Page:PracticalCommentaryOnHolyScripture.djvu/554

 choked it. And some  fell  upon  good  ground,  and  being  sprung up, yielded  fruit  a hundred-fold. He that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let him hear.”

And His  disciples  asked  Him  what  this  parable  might  be. To whom He  said:  “To  you  it  is  given  to  know  the  mystery  of  the kingdom of  God;  but  to  the  rest  in  parables,  that  seeing  they may not  see,  and  hearing  they  may  not  understand.

“Now the  parable  is  this:  The  seed  is  the  word  of  God. And they by  the  wayside  are  they  that  hear;  then  the  devil  cometh, and taketh  the  word  of  God  out  of  their  heart,  lest  believing  they should be  saved. Now they  upon  the  rock  are  they  who,  when they hear,  receive  the  word  with  joy;  and  these  have  no  roots; who believe  for  awhile,  and  in  time  of  temptation  fall  away. And that which  fell  among  thorns  are  they  who  have  heard,  and  going their way  are  choked  with  the  cares,  and  riches,  and  pleasures  of this  life,  and  yield  no  fruit. But that  on  the  good  ground  are they who  in  a good  and  perfect  heart,  hearing  the  word,  keep  it, and bring  forth  fruit  in  patience.”

The different  ways  of  receiving  the  word  of  God.  The  sower  is our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  Who,  through  the  apostles  and  their  successors, proclaims the  word  of  God. The field  is  the  heart  of  man,  for  which the divine  seed  is  destined. The chief  lesson  contained  in  the  parable is that  the  effect  of  God’s  word  upon  the  soul  depends  entirely  on  the preparation and  disposition  of  him  who  hears  it,  just  as  the  fruitfulness of the  natural  seed  depends  on  the  cultivation  and  quality  of  the  earth in which  it  is  sown. The three  cases  mentioned  in  which  the  seed brought forth  no  fruit,  point  out  the  chief  hindrances  which  man  puts in the  way  of  the  efficacy  of  God’s  word.

The first  class  are  those  in  whom  there  is  wanting  a good  will  to receive  God’s  word  with  faith. They hear  it  indeed,  but  they  will  not open their  hearts  to  it,  because  the  devil  and  his  human  agents  have succeeded by  scorn,  prejudice  and  false  explanations  in  so  setting  them against everything  supernatural,  that  they  utterly  refuse  to  believe. Take, for instance,  the  Pharisees  in  our  Lord’s  time,  and  also  the  so-called “enlightened” men  of  the  present  day.