"It is with the kingdom of God," he continued, "as if a man should have sown seed in the earth;

And like the sowing upon 'stony ground' are those who, whenever they hear the Word, at once receive it with joy,

It is like a mustard-seed, which, when sown in the soil, is the smallest seed in the world;

and as he sowed, it happened that some seed fell on the road, and birds came and picked it up;