And He taught them many things in parables, and in His teaching He said,
Parallel translations
- WEB He taught them many things in parables, and told them in his teaching,
- KJV And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,
- NKJV Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
- NASB And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching,
- NLT He taught them by telling many stories in the form of parables, such as this one:
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
Jesus teaches many things in parables. It matters because parables both reveal kingdom truth to the receptive and conceal it from the hardened.
Overview
Parables are vivid earthly stories that carry heavenly meaning, inviting hearers to ponder. They reward those who seek understanding while leaving the indifferent unmoved. This method reflects Jesus' wisdom in teaching the kingdom and the responsibility of each hearer to respond rightly to what they hear.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Matt 13:34–35Jesus spoke all these things to the crowds in parables. He did not tell them anything without using a parable.
- Mark 4:11He replied, “The mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those on the outside everything is expressed in parables,
- Mark 3:23So Jesus called them together and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan?
- Ps 78:2I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the beginning,
- Matt 13:3And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed.
- Ps 49:4I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will express my riddle with the harp:
- Matt 13:10Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why do You speak to the people in parables?”
- Mark 12:38In His teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, to receive greetings in the marketplaces,
- Mark 4:33–34With many such parables Jesus spoke the word to them, to the extent that they could understand.
- Matt 7:28When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at His teaching,
- John 7:16–17“My teaching is not My own,” Jesus replied. “It comes from Him who sent Me.
- John 18:19Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about His disciples and His teaching.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 4:2 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.