Will you let persecution or the anxieties of life steal or crush the word out of you? Or will you allow God to change your heart to become good soil? This is the most important parable for challenging our hearts to be receptive to Jesus and his gospel.
God is at work in you by his grace. You can now receive the gospel or good news of the kingdom.
Two commentators Wesel and Strauss say that the Parable of the Sower is the “most important for Mark and becomes a defining passage not only for Jesus’ teaching in parables but also for his teaching as a whole” (p. 750).
Before we begin the exegesis …..
Quick definition of a parable:
Literally, the word parable (parabolē in Greek) combines para– (pronounced pah-rah and means “alongside”) and bolē (pronounced boh-lay and means “put” or even “throw”). Therefore, a parable puts two or more images or ideas alongside each other to produce a new truth. […] The Shorter Lexicon says that the Greek word parabolē can sometimes be translated as “symbol,” “type,” “figure,” and “illustration,” the latter term being virtually synonymous with parable.
For more information on what a parable is and its purposes, click on this link:
The translation is mine. If you would like to see other translations, click here: biblegateway.com.
If you don’t read Greek, ignore the left column.
I often quote scholars in print because I learn many things from them. They are a community of teachers I respect (1 Cor. 12:28), though I don’t agree with everything they write. But they do ensure I do not go astray. There is safety in numbers (for me at least).
Now let’s begin.
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Parable of the Sower Introduced (Mark 4:1-9) |
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| 1 Καὶ πάλιν ἤρξατο διδάσκειν παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν· καὶ συνάγεται πρὸς αὐτὸν ὄχλος πλεῖστος, ὥστε αὐτὸν εἰς πλοῖον ἐμβάντα καθῆσθαι ἐν τῇ θαλάσσῃ, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος πρὸς τὴν θάλασσαν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἦσαν. 2 καὶ ἐδίδασκεν αὐτοὺς ἐν παραβολαῖς πολλὰ καὶ ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς ἐν τῇ διδαχῇ αὐτοῦ· 3 Ἀκούετε. ἰδοὺ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ σπείρων σπεῖραι. 4 καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ σπείρειν ὃ μὲν ἔπεσεν παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν, καὶ ἦλθεν τὰ πετεινὰ καὶ κατέφαγεν αὐτό. 5 καὶ ἄλλο ἔπεσεν ἐπὶ τὸ πετρῶδες ὅπου οὐκ εἶχεν γῆν πολλήν, καὶ εὐθὺς ἐξανέτειλεν διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν βάθος γῆς· 6 καὶ ὅτε ἀνέτειλεν ὁ ἥλιος ἐκαυματίσθη καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ῥίζαν ἐξηράνθη. 7 καὶ ἄλλο ἔπεσεν εἰς τὰς ἀκάνθας, καὶ ἀνέβησαν αἱ ἄκανθαι καὶ συνέπνιξαν αὐτό, καὶ καρπὸν οὐκ ἔδωκεν. 8 καὶ ἄλλα ἔπεσεν εἰς τὴν γῆν τὴν καλὴν καὶ ἐδίδου καρπὸν ἀναβαίνοντα καὶ αὐξανόμενα καὶ ἔφερεν ἓν τριάκοντα καὶ ἓν ἑξήκοντα καὶ ἓν ἑκατόν. 9 καὶ ἔλεγεν· ὃς ἔχει ὦτα ἀκούειν ἀκουέτω. | 1 Again he began to teach by the lake, and a massive crowd gathered around him, so that he got in a boat and sat down on it in the lake, while all the crowd was on the shore by the lake. 2 Then he began to teach them many things in parables and was speaking to them in his teaching. 3 “Listen! Pay attention! A sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened that, while he was sowing, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it. 5 Another batch fell on the rocky ground, where it did not have much soil and sprang up quickly because the soil was not deep. 6 And when the sun rose, it was burned up, and because it did not have roots, it withered. 7 Another batch fell among thorn bushes, and the thorn bushes grew up and choked it; it did not produce crops. 8 Others fell on the good soil and produced crops and grew up and increased, and some produced thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred.” 9 And he was saying, “The one who has ears to hear—let him hear!” |
I chose Mark’s version because it is slightly fuller than Matthew’s and Luke’s versions–only slightly.
Here is Matthew’s version:
Matthew 13 (scroll down to vv. 1-9 and then vv. 18-23
Luke’s version:
Luke 8 (scroll down to vv. 4-8 and then vv. 11-15).
Let’s now go verse by verse.
1:
We’ll hold back on interpreting this parable until vv. 13-20, where Jesus explains it.
This parable has been called the Parable of the Soils and even the Parable of the Seeds. But I stayed with tradition, though the Parable of the Soils makes sense, while the third option does not (not to me, at least).
Jesus is still by the Lake of Galilee, but in Mark 3:7-8 people came from all over greater Israel and Palestine, and in 3:9 he had to get in a boat to teach. And yes, the word lake appears three times in the verse.
As I noted at 3:9, I have heard of the belief that water transmits the sound because the sound waves bounce off the water.
Mark is keen to show that Jesus could gather a crowd. This time he did not heal them but taught them. Teaching the kingdom of God is equal to or even better than healing through the power of the Spirit in the kingdom because eventually this physical body will wear out, but the teaching will last forever. His word will not pass away (Mark 13:31). Renewalists who like the sensational aspect of the kingdom of God, as it comes in full power and healing, need to remember the teaching part of ministry. They must reinforce their basic Bible knowledge and doctrine, so they can explain it to the people and so that the flashy ministers themselves won’t go astray.
2:
“in his teaching”: As I noted at Mark 1:22, didachē (pronounced dee-dah-khay or dih-dah-khay) is the Greek noun here. Reading this verse and the formal noun makes me wonder whether the church in the U.S. and the world get adequate teaching. In America many of the TV guys do a lot of yelling and shouting and displays of personality and shrieking and freaking and dancing and prancing. I wonder whether Jesus did any of that. I don’t think so. Yet he amazed the people with his teaching.
Let’s explore this Greek noun more thoroughly.
It is, as noted, the word didachē. BDAG is considered by many to be the authoritative lexicon of the Greek NT, and it defines the noun as follows: (1) “The activity of teaching, teaching, instruction”; (2) “the content of teaching, teaching.” Yes, the word is also used of Jesus’s teaching: Matt. 7:28; 22:33; Mark 1:22, 27; 4:2; 11:18; 12:38; Luke 4:32; John 7:16, 17; 18:19. And it is used of the apostolic teaching: Acts 2:42; 5:28; 13:12; 17:19; Rom. 6:17; 16:17; 1 Cor. 14:6, 26; 2 Tim. 4:2; Ti. 1:9; Heb. 6:2; 2 John 9 (twice), 10; Rev. 2:14, 15, 24.
3:
Jesus issues two commands. Listen! Pay attention! He is about to teach something solemn which we are to apply to our lives.
A sower made a pouch with a robe, slung it around his shoulder, full of seed, and reached into it, grabbed a handful, and threw it, sweeping his hand back and forth. After his hand emptied out, he reached in his bag and grabbed another handful.
4-7:
In Luke’s parallel version, professional grammarians teach us that the Greek verb tenses indicate that while Jesus was speaking his parable to a large crowd, so his voice had to be raised for them to hear; he was shouting the quoted words even louder at intervals. Mark uses the exact same verb and verb tense.
There is a logical progression in the development of the seed: the seed never germinates; the second sprouts and dies; the third becomes a plant but is chocked by thorn bushes (Wessel and Strauss (p. 752).
As for the thirty, sixty, hundred, it is entirely possible for an individual plant to produce that many kernels (Wessel and Strauss, pp. 752-53).
ALTERNATIVE FREE TRANSLATION
Here is a free alternative, expanded translation from Luke 8:4-8. It is very interesting.
Professional grammarians teach us that the Greek verb tenses indicate that he was speaking his parable to a large crowd, so his voice had to be raised for them to hear . So he was shouting the quoted words even louder at intervals.
The sequence may have worked out like this:
Parable of the Sower and Soils, Expanded (Luke 8:4-8)
4 When a big crowd came together, and they came to him from the towns, he spoke in a parable:
5 “A sower went out to sow his seed, and while he was sowing, some fell along the path and were trampled on, and birds of the sky ate it up. He who has ears to hear let him hear! 6 Another handful of seed fell on the rocky ground, and when it grew up, it withered because it had no moisture. He who has ears to hear let him hear! 7 And another handful fell in the middle of thorn bushes, and when they grew up with it, the thorn bushes choked it. He who has ears to hear let him hear!
8 Still another handful fell on good soil; when it grew up, it produced fruit, one hundredfold.” He who has ears to hear let him hear!”
While he was speaking, he was shouting, “He who has ears to hear let him hear!”
This repetitive shouting at intervals puts extra-drama and earnestness before the listeners. And this sequence prepares the next short pericope (pronounced puh-RIH-koh-pea) or section of Scripture, which explains the purpose of parables.
Culy, Martin M., Mikael C. Parsons. Joshua J. Stigall. Luke: A Handbook on the Greek Text. (Baylor UP, 2010).
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The Parable of the Sower and Soils, Explained (Mark 4:13-20) |
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| 13 Καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· οὐκ οἴδατε τὴν παραβολὴν ταύτην, καὶ πῶς πάσας τὰς παραβολὰς γνώσεσθε; 14 ὁ σπείρων τὸν λόγον σπείρει. 15 οὗτοι δέ εἰσιν οἱ παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν· ὅπου σπείρεται ὁ λόγος καὶ ὅταν ἀκούσωσιν, εὐθὺς ἔρχεται ὁ σατανᾶς καὶ αἴρει τὸν λόγον τὸν ἐσπαρμένον εἰς αὐτούς. 16 καὶ οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ἐπὶ τὰ πετρώδη σπειρόμενοι, οἳ ὅταν ἀκούσωσιν τὸν λόγον εὐθὺς μετὰ χαρᾶς λαμβάνουσιν αὐτόν, 17 καὶ οὐκ ἔχουσιν ῥίζαν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἀλλὰ πρόσκαιροί εἰσιν, εἶτα γενομένης θλίψεως ἢ διωγμοῦ διὰ τὸν λόγον εὐθὺς σκανδαλίζονται. 18 καὶ ἄλλοι εἰσὶν οἱ εἰς τὰς ἀκάνθας σπειρόμενοι· οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ τὸν λόγον ἀκούσαντες, 19 καὶ αἱ μέριμναι τοῦ αἰῶνος καὶ ἡ ἀπάτη τοῦ πλούτου καὶ αἱ περὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἐπιθυμίαι εἰσπορευόμεναι συμπνίγουσιν τὸν λόγον καὶ ἄκαρπος γίνεται. 20 καὶ ἐκεῖνοί εἰσιν οἱ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν τὴν καλὴν σπαρέντες, οἵτινες ἀκούουσιν τὸν λόγον καὶ παραδέχονται καὶ καρποφοροῦσιν ἓν τριάκοντα καὶ ἓν ἑξήκοντα καὶ ἓν ἑκατόν. | 13 He said to them: “You don’t understand this parable? Then how will you understand all the parables? 14 The one sowing sows the word. 15 These are the ones along the path, where the word was sown. When they heard, immediately Satan also takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 And these are the ones that were sown on the rocky ground, which are those when they heard the word immediately received it joyfully 17 and had no root in themselves; instead, they were transitory. Then trouble and persecution occurred because of the word, and they soon fell away. 18 The others were those sown into the thorn bushes. They heard the word 19 and the worries of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the craving for other things came in and choked the word. And there was no crop. 20 Those are the ones who are sown in the good soil and hear the word and accept it and produce crops, some thirty, some sixty, and some hundred. |
Let’s take it verse by verse, after a brief introduction.
The Greek here is certainly understandable, but it is a little awkward. Mark is famous for writing like that! But never mind. Let’s move on from such technicalities.
A. First soil / heart: Packed down as hard as a footpath.
B. Second soil / heart: rocky ground so roots don’t go down deep.
C. Third soil / heart: thorn bushes can grow there, which choke out good growth.
D. Fourth soil / heart: Good heart so the word can grow and produce mature fruit.
13:
Jesus expresses surprise and frustration that this clear parable was not entirely understood by his disciples and the twelve.
“word”: It is the noun logos (pronounced lah-goss). It is the same noun for word in all the verses in this section (vv. 11-15). It is used 330 times in the NT. Since it is so important, let’s explore the noun more deeply, as I do in this entire commentary series.
The noun is rich and full of meaning. It always has built into it rationality and reason. It has spawned all sorts of English words that end in –log-, like theology or biology, or have the log– stem in them, like logic.
We now know the seed is the word or message of the kingdom in the parable. This word explains the kingdom of God and its power to transform people’s hearts, if their hearts are receptive. There is no “done deal,” except for those who persevere (endure or hang in there).
It is the same word logos throughout these verses, which can be translated as “message.”
14-15:
So the sower sows the word. He (or she) is the proclaimer, the preacher. Right now, that’s Jesus in real terms. After Pentecost, that’s you and me.
First soil / heart: the packed-down path or road. The seeds never even got a chance to put down roots before people trampled on them and birds ate them.
“the evil one”: the devil is the (collective) birds. He can read people’s heart well enough that he can steal the word from it. No, his reading hearts does not make him omniscient; it just means he can read hearts! He can certainly read it well enough to snatch the word from your heart.
Do I Really Know God? He Is Omniscient
Satan and his demons can read the human mind and heart, individually, but this does not make him or them omniscient Omniscience means that God can read every single heart and mind of all humans on the planet at the same time–all eight billions of us. Every single thought, one at a time or several at one time in each individual x eight billion. Amazing. Truly amazing.
Satan and his evil army do not have this ability.
Don’t let the devil rob you of the good word planted in you. “Is this really real? Is the word true?” You can ask those questions but go to someone who is more mature than you to get answers.
See my posts about Satan in the area of systematic theology:
Bible Basics about Satan and Demons and Victory Over Them
Bible Basics about Deliverance
Magic, Witchcraft, Sorcery, and Fortunetelling
16-17:
Second soil / heart: rocky ground. People can receive the word with joy when they hear it. But the rocky soil prevents the roots from going deep enough for them to soak up the moisture.
Scorching sunlight (= trials and temptations) is implied in this verse.
“temporary” is proskairos (pronounced pross-ky-ross), and it can be transitory. In the time of testing or temptation they fall away. “Fall away” could be translated more literally as a stumbling block. It is easy to imagine that the hearers, receivers and believers walk away or stand away from the word after they go through temptation or testing.
Be prepared for trials and temptations.
18-19:
Third soil / heart: thorn plants grow there. Thorn bushes (another translation) grow with the seed and choke it. Here the thorn bushes are explained as the anxieties and deceitfulness of riches—and these things choke the word. No, money and certain pleasure are not bad in themselves, but too often they do choke out our relationship with God.
“no crop”: It could be translated as “fruitless” or “cropless.” The verb is in the present tense, implying that if the word had not been choked out, the fruit would have grown to maturity; one has to keep going to maturity. So the picture is that the hearer produces some fruit, but then the entire plant gets choked out by the anxieties and deceitfulness of riches.
20:
Fourth soil / heart: This person produces a lot of grain.
“produce crops”: it is one verb karpophoreō (pronounced kahr-poh-foh-reh-oh), and it is in the present tense—you keep producing fruit.
For the quarrel between professional theologians over “once save, always saved” and the possibility of walking away from salvation, see my posts:
Possible Apostasy or Eternal Security?
Remaining a Christian or Falling Away?
Also see how the parable might apply to this question in more detail:
Parable of the Sower: Eternal Security or Possible Apostasy?
GrowApp for Mark 4:1-7, 13-20
A. Do you have ears to hear the meaning of parables? Are you hungry enough to break your dull thinking? How do you do this?
B. Which soil and walk with God best describes your heart and commitment? Why? How do you become good soil (if you are not already)?
SOURCES
At this link, scroll down to the very bottom to find the bibliography:
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 