16. And in the same way the ones sown upon stony ground are those who, when they hear the Word, at once receive and accept and welcome it with joy;
17. And they have no real root in themselves, and so they endure for a little while; then when trouble or persecution arises on account of the Word, they immediately are offended (become displeased, indignant, resentful) and they stumble and fall away.
18. And the ones sown among the thorns are others who hear the Word;
19. Then the cares and anxieties of the world and distractions of the age, and the pleasure and delight and false glamour and deceitfulness of riches, and the craving and passionate desire for other things creep in and choke and suffocate the Word, and it becomes fruitless.
20. And those sown on the good (well-adapted) soil are the ones who hear the Word and receive and accept and welcome it and bear fruit–some thirty times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some [even] a hundred times as much.
21. And He said to them, Is the lamp brought in to be put under a peck measure or under a bed, and not [to be put] on the lampstand?
22. [Things are hidden temporarily only as a means to revelation.] For there is nothing hidden except to be revealed, nor is anything [temporarily] kept secret except in order that it may be made known.
23. If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening and let him perceive and comprehend.
24. And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you–and more [besides] will be given to you who hear.
25. For to him who has will more be given; and from him who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away [by force],
26. And He said, The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seed upon the ground,
27. And then continues sleeping and rising night and day while the seed sprouts and grows and increases–he knows not how.
28. The earth produces [acting] by itself–first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
29. But when the grain is ripe and permits, immediately he sends forth [the reapers] and puts in the sickle, because the harvest stands ready.
30. And He said, With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use to illustrate and explain it?
31. It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all seeds upon the earth;
32. Yet after it is sown, it grows up and becomes the greatest of all garden herbs and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air are able to make nests and dwell in its shade.
33. With many such parables [Jesus] spoke the Word to them, as they were able to hear and to comprehend and understand.
34. He did not tell them anything without a parable; but privately to His disciples (those who were peculiarly His own) He explained everything [fully].