Passage

Mark 4.3-32

Book: Mark · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"1. And again he began to teach by the sea side. And there is gathered unto him a very great multitude, so that he entered into a boat, and sat in the sea; and all the multitude were by the sea on the land. 2. And he taught them many things in parables, and said unto them in his teaching,"

"3. Hearken: Behold, the sower went forth to sow: 4. and it came to pass, as he sowed, some seed fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured it. 5. And other fell on the rocky ground, where it had not much earth; and straightway it sprang up, because it had no deepness of earth: 6. and when the sun was risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 7. And other fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8. And others fell into the good ground, and yielded fruit, growing up and increasing; and brought forth, thirtyfold, and sixtyfold, and a hundredfold. 9. And he said, Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 10. And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parables. 11. And he said unto them, Unto you is given the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all things are done in parables: 12. that seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest haply they should turn again, and it should be forgiven them. 13. And he saith unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how shall ye know all the parables? 14. The sower soweth the word. 15. And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; and when they have heard, straightway cometh Satan, and taketh away the word which hath been sown in them. 16. And these in like manner are they that are sown upon the rocky places, who, when they have heard the word, straightway receive it with joy; 17. and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, straightway they stumble. 18. And others are they that are sown among the thorns; these are they that have heard the word, 19. and the cares of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 20. And those are they that were sown upon the good ground; such as hear the word, and accept it, and bear fruit, thirtyfold, and sixtyfold, and a hundredfold. 21. And he said unto them, Is the lamp brought to be put under the bushel, or under the bed, and not to be put on the stand? 22. For there is nothing hid, save that it should be manifested; neither was anything made secret, but that it should come to light. 23. If any man hath ears to hear, let him hear. 24. And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete it shall be measured unto you; and more shall be given unto you. 25. For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken away even that which he hath. 26. And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed upon the earth; 27. and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, he knoweth not how. 28. The earth beareth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29. But when the fruit is ripe, straightway he putteth forth the sickle, because the harvest is come. 30. And he said, How shall we liken the kingdom of God? or in what parable shall we set it forth? 31. It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown upon the earth, though it be less than all the seeds that are upon the earth, 32. yet when it is sown, groweth up, and becometh greater than all the herbs, and putteth out great branches; so that the birds of the heaven can lodge under the shadow thereof."

"33. And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it; 34. and without a parable spake he not unto them: but privately to his own disciples he expounded all things." (Mark 4:1-34, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. Again he began to teach by the seaside. A great multitude was gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat in the sea, and sat down. All the multitude were on the land by the sea. 2. He taught them many things in parables, and told them in his teaching,"

"3. “Listen! Behold, the farmer went out to sow, 4. and as he sowed, some seed fell by the road, and the birds came and devoured it. 5. Others fell on the rocky ground, where it had little soil, and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil. 6. When the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 7. Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8. Others fell into the good ground, and yielded fruit, growing up and increasing. Some produced thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times as much.” 9. He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.” 10. When he was alone, those who were around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 11. He said to them, “To you is given the mystery of God’s Kingdom, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables, 12. that ‘seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins should be forgiven them.’” 13. He said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How will you understand all of the parables? 14. The farmer sows the word. 15. The ones by the road are the ones where the word is sown; and when they have heard, immediately Satan comes, and takes away the word which has been sown in them. 16. These in the same way are those who are sown on the rocky places, who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with joy. 17. They have no root in themselves, but are short-lived. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they stumble. 18. Others are those who are sown among the thorns. These are those who have heard the word, 19. and the cares of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20. Those which were sown on the good ground are those who hear the word, and accept it, and bear fruit, some thirty times, some sixty times, and some one hundred times.” 21. He said to them, “Is the lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it put on a stand? 22. For there is nothing hidden, except that it should be made known; neither was anything made secret, but that it should come to light. 23. If any man has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24. He said to them, “Take heed what you hear. With whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you, and more will be given to you who hear. 25. For whoever has, to him will more be given, and he who doesn’t have, even that which he has will be taken away from him.” 26. He said, “God’s Kingdom is as if a man should cast seed on the earth, 27. and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, he doesn’t know how. 28. For the earth bears fruit: first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29. But when the fruit is ripe, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” 30. He said, “How will we liken God’s Kingdom? Or with what parable will we illustrate it? 31. It’s like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, though it is less than all the seeds that are on the earth, 32. yet when it is sown, grows up, and becomes greater than all the herbs, and puts out great branches, so that the birds of the sky can lodge under its shadow.”"

"33. With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. 34. Without a parable he didn’t speak to them; but privately to his own disciples he explained everything." (Mark 4:1-34, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. 2. And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,"

"3. Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: 4. And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. 5. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: 6. But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 7. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. 9. And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 10. And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11. And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12. That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. 13. And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? 14. The sower soweth the word. 15. And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16. And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17. And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. ^{offended: or, stumbled, or, caused to fall into sin} 18. And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, 19. And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. ^{lusts: or, inordinate desires} 20. And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred. 21. And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick? ^{bushel: the word in the original signifieth a less measure} 22. For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. 23. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. 24. And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given. 25. For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath. 26. And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; 27. And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. 28. For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. 29. But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come. ^{brought: or, ripe} 30. And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? 31. It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 32. But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it."

"33. And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it. 34. But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples." (Mark 4:1-34, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. And again he began to teach by the sea, and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he, having gone into the boat, sat in the sea, and all the multitude was near the sea, on the land, 2. and he taught them many things in similes, and he said to them in his teaching:"

"3. 'Hearken, lo, the sower went forth to sow; 4. and it came to pass, in the sowing, some fell by the way, and the fowls of the heaven did come and devour it; 5. and other fell upon the rocky ground, where it had not much earth, and immediately it sprang forth, because of not having depth of earth, 6. and the sun having risen, it was scorched, and because of not having root it did wither; 7. and other fell toward the thorns, and the thorns did come up, and choke it, and fruit it gave not; 8. and other fell to the good ground, and was giving fruit, coming up and increasing, and it bare, one thirty-fold, and one sixty, and one an hundred.' 9. And he said to them, 'He who is having ears to hear, let him hear.' 10. And when he was alone, those about him, with the twelve, did ask him of the simile, 11. and he said to them, 'To you it hath been given to know the secret of the reign of God, but to those who are without, in similes are all the things done; 12. that seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand, lest they may turn, and the sins may be forgiven them.' 13. And he saith to them, 'Have ye not known this simile? and how shall ye know all the similes? 14. He who is sowing doth sow the word; 15. and these are they by the way where the word is sown: and whenever they may hear, immediately cometh the Adversary, and he taketh away the word that hath been sown in their hearts. 16. 'And these are they, in like manner, who on the rocky ground are sown: who, whenever they may hear the word, immediately with joy do receive it, 17. and have not root in themselves, but are temporary; afterward tribulation or persecution having come because of the word, immediately they are stumbled. 18. 'And these are they who toward the thorns are sown: these are they who are hearing the word, 19. and the anxieties of this age, and the deceitfulness of the riches, and the desires concerning the other things, entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 20. 'And these are they who on the good ground have been sown: who do hear the word, and receive, and do bear fruit, one thirty-fold, and one sixty, and one an hundred.' 21. And he said to them, 'Doth the lamp come that under the measure it may be put, or under the couch, not that it may be put on the lamp-stand? 22. for there is not anything hid that may not be manifested, nor was anything kept hid but that it may come to light. 23. If any hath ears to hear, let him hear.' 24. And he said to them, 'Take heed what ye hear; in what measure ye measure, it shall be measured to you; and to you who hear it shall be added; 25. for whoever may have, there shall be given to him, and whoever hath not, also that which he hath shall be taken from him.' 26. And he said, 'Thus is the reign of God: as if a man may cast the seed on the earth, 27. and may sleep, and may rise night and day, and the seed spring up and grow, he hath not known how; 28. for of itself doth the earth bear fruit, first a blade, afterwards an ear, afterwards full corn in the ear; 29. and whenever the fruit may yield itself, immediately he doth send forth the sickle, because the harvest hath come.' 30. And he said, 'To what may we liken the reign of God, or in what simile may we compare it? 31. As a grain of mustard, which, whenever it may be sown on the earth, is less than any of the seeds that are on the earth; 32. and whenever it may be sown, it cometh up, and doth become greater than any of the herbs, and doth make great branches, so that under its shade the fowls of the heaven are able to rest.'"

"33. And with many such similes he was speaking to them the word, as they were able to hear, 34. and without a simile he was not speaking to them, and by themselves, to his disciples he was expounding all." (Mark 4:1-34, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: TBD
Audience: TBD
Location: TBD
Time period: TBD

Theological reading

Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

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Quoted in

Jesus Said

Notes

Your annotations.

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.