Mark 4:26 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.

NIV: He also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground.

NASB: And He was saying, 'The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil;

CSB: "The kingdom of God is like this," he said. "A man scatters seed on the ground.

NLT: Jesus also said, 'The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground.

KJV: And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground;

NKJV: And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground,

The kingdom of God—here meaning the same thing as the kingdom of heaven—doesn't mean the end-times heaven or the afterlife, although it includes those places. It means any place or situation or moment where the sovereignty and power of God is evident. Justice, kindness, forgiveness, love—whenever qualities of God are on display, God's kingdom is present. So when Jesus says, "The kingdom of God is like…" He is describing a situation that both reflects God's character and glorifies Him.

All of the parables in Mark 4:21–34 elaborate on the parable of the sower (Mark 4:3–9), but the metaphors are decidedly mixed. In the parable of the sower, Jesus is the initial sower. In the parable of the growing seed, the sower is anyone who spreads the gospel. The parable of the sower describes how people respond to Jesus' teaching. The parable of the growing seed explains that the teacher's responsibility is to teach—to scatter seed. The teacher cannot force people to accept the message or to allow that message to make changes in their lives, any more than a farmer can force different types of soil to produce good crops.

Jesus' work with the twelve (Mark 3:13–19) is the foundation of what Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2: "…what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also." Paul tells the Corinthians, "So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth" (1 Corinthians 3:7). Our job is to preach the truth; it is the work of the Holy Spirit to turn that truth into growth.

Mark 4:26–29 contains Jesus' description of the responsibility of the teacher. Jesus had selected the twelve as apostles to spread the gospel (Mark 3:14). He has explained why He teaches with parables (Mark 4:1–20) and the importance of the act of teaching and the receptivity of the student (Mark 4:21–25). Now He clarifies that it is the teacher's job to speak the truth. However, the spiritual growth resulting from that teaching is beyond the teacher's control (1 Corinthians 3:5–9). Next, Jesus will teach His disciples about the effectiveness of the gospel (Mark 4:30–32). This parable isn't found in the other synoptic gospels, although a similar, extended passage is in Matthew 13:24–30.

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.