Luke 8:1–25

Women Accompanying Jesus

8Soon afterward he went on ⁿthrough cities and villages, proclaiming and ^obringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, ²and also ^psome women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: ^qMary, called Magdalene, ^rfrom whom seven demons had gone out, ³and ^sJoanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them¹ out of their means.

The Parable of the Sower

^4tAnd when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable, ^5u“A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. ⁶And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, ^vit withered away, because it had no moisture. ⁷And some fell among ^wthorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. ⁸And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded ^xa hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, ^y“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

The Purpose of the Parables

⁹And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, ¹⁰he said, ^z“To you it has been given to know ^athe secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so ^bthat ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’ ^11cNow the parable is this: The seed is ^dthe word of God. ¹²The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not ^ebelieve and be saved. ¹³And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it ^fwith joy. But these have no root; they ^gbelieve for a while, and in time of testing ^hfall away. ¹⁴And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but ⁱas they go on their way they are choked by the ^jcares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. ¹⁵As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and ^kbear fruit ^lwith patience.

A Lamp Under a Jar

^16mn“No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. ^17oFor nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. ^18pTake care then how you hear, ^qfor to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

^19rThen his mother and ^shis brothers² came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. ²⁰And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” ²¹But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those ^twho hear the word of God and do it.”

Jesus Calms a Storm

^22uOne day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of ^vthe lake.” So they set out, ²³and as they sailed he fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on ^vthe lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger. ²⁴And they went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and ^wrebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, ^xand there was a calm. ²⁵He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they ^ywere afraid, and they ^zmarveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that ^ahe commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”