In Jesus' time, the farmers plowed after he threw the seeds. Then the plowing would work the seeds into the soil and things would grow. Many times the farmer didn't know what was under the soil when he threw the seeds.
Jesus told this parable with that as background: It's about a farmer who throws the seeds on soil. When he did, the seeds landed on four different kinds of ground:
- Some seeds fell along a hard path, and the birds came and ate them
(Mat 13:4, Mark 4:4, Luke 8:5). Birds are a bad image in this parable.
When birds are used symbolically in the Bible, they often symbolize evil or unsaved people, see The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Leaven. - Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they didn't have much soil to cover this ground. When the sun rose, the seeds were scorched. And because they had no root, they withered away. (Mat 13:5–6, Mark 4:5–6, Luke 8:6).
- Other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them
(Mat 13:7, Mark 4:7, Luke 8:7). - Other seeds fell on good soil and yielded grain, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, and some thirtyfold (Mat 13:8, Mark 4:8, Luke 8:8a).
Jesus explained this parable: The seed is the word of God (Mark 4:14,
Luke 8:11). Those who sow are those who spread the word of God.
They will get different kinds of response when they preach the word of God.
The ground is the condition of the heart of those who hear the word of God.
- This is what was sown along a hard path: When someone hears the word of the kingdom and doesn't understand it (Eph 4:17–18, Heb 3:13), the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. (Mat 13:19,
Mark 4:15, Luke 8:12). Living in sin, without repentance, without a desire to change, hardens the heart over time. This is called The hard heart.
See also Casting pearls before swine in The Sermon on the Mount. - This is what was sown on a stony ground: It's he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Having no root in himself, he endures but a little while, and when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word,
he immediately falls away. (Mat 13:20–21, Mark 4:16–17,
Luke 8:13, Acts 14:22b). This is called The shallow heart. - This is what was sown among thorns: He is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it turns out to be unfruitful (Mat 13:22, Mark 4:18–19, Luke 8:14). This person is occupied with two kingdoms. Wealth and money are tempting things in his life, see The Love of Money. This is called The crowded heart.
- This is what was sown on good soil: It's he who hears the word, understands it, and holds fast to it. He bears fruit (1 Pet 1:23) and gives in one case a hundredfold, in another sixtyfold and in another thirtyfold. (Mat 13:23,
Mark 4:20, Luke 8:15). This is called The open and receptive heart.
It's not enough to hear the gospel, see The Parable about the Wise and Foolish Builders. God knows what goes on in the hearts of ours. We must be aware that these conditions of the heart can also happen to us even as Christians in different areas of our lives. Sometimes it takes a tragedy to give give God our attention.
We should always continue to seek God's will (Mat 7:8, Luke 11:10, Pro 2:1–5).
A false teaching is that the seed is about money, see Seed Faith Giving in
Word of Faith Movement in the U.S. Jesus explains that the seed is the word of God (Mark 4:14, Luke 8:11). This parable has nothing to do with money.
For information on other parables, see Jesus' Parables.
