^13:10Then¹³ the disciples came to him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” ^13:11He replied,¹⁴ “You have been given¹⁵ the opportunity to know¹⁶ the secrets¹⁷ of the kingdom of heaven, but they have not. ^13:12For whoever has will be given more, and will have an abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.¹⁸^13:13For this reason I speak to them in parables: Although they see they do not see, and although they hear they do not hear nor do they understand. ^13:14And concerning them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

‘You will listen carefully¹⁹ yet will never understand,

you will look closely²⁰ yet will never comprehend.

^13:15For the heart of this people has become dull;

they are hard of hearing,

and they have shut their eyes,

so that they would not see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and understand with their hearts

and turn, and I would heal them.’²¹

^13:16“But your eyes are blessed²² because they see, and your ears because they hear.

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Footnotes

13 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
14 Grk “And answering, he said to them.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
15 This is an example of a “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ).
16 Grk “to you it has been given to know.” The dative pronoun occurs first, in emphatic position in the Greek text, although this position is awkward in contemporary English.
17 Grk “the mysteries.” The key term secrets (μυστήριον, mustērion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17–23, 27–30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1–4; Heb 1:1–2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because it suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).
18 What he has will be taken from him. The meaning is that the one who accepts Jesus’ teaching concerning his person and the kingdom will receive a share in the kingdom now and even more in the future, but for the one who rejects Jesus’ words, the opportunity that that person presently possesses with respect to the kingdom will someday be taken away forever.
19 Grk “with hearing,” a cognate dative that intensifies the action of the main verb “you will listen” ( ).
20 Grk “look by looking.” The participle is redundant, functioning to intensify the force of the main verb.
21 A quotation from Isa 6:9–10. Thus parables both conceal or reveal depending on whether one is open to hearing what they teach.
22 This beatitude highlights the great honor bestowed on the disciples to share in this salvation.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

“ ‘ “You will indeed hear but never understand,

and you will indeed see but never perceive.”

For this people’s heart has grown dull,

and with their ears they can barely hear,

and their eyes they have closed,

lest they should see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and understand with their heart

and turn, and I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;

though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

“ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;

you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.

For this people’s heart has become calloused;

they hardly hear with their ears,

and they have closed their eyes.

Otherwise they might see with their eyes,

hear with their ears,

understand with their hearts

and turn, and I would heal them.’

But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then the disciples came up and asked him, “Why are you speaking to them in parables?”

He answered, “Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know, but it has not been given to them. For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. That is why I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see, and hearing they do not listen or understand. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:

You will listen and listen,

but never understand;

you will look and look,

but never perceive.

For this people’s heart has grown callous;

their ears are hard of hearing,

and they have shut their eyes;

otherwise they might see with their eyes,

and hear with their ears, and

understand with their hearts,

and turn back—

and I would heal them.

“Blessed are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear.

NLTNew Living Translation

His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”

He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them. That is why I use these parables,

For they look, but they don’t really see.

They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.

This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,

‘When you hear what I say,

you will not understand.

When you see what I do,

you will not comprehend.

For the hearts of these people are hardened,

and their ears cannot hear,

and they have closed their eyes—

so their eyes cannot see,

and their ears cannot hear,

and their hearts cannot understand,

and they cannot turn to me

and let me heal them.’

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And the disciples came up and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered and said to them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to those people it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have an abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. For this reason I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand, and with reference to them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says,

“You will listen carefully and will never understand,

and you will look closely and will never perceive.

For the heart of this people has become dull,

and with their ears they hear with difficulty,

and they have shut their eyes,

so that they would not see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and understand with their heart

and turn, and I would heal them.”

But your eyes are blessed because they see, and your ears because they hear.

KJV 1900King James Version

And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 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. 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. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 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 should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

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