Luke 8:2-21

²also certain women who had been healed of malignant spirits and infirmities: Mary (the one called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had gone out;

³and Joanna the wife of Chuza, an official of Herod; and Susanna, and many others—these were providing for Him from their substance.

⁴Now when a large crowd had gathered, with people coming to Him from town after town, He spoke by a parable:

⁵“A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed some fell along the road, and it got trampled, and the birds of the air devoured it.

⁶And some fell on the rock ledge, and upon sprouting it withered, because it had no moisture.

⁷And some fell among thorns, and springing up together the thorns choked it.

⁸The rest fell into the good ground, and growing up it produced fruit a hundredfold.” Upon saying these things He called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

⁹Then His disciples asked Him saying, “What does this parable mean?”

¹⁰So He said: “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, but to the rest only in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’

¹¹“Now here is the parable: The seed is the Word of God.

¹²Those along the road are those who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, in order that they not be saved, having believed.

¹³Those on the rock ledge are the ones who, whenever they hear, receive the word with joy; yet these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of testing fall away.

¹⁴Now that which fell into the thorns: these are the ones who heard, yet as they go they are choked by cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.

¹⁵But that on the good ground: these are the ones who having heard the word with a noble and good heart, hold on to it and produce fruit with perseverance.”

¹⁶Upon saying these things He called out: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear! No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but he sets it on a lamp stand, so that those who come in may see the light.

¹⁷Further, there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, nor anything concealed that will not be made known and come into the open.

¹⁸So be careful how you hear: Because whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him.”

¹⁹Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and they could not get near Him because of the crowd.

²⁰And it was told Him by some saying, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”

²¹But in answer He said to them, “My mother and my brothers are these, the ones who hear the word of God and do it!”