He
set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel weeds also among the wheat, and went away. But when the blade sprang up and produced fruit, then the darnel weeds appeared also. The servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did these darnel weeds come from?’
“He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them up?’
“But he said, ‘No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel weeds, you root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Matthew 13:24-30
Matthew 13 [18.] “Hear, then, the parable of the farmer. When anyone hears the word of the Kingdom, and doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes, and snatches away that which has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown by the roadside. What was sown on the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it; yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while. When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. What was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this age and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. What was sown on the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, who most certainly bears fruit, and produces, some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty.”
Matthew 13 [24.] He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed darnel weeds also among the wheat, and went away. But when the blade sprang up and produced fruit, then the darnel weeds appeared also. The servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did these darnel weeds come from?’
Matthew 13 [28.] “He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them up?’
Matthew 13 [29.] “But he said, ‘No, lest perhaps while you gather up the darnel weeds, you root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Matthew 13 [31.] He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field; which indeed is smaller than all seeds. But when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.”
Meaning:
After the parable of the farmer, Jesus tells a second story about sowing. The first parable explained why the word bears fruit in some hearts and not in others. This one answers another question: if God’s Kingdom has come, why is there still so much evil in the world, and why does God not remove it at once?
- “A man who sowed good seed in his field”
The farmer sowed good seed. Later Jesus explained that the sower is the Son of Man, the field is the world and the good seed are the children of the Kingdom (Matthew 13:37-38). What God plants is always good.
- “His enemy came and sowed darnel weeds also among the wheat”
Darnel is a weed grass that looks very much like wheat until it is mature, as the footnote on the PIB page explains. Its grains are poisonous. Sowing weeds in an enemy’s field was a known act of spite in the ancient world. The enemy worked “while people slept”, secretly. Jesus later identified him as the devil, and the darnel as “the children of the evil one”. Evil in the world is not God’s planting; it is the work of an enemy.
- “Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field?”
The servants are puzzled, as many believers are. If the master sowed good seed, where did the weeds come from? The answer is plain: “An enemy has done this.” God is not the author of evil. Yet he allows good and evil to exist side by side for a time.
- “Do you want us to go and gather them up?”
The servants are eager to act. They want a pure field at once. But the master refuses. The roots of wheat and darnel were tangled together, and in the early stages the two looked alike. Pulling up the weeds would destroy good plants too. Human beings cannot always tell true believers from false ones, and hasty judgment can do great harm. Paul says, “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes” (1 Corinthians 4:5).
- “Let both grow together until the harvest”
The delay is not weakness or indifference. It is patience. Peter explains, “The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish” (2 Peter 3:9). But the harvest will come. Then the reapers will separate the two: the darnel will be burned and the wheat gathered into the barn. John the Baptist had spoken the same way of the Messiah: “He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire” (Matthew 3:12).
The Significance of Matthew 13:24-30
- Evil has an enemy source
God sows only good. The presence of evil in the world, and even among those who claim to follow God, is the work of the enemy, not of God.
- Leave final judgment to God
Believers must reject sin and stand for what is right, but they are not called to uproot everyone they think is false. God sees the heart and will judge perfectly at the right time.
- The harvest is certain
God’s patience is not endless. Every life is moving towards the harvest. This is a call to make sure we are wheat, not weeds.
Cross-References:
Matthew 13:38: "the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the children of the Kingdom; and the darnel weeds are the children of the evil one." Jesus explains the parable.
1 Corinthians 4:5: "Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes," Wait for the Lord’s judgment.
2 Peter 3:9: "but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." The reason for God’s patience.
Conclusion: Jesus compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a field where good seed was sown, but an enemy secretly sowed darnel weeds among the wheat. The owner would not let his servants pull up the weeds, in case they uprooted the wheat as well. Both would grow together until the harvest, when the weeds would be burned and the wheat gathered into the barn. God permits good and evil to exist side by side for now, but a day of separation and judgment will surely come.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible