Mark 4:14

Study note

Setting — Jesus speaks to his disciples immediately after asking whether they understand the parable of the sower. He delivers this statement to identify the parable’s central figure before detailing the outcomes for each soil type.

The words — The Greek σπείρων λόγον (speirōn logon) literally renders “sowing the word,” with σπείρων (speirōn) indicating the active scattering of seed and λόγον (logon) denoting the spoken message. The syntax directly equates the agricultural act with the proclamation itself.

The thread — The text’s sowing imagery runs through Acts 8:4 where scattered believers preach the word, and Matthew 13:19 and 13:37 which explicitly connect the sower to the Son of Man and describe the evil one snatching the sown word. These references consistently bind agricultural distribution to the handling of divine revelation.

Why it lands — The verse first states that the farmer sows the word, establishing the message as the seed. It then requires the reader to evaluate their own receptivity, since the text shows that hearing alone does not guarantee retention.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.