Mark 4:2
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And He taught them many things in parables, and in His teaching He said,
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes.
Open source ↗In this chapter, we have, I. The parable of the seed, and the four sorts of ground (Mar 4:1-9), with the exposition of it (Mar 4:10-20), and the application of it (Mar 4:21-25). II. The parable of the seed growing gradually, but insensibly (Mar 4:26-29). III. The parable of the grain of mustard-seed, and a general account of Christ's parables (Mar 4:30-34). IV. The miracle of Christ's sudden stilling a storm at sea (Mar 4:35-41).
Open source ↗4:2 Parables are often stories (Luke 15:11-32; 18:1-8) but can also be proverbs (Mark 3:24-25; Luke 4:23), similes and metaphors (Matt 5:14; 10:16), riddles (Mark 7:15; 14:58), comparisons (Matt 13:33; Luke 15:3-7), examples (Luke 10:30-35; 12:16-21), or allegories (Mark 4:3-9; 12:1-12).
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
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He replied, “The mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those on the outside everything is expressed in parables,
So Jesus called them together and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan?
I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will express my riddle with the harp:
I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the beginning,
Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why do You speak to the people in parables?”
And He told them many things in parables, saying, “A farmer went out to sow his seed.
In His teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, to receive greetings in the marketplaces,
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at His teaching,
Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about His disciples and His teaching.