“A farmer went out to sow his seed. And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, where it was trampled, and the birds of the air devoured it.
Parallel translations
- WEB “The farmer went out to sow his seed. As he sowed, some fell along the road, and it was trampled under foot, and the birds of the sky devoured it.
- KJV 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.
- NKJV “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.
- NASB “The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the sky ate it up.
- NLT “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A sower scatters seed, some of which falls on the path and is trampled and eaten by birds. This pictures the word reaching hearts that never receive it.
Overview
Jesus opens the parable with seed falling on hard, exposed ground where it is lost at once. The image draws on familiar farming in Galilee. As He will explain, this represents those who hear the word but lose it immediately to the devil, never letting it take root.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Heb 2:1We must pay closer attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
- Jas 1:23–24For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror,
- Mark 4:15Some are like the seeds along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.
- Luke 8:11–12Now this is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.
- Gen 15:11And the birds of prey descended on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.
- Mark 4:26–29Jesus also said, “The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seed on the ground.
- Ps 119:118You reject all who stray from Your statutes, for their deceitfulness is in vain.
- Matt 5:13You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
- Matt 13:3–4And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed.
- Matt 13:37He replied, “The One who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.
- Matt 13:24–26Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
- Mark 4:2–4And He taught them many things in parables, and in His teaching He said,
- Matt 13:18–19Consider, then, the parable of the sower:
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 8:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.