The Parable of the Sower

131 And in that day Jesus, having gone forth from the house, was sitting by the sea, 2 and gathered together unto him were many multitudes, so that he having gone into the boat did sit down, and all the multitude on the beach did stand, 3 and he spake to them many things in similes, saying: 'Lo, the sower went forth to sow, 4 and in his sowing, some indeed fell by the way, and the fowls did come and devour them, 5 and others fell upon the rocky places, where they had not much earth, and immediately they sprang forth, through not having depth of earth, 6 and the sun having risen they were scorched, and through not having root, they withered, 7 and others fell upon the thorns, and the thorns did come up and choke them, 8 and others fell upon the good ground, and were giving fruit, some indeed a hundredfold, and some sixty, and some thirty. 9 He who is having ears to hear—let him hear.'

The Purpose of the Parables

10 And the disciples having come near, said to him, 'Wherefore in similes dost thou speak to them?' 11 And he answering said to them that—'To you it hath been given to know the secrets of the reign of the heavens, and to these it hath not been given, 12 for whoever hath, it shall be given to him, and he shall have overabundance, and whoever hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken from him. 13 'Because of this, in similes do I speak to them, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor understand, 14 and fulfilled on them is the prophecy of Isaiah, that saith, With hearing ye shall hear, and ye shall not understand, and seeing ye shall see, and ye shall not perceive, 15 for made gross was the heart of this people, and with the ears they heard heavily, and their eyes they did close, lest they might see with the eyes, and with the ears might hear, and with the heart understand, and turn back, and I might heal them. 16 'And happy are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear, 17 for verily I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men did desire to see that which ye look on, and they did not see, and to hear that which ye hear, and they did not hear.

Jesus Explains the Parable of the Sower

18 'Ye, therefore, hear ye the simile of the sower: 19 Every one hearing the word of the reign, and not understanding—the evil one doth come, and doth catch that which hath been sown in his heart; this is that sown by the way. 20 'And that sown on the rocky places, this is he who is hearing the word, and immediately with joy is receiving it, 21 and he hath not root in himself, but is temporary, and persecution or tribulation having happened because of the word, immediately he is stumbled. 22 'And that sown toward the thorns, this is he who is hearing the word, and the anxiety of this age, and the deceitfulness of the riches, do choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 23 'And that sown on the good ground: this is he who is hearing the word, and is understanding, who indeed doth bear fruit, and doth make, some indeed a hundredfold, and some sixty, and some thirty.'

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

24 Another simile he set before them, saying: 'The reign of the heavens was likened to a man sowing good seed in his field, 25 and, while men are sleeping, his enemy came and sowed darnel in the midst of the wheat, and went away, 26 and when the herb sprang up, and yielded fruit, then appeared also the darnel. 27 'And the servants of the householder, having come near, said to him, Sir, good seed didst thou not sow in thy field? whence then hath it the darnel? 28 And he saith to them, A man, an enemy, did this; and the servants said to him, Wilt thou, then, 'that' having gone away we may gather it up? 29 'And he said, No, lest—gathering up the darnel—ye root up with it the wheat, 30 suffer both to grow together till the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the darnel, and bind it in bundles, to burn it, and the wheat gather up into my storehouse.'

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

31 Another simile he set before them, saying: 'The reign of the heavens is like to a grain of mustard, which a man having taken, did sow in his field, 32 which less, indeed, is than all the seeds, but when it may be grown, is greatest of the herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the heaven do come and rest in its branches.'

The Parable of the Leaven

33 Another simile spake he to them: 'The reign of the heavens is like to leaven, which a woman having taken, hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.'

Jesus' Use of Parables

34 All these things spake Jesus in similes to the multitudes, and without a simile he was not speaking to them, 35 that it might be fulfilled that was spoken through the prophet, saying, 'I will open in similes my mouth, I will utter things having been hidden from the foundation of the world.'

Jesus Explains the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

36 Then having let away the multitudes, Jesus came to the house, and his disciples came near to him, saying, 'Explain to us the simile of the darnel of the field.' 37 And he answering said to them, 'He who is sowing the good seed is the Son of Man, 38 and the field is the world, and the good seed, these are the sons of the reign, and the darnel are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is a full end of the age, and the reapers are messengers. 40 'As, then, the darnel is gathered up, and is burned with fire, so shall it be in the full end of this age, 41 the Son of Man shall send forth his messengers, and they shall gather up out of his kingdom all the stumbling-blocks, and those doing the unlawlessness, 42 and shall cast them to the furnace of the fire; there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of the teeth. 43 'Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the reign of their Father. He who is having ears to hear—let him hear.

The Hidden Treasure

44 'Again, the reign of the heavens is like to treasure hid in the field, which a man having found did hide, and from his joy goeth, and all, as much as he hath, he selleth, and buyeth that field.

The Pearl of Great Price

45 'Again, the reign of the heavens is like to a man, a merchant, seeking goodly pearls, 46 who having found one pearl of great price, having gone away, hath sold all, as much as he had, and bought it.

The Net

47 'Again, the reign of the heavens is like to a net that was cast into the sea, and did gather together of every kind, 48 which, when it was filled, having drawn up again upon the beach, and having sat down, they gathered the good into vessels, and the bad they did cast out, 49 so shall it be in the full end of the age, the messengers shall come forth and separate the evil out of the midst of the righteous, 50 and shall cast them to the furnace of the fire, there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of the teeth.'

Treasures New and Old

51 Jesus saith to them, 'Did ye understand all these?' They say to him, 'Yes, sir.' 52 And he said to them, 'Because of this every scribe having been discipled in regard to the reign of the heavens, is like to a man, a householder, who doth bring forth out of his treasure things new and old.'

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

53 And it came to pass, when Jesus finished these similes, he removed thence, 54 and having come to his own country, he was teaching them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and were saying, 'Whence to this one this wisdom and the mighty works? 55 is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary, and his brethren James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56 and his sisters—are they not all with us? whence, then, to this one all these?' 57 and they were stumbled at him. And Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, and in his own house:' 58 and he did not there many mighty works, because of their unbelief.

The Death of John the Baptist

141 At that time did Herod the tetrarch hear the fame of Jesus, 2 and said to his servants, 'This is John the Baptist, he did rise from the dead, and because of this the mighty energies are working in him.' 3 For Herod having laid hold on John, did bind him, and did put him in prison, because of Herodias his brother Philip's wife, 4 for John was saying to him, 'It is not lawful to thee to have her,' 5 and, willing to kill him, he feared the multitude, because as a prophet they were holding him. 6 But the birthday of Herod being kept, the daughter of Herodias danced in the midst, and did please Herod, 7 whereupon with an oath he professed to give her whatever she might ask. 8 And she having been instigated by her mother—'Give me (says she) here upon a plate the head of John the Baptist; 9 and the king was grieved, but because of the oaths and of those reclining with him, he commanded 'it' to be given; 10 and having sent, he beheaded John in the prison, 11 and his head was brought upon a plate, and was given to the damsel, and she brought 'it' nigh to her mother. 12 And his disciples having come, took up the body, and buried it, and having come, they told Jesus,

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

13 and Jesus having heard, withdrew thence in a boat to a desolate place by himself, and the multitudes having heard did follow him on land from the cities. 14 And Jesus having come forth, saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion upon them, and did heal their infirm; 15 and evening having come, his disciples came to him, saying, 'The place is desolate, and the hour hath now past, let away the multitudes that, having gone to the villages, they may buy to themselves food.' 16 And Jesus said to them, 'They have no need to go away—give ye them to eat.' 17 And they say to him, 'We have not here except five loaves, and two fishes.' 18 And he said, 'Bring ye them to me hither.' 19 And having commanded the multitudes to recline upon the grass, and having taken the five loaves and the two fishes, having looked up to the heaven, he did bless, and having broken, he gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples to the multitudes, 20 and they did all eat, and were filled, and they took up what was over of the broken pieces twelve hand-baskets full; 21 and those eating were about five thousand men, apart from women and children.

Jesus Walks on the Sea

22 And immediately Jesus constrained his disciples to go into the boat, and to go before him to the other side, till he might let away the multitudes; 23 and having let away the multitudes, he went up to the mountain by himself to pray, and evening having come, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was now in the midst of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went away to them, walking upon the sea, 26 and the disciples having seen him walking upon the sea, were troubled saying—'It is an apparition,' and from the fear they cried out; 27 and immediately Jesus spake to them, saying, 'Be of good courage, I am 'he', be not afraid.' 28 And Peter answering him said, 'Sir, if it is thou, bid me come to thee upon the waters;' 29 and he said, 'Come;' and having gone down from the boat, Peter walked upon the waters to come unto Jesus, 30 but seeing the wind vehement, he was afraid, and having begun to sink, he cried out, saying, 'Sir, save me.' 31 And immediately Jesus, having stretched forth the hand, laid hold of him, and saith to him, 'Little faith! for what didst thou waver?' 32 and they having gone to the boat the wind lulled, 33 and those in the boat having come, did bow to him, saying, 'Truly—God's Son art thou.'

Jesus Heals the Sick in Gennesaret

34 And having passed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret, 35 and having recognized him, the men of that place sent forth to all that region round about, and they brought to him all who were ill, 36 and were calling on him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment, and as many as did touch were saved.