3 “And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.” (Matthew 13:3–9 ESV)
Matthew 13:1-52 is a collection of parables of the kingdom of heaven. It is the third major discourse contained in Matthew. It follows the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7) and the Commissioning of the Apostles (Matt. 10). It precedes the Childlikeness of the Believer in Christ (Matt. 18) and the Olivet Discourse on the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (Matt. 24-25).
Matthew 13:1-50 contains seven parables concerning the Kingdom of Heaven. These include the Parable of the Sower (Matt. 13:3-23), the Parable of the Weeds (13:24-30), the Parable of the Mustard Seed (13:31-32), the Parable of the Leaven (13:33), the Parable of the Hidden Treasure (13:44), the Parable of the Pearl of Great Value (13:13:45-46), and the Parable of the Net (13:47-50). For the next two days, we will concentrate on the Parable of the Sower.
“A sower went out to sow.”Jesus began this parable with the image of a sower sowing seed. To sow (σπείρω; speiro) means to sow seed over tilled ground. Matthew does not tell us what kind of seed the sower planted. However, the image was a familiar one for Jesus’ Jewish audience. Agriculture was a key component of the Jewish life and economy. It remains so today.
“Seed was often (though not always) sown before the ground was plowed; it thus commonly befell any of the fates reported here. A farmer could either cast the seed by hand, as probably here, or let it trickle from holes in a sack carried by an animal,” explains commentator Craig Keener.
The seed sown by the sower fell upon four types of ground. This occurred as the sower was sowing the seed. Jesus’ emphasis at this point was not so much upon the sower but rather on the sown seed. The four different types of soli yielded four different results. It was the principle of cause and effect.
“And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.” The “path” or “road” (ὁδός; hodos) was one of the many footpaths through the field. To devour (κατεσθίω; katesthio) means to utterly destroy and consume. There was no seed remaining after the birds came and ate.
“Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.” Much of the land in Palestine has only a thin layer of soil over rock. Therefore, if the sower had not plowed first, he wasted seed on this depthless soil.
“Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.” Thorns are literally thorn plants (ἄκανθα; akantha). These were thistles and briers.
“These thistles were probably unseen, too; instead of having been pulled out, they may have just been cut or burned, leaving roots from which thistles could grow with the seed to choke it out,” states Keener.
“Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” The fourth type of soli yielded a bumper crop. The seed became grain because of the good soil. What was the significance of the yield?
“Thirtyfold, sixtyfold and a hundredfold are tremendously good harvests from Galilean soil. The Jordan Valley normally yielded between ten- and a hundredfold, so a hundredfold need not be a miraculous harvest (Gen 26:12; cf. Amos 9:13). But for much of Palestine, the average yield was tenfold (meaning that 10 seeds were harvested for every seed sown), and all the figures Jesus reports here are very good yields,” says Keener.
Jesus then invoked this concluding statement to His audience. “He who has ears, let him hear.” In other words, Jesus wanted the people to understand the significance of what He said. He wanted them to carefully listen.
Matthew records Jesus’ interpretation of this parable in 13:18-23. We will examine this text when next we meet. Have a blessed day in the Lord.
Soli deo Gloria!
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