1That day Jesus left the house and sat down beside the sea. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, while the entire crowd stood on the shore. 3Then he began to tell them many things in parables. He said,“Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4As he was sowing, some seeds fell along the path, and birds came and ate them up. 5Other seeds fell on stony ground, where they did not have a lot of soil. They sprouted at once because the soil wasn't deep. 6Butwhen the sun came up, they were scorched. Since they did not have any roots, they dried up. 7Other seeds fell among thornbushes, and the thornbushes came up and choked them. 8But other seeds fell on good soil and produced a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what was sown. 9Let the person who hasearslisten!” 10Then the disciples came and said to Jesus, “Why do you speak to people in parables?” 11He answered them,“You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but it hasn't been given to them. 12For to anyone who has something, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who doesn't have anything, even whathe has will be taken away from him. 13That's why I speak to them in parables, because‘they look but don't see,and they listen but don't hear or understand.’ 14“With them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says:‘You will listen and listen but never understand.You will look and look but never comprehend. 15For this people's heart has become dull,and their ears are hard of hearing. They have shut their eyesso that they might not see with their eyes,and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn,and I would heal them.’ 16“How blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear! 17For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but did not see them, and to hear the things you hear but did not hear them.” 18“Listen, then, to the parable about the sower. 19When anyone hears the word about the kingdom yet doesn't understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20As for what was sown on the stony ground, this is the person who hears the word and accepts it at once with joy, 21but since he doesn't have any root in himself, he lasts for only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes along because of the word, he immediately falls away. 22As for what was sown among the thornbushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the worries of life and the deceitful pleasures of wealth choke the word so that it can't produce a crop. 23But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word, understands it, and produces a crop that yields a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.” 24He presented another parable to them, saying,“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25While people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26When the crop came up and bore grain, the weeds appeared, too. 27Theowner's servants came and said to him, ‘Master, you sowed good seed in your field, didn't you? Then where did these weeds come from?’ 28He told them, ‘An enemy did this!’ The servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and pull them out?’ 29He said, ‘No, for if you pull out the weeds, you might pull out the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles for burning, but bring the wheat into my barn.”’” 31He presented another parable to them, saying,“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his field. 32Although it is the smallestofall seeds, when it is fully grown it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, and the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.” 33He told them another parable:“The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed withthree measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” 34Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables. He did not tell them anything without using a parable. 35This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet when he said, “I will open my mouth to speak in parables.I will declare what has been hiddenfrom the foundation of the world.” 36Then Jesus left the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable about the weeds in the field.” 37He answered,“The person who sowed good seed is the Son of Man, 38while the field is the world. The good seed are those who belong tothe kingdom, while the weeds are those who belong tothe evil one. 39The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40Just as weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so it will be at end oftheage. 41The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom everything that causes others to sin and those who practice lawlessness 42and they will throw them into a blazing furnace. In that place there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43Thenthe righteous will shine like the sun in their Father's kingdom. Letthe person who has earslisten!” 44“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field that a man found and hid. In his joy he went and sold everything he had and bought that field.” 45“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. 46When he found a very valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.” 47“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea that gathered all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fishermenhauled it ashore. Then they sat down, sorted the good fish into containers, and threw the bad ones away. 49That is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the evil from the righteous 50and will throw them into a blazing furnace. In that place there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” 51“Do you understand all these things?”They said to him, “Yes.” 52Then he told them,“That is why every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings both new and old things out of his treasure chest.” 53When Jesus had finished these parables, he left that place. 54He went to his hometown and began teaching the people in their synagogue in such a way that they were amazed and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miracles? 55This is the builder's son, isn't it? His mother is named Mary, isn't she? His brothers are James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas, aren't they? 56And his sisters are all with us, aren't they? So where did this man get all these things?” 57And they were offended by him.But Jesus told them,“A prophet is without honor only in his hometown and in his own home.” 58He did not perform many miracles there because of their unbelief.