# Matthew 13.29-30

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-10-14 | updated: 2026-10-14 -->

**Book:** [Matthew](/codex/matthew/) · NASB95

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 27. <span class="rl-speech">And the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? whence then hath it tares?</span> 28. And he said unto them, <span class="rl-speech">An enemy hath done this. And the servants say unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?</span>
>
> **29. But he saith, <span class="rl-speech">Nay; lest haply while ye gather up the tares, ye root up the wheat with them.</span> 30. <span class="rl-speech">Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.</span>**
>
> 31. <span class="rl-speech">Another parable set he before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:</span> 32. <span class="rl-speech">which indeed is less than all seeds; but when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and lodge in the branches thereof.</span> (Matthew 13:27-32, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 27. <span class="rl-speech">The servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did these darnel weeds come from?’</span> 28. <span class="rl-speech">“He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them up?’</span>
>
> **29. “But he said, <span class="rl-speech">‘No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel weeds, you root up the wheat with them.</span> 30. <span class="rl-speech">Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”</span>**
>
> 31. <span class="rl-speech">He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field;</span> 32. <span class="rl-speech">which indeed is smaller than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.”</span> (Matthew 13:27-32, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 27. <span class="rl-speech">So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?</span> 28. He said unto them, <span class="rl-speech">An enemy hath done this.</span> The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
>
> **29. But he said, <span class="rl-speech">Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.</span> 30. <span class="rl-speech">Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.</span>**
>
> 31. <span class="rl-speech">Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:</span> 32. <span class="rl-speech">Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.</span> (Matthew 13:27-32, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 27. <span class="rl-speech">'And the servants of the householder, having come near, said to him, Sir, good seed didst thou not sow in thy field? whence then hath it the darnel?</span> 28. And he saith to them, <span class="rl-speech">A man, an enemy, did this; and the servants said to him, Wilt thou, then, [that] having gone away we may gather it up?</span>
>
> **29. 'And he said, <span class="rl-speech">No, lest, gathering up the darnel, ye root up with it the wheat,</span> 30. <span class="rl-speech">suffer both to grow together till the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the darnel, and bind it in bundles, to burn it, and the wheat gather up into my storehouse.'</span>**
>
> 31. <span class="rl-speech">Another simile he set before them, saying: 'The reign of the heavens is like to a grain of mustard, which a man having taken, did sow in his field,</span> 32. <span class="rl-speech">which less, indeed, is than all the seeds, but when it may be grown, is greatest of the herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the heaven do come and rest in its branches.'</span> (Matthew 13:27-32, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** Jesus, telling the parable of the tares (13:24-30). Within the parable the speaker is the householder answering his servants.
- **Audience:** The crowds on the shore (13:2), with the explanation given later to the disciples in the house (13:36-43)
- **Location:** By the Sea of Galilee, Jesus teaching from a boat (13:1-2)
- **Time period:** Jesus' Galilean ministry, around AD 28-30

## Theological reading

"Nay; lest haply while ye gather up the tares, ye root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest." The master refuses to let his servants weed the field, gives the reason, and sets a date.

**The reason.** "Lest haply" is *mēpote* (Strong's G3379), a word of purpose: uprooting the tares now would uproot the wheat. The tares, *zizania* (G2215), are commonly identified with darnel, a weed that resembles wheat in its growth. The delay protects the crop.

**The date.** "Let both grow together" uses *aphiēmi* (G863), "to let, permit," and the permission runs "until the harvest" (G2326). At harvest the order is reversed from what the servants proposed: "Gather up first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." The servants wanted judgment now. The master promises judgment then, complete and in the right order.

**The interpretation Jesus gives.** "The field is the world" (13:38), the good seed are "the sons of the kingdom," the tares "the sons of the evil one," the enemy "the devil," the harvest "the end of the world," and the reapers "angels" (13:38-39). The Son of man will send his angels to gather "all things that cause stumbling, and them that do iniquity" (13:41). The parable does not deny judgment; it locates it. God's patience with evil in the present and His final removal of it are one plan. See [Why Doesn't God Intervene Objection Defeater](/codex/why-doesnt-god-intervene-objection-defeater/).

## 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._

- [G2540 - kairos](/codex/g2540-kairos/), *kairos*, Strong's G2540
- [G0863 - aphiemi](/codex/g0863-aphiemi/), *aphiemi*, Strong's G0863
- [G4314 - pros](/codex/g4314-pros/), *pros*, Strong's G4314

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## Quoted in

**Arguments and defeaters:**

- [Atheism Cannot Justify Compassion](/codex/atheism-cannot-justify-compassion/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [Atheism Moral Neutrality Failure](/codex/atheism-moral-neutrality-failure/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [Christians Not Under Mosaic Law](/codex/christians-not-under-mosaic-law/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [Most of the World Was Colonized by Christians Objection Defeater](/codex/most-of-the-world-was-colonized-by-christians-objection-defeater/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [No True Scotsman Charge Defeater](/codex/no-true-scotsman-charge-defeater/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [Why Doesn't God Intervene Objection Defeater](/codex/why-doesnt-god-intervene-objection-defeater/)

**Concepts:**

- [Conditional Immortality](/codex/conditional-immortality/), via [Matthew 13.30](/codex/matthew-13-30/)
- [Hypocrisy](/codex/hypocrisy/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/), [Matthew 13.30](/codex/matthew-13-30/)
- [Inquisition](/codex/inquisition/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)
- [Jesus Said](/codex/jesus-said/), via [Matthew 13](/codex/matthew-13/)
- [No True Scotsman Fallacy](/codex/no-true-scotsman-fallacy/), via [Matthew 13.24-30](/codex/matthew-13-24-30/)

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## 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](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/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](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.