The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Mark 03
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 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
persecutionarises because ofthe 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,
accept it, and bear fruit, some thirty times,
some sixty times, and some one hundred
times.”
21 He said to them, “Is a 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 more will
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, though he doesn’t know how.
28 For the earth bears fruit by itself: first
the blade, then the ear, then the full grain
in the ear.
29 But whenthe fruitis 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 grainof mustard seed, which,
when it is sown in the earth, though it is
less thanallthe seeds that are onthe 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.
35 On that day, when evening had come,
he said to them, “Let’s go over to the other
side.”
36 Leaving the multitude, they took him
with them, even as he was, in the boat.
Other small boats were also with him.
37 A big wind storm arose, and the waves
beat into the boat, so much that the boat
was already filled.
38 He himself was in the stern, asleep on
the cushion; and they woke him up and
asked him, “Teacher, don’t you care that
we are dying?”
39 He awoke and rebuked the wind, and
said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” The wind
ceased and there was a great calm.
40 He said to them, “Why are you so
afraid? How is it that you have no faith?”
41 They were greatly afraid and said to
one another, “Who then is this, that even
the wind and the sea obey him?”