As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them.
Parallel translations
- WEB As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them.
- KJV And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
- BSB And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
- NKJV And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.
- NASB and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up.
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
Some seed falls on the path, where birds quickly devour it.
Overview
This pictures the word that falls on hardened hearts and is snatched away before it takes root. The path represents those who hear without understanding. Jesus will later explain that the birds stand for the evil one.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Matt 13:18–19“Hear, then, the parable of the farmer.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 13:4 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.