Gospel according to Matthew

He answered them, "To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it is not given to them.

For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever doesn't have, from him will be taken away even that which he has.

Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they don't see, and hearing, they don't hear, neither do they understand.

In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says, 'By hearing you will hear, And will in no way understand; Seeing you will see, And will in no way perceive:

For this people's heart has grown callous, Their ears are dull of hearing, They have closed their eyes; Or else perhaps they might perceive with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their heart, And should turn again; And I would heal them.'

"But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear.

For most assuredly I tell you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see the things which you see, and didn't see them; and to hear the things which you hear, and didn't hear them.

"Hear, then, the parable of the farmer.

When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and doesn't understand it, the evil one comes, and snatches away that which has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown by the roadside.

What was sown on the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it;

yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

What was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

What was sown on the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, who most assuredly bears fruit, and brings forth, some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty."

He set another parable before them, saying, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,

but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel also among the wheat, and went away.

But when the blade sprang up and brought forth fruit, then the darnel appeared also.

The servants of the householder came and said to him, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where did this darnel come from?'

"He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' "The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and gather them up?'

"But he said, 'No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel, you root up the wheat with them.

Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, "First, gather up the darnel, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn."'"