Thematic Bible




Thematic Bible



And in stories, by way of comparison, He told them many things, as He continued to speak: "A sower went out to sow, and as he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up, and some fell upon rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and at once they sprang up, because there was no depth of soil, read more.
and when the sun was up they were scorched and dried up, because they had no root. And some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out. And some fell in rich soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty-fold. Let him who has ears listen."

Then He began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around Him so great that He got into a boat and was sitting in it, just off the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the sea. He continued teaching them by many stories. In His teaching He spoke to them as follows: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. read more.
As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Some fell upon rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up at once, because the soil was not deep; but when the sun came up, they were scorched and withered away, because they had not taken root. Some fell among the thorn seed, and the thorns grew up and choked them out and they yielded no grain. Some fell in rich soil, and came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold." And He said, "Let him who has ears listen!" When He was by Himself, those who stayed about Him with the Twelve began to ask Him about the stories. Then He said to them, "To you the secret of the kingdom of God has been entrusted, but to those who are on the outside everything is presented in stories, so that 'They may look and look and yet not see, And listen and listen and yet not understand, Lest, perchance, they should turn and be forgiven.'" Then He said to them: "If you do not understand this story, how, indeed, can you understand any of my stories? The message is what the sower sows. The ones along the path are those who have the message sown in their hearts, but as soon as it is sown there, Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts. In like manner these are the ones sown on rocky ground; as soon as they hear the truth, they accept it with ecstasy, but it does not take real root in them, and so they last only a little while; then when trouble or persecution comes on account of the truth, they at once fall by the way. A different class are those people sown among the thorns. They are people who listen to the message, but the worries of the times, the deceiving pleasures of being rich, and evil desires for other things, creep in and choke the truth out, and it yields nothing. And the people sown in rich soil are the people who listen to the message and welcome it and yield thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold."

Now as a great crowd was coming together and people were coming to Him from one town after another, He said by way of a story: "A sower went out to sow his seed. As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and were trodden down, and the wild birds ate them up. Another portion of them fell upon the rock, and as soon as they sprang up, they withered, because they had no moisture. read more.
Still another portion fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up with them and choked them out. And another portion fell in rich soil and grew and yielded a crop of a hundredfold." As He said this, He exclaimed, "Let him who has ears to hear with, listen!" His disciples were asking Him what this story meant. So He said, "You are granted the privilege of knowing the secrets of the kingdom of God, but to others they are told in stories, so that they may look and not see, may hear and not understand. This is what the story means: The seed is God's message. Those along the path illustrate those who hear it, but then the devil comes and carries off the message from their hearts, so that they may not believe it and be saved. The portion of them on the rock illustrates those who accept the message, bubbling over with joy when they first hear it, but it takes no real root. They believe for awhile, but in the time of testing they fall away. And the portion of them falling among the thorns illustrates those who hear it, but as soon as they pass on they are choked out by the worries and wealth and pleasures of life, and thus yield no mature fruit. But the portion in rich soil illustrates those who listen to the message, keep it in good and honest hearts, and in patience yield fruit.


for He was teaching them as one who had authority to teach, and not as their scribes did.

I wrote my first volume, Theophilus, about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning

But as for you, you must not seek for others to call you 'Teacher,' for you have but one who is 'Teacher,' and you are all brothers.


Meanwhile He began to teach in their synagogues, and was continuously receiving praise from all.

He came to Jesus one night and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that you have come from God, for no one can perform the wonder-works that you are doing, unless God is with him."

On another Sabbath He found Himself in the synagogue teaching; and there was there a man whose right hand was withered.

So they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, to say to Him, "Teacher, we know that you are in the habit of telling the truth and of teaching the way of God in honesty, and you do not care what anyone says, for you are not partial.

And when He had come into the temple, the high priests and elders of the people came up to Him while He was teaching, and asked, "What sort of authority have you for doing these things, and who gave you this authority?"

And they came up and said to Him, "We know that you always tell the truth, and pay no personal consideration to anyone, but teach the way of God honestly. Is it right to pay poll-tax to Caesar, or not?

They asked Him, "Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and show no favors to anyone, but teach the way of God honestly.

When He saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain. After He had taken His seat, His disciples came up to Him.

When Jesus had closed this charge to His disciples, He left there to teach and preach in their towns.

At that time Jesus said to the crowds: "Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me, as though I were a robber? Day after day I used to sit teaching in the temple, and you never laid hands on me.

Then He began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around Him so great that He got into a boat and was sitting in it, just off the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the sea.

But they continued emphatically insisting, "He is exciting the people by teaching all over Judea. He started in Galilee and now He is here."


And in stories, by way of comparison, He told them many things, as He continued to speak: "A sower went out to sow, and as he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up, and some fell upon rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and at once they sprang up, because there was no depth of soil, read more.
and when the sun was up they were scorched and dried up, because they had no root. And some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out. And some fell in rich soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty-fold. Let him who has ears listen."

"A sower went out to sow his seed. As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and were trodden down, and the wild birds ate them up. Another portion of them fell upon the rock, and as soon as they sprang up, they withered, because they had no moisture. Still another portion fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up with them and choked them out. read more.
And another portion fell in rich soil and grew and yielded a crop of a hundredfold." As He said this, He exclaimed, "Let him who has ears to hear with, listen!"

"Now listen closely to the story of the sower. When anyone hears the message of the kingdom and does not understand it, the wicked one comes and carries off the seed that was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. And what was sown upon the thin rocky soil illustrates the man who hears the message and bubbling over with joy at once accepts it, read more.
but it takes no real root in him, and he lasts only a little while, and just as soon as suffering and persecution come for the truth's sake, he at once yields and falls. And what was sown among the thorns illustrates the man who hears the message, and the worries of the times and the pleasures of being rich choke the truth out, and he yields no fruit. And what was sown in rich soil illustrates the man who hears the message and understands it, and yields fruit, one a hundred, one sixty, another thirty-fold."

Then He began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around Him so great that He got into a boat and was sitting in it, just off the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the sea. He continued teaching them by many stories. In His teaching He spoke to them as follows: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. read more.
As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Some fell upon rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up at once, because the soil was not deep; but when the sun came up, they were scorched and withered away, because they had not taken root. Some fell among the thorn seed, and the thorns grew up and choked them out and they yielded no grain. Some fell in rich soil, and came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold." And He said, "Let him who has ears listen!"

The message is what the sower sows. The ones along the path are those who have the message sown in their hearts, but as soon as it is sown there, Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts. In like manner these are the ones sown on rocky ground; as soon as they hear the truth, they accept it with ecstasy, read more.
but it does not take real root in them, and so they last only a little while; then when trouble or persecution comes on account of the truth, they at once fall by the way. A different class are those people sown among the thorns. They are people who listen to the message, but the worries of the times, the deceiving pleasures of being rich, and evil desires for other things, creep in and choke the truth out, and it yields nothing. And the people sown in rich soil are the people who listen to the message and welcome it and yield thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold."

This is what the story means: The seed is God's message. Those along the path illustrate those who hear it, but then the devil comes and carries off the message from their hearts, so that they may not believe it and be saved. The portion of them on the rock illustrates those who accept the message, bubbling over with joy when they first hear it, but it takes no real root. They believe for awhile, but in the time of testing they fall away. read more.
And the portion of them falling among the thorns illustrates those who hear it, but as soon as they pass on they are choked out by the worries and wealth and pleasures of life, and thus yield no mature fruit. But the portion in rich soil illustrates those who listen to the message, keep it in good and honest hearts, and in patience yield fruit.


That same day Jesus went out of His house and was sitting on the seashore. And the crowds that gathered about Him were so great that He got into a boat and remained sitting in it, while all the crowd stood on the seashore. And in stories, by way of comparison, He told them many things, as He continued to speak: "A sower went out to sow, read more.
and as he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up, and some fell upon rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and at once they sprang up, because there was no depth of soil, and when the sun was up they were scorched and dried up, because they had no root. And some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out. And some fell in rich soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty-fold. Let him who has ears listen." Then His disciples came up to Him and asked, "Why do you speak to them in stories?" He answered: "It is you and not they who are granted the privilege of knowing the secrets of the kingdom of heaven. For to anyone who has, more will be given, and his supply will overflow, but from anyone who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I am speaking to them in stories, because they look but do not see, they listen but do not really hear or understand. So in them the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: "'You will listen and listen and not understand, and you will look and look and never see at all, For this people's soul has grown dull, and with their ears they can scarcely hear, and they have shut tight their eyes, so that they will never see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn to me, so that I may cure them!' "But blessed are your eyes, for they are beginning to see, and your ears, for they are beginning to hear. For I solemnly say to you, many prophets and upright men yearned to see what you are seeing, and did not see it, and to hear what you are hearing, and did not hear it. "Now listen closely to the story of the sower. When anyone hears the message of the kingdom and does not understand it, the wicked one comes and carries off the seed that was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. And what was sown upon the thin rocky soil illustrates the man who hears the message and bubbling over with joy at once accepts it, but it takes no real root in him, and he lasts only a little while, and just as soon as suffering and persecution come for the truth's sake, he at once yields and falls. And what was sown among the thorns illustrates the man who hears the message, and the worries of the times and the pleasures of being rich choke the truth out, and he yields no fruit. And what was sown in rich soil illustrates the man who hears the message and understands it, and yields fruit, one a hundred, one sixty, another thirty-fold."

Then He began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around Him so great that He got into a boat and was sitting in it, just off the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the sea. He continued teaching them by many stories. In His teaching He spoke to them as follows: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. read more.
As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Some fell upon rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up at once, because the soil was not deep; but when the sun came up, they were scorched and withered away, because they had not taken root. Some fell among the thorn seed, and the thorns grew up and choked them out and they yielded no grain. Some fell in rich soil, and came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold." And He said, "Let him who has ears listen!" When He was by Himself, those who stayed about Him with the Twelve began to ask Him about the stories. Then He said to them, "To you the secret of the kingdom of God has been entrusted, but to those who are on the outside everything is presented in stories, so that 'They may look and look and yet not see, And listen and listen and yet not understand, Lest, perchance, they should turn and be forgiven.'" Then He said to them: "If you do not understand this story, how, indeed, can you understand any of my stories? The message is what the sower sows. The ones along the path are those who have the message sown in their hearts, but as soon as it is sown there, Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts. In like manner these are the ones sown on rocky ground; as soon as they hear the truth, they accept it with ecstasy, but it does not take real root in them, and so they last only a little while; then when trouble or persecution comes on account of the truth, they at once fall by the way. A different class are those people sown among the thorns. They are people who listen to the message, but the worries of the times, the deceiving pleasures of being rich, and evil desires for other things, creep in and choke the truth out, and it yields nothing. And the people sown in rich soil are the people who listen to the message and welcome it and yield thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold." Then He put a question to them: "A lamp is not brought to be put under a peck-measure or under a bed, is it? Is it not rather to be put on the lamp-stand? For nothing is ever hidden by people except for the purpose of having it known, and people do not keep secrets except to tell them. If anyone has ears let him listen!" And He was saying to them: "Take care what you hear. The measure you give will come back to you, and more besides. For whoever has will have more given to him, but whoever has nothing, even what he has will be taken away."

Now as a great crowd was coming together and people were coming to Him from one town after another, He said by way of a story: "A sower went out to sow his seed. As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and were trodden down, and the wild birds ate them up. Another portion of them fell upon the rock, and as soon as they sprang up, they withered, because they had no moisture. read more.
Still another portion fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up with them and choked them out. And another portion fell in rich soil and grew and yielded a crop of a hundredfold." As He said this, He exclaimed, "Let him who has ears to hear with, listen!" His disciples were asking Him what this story meant. So He said, "You are granted the privilege of knowing the secrets of the kingdom of God, but to others they are told in stories, so that they may look and not see, may hear and not understand. This is what the story means: The seed is God's message. Those along the path illustrate those who hear it, but then the devil comes and carries off the message from their hearts, so that they may not believe it and be saved. The portion of them on the rock illustrates those who accept the message, bubbling over with joy when they first hear it, but it takes no real root. They believe for awhile, but in the time of testing they fall away. And the portion of them falling among the thorns illustrates those who hear it, but as soon as they pass on they are choked out by the worries and wealth and pleasures of life, and thus yield no mature fruit. But the portion in rich soil illustrates those who listen to the message, keep it in good and honest hearts, and in patience yield fruit. "Nobody lights a lamp and then covers it with a pot or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light. For there is nothing hidden which shall not come out into the open, and nothing kept secret which shall not be known and come to light. So take care how you listen, for whoever gets more will have more given to him, and whoever does not get more will have even what he thinks he has taken away from him."


And in stories, by way of comparison, He told them many things, as He continued to speak: "A sower went out to sow, and as he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up, and some fell upon rocky ground where they did not have much soil, and at once they sprang up, because there was no depth of soil, read more.
and when the sun was up they were scorched and dried up, because they had no root. And some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out. And some fell in rich soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty-fold. Let him who has ears listen."

Then He began again to teach by the seashore. And a crowd gathered around Him so great that He got into a boat and was sitting in it, just off the shore, while all the people were on the land close to the sea. He continued teaching them by many stories. In His teaching He spoke to them as follows: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. read more.
As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Some fell upon rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up at once, because the soil was not deep; but when the sun came up, they were scorched and withered away, because they had not taken root. Some fell among the thorn seed, and the thorns grew up and choked them out and they yielded no grain. Some fell in rich soil, and came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold." And He said, "Let him who has ears listen!" When He was by Himself, those who stayed about Him with the Twelve began to ask Him about the stories. Then He said to them, "To you the secret of the kingdom of God has been entrusted, but to those who are on the outside everything is presented in stories, so that 'They may look and look and yet not see, And listen and listen and yet not understand, Lest, perchance, they should turn and be forgiven.'" Then He said to them: "If you do not understand this story, how, indeed, can you understand any of my stories? The message is what the sower sows. The ones along the path are those who have the message sown in their hearts, but as soon as it is sown there, Satan comes and carries off the message that has been sown in their hearts. In like manner these are the ones sown on rocky ground; as soon as they hear the truth, they accept it with ecstasy, but it does not take real root in them, and so they last only a little while; then when trouble or persecution comes on account of the truth, they at once fall by the way. A different class are those people sown among the thorns. They are people who listen to the message, but the worries of the times, the deceiving pleasures of being rich, and evil desires for other things, creep in and choke the truth out, and it yields nothing. And the people sown in rich soil are the people who listen to the message and welcome it and yield thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold."

Now as a great crowd was coming together and people were coming to Him from one town after another, He said by way of a story: "A sower went out to sow his seed. As he was sowing, some of the seed fell along the path, and were trodden down, and the wild birds ate them up. Another portion of them fell upon the rock, and as soon as they sprang up, they withered, because they had no moisture. read more.
Still another portion fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up with them and choked them out. And another portion fell in rich soil and grew and yielded a crop of a hundredfold." As He said this, He exclaimed, "Let him who has ears to hear with, listen!" His disciples were asking Him what this story meant. So He said, "You are granted the privilege of knowing the secrets of the kingdom of God, but to others they are told in stories, so that they may look and not see, may hear and not understand. This is what the story means: The seed is God's message. Those along the path illustrate those who hear it, but then the devil comes and carries off the message from their hearts, so that they may not believe it and be saved. The portion of them on the rock illustrates those who accept the message, bubbling over with joy when they first hear it, but it takes no real root. They believe for awhile, but in the time of testing they fall away. And the portion of them falling among the thorns illustrates those who hear it, but as soon as they pass on they are choked out by the worries and wealth and pleasures of life, and thus yield no mature fruit. But the portion in rich soil illustrates those who listen to the message, keep it in good and honest hearts, and in patience yield fruit.