Goodspeed(i)
18 "You must listen closely then to the figure of the sower.
19 When anyone hears the teaching of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and robs him of the seed that has been sown in his mind. That is what was sown along the path.
20 And what was sown upon the rocky soil means the man who hears the message and at once accepts it joyfully,
21 but it takes no real root in him, and lasts only a little while, and when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, he gives it up at once.
22 And what was sown among the thorns means the man who listens to the message, and then the worries of the time and the pleasure of being rich choke the message out, and it yields nothing.
23 And what was sown in good ground means the man who listens to the message and understands it, and yields one a hundred, and another sixty, and another thirty-fold."
24 Another figure which he used in speaking to them was this: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field,
25 but while people were asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.
26 And when the wheat came up and ripened, the weeds appeared too.
27 And the owner's slaves came to him and said, 'Was not the seed good that you sowed in your field, sir? So where did these weeds come from?'
28 He said to them, 'This is some enemy's doing.' And they said to him, 'Do you want us to go and gather them up?'
29 But he said, 'No, for in gathering up the weeds you may uproot the wheat.
30 Let them both grow together until harvest time, and when we harvest I will direct the reapers to gather up the weeds first and tie them up in bundles to burn, but get the wheat into my barn.' "