“sends forth the sickle,” a figure of speech for “sending forth the reapers”; cf. Joel 3:13) because the harvest has come (parestēken, “stands ready”). Some interpreters view this parable as a picture of evangelism. Some take it as depicting spiritual growth in a believer. Others see it as a picture of the coming of God’s kingdom by the mysterious, sovereign work of God. Its emphasis is on growth under God’s initiative in the interim phase between the proclamation by Jesus (the lowly Sower) and His