And he said, "It is with the Realm of God as when a man has sown seed on earth;

"A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the road and was trampled down, and the wild birds ate it up;

It is like a grain of mustard-seed ??less than any seed on earth when it is sown on earth;

As for those 'on the road,' when the seed is sown there ??as soon as they hear it, Satan at once comes and carries off the word sown within them.

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

He put another parable before them. "The Realm of heaven," he said, "is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,

So the servants of the owner went to him and said, 'Did you not sow good seed in your field, sir? How then does it contain weeds?'

He put another parable before them. "The Realm of heaven," he said, "is like a grain of mustard-seed which a man takes and sows in his field.

So he replied, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of man;

And what you sow is not the body that is to be; it is a mere grain of wheat, for example, or some other seed.

He who furnishes the sower with seed and with bread to eat will supply seed for you and multiply it; he will increase the crop of your charities ??11 you will be enriched on all hands, so that you can be generous on all occasions, and your generosity, of which I am the agent, will make men give thanks to God;

and as he sowed some seeds fell on the road and the birds came and ate them up.

If we sowed you the seeds of spiritual good, is it a great matter if we reap your worldly goods?

some other seed dropped on the rock, but it withered away when it sprang up because it had no moisture;

some other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up along with it and choked it;

some other seed fell on sound soil, and springing up bore a crop, a hundredfold." When he said this he called out, "He who has an ear, let him listen to this."

This is what the parable means. The seed is the word of God.

As for the seed that fell among thorns, that means people who hear but who go and get choked with worries and money and the pleasures of life, so that they never ripen.

As for the seed in the good soil, that means those who hear and hold fast the word in a good and sound heart and so bear fruit stedfastly.

It is like a grain of mustard-seed which a man took and put into his orchard, where it grew up and became a tree, and the wild birds roosted in its branches."

The Lord said, "If you had faith the size of a grain of mustard-seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.