“The sieve,” which removes the chaff and retains the fine flour.19 This is what’s called a “four types” parable, where four kinds of people are compared in their way of living. It reminds us of Jesus’s parable in Luke 8:4–11 about the seed that fell in four places: the rock, the path, the thorns, and the good soil. Each parable focuses on how various people respond to God’s Word. In the above parable, the rabbi is saying that the best disciple is not—contrary to our preconceptions—the “sponge,” who