NOTES for Mar 4:1-20
1 And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. |
2 And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine, |
3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: |
4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. |
5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: |
6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. |
7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. |
8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. |
9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. |
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. |
11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: |
12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. |
13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? |
14 The sower soweth the word. |
15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. |
16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; |
17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. |
18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, |
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. |
20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred. |
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Today's reading tells of Jesus' preaching on the shore of the Lake of Gennesaret. Judging by the Gospel accounts, this place was one of Christ's favorite places to preach in Galilee. More people could gather on the shore of the lake than in any synagogue, even the largest one, and the chance of conflict with opponents was somewhat lower there, so no one would have been very likely to interfere with the preaching.
As a rule, Jesus preaches to His listeners by speaking in parables, and then explains the meaning of those parables to His closest disciples, the apostles. This method was generally widespread in the ancient East, and in some countries it is still used just as widely today. In this way the speaker achieved two important aims: he expanded the meaning of what was said and made his listeners think.
The language of a parable is always symbolic, and a symbol is always rich in meanings. Something said in the form of a parable always allows more than one interpretation, and for that reason a parable can convey to the listener truths that could not be adequately expressed, for example, in strict scientific language. In addition, a parable never gives ready-made answers, and therefore the listener or reader must always search for those answers personally, reflecting on the variety of meanings the parable offers. An answer found independently was, of course, remembered and absorbed better than one received in finished form, which only had to be heard and memorized. Thanks to the parables, Jesus' preaching became a form of living communication with those who listened to Him. Without them it would have turned into something like a scholarly lecture, and the Gospel would have resembled a textbook, whose reading may have been useful but most likely would not have brought the joy it brings us today.
And yet, when a parable was not entirely clear to Jesus' closest disciples, He Himself explained it to them, as described in today's passage. An adequate understanding of Jesus' words was absolutely necessary for the apostles: they had a mission to preach, and without such understanding that mission would have been impossible.
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