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Mark 4
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Mark 4
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Jesus Teaches The Multitudes In Parables
4 And again He began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd is gathered-together with Him so that He, having gotten into a boat, sits-down in the sea [to teach]. And all the multitude were near[a] the sea on the land. 2 And He was teaching them many things in parables.
The Sower’s Seed Falls On Different Kinds of Soil. Only The Good Soil Produces Fruit
And He was saying to them in His teaching, 3 “Listen! Behold— the one sowing went out to sow. 4 And it came about during the sowing that some seed fell along the road. And the birds came and ate it up. 5 And other[b] seed fell on the rocky[c] place where it was not having much soil. And immediately it sprang-up because of not having a depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched. And because of not having a root, it was dried-up. 7 And other seed fell into the thorns. And the thorns came-up and choked it, and it did not give fruit. 8 And others[d] fell into the good soil, and were giving fruit while coming up and growing. And they were bearing thirty fold[e] and sixty fold and a hundred fold”. 9 And He was saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear”.
Jesus Tells The Disciples The Purpose of Parables
10 And when He came-to-be alone, the ones around Him with the twelve were questioning Him as to the parables. 11 And He was saying to them, “The mystery[f] of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But all things come in parables to those outside 12 in order that[g] while seeing, they may be seeing and not perceive, and while hearing, they may be hearing and not understanding, that they may not ever turn-back and it be forgiven them”.
Jesus Explains The Parable of The Sower
13 And He says to them, “Do you not know this parable? And how will you understand all the parables? 14 The one sowing sows the word[h]. 15 Now these people are the ones along the road, where the word is sown. And when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word having been sown into them. 16 And these people are the ones being sown the seed on the rocky places— who, when they hear the word, immediately are receiving it with joy. 17 And they do not have a root in themselves, but are temporary[i]. Then affliction or persecution having come about because of the word, immediately they are caused-to-fall. 18 And other people are the ones being sown the seed into the thorns. These are the ones having heard the word— 19 and coming-in, the anxieties[j] of the age[k] and the deceitfulness[l] of riches and the desires with respect to the other things are choking the word, and it becomes unfruitful[m]. 20 And those people are the ones having been sown[n] the seed on the good soil, who are hearing[o] the word and accepting it and bearing-fruit— thirty fold and sixty fold and a hundred fold”.
The Lamp Comes To Shine, Not To Be Hidden
21 And He was saying to them, “The lamp does not come in order that it may be put under the basket or under the bed, does it? Is it not in order that it may be put on the lampstand? 22 For it is not hidden, except in order that it may be made-visible[p]. Nor did it become hidden-away, but in order that it may come into visibility. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear”.
With The Measure You Use It Will Be Measured To You
24 And He was saying to them, “Be watching what you listen-to[q]. With what measure you measure[r], it will be measured to you— and it will be added to you. 25 For he who has— it will be given to him. And he who does not have— even what he has will be taken-away from him”.
The Kingdom of God Is Like Seed That Grows From Within Itself To Maturity
26 And He was saying, “The kingdom of God is like this: as-if a person would throw the seed upon the soil, 27 and would be sleeping and arising night and day, and the seed would be budding and growing-long— how, he does not[s] know. 28 The soil bears-fruit by-itself [t]— first grass, then a head, then a full grain in the head. 29 And whenever the fruit permits[u], immediately he[v] sends-forth the sickle because the harvest has come[w]”.
The Kingdom of God Is Like a Mustard Seed. It Starts Small And Grows Large
30 And He was saying, “How should we liken the kingdom of God, or with what parable may we present it?— 31 as a seed of a mustard-plant, which when it is sown upon the soil is being smaller than all[x] the seeds upon the soil. 32 And when it is sown, it goes-up and becomes larger than all the garden-plants. And it makes large branches so that the birds of the heaven are able to be nesting under the shade of it”.
Jesus Spoke To The Crowd In Parables And Explained Everything To His Disciples
33 And with many such parables He was speaking the word to them, as they were able to hear it. 34 And He was not speaking to them apart from a parable. But He was explaining[y] everything privately to His own disciples.
Jesus Calms The Wind And Sea. The Disciples Say, Who Is This Man?
35 And on that day, having become evening, He says to them, “Let us go to the other side”. 36 And having left the crowd, they take Him along as He was[z], in the boat. And other boats were with Him. 37 And a great storm of wind takes place. And the waves were throwing-over into the boat so that the boat was already being filled. 38 And He was in the stern on the cushion, sleeping. And they wake Him and say to Him, “Teacher, do You not care[aa] that we are perishing?” 39 And having awakened, He rebuked the wind, and said to the sea “Be still, be silenced[ab]”. And the wind stopped. And there was a great calm. 40 And He said to them, “Why are you afraid[ac]? Do you not yet have faith?” 41 And they feared a great fear[ad]. And they were saying to one another, “Who then is this One, that[ae] even[af] the wind and the sea obey Him?”
Footnotes
- Mark 4:1 Or, [facing] toward; at, before.
- Mark 4:5 That is, another portion of seed, viewed as a group.
- Mark 4:5 That is, bedrock, or a rocky outcropping.
- Mark 4:8 That is, other seeds viewed as individuals.
- Mark 4:8 Or, one, thirty; and one, sixty; and one, a hundred. Likewise in v 20.
- Mark 4:11 That is, the hidden truth about the kingdom of God now being revealed by Jesus.
- Mark 4:12 Jesus here gives the purpose of His speaking in parables. It was in order that the people might remain spiritually blind. In Mt 13:13 it is because the people willfully choose to be blind.
- Mark 4:14 Or, message.
- Mark 4:17 Or, transitory.
- Mark 4:19 Or, worries, cares, concerns.
- Mark 4:19 Or, world.
- Mark 4:19 Or, deception.
- Mark 4:19 Fruitbearing is the evidence of life.
- Mark 4:20 That is, who have been sown the seed. Note the change in tense. The second two soils are ‘being sown’; they are in the process of being sown in hopes that a fruitful crop can be grown. This soil has been sown and is bearing fruit.
- Mark 4:20 That is, listening to, in the sense of ‘obeying’. Note the change of tense that stresses continuous action here (are hearing), in contrast to the first three soils.
- Mark 4:22 Or, revealed. One would only hide a lamp for the purpose of shining it at the proper time. The lamp may be Jesus, who came to light the world, but is hidden from Israel until the proper time; or, the truth Jesus brings, which is now hidden in parables in order that it may come into visibility at the proper time. Or, the lamp may refer to the word of God which believers hide in their hearts in order that it may shine at the opportune time.
- Mark 4:24 Or, hear. That is, in the sense of ‘obey’.
- Mark 4:24 The measure you use reflects your spiritual capacity, and your ability to receive. If you listen to the traditions of the Pharisees, it will limit your ability to receive spiritual truth.
- Mark 4:27 The seed has life in it, and grows without the assistance or understanding of the sower. The sower sows. God causes the growth in ways the sower does not understand. Then the person harvests the fruit.
- Mark 4:28 Or, on-its-own.
- Mark 4:29 Lit, hands-itself-over. That is, when it has ripened itself.
- Mark 4:29 That is, the person who sowed the seed.
- Mark 4:29 Or, is here.
- Mark 4:31 That is, all the seed people in that day sowed in their gardens. The point is that it has a small and insignificant beginning, but grows larger than all.
- Mark 4:34 Or, interpreting.
- Mark 4:36 This may be describing the condition of Jesus— straight from His speaking without any rest, explaining why He slept; or, His location— still in the boat (v 1).
- Mark 4:38 Lit, is it not a concern to You?
- Mark 4:39 The tense is unusual for a command. It implies, be silenced and stay silent.
- Mark 4:40 Or, cowardly, fearful.
- Mark 4:41 That is, they were extremely afraid.
- Mark 4:41 Or, because.
- Mark 4:41 Or, both.
Mark 4
New International Version
Mark 4
New International Version
The Parable of the Sower(A)(B)
4 Again Jesus began to teach by the lake.(C) The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge. 2 He taught them many things by parables,(D) and in his teaching said: 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.(E) 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”(F)
9 Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”(G)
10 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11 He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God(H) has been given to you. But to those on the outside(I) everything is said in parables 12 so that,
“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’[a]”(J)
13 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14 The farmer sows the word.(K) 15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan(L) comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth(M) and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”
A Lamp on a Stand
21 He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand?(N) 22 For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open.(O) 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”(P)
24 “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more.(Q) 25 Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”(R)
The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like.(S) A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”(T)
The Parable of the Mustard Seed(U)
30 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like,(V) or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”
33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.(W) 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable.(X) But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.
Jesus Calms the Storm(Y)
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat.(Z) There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”(AA)
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
Footnotes
- Mark 4:12 Isaiah 6:9,10
Disciples’ Literal New Testament (DLNT) 
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.