1

The Parable Of the Sower

Published By Buzzy Sutherlin Ministries, Inc.

Copyright 2002

2

3

THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER

Matthew 13:3

KJ…And he spake many things unto them in parables, say-

ing, behold, a sower went forth to sow;

BAS…A man went out to put seed unto the ground

JOHNS…Using simple stories he expressed to the many, as-

pects of the spirit dimension.

Matthew 13:4

KJ…And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side,

and the fowls came and and devoured them up:

Matthew 13:5

KJ…Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much

earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no

deepness of earth:

BAS…Straitway it came up because the earth was not deep.

Matthew 13:6

KJ…And when the sun was up, they were scorched; because

they had no root, they withered away.

BAS…Because it had no root it became dry and dead.

JOHNS…They withered because they had no deep root

Matthew 13:7

KJ…And some fell among thorns: and the thorns sprung up

and choked them:

BAS…And some seed went among thorns, and the thorns

came up and they had no room for growth.

4

Matthew 13:8

KJ…But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit,

some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

Matthew 13:9

KJ…Who hath ears to hear, let them hear.

Matthew 13:10

KJ…And the disciples came, and said unto him, why speak-

est thou unto them in parables?

JOHNS…Explain to you the mystery of the spirit dimension.

Matthew 13:11

KJ…He answered and said unto them, because it is given

unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven,

but to them it is not given.

GRE…To understand the mysterious laws of God’s spirit

realm.

Matthew 13:12

KJ…For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall

have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him

shall be taken away even that he hath.

20C1…For those who retain anything, will have more given

to them, till they have abundance, but those who retain noth-

ing will have even what they had taken away from them.

Matthew 13:13

KJ…Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they

seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they un-

derstand.

5

Matthew 13:14

KJ…And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esias, which

saith, by hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and

seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

Matthew 13:15

KJ…For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are

dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed: lest at any

time they shall see with their eyes, and hear with their ears,

and should understand with their heart, and should be con-

verted, and I should heal them.

GRE…For the heart of these people are not open; their spir-

itual hearing is dull, and their spiritual eyes closed. Thus

they will not be able to see aright the things that they see,

and hear aright the things they hear, and arrive at a true un-

derstanding in their hearts….

JOHNS…This people’s inner sensitivity has become numb

and their inner awareness has become vague…

Matthew 13:16

KJ…But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears,

for thy hear.

JOHNS…You are finding fulfillment because you see with

inner vision and you hear with the ears of your heart.

Matthew 13:17

KJ…For verily I say unto you, that many prophets and right-

eous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and

have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear,

and have not heard them..

Matthew 13:18

KJ…Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

6

JOHNS…Now let me explain to you the story of the seed.

Matthew 13:19

KJ…When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, And

understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catch-

eth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which

receiveth seed by the wayside.

JOHNS…When a person hears about the spirit dimension

and does not grasp the message, those very thoughts are ex-

pelled form his mind and heart…

BAS…When the word of the kingdom comes to anyone and

the sense of it is not clear to him…

Matthew 13:20

KJ…But he that received the seed into stony places, the

same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth

it;

E.VERNON…At first they are delighted with the message,

but they have no staying power. They cannot stick it out be-

cause they have no root to stick with, and when it costs them

trouble or suffering, they simply fade away.

Matthew 13:21

KJ…Yet hath he no root in himself, but dureth for a while:

for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the

word, by and by he is offended.

SHEP…Vanishes away like the fog before the morning

sun…

BAS…But having no root in myself, he goes on for a while

and when trouble comes or pain, because of the word, he

quickly becomes full of doubts…

BYI…Yet has no root in him but is temporary, and there

comes distress or persecution because of the word, he is stag-

gered at once…

JOHNS…Because he grasps it with his conscious mind, but

7

it never gets into the deep mind, it’s influence will not last.

When he faces active opposition and rejection, his interest in

the spirit dimension will evaporate…

WADE…Nevertheless, he has not got it rooted in him, but

his acceptance of it is temporary, and when affliction or per-

secution occurs on account of the message, strait away his

faith is shaken.

TOMAN…But having no root in himself and being a

transeit.

WUEST…And he does not have rootage in himself, but is by

nature a temporizer, and the pressure of circumstances hav-

ing come and persecution because of the word, immediately

he sees it in that of which he disapproves and which hinders

him from acknowledging it’s authority…

MOFF…hears the word and accepts it with enthusiasm, he

has no root in himself, he does not last, but when the word

brings trouble or persecution he is at once repelled…

BERK1…Trouble or persecution arises because of the mes-

sage, he at once feels scandalized…

KLGNSMI…Now the seed on the rockly places is he who

hears the word and takes it quickly with joy, but has no root

in himself but lives for today…

Matthew 13:22

KJ…He also that received seed among the thorns is he that

heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceit-

fulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruit-

ful.

JOHNS…These seed falling in the midst of the weeds repre-

sent the person who hears about the spirit dimension, but has

difficulty ordering his life according to spiritual values…

BAS…Put a stop to the growth of the word and it gives no

fruit.

Matthew 13:23

KJ…But he that received seed into the good ground is he

8

that heareth the word, and understandeth it: which also

beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some

sixty, some thirty.

BAS…Gives ear to the word, gets the sense of it…

Mark 4:4

KJ…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.

Mark 4:5

KJ…And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much

earth, and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth

of earth:

JOHNS…Some of the seed fell on the thin layer of soil,

these sprouted quickly and came up immediately because

they were planted near the surface…

BAR…And the birds came and snapped it up…

Mark 4:6

KJ…But when the sun was up, it was scorched: and because

it had no root, it withered away.

BAR…Some seed fell on the ground where there was only a

thin skin of the earth over the rock.

Mark 4:7

KJ…And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up,

and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.

Mark 4:8

KJ…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.

JOHNS…Yet other seed fell on good soil. These sprouted

9

producing strong plants…

Mark 4:9

KJ…And he said unto them, he that hath ears to hear, let him

hear.

Mark 4:10

KJ…And when he was alone, they that were about him with

the twelve asked of him the parable.

Mark 4:11

KJ…And he said unto them, unto you it is given to know the

mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are with-

out, all these things are done in parables:

Mark 4:12

KJ…That seeing they may see, and not perceive: and hear-

ing they may hear, and not understanding: lest at any time

should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.

JOHNS…These outsiders see the picture, but they don’t

grasp it’s meaning, they hear the words, but they don’t un-

derstand their significance. If they did experience the mean-

ing of the stories, their lives would be transformed.

Mark 4:13

KJ…And he said unto them, know ye not this parable? And

how then will ye know all parables?

Mark 4:14

KJ…The sower soweth the word.

10

Mark 4:15

KJ…And these are they by the way side, where the word is

sown; but when they have heard, satan cometh immediately,

and taken away the word that was sown in their hearts.

Mark 4:16

KJ…And these are they likewise which are sown on stony

ground: who, when they have heard the word, immediately

receive it with gladness;

JOHNS…those people who are represented by the thin layer

of earth are those who immediately celebrate an encounter

with an authentic communicator of God. But their joy is

short lived because they do not open their inner being to the

presentation of the spirit, and soon the surface encounter

withers.

BAR…In the same way the picture of the seed that was sown

on the ground which was only a thin layer of the earth over

the rock represents the people who immediately and enthusi-

astically welcome the message whenever they hear it, but

they have not inner root, and they are at the mercy of the mo-

ment…

Mark 4:17

KJ…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.

Mark 4:18-19

KJ…And these are they which are sown among thorns:

such as hear the Word (19) And the care of the world, and

the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things en-

tered in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

SCHNF…These are they who really heed the message, but

the constant economic struggle, the lure of getting rich, and

10

11

the cravings that come from all sorts of other things choke

the message…

BAR…Then there are those who are represented by the pic-

ture of the seed that fell among the thorn bushes. These are

the people who hear the word, but the worry of the present

world, and the deceptive seduction of wealth, and the desire

for other things get in at the same time, and choke the life out

of the word, and it never gets a chance to produce a crop.

20C1…(19) What is meant in this: when people have heard

the message, but the anxieties of life, and the snare of wealth,

and all sorts of other ambitions come in and so completely

choke it that nothing comes of it.

JOHNS…(19) Those seed sown among thorns are like the

encounters with persons who are possessed with wealth or

pleasure, whose awareness is on externals and these other

interests quickly erase the impact of the encounter.

Mark 4:20

KJ…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.

Luke 8:5

KJ…A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed,

some fell by the way side: and it was trodden down and the

fowls of the air devoured it.

Luke 8:6

KJ…And some fell upon a rock: and as soon as it was

sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.

Luke 8:7

KJ…And some fell among thorns: and the thorns sprang up

with it, and choked it.

12

BAS…And some went among the thorns, came up with it,

and it had no root for growth.

Luke 8:8

KJ…And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare

fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he

cried, he that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Luke 8:9

KJ…And his disciples asked him, saying, what might this

parable be?

Luke 8:10-12

KJ…And he said, unto you it is given to know the mysteries

of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables: that see-

ing they might not see, and hearing they might not under-

stand. (11) Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of

God. (12) Those by the way side are they that hear; then

cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their

hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

13

14

15

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND ABBREVIATIONS

ABPS The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New

Testament:

An Improved Edition. American Baptist Publi-

cation

Society of America, Philiadelphia, Pennsylva-

nia, 1955.

ABRV The Abbreviated Bible.Van Nostrand, New

York, New York, n.d.

ABUV AMERICAN BIBLE UNION VERSION

ALF Alford, Henry. The New Testament for Eng-

lish Readers. Rivingtons, Waterloo Place,

London, England, 1863.

AMP Amplified Bible. Zondervan Publishing House,

Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1972.

AND. Anderson, H.T. A Translation of the New Tes-

tament. Louisvill, Kentucky, 1864.

ASV American Standard Version. Thomas Nelson

and Sons, New York, New York, 1901.

AUTH AUTHENTIC

BAR Barclay, Williams. The New Testament A New

Translation. Collins, London, England,

1968.

BAS The Bible in Basic English. Cambridge, MA:

University Press, 1965.

BAX Baxter, Richard. A Paraphrase of the new

Testament With Notes. Parkhureff, London,

England, 1695.

BECK Beck, William. The Holy Bible In The Lan-

guage of Today. A.J. Holman Company, New

York, New York, 1976.

BER (The New Berkeley Version in Modern Eng-

lish). The Modern Language Bible. Peabody,

MA: Hendrickson Publishers,

1945,1959,1969.

BKWLD Blackwelder, Boyce. Letters From Paul An

Exegetical Translation. Warner Press, Ander-

16

son, Indiana, 1971.

BRO BROADUS

BRU Bruce, F.F. The Letter of Paul, An Expanded

Paraphrase. Eerdmans Publishing Company,

Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1965.

CAR CARVER

CAS CASSIRER

CEV CONTEMPORY ENGLISH VERSION

CLNT CONCORDANT LITERAL NEW TESTA

MENT

COND CONDON’S TRANSLATION

CONY Conybeare, W.J. The Epistles of Paul. Mar-

shall Morgan and Scott, London, England,

n.d.

CP Jordan, Clarence. Cotton Patch Version of

Paul’s Epistles. New York, NY: Association

Press, 1968.

CRNSH Cornish, Gerald Warre. Saint Paul From The

Trenches. Spirit to Spirit Publications, Tulsa,

Oklahoma, 1981.

Crickmer Crickmer, William Burton. The Greek Testa-

ment Englished. Elliot Stock, London, Eng-

land, 1881.

CVOT CONCORDANT VERSION OF THE OLD

TESTAMENT

DEW DEWITT

DKRSN DICKERSON

DIST The Distilled Bible/New Testament. Paul Ben-

jamin Publishing Company, Stone Mountain,

Georgia, 1980.

DOUAY Douay Rheims Version of the Holy Bible.

Douay Bible House, New York, New York,

1942.

FEN Fenton, Ferrar. The Holy Bible in Modern

English. Destiny Publisher, Massachusetts,

n.d.

FD Richert, Freedom Dynamics. The Thinker.

Big Bear, London, England, 1977.

17

GDBY Godbey, W.B. Translation of the New Testa-

ment. Newby Bookroom, Indiana, 1973

GEIKE GEIKE

GN The Good News Bible, Today’s English Ver-

sion, Second Ed. New York, NY: American

Bible Society, 1976. (Reprinted by Thomas

Nelson, Inc., 1993.)

GRE GREBER NEW TESTAMENT

GRN GREEN

GSPD Goodspeed, Edgar H. The New Testament, An

American Translation. University of Chicago,

Chicago, Illinois, 1923.

HAR Harrison, R.K. The Psalms for Today: A New

Translation From the Hebrew Into Current

English. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand

Rapids, Michigan 1961.

HAYM HAYMAN

HEND HENDRICKS

HUD Hudson, James T. The Pauline Epistles, Their

Meaning and Message. James Clarke and Co.,

Ltd., London, England, 1958.

IGNT INTERLINEAR GREEK NEW TESTA-

MENT

JERU The Jerusalem Bible. New York, NY: Dou-

bleday & Company, 1968.

JOHN Johnson, Ben Campbell. Matthew and Mark,

A Rational Paraphrase of the New Testament.

Word Books, Waco, Texas, 1978.

JNT JEWISH NEW TESTAMENT

JPS JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY

J.SMI Smith, J. The Holy Bible Translated Literally

From the Original Tongues. American Pub-

lishing Company, Hartford, Connecticut,

1876.

KJV KING JAMES VERSION

K&LKliest, James A. and Lilly, Hoseph L. The New Tes-

tament Rendered From the Original Greek

With Explanatory Note. The Bruce Publish-

18

ing Company, Wilwaukee, Wisconsin, 1956.

KLGNSM Kinglensmith, Don J. The New Testament in

Everyday English. Kaye’s Inc., Fargo, North

Dakota, 1974.

KNOX Knox, Ronald. The Old Testament Newly

Translated from the Latin Vulgate. Burns,

Oates and Washbourne, Ltd., London, Eng-

land, 1949.

The New Testament of Our Lord and Savior

Jesus Christ, A New Translation. Sheed and

Ward, New York, New York, 1953.

LAM Lamsa, George M. The Holy Bible From An-

cient Eastern Manuscripts. A.J. Holman Co.,

Marietta, Georgia, 1961.

LAU Laubach, Frank C. The Inspired Letter in

Clearest English. Thomas Nelson and Sopns,

New York, New York, 1956.

LATT LATTIMORE

LB The Living Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale

House Publishers, Inc., 1971,1988.

MAC MacKnight, James. A New Literal Translation

from the Original Greek of all the Apostolical

Epistles. Longman, Hurst, and Others, Lon-

don, England. 1821.

MESS MESSAGE BIBLE

MOFF Moffatt, James. The Holy Bible Containing

the Old and New Testaments. Double Day and

Company, Inc., New York, New York, 1926.

MON HELEN BARRETT MONTGOMERY

NAB New American Bible. Thomas Nelson Pub-

lisher, New York, New York, 1975.

NASB New American Standard Bible. A.J. Holman,

New York, New York, 1971

NCV NEW CENTURY VERSION

NL NEW LIFE TRANSLATION

NOLI Noli, Fan. S. The New Testament of Our Lord

And Savior Jesus Christ. Albanian Orthodox

Church in America, Boston, Massachusetts,

19

1961.

NOR Norlie, Olaf M. Norlie’s Simplified New Tes-

tament in Plain English – For Today’s Read-

ers. Zondervan Bible Publishers, Grand Rap-

ids, Michigan, 1961.

NW NEW WORLD

PBV FROM THE PSALM IN THE BOOK OF

COMMON PRAYER OF THE ANGLICAN

CHURCH

PEB PLAIN ENGLISH BIBLE

PHI Phillips, J.B. The New Testament in Modern

English. The Macmillan company, New York,

1958.

PIL Pilcher, Charles Venn. The Epistle of St. Paul

to the Romans. Spirit to Spirit Publications,

Tulsa Oklahoma,1981.

RHM Rotherham, J.B. The Emphasized Bible. Kre-

gel Publication, Grand Rapids, Michigan,

1976.

RICH Richert, Freedom Dynamics. The Thinker.

Big Bear Lake, California, 1977.

RIEU Rieu, E.V. The Acts of the Apostles, The Four

Gospels. Penquin Books, London, England,

1953,1957.

RIG RIGGS

RSV Revised Standard Version. Thomas Nelson

and Sons, New York, New York, 1952

RV THE HOLY BIBLE-REVISED VERSION

SCHONF Schonfield, Hugh. The Authentic New Testa-

ment. Dennis Dobson, Ltd., Great Britain,

1955.

SEB SIMPLE ENGLISH BIBLE

SEPT. SEPTAUGINT

SHILWTH Shuttleworth, Philip Nicholas. Paraphrastic

Translation of the Apostolical Epistles. J.G. &

F. Rivington, London, England,1843.

SPRL HELEN SPURRELL

SL Letters to Street Christians but Two Brothers

20

From Berkeley. Zondervan Publishing House,

Grand Rapids, Michigan,1971.

STNHP STANAHOPE

STRNGFERWIN STRINGFELLOW

STVNS Stevens, George Baker. The Epistles of Paul

in Modern English. Verploegh Editions,

Wheaton, Illinois, 1980.

SWN Swann, George. New Testament of Our Lord

and Savior, Jesus Christ. George Swann

Company, Robards, Kentucky, 1947.

SYRI SYRIAC

TAY Taylor, Ken. The Living Bible. Tyndale

House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois, 1971.

TNT The Translator’s New Testament. The British

and Foreign Bible Society, London, England,

1977.

TORAH The Torah: The Five Books of Moses. The

Jewish Publication Society of America, Phila-

delphia, Pennsylvania, 1955.

TOMAN Tomanek, James L. The New Testament of

Our Lord and Savior Jesus Anointed. Arrow-

head Press. Pocatello, Idaho, 1958.

TREN ST. PAUL FROM THE TRENCHES -see

G.W. CORNISH

WADE Wade, G.W. The Documents of the New Tes-

tament. Thomas Burby and Company, Lon-

don, England, 1934.

WAND Wand, J.W.C. The New Testament Letters.

Oxford University Press, Oxford, England,

1946.

WEST B.F. WESTCOTT

WEY Weymouth, Richard. The New Testament in

Modern Speech. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel

Publications, 1978.

WKS Weekes, Robert D. The New Dispensation

Translated from the Greek. Funk & Wagnall’s

Company, New York, New York, 1897

WOR Worrell, A.S. The Worrell New Testament.

21

Gospel Publishing House, Springfield, Mis-

souri, 1980.

WMS Williams, Charles Kingsley. The New Testa-

ment, A New Translation in Plain English.

Longmans, Green, and Co., London, England,

1952.

WUEST Wuest, Kenneth S. The New Testament, And

Expanded Translation. William B. Eerdmans

Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michi-

gan, 1981.

YLT Young, Arthur. Young’s Literal Translation of

the Holy Bible. Revised Edition. Baker Book

House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1976.

20CR The Twentieth Century New Testament. Re-

vised Edition. 1909

20C1 The Twentieth Century New Testament. The

Fleming H. Revell Company, New York,

New York, 1902.

22

23

Say this prayer from your heart…

Dear Father,

I come in the name of Jesus. I thank you that

Jesus died and rose again

for me.

NOW I accept Jesus as my

Lord and personal Savior.

I thank you that I AM NOW SAVED! If you prayed this prayer we would like to send

you a free gift. Please contact us with your name and personal information at

Buzzy Sutherlin Ministries P.O. Box 941

El Dorado, Ar. 71731-0941

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY OF THE LIVING GOD!

How Can I Be Saved?