Chapter
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Verse
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58

Matthew 13:8
ESV Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
NIV Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
NASB But others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much.
CSB Still other seed fell on good ground and produced fruit: some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times what was sown.
NLT Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!
KJV But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
NKJV But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

What does Matthew 13:8 mean?

Jesus has been describing types of soil in a field being planted by a farmer. As the farmer sows his seed, Jesus has described it as falling on various kinds of bad soil, including the hard-packed path, rocky spots, and place with thorns growing. In each case, the seed fails to produce plants that survive or thrive (Matthew 13:1–7). Each of these represents a person whose spiritual "soil" is not receptive in one way or another (Matthew 13:19–22).

Thankfully, this parable also includes what happens when the seed falls on good soil in the field. Each seed germinates, takes root, and grows. There is deep soil, and no weeds to compete with. So, the plant thrives into full maturity. Each plant replicates itself multiple times over: one planted seed produces a plant with thirty, sixty, or one hundred additional seeds. According to most scholars, these would have been considered good yields for a field in the Galilee region, where Jesus was teaching.

Christ will eventually explain the point of the parable to His disciples (Matthew 13:18–23). The sowing of the seed represents preaching about the kingdom of heaven. The types of soil represent the types of people who hear His message. Seeds that don't grow into fully mature plants represent those who don't understand the message, don't have the depth to keep going after receiving the message, or don't commit to the kingdom because of the cares of the world or deceitfulness of wealth.

Seeds that result in productive plants represent those who receive the message and commit to Jesus and the kingdom of heaven.
Expand
Expand
Expand
What is the Gospel?
Download the app:
BibleRef.com is part of Got Questions Ministries

For answers to your Bible questions, please visit