Thematic Bible


Thematic Bible



He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches.

And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade. read more.
And with a number of such stories he gave them his teaching, as they were able to take it:

Then he said, What is the kingdom of God like? what comparison may I make of it? It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his garden, and it became a tree, and the birds of heaven made their resting-places in its branches.

He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches.

Then he said, What is the kingdom of God like? what comparison may I make of it? It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his garden, and it became a tree, and the birds of heaven made their resting-places in its branches.

And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade.

And he gave them another story, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who put good seed in his field: But while men were sleeping, one who had hate for him came and put evil seeds among the grain, and went away. But when the green stem came up and gave fruit, the evil plants were seen at the same time. read more.
And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, Sir, did you not put good seed in your field? how then has it evil plants? And he said, Someone has done this in hate. And the servants say to him, Is it your pleasure that we go and take them up? But he says, No, for fear that by chance while you take up the evil plants, you may be rooting up the grain with them. Let them come up together till the getting in of the grain; and then I will say to the workers, Take up first the evil plants, and put them together for burning: but put the grain into my store-house. He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches. Another story he gave to them: The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took, and put in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened. All these things Jesus said to the people in the form of stories; and without a story he said nothing to them: That it might come true which was said by the prophet, Opening my mouth, I will give out stories; I will give knowledge of things kept secret from before all time. Then he went away from the people, and went into the house; and his disciples came to him, saying, Make clear to us the story of the evil plants in the field. And he made answer and said, He who puts the good seed in the earth is the Son of man; And the field is the world; and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom; and the evil seeds are the sons of the Evil One; And he who put them in the earth is Satan; and the getting in of the grain is the end of the world; and those who get it in are the angels. As then the evil plants are got together and burned with fire, so will it be in the end of the world. The Son of man will send out his angels, and they will take out of his kingdom everything which is a cause of error, and all those who do wrong, And will put them into the fire; there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Then will the upright be shining as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him give ear. The kingdom of heaven is like a secret store of wealth in a field, which a man came across and put back again; and in his joy he goes and gives all he has, to get that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader searching for beautiful jewels. And having come across one jewel of great price, he went and gave all he had in exchange for it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net, which was put into the sea and took in every sort of fish: When it was full, they took it up on the sands; and seated there they put the good into vessels, but the bad they put away. So will it be in the end of the world: the angels will come and take out the bad from the good, And will put them into the fire: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Are all these things now clear to you? They say to him, Yes. And he said to them, For this reason every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house, who gives out from his store things new and old. And when Jesus had come to the end of these stories he went away from there.

And he said, Such is the kingdom of God, as if a man put seed in the earth, And went to sleep and got up, night and day, and the seed came to growth, though he had no idea how. The earth gives fruit by herself; first the leaf, then the head, then the full grain. read more.
But when the grain is ready, he quickly sends men to get it cut, because the time for cutting has come. And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade. And with a number of such stories he gave them his teaching, as they were able to take it: And without a story he said nothing to them: but privately to his disciples he made all things clear.

And while they were giving ear to these words, he made another story for them, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they were of the opinion that the kingdom of God was coming straight away. So he said, A certain man of high birth went into a far-away country to get a kingdom for himself, and to come back. And he sent for ten of his servants and gave them ten pounds and said to them, Do business with this till I come. read more.
But his people had no love for him, and sent representatives after him, saying, We will not have this man for our ruler. And when he came back again, having got his kingdom, he gave orders for those servants to whom he had given the money to come to him, so that he might have an account of what business they had done. And the first came before him, saying, Lord, your pound has made ten pounds. And he said to him, You have done well, O good servant: because you have done well in a small thing you will have authority over ten towns. And another came, saying, Your pound has made five pounds. And he said, You will be ruler over five towns. And another came, saying, Lord, here is your pound, which I put away in a cloth; Because I was in fear of you, for you are a hard man: you take up what you have not put down, and get in grain where you have not put seed. He said to him, By the words of your mouth you will be judged, you bad servant. You had knowledge that I am a hard man, taking up what I have not put down and getting in grain where I have not put seed; Why then did you not put my money in a bank, so that when I came I would get it back with interest? And he said to the others who were near, Take the pound away from him, and give it to the man who has ten. And they say to him, Lord, he has ten pounds. And I say to you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And as for those who were against me, who would not have me for their ruler, let them come here, and be put to death before me.

For the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a house, who went out early in the morning to get workers into his vine-garden. And when he had made an agreement with the workmen for a penny a day, he sent them into his vine-garden. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others in the market-place doing nothing; read more.
And he said to them, Go into the vine-garden with the others, and whatever is right I will give you. And they went to work. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and saw others doing nothing; and he says to them, Why are you here all the day doing nothing? They say to him, Because no man has given us work. He says to them, Go in with the rest, into the vine-garden. And when evening came, the lord of the vine-garden said to his manager, Let the workers come, and give them their payment, from the last to the first. And when those men came who had gone to work at the eleventh hour, they were given every man a penny. Then those who came first had the idea that they would get more; and they, like the rest, were given a penny. And when they got it, they made a protest against the master of the house, Saying, These last have done only one hour's work, and you have made them equal to us, who have undergone the hard work of the day and the burning heat. But he in answer said to one of them, Friend, I do you no wrong: did you not make an agreement with me for a penny? Take what is yours, and go away; it is my pleasure to give to this last, even as to you. Have I not the right to do as seems good to me in my house? or is your eye evil, because I am good? So the last will be first, and the first last.

And he gave them another story, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who put good seed in his field: But while men were sleeping, one who had hate for him came and put evil seeds among the grain, and went away. But when the green stem came up and gave fruit, the evil plants were seen at the same time. read more.
And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, Sir, did you not put good seed in your field? how then has it evil plants? And he said, Someone has done this in hate. And the servants say to him, Is it your pleasure that we go and take them up? But he says, No, for fear that by chance while you take up the evil plants, you may be rooting up the grain with them. Let them come up together till the getting in of the grain; and then I will say to the workers, Take up first the evil plants, and put them together for burning: but put the grain into my store-house. He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches. Another story he gave to them: The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took, and put in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened. All these things Jesus said to the people in the form of stories; and without a story he said nothing to them: That it might come true which was said by the prophet, Opening my mouth, I will give out stories; I will give knowledge of things kept secret from before all time. Then he went away from the people, and went into the house; and his disciples came to him, saying, Make clear to us the story of the evil plants in the field. And he made answer and said, He who puts the good seed in the earth is the Son of man; And the field is the world; and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom; and the evil seeds are the sons of the Evil One; And he who put them in the earth is Satan; and the getting in of the grain is the end of the world; and those who get it in are the angels. As then the evil plants are got together and burned with fire, so will it be in the end of the world. The Son of man will send out his angels, and they will take out of his kingdom everything which is a cause of error, and all those who do wrong, And will put them into the fire; there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Then will the upright be shining as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him give ear. The kingdom of heaven is like a secret store of wealth in a field, which a man came across and put back again; and in his joy he goes and gives all he has, to get that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader searching for beautiful jewels. And having come across one jewel of great price, he went and gave all he had in exchange for it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net, which was put into the sea and took in every sort of fish: When it was full, they took it up on the sands; and seated there they put the good into vessels, but the bad they put away. So will it be in the end of the world: the angels will come and take out the bad from the good, And will put them into the fire: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Are all these things now clear to you? They say to him, Yes. And he said to them, For this reason every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house, who gives out from his store things new and old.

For this reason the kingdom of heaven is like a king, who went over his accounts with his servants. And at the start, one came to him who was in his debt for ten thousand talents. And because he was not able to make payment, his lord gave orders for him, and his wife, and his sons and daughters, and all he had, to be given for money, and payment to be made. read more.
So the servant went down on his face and gave him worship, saying, Lord, give me time to make payment and I will give you all. And the lord of that servant, being moved with pity, let him go, and made him free of the debt. But that servant went out, and meeting one of the other servants, who was in debt to him for one hundred pence, he took him by the throat, saying, Make payment of your debt. So that servant went down on his face, requesting him and saying, Give me time and I will make payment to you. And he would not: but went and put him into prison till he had made payment of the debt. So when the other servants saw what was done they were very sad, and came and gave word to their lord of what had been done. Then his lord sent for him and said, You evil servant; I made you free of all that debt, because of your request to me: Was it not right for you to have mercy on the other servant, even as I had mercy on you? And his lord was very angry, and put him in the hands of those who would give him punishment till he made payment of all the debt. So will my Father in heaven do to you, if you do not everyone, from your hearts, give forgiveness to his brother.

And, hearing these words, one of those who were at table with him said to him, Happy is the man who will be a guest in the kingdom of God. And he said to them, A certain man gave a great feast, and sent word of it to a number of people. And when the time had come, he sent his servants to say to them, Come, for all things are now ready. read more.
And they all gave reasons why they were not able to come. The first said to him, I have got a new field, and it is necessary for me to go and see it: I am full of regret that I am unable to come. And another said, I have got some cattle, and I am going to make a test of them: I am full of regret that I am unable to come. And another said, I have been married, and so I am not able to come. And the servant came back and gave his master an account of these things. Then the master of the house was angry and said to the servant, Go out quickly into the streets of the town and get the poor, the blind, and those who are broken in body. And the servant said, Lord, your orders have been done, and still there is room. And the lord said to the servant, Go out into the roads and the fields, and make them come in, so that my house may be full. For I say to you that not one of those who were requested to come will have a taste of my feast.

Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins, the friends of the bride, who took their lights, and went out with the purpose of meeting the husband. And five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For the foolish, when they took their lights, took no oil with them. read more.
But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lights. Now the husband was a long time in coming, and they all went to sleep. But in the middle of the night there is a cry, The husband comes! Go out to him. Then all those virgins got up, and made ready their lights. And the foolish said to the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lights are going out. But the wise made answer, saying, There may not be enough for us and you; it would be better for you to go to the traders and get oil for yourselves. And while they went to get oil, the master came; and those who were ready went in with him to the feast: and the door was shut. After that the other virgins came, saying, Lord, Lord, let us in. But he made answer and said, Truly I say to you, I have no knowledge of you. Keep watch, then, because you are not certain of the day or of the hour. For it is as when a man, about to take a journey, got his servants together, and gave them his property. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to everyone as he was able; and he went on his journey. Straight away he who had been given the five talents went and did trade with them, and made five more. In the same way he who had been given the two got two more. But he who was given the one went away and put it in a hole in the earth, and kept his lord's money in a secret place. Now after a long time the lord of those servants comes, and makes up his account with them. And he who had the five talents came with his other five talents, saying, Lord, you gave into my care five talents: see, I have got five more. His lord said to him, Well done, good and true servant: you have been true in a small thing, I will give you control over great things: take your part in the joy of your lord. And he who had the two talents came and said, Lord, you gave into my care two talents: see, I have got two more. His lord said to him, Well done, good and true servant: you have been true in a small thing, I will give you control over great things: take your part in the joy of your lord. And he who had had the one talent came and said, Lord, I had knowledge that you are a hard man, getting in grain where you have not put seed, and making profits for which you have done no work: And I was in fear, and went away, and put your talent in the earth: here is what is yours. But his lord in answer said to him, You are a bad and unready servant; if you had knowledge that I get in grain where I did not put seed, and make profits for which I have done no work, Why, then, did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I would have got back what is mine with interest? Take away, then, his talent and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have more: but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And put out the servant who is of no profit into the outer dark: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow.

The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king, who made a feast when his son was married, And sent out his servants to get in the guests to the feast: and they would not come. Again he sent out other servants, with orders to say to the guests, See, I have made ready my feast: my oxen and my fat beasts have been put to death, and all things are ready: come to the feast. read more.
But they gave no attention, and went about their business, one to his farm, another to his trade: And the rest put violent hands on his servants, and did evil to them, and put them to death. But the king was angry; and he sent his armies, and those who had put his servants to death he gave to destruction, burning down their town with fire. Then he said to his servants, The feast is ready but the guests were not good enough. Go then to the cross-roads, and get all those whom you see to come to the bride-feast. And those servants went out into the streets, and got together all those whom they came across, bad and good: and the feast was full of guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a guest's robe; And he says to him, Friend, how came you in here not having a guest's robe? And he had nothing to say. Then the king said to the servants, Put cords round his hands and feet and put him out into the dark; there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. For out of all to whom the good news has come, only a small number will get salvation.

And he said to them, When the light comes in, do people put it under a vessel, or under the bed, and not on its table? There is nothing covered which will not be seen openly, and nothing has been made secret which will not come to light. If any man has ears, let him give ear. read more.
And he said to them, Take care what you give ear to: in the same measure as you give you will get, and more will be given to you. He who has, to him will be given: and he who has not, from him will be taken even that which he has. And he said, Such is the kingdom of God, as if a man put seed in the earth, And went to sleep and got up, night and day, and the seed came to growth, though he had no idea how. The earth gives fruit by herself; first the leaf, then the head, then the full grain. But when the grain is ready, he quickly sends men to get it cut, because the time for cutting has come. And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade. And with a number of such stories he gave them his teaching, as they were able to take it: And without a story he said nothing to them: but privately to his disciples he made all things clear.

Then he said, What is the kingdom of God like? what comparison may I make of it? It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his garden, and it became a tree, and the birds of heaven made their resting-places in its branches. And again he said, What is the kingdom of God like? read more.
It is like leaven, which a woman put into three measures of meal, and it was all leavened.

He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches.

Then he said, What is the kingdom of God like? what comparison may I make of it? It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his garden, and it became a tree, and the birds of heaven made their resting-places in its branches.

And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth,

On that day Jesus went out of the house and was seated by the seaside. And great numbers of people came together to him, so that he got into a boat; and the people took up their position by the sea. And he gave them teaching in the form of a story, saying, A man went out to put seed in the earth; read more.
And while he did so, some seeds were dropped by the wayside, and the birds came and took them for food: And some of the seed went among the stones, where it had not much earth, and straight away it came up because the earth was not deep: And when the sun was high, it was burned; and because it had no root it became dry and dead. And some seeds went among thorns, and the thorns came up and they had no room for growth: And some, falling on good earth, gave fruit, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty times as much. He who has ears, let him give ear. And the disciples came and said to him, Why do you say things to them in the form of stories? And he said to them in answer, To you is given the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. Because whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have more; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. For this reason I put things into the form of stories; because they see without seeing, and give ear without hearing, and the sense is not clear to them. And for them the words of Isaiah have come true, Though you give ear, you will not get knowledge; and seeing, you will see, but the sense will not be clear to you: For the heart of this people has become fat and their ears are slow in hearing and their eyes are shut; for fear that they might see with their eyes and give hearing with their ears and become wise in their hearts and be turned again to me, so that I might make them well. But a blessing be on your eyes, because they see; and on your ears, because they are open. For truly, I say to you that prophets and upright men had a desire to see the things which you see, and saw them not; and to have knowledge of the words which have come to your ears, and they had it not. Give ear, then, to the story of the man who put the seed in the earth. When the word of the kingdom comes to anyone, and the sense of it is not clear to him, then the Evil One comes, and quickly takes away that which was put in his heart. He is the seed dropped by the wayside. And that which went on the stones, this is he who, hearing the word, straight away takes it with joy; But having no root in himself, he goes on for a time; and when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, he quickly becomes full of doubts. And that which was dropped among the thorns, this is he who has the word; and the cares of this life, and the deceits of wealth, put a stop to the growth of the word and it gives no fruit. And the seed which was put in good earth, this is he who gives ear to the word, and gets the sense of it; who gives fruit, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty times as much. And he gave them another story, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who put good seed in his field: But while men were sleeping, one who had hate for him came and put evil seeds among the grain, and went away. But when the green stem came up and gave fruit, the evil plants were seen at the same time. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, Sir, did you not put good seed in your field? how then has it evil plants? And he said, Someone has done this in hate. And the servants say to him, Is it your pleasure that we go and take them up? But he says, No, for fear that by chance while you take up the evil plants, you may be rooting up the grain with them. Let them come up together till the getting in of the grain; and then I will say to the workers, Take up first the evil plants, and put them together for burning: but put the grain into my store-house. He put another story before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and put in his field: Which is smaller than all seeds; but when it has come up it is greater than the plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and make their resting-places in its branches. Another story he gave to them: The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took, and put in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened. All these things Jesus said to the people in the form of stories; and without a story he said nothing to them: That it might come true which was said by the prophet, Opening my mouth, I will give out stories; I will give knowledge of things kept secret from before all time. Then he went away from the people, and went into the house; and his disciples came to him, saying, Make clear to us the story of the evil plants in the field. And he made answer and said, He who puts the good seed in the earth is the Son of man; And the field is the world; and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom; and the evil seeds are the sons of the Evil One; And he who put them in the earth is Satan; and the getting in of the grain is the end of the world; and those who get it in are the angels. As then the evil plants are got together and burned with fire, so will it be in the end of the world. The Son of man will send out his angels, and they will take out of his kingdom everything which is a cause of error, and all those who do wrong, And will put them into the fire; there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Then will the upright be shining as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him give ear. The kingdom of heaven is like a secret store of wealth in a field, which a man came across and put back again; and in his joy he goes and gives all he has, to get that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader searching for beautiful jewels. And having come across one jewel of great price, he went and gave all he had in exchange for it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net, which was put into the sea and took in every sort of fish: When it was full, they took it up on the sands; and seated there they put the good into vessels, but the bad they put away. So will it be in the end of the world: the angels will come and take out the bad from the good, And will put them into the fire: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. Are all these things now clear to you? They say to him, Yes. And he said to them, For this reason every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house, who gives out from his store things new and old.

And he gave them teaching about a number of things in the form of stories, and said to them in his teaching, Give ear: A man went out to put seed in the earth: And while he was doing it, some was dropped by the wayside, and the birds came and took it for food. read more.
And some went on the stones, where it had not much earth; and it came up straight away, because the earth was not deep: And when the sun was high, it was burned; and because it had no root, it became dry and dead. And some went among the thorns, and the thorns came up, and it had no room for growth and gave no fruit. And some, falling on good earth, gave fruit, coming up and increasing, and giving thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much. And he said to them, Whoever has ears, let him give ear. And when he was by himself, those who were round him with the twelve put questions to him about the purpose of the stories. And he said to them, To you is given the secret of the kingdom of God, but to those who are outside, all things are given in the form of stories; So that seeing they may see, and it will not be clear to them; and hearing it, they will not get the sense; for fear that they may be turned again to me and have forgiveness. And he said to them, If you are not clear about this story, how will you be clear about the others? The seed is the word. And these are they by the wayside, where the word is planted; and when they have given ear, the Evil One comes straight away and takes away the word which has been planted in them. And in the same way, these are they who are planted on the stones, who, when the word has come to their ears, straight away take it with joy; And they have no root in themselves, but go on for a time; then, when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, they quickly become full of doubts. And others are those planted among the thorns; these are they who have given ear to the word, And the cares of this life, and the deceits of wealth, and the desire for other things coming in, put a stop to the growth of the word, and it gives no fruit. And these are they who were planted on the good earth; such as give ear to the word, and take it into their hearts, and give fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundred times as much. And he said to them, When the light comes in, do people put it under a vessel, or under the bed, and not on its table? There is nothing covered which will not be seen openly, and nothing has been made secret which will not come to light. If any man has ears, let him give ear. And he said to them, Take care what you give ear to: in the same measure as you give you will get, and more will be given to you. He who has, to him will be given: and he who has not, from him will be taken even that which he has. And he said, Such is the kingdom of God, as if a man put seed in the earth, And went to sleep and got up, night and day, and the seed came to growth, though he had no idea how. The earth gives fruit by herself; first the leaf, then the head, then the full grain. But when the grain is ready, he quickly sends men to get it cut, because the time for cutting has come. And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade. And with a number of such stories he gave them his teaching, as they were able to take it:

And he gave them teaching in the form of a story, saying, A man went out to put seed in the earth; And while he did so, some seeds were dropped by the wayside, and the birds came and took them for food: And some of the seed went among the stones, where it had not much earth, and straight away it came up because the earth was not deep: read more.
And when the sun was high, it was burned; and because it had no root it became dry and dead. And some seeds went among thorns, and the thorns came up and they had no room for growth: And some, falling on good earth, gave fruit, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty times as much.

A man went out to put in seed, and while he was doing it, some was dropped by the wayside and it was crushed under foot, and was taken by the birds of heaven. And some went on the rock, and when it came up it became dry and dead because it had no water. And some went among thorns, and the thorns came up with it and it had no room for growth. read more.
And some falling on good earth, came up and gave fruit a hundred times as much. And with these words he said in a loud voice, He who has ears, let him give ear. And his disciples put questions to him about the point of the story. And he said, To you is given knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to the others, they are given in stories, so that seeing, they may not see, and though they give hearing, the sense will not be clear to them. Now this is the point of the story: The seed is the word of God. Those by the side of the road are those who have given hearing; then the Evil One comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not have faith and get salvation. And those on the rock are those who with joy give hearing to the word; but having no root, they have faith for a time, and when the test comes they give up. And those which went among thorns are those who have given hearing, and go on their way, but they are overcome by cares and wealth and the pleasures of life, and they give no fruit. And those in the good earth are those who, having given ear to the word, keep it with a good and true heart, and in quiet strength give fruit.

A man went out to put seed in the earth: And while he was doing it, some was dropped by the wayside, and the birds came and took it for food. And some went on the stones, where it had not much earth; and it came up straight away, because the earth was not deep: read more.
And when the sun was high, it was burned; and because it had no root, it became dry and dead. And some went among the thorns, and the thorns came up, and it had no room for growth and gave no fruit. And some, falling on good earth, gave fruit, coming up and increasing, and giving thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much. And he said to them, Whoever has ears, let him give ear. And when he was by himself, those who were round him with the twelve put questions to him about the purpose of the stories. And he said to them, To you is given the secret of the kingdom of God, but to those who are outside, all things are given in the form of stories; So that seeing they may see, and it will not be clear to them; and hearing it, they will not get the sense; for fear that they may be turned again to me and have forgiveness. And he said to them, If you are not clear about this story, how will you be clear about the others? The seed is the word. And these are they by the wayside, where the word is planted; and when they have given ear, the Evil One comes straight away and takes away the word which has been planted in them. And in the same way, these are they who are planted on the stones, who, when the word has come to their ears, straight away take it with joy; And they have no root in themselves, but go on for a time; then, when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, they quickly become full of doubts. And others are those planted among the thorns; these are they who have given ear to the word, And the cares of this life, and the deceits of wealth, and the desire for other things coming in, put a stop to the growth of the word, and it gives no fruit. And these are they who were planted on the good earth; such as give ear to the word, and take it into their hearts, and give fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundred times as much.

Give ear, then, to the story of the man who put the seed in the earth. When the word of the kingdom comes to anyone, and the sense of it is not clear to him, then the Evil One comes, and quickly takes away that which was put in his heart. He is the seed dropped by the wayside. And that which went on the stones, this is he who, hearing the word, straight away takes it with joy; read more.
But having no root in himself, he goes on for a time; and when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, he quickly becomes full of doubts. And that which was dropped among the thorns, this is he who has the word; and the cares of this life, and the deceits of wealth, put a stop to the growth of the word and it gives no fruit. And the seed which was put in good earth, this is he who gives ear to the word, and gets the sense of it; who gives fruit, some a hundred, some sixty, some thirty times as much.

And he made answer and said, He who puts the good seed in the earth is the Son of man; And the field is the world; and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom; and the evil seeds are the sons of the Evil One;

And he said, Such is the kingdom of God, as if a man put seed in the earth, And went to sleep and got up, night and day, and the seed came to growth, though he had no idea how. The earth gives fruit by herself; first the leaf, then the head, then the full grain. read more.
But when the grain is ready, he quickly sends men to get it cut, because the time for cutting has come. And he said, What picture may we give of the kingdom of God, or with what story may we make it clear? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is put in the earth, is smaller than all the seeds on the earth, But when it is planted, it comes up, and becomes taller than all the plants, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of heaven are able to take rest in its shade.