1. Perkins, “The Gospel of Mark,” 554
2. Boring, “The Gospel of Matthew,” 235
3. Perkins, 555
4. Perkins, 557
5. Perkins, 555
6. Culpepper, “The Gospel of Luke,” 131
7. Culpepper, 132
8. Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon, 12
9. Boring, 236
10. Tyson, Blood Done Sign My Name
11. Williamson, Mark, 69–70
12. Brueggemann, Prayers for a Privileged People, v
Seeds of Grace
The Parable of the Sower
Let me first say that I am grateful for each person’s kind support of Sam and our family. But, while thankful for every giver, there are a few gifts that I would gladly do without! If the toy makes noise, then I am inclined to bury the present in the back of Sam’s closet, which serves as a kind of purgatory for all manner of musical stuffed animals and squawking electronic games.
On the other hand, certain gifts have special places of honor. His favorite books are prominently displayed in his nursery, right next to the rocking chair. And we have stacks and stacks of more books under coffee tables throughout the house, so that we can pull them out to read at a moment’s notice. I am aware this might involve a certain amount of projection on my part, particularly when I insist that these are Sam’s “favorite” toys. However, he genuinely loves the special ones, like the book about owls that includes pages with feathered eyebrows, shiny eyes, and sandpaper claws. He pats, pulls, and pokes these tactile images, and the only sounds emitted are his own contented coos and playful giggles.
One morning at church, a kind and thoughtful woman came to my office with the gift of a beautiful book called Plant a Kiss.13 The story involves a young girl who digs a hole in the ground and literally plants a kiss. After a period of waiting in which she diligently waters and cares for the kiss, it “sprouts” into a kaleidoscopic fountain of glittery bright colors. The girl collects this “fruit” into a red bowl and shares it with other children, far and wide. When the bowl is emptied, she returns and discovers that the magic of the kiss never runs out.
Once again, I may be accused of projecting my own values, in this case onto a biblical text, but this hopeful message reminds me of the famous Parable of the Sower. This teaching is a favorite of many faithful people and perhaps the parable that we most often hear in church, especially around children. We will shortly consider the validity of the popular interpretation that urges us to be like the good soil; but I believe the fundamental teaching highlights God’s fantastic grace from seemingly insignificant beginnings. So rather than consign the parable to the back of the closet by thinking we’ve already figured it out, let’s explore the texts anew with wonder like a child.
The Parable
| Mark 4:2–9 | Matthew 13:3–9 | Luke 8:4–8 |
| He began teaching them in many parables and said to them in this teaching: “Listen! Behold the sower who went out in order to sow. And in the sowing, some fell beside the road, and birds came and devoured it. And other seed fell on the rocky ground where there was not much soil; and immediately, it sprang up because the soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was burnt and, because it did not have roots, it was dried out. And other seed fell in the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it did not give fruit. But others fell in the good soil and were giving fruit after coming up and growing and bearing thirty and sixty and one hundredfold.” And he said, “Whoever has ears to hear, listen!” | And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Behold! The sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some fell beside the road and, after they came, the birds devoured them. Others fell on the rocky ground where there was not much soil; and immediately, it sprang up because the soil was not deep. And after the sun rose, it was burnt and, because it did not have roots, it was dried out. Others fell on the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them. But others fell on the good soil and were giving fruit, some one hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. Let the one who has ears, listen!” | He spoke through a parable: “The sower went out in order to sow his seed. And in his sowing, some fell beside the road and was trampled under foot, and the birds of heaven devoured it. And another fell down upon the rock and, after it grew, was dried out because it did not have moisture. And another fell in the middle of thorns, and as the thorns grew with it, they choked it. But another fell in the beneficial soil and, after it grew, produced fruit one hundredfold.” After he said these things, he called out, “Let the one who has ears to hear, listen!” |
Encouragement and Exhortation
Before we consider each version in the Gospels, I briefly want to offer some introductory comments because the Parable of the Sower is arguably Jesus’ most well-known teaching; yet, our familiarity with this text may have more to do with each Gospel’s subsequent explanation than the actual parable itself.
In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus interprets the parable as an allegory, meaning that each fictional item in the parable has a real-life, corresponding element in the world (Mt 13:18–23; Mark 4:13–20; Luke 8:11–15). The seed is the Word of God; the birds that gobble up the seed are like the Devil; the rocky ground represents temptation; the thorns that choke the young plants symbolize the effect of material possessions. The good soil represents people who “understand” the Word (Mt 13:23) or “accept it” (Mark 4:20) or “hold it fast in an honest and good heart” (Luke 8:15). Though each Gospel writer has a unique twist on the exact formulation the main teaching point, it is clear that each summary statement fulfills the same purpose in an allegorical interpretation: we are urged to become like the good soil. Of course, there is nothing wrong with this exhortation. But with the assistance of astute scholarship, we can discern other valuable meanings that may not have been previously appreciated.
Lamar Williamson recognizes two lines of interpretation: exhortation, which is the common view expressed above, and encouragement.14 In order to discern this second motivation, we must focus on the parable itself and resist skipping ahead to the allegorical interpretation. Williamson maintains that a sense of encouragement is found in the repeated contrast between small, discouraging beginnings and great, satisfying endings. Matthew follows Mark in stating that the three examples of seed that do not produce are then immediately followed by three degrees of increasingly abundant yield–thirty, sixty, and hundredfold (Mark 4:8; Mt 13:8). What’s more, the sower maintains a confident initiative despite the waste inherent in the ancient sowing practice of broadcasting seed over a large area. Farming in this fashion takes a lot of faith! Without denying the exhortation to become like the good soil, Williamson wants to nuance this interpretation: “What the listener is exhorted to hear is good news.”15 In other words, the parable is not only about doing the right thing, but also bears