scribe" was a professional expert in the law of Moses, trained to copy, interpret and teach it. "Treasure" here means the storeroom or strongbox where a householder keeps his valuables, not the valuables themselves.

53When Jesus had finished these parables, he left that place.

53And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence.

54He came to his hometown and taught the people in their meeting place. They were amazed and said, "Where did this man get this wisdom and the power to do these miracles?

54And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?

Note"His own country" means his home district, Nazareth in Galilee. A synagogue was the local assembly and its meeting place, where scripture was read aloud and discussed; a visitor with a reputation could be invited to speak, which is what is happening here.

55Isn't he the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother named Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?

55Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?

Note"Carpenter" translates tekton, a builder and craftsman who worked in wood and often in stone as well. The point of the question is social: he comes from a working family everyone in town knows. Joses is a form of the name Joseph. The words used for his brothers and sisters are the ordinary Greek words for siblings.

56And aren't all his sisters here with us? So where did this man get all this?"

56And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?

57And they refused to accept him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is respected everywhere except in his hometown and in his own family."

57And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.

Note"Is not without honour" is a double negative meaning is honored, so the sentence reads: a prophet is honored everywhere except at home. The saying had the shape of a proverb. "They were offended in him" uses the same verb as in verse 21: they were tripped up by him, they would not have him.

58And he did not do many miracles there, because they did not believe.

58And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.