Mark 4:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy.

NIV: Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy.

NASB: And in a similar way these are the ones sown with seed on the rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy;

CSB: And others are like seed sown on rocky ground. When they hear the word, immediately they receive it with joy.

NLT: The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy.

KJV: And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;

NKJV: These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness;

In the parable of the sower (Mark 4:1–9), some of the seed lands on rocky ground with very shallow soil. The seed sprouts quickly, but doesn't last long when the hot sun shines down. Similarly, those with shallow faith will not last long when faced with hardships and persecution.

This is a genuine danger for attenders of "seeker-sensitive" churches. Overtly seeker-sensitive services run the risk of highlighting God's love, acceptance, and forgiveness without teaching about His holiness and the obedience He expects of us. The point of a church service is devotion to "teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers" (Acts 2:42). Even if a church has an extensive discipleship program, too many seekers and young Christians will not attend past the main service. If the sermon is merely a marketing presentation for Christianity, shallow listeners will not seek out deeper truths.

Mark 4:5 says that the seeds sprout immediately because the soil is so shallow. Similarly, shallow people enthusiastically accept quick-fixes. While they should be carefully testing the leaders' teachings (1 Thessalonians 5:21), they'd rather take the lazy way and accept whatever sounds good or affirms their beliefs (2 Timothy 4:3).

Despite whatever spiritual gains they seem to make, shallow minds and hearts cannot be nourished on lies once they are exposed to the hardships and persecution. The Word of God is true, but it has to be sustained truthfully in the life of a believer in order to grow. Just as the sun scorches the seedling with no root (Mark 4:6), hardships will derail the faith of those who believe the Christian walk should be easy.

Mark 4:10–20 follows Jesus' telling of the parable of the sower, and now and the disciples would like to understand the deeper truths in the story. Jesus made a habit of explaining parables to those who wanted to know more than the general crowd. The fact that they are curious proves that they are the good soil that will produce much fruit. Jesus explains how the growth of the seeds represent why people react differently to His message (Mark 3). The subsequent parables will go deeper into what it will take for the gospel to spread successfully. You can also find this account in Matthew 13:10–23 and Luke 8:9–15.

Jesus speaks in parables to the assembled crowd, giving them an opportunity to decide how much spiritual truth they want to absorb. The disciples, wanting to learn more, ask Jesus to explain the meaning of the parables He has taught. As Jesus explains these ideas, He demonstrates that a person's spiritual knowledge is based on their willingness to pursue truth. After describing Jesus' teaching in some detail, the Gospel of Mark describes how Jesus calms a storm on the Sea of Galilee.

Mark 3 explores the different ways people react to Jesus' teaching and miracles. They either follow Him, use Him, hide Him, or destroy Him. In Mark 4, Jesus explains why people react the way they do. He uses parables to explain who is serious about learning from Him. The softer a person's heart is, the more truth God will reveal. Soon, the twelve will also spread Jesus' message, although they will not be responsible for the spiritual growth of those who believe. The following chapter returns to depicting Jesus' miracles, including two of His most famous.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.