13:1,2
We now come to one of the most famous parables, the parables of the sower. The “went out of the house” in v1 contrasts with “went into the house in v36. The parable was told to the general public, in v36 onwards Jesus explains the parable to the disciples. We do well to remember that Jesus did explain the meaning of the parable, so any interpretations of our own that do not match with Jesus’ explanation are just the manifestations of our own minds, and not worth overmuch. He went into a boat and went a little way offshore so that the people could hear Him better. The lake had good acoustic effects in various places.
13:3-9
The parable is well known. A farmer was sowing seed, some of it fell on the path, some on stony ground, some fell among thorns, and some on good soil. Jesus is not saying that the equal amounts fell in these places, otherwise the farmer would not be very good at his job! He is drawing a distinction between the response of the seed depending upon where it fell. The seed on the path was eaten up by birds before it could produce anything. The seed that fell on stony or rocky ground grew quickly, but then faded away as soon as the sun came. The seed that fell among thorns did not grow well because it was crowded out by the other plants. The seed that fell on good soil produced a great crop. We will leave the interpretation until Jesus gives us the interpretation in 13:18! However, 13:9 shows that Jesus thinks it is good for us to understand the parable properly.The typical yield was upto about tenfold, so the thirty, to a hundred fold yield was extremely good.
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