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"A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.
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Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.
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And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.
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But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold." When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"
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Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"
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And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that 'Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.'
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"Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
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Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
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But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.
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Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.
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But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.
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"No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.
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For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.
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Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."
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Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.
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And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."
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But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."
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Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake." And they launched out.
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But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.
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And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!" Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm.
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But He said to them, "Where is your faith?" And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"
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Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.
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And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.
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When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!"
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For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.
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Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.
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And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.
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Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them.
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Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.
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When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.
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Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.