And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
and as he sowed, some'seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them:
And while he did so, some seeds were dropped by the wayside, and the birds came and took them for food:
And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them:
As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them.
and as he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them:
Some seeds fell by the way side - The hard beaten path, where no plough had broken up the ground.
Some seeds fell by the way-side - That is, the hard "path" or headland, which the plow had not touched, and where there was no opportunity for it to sink into the earth.
13:4 And while he sowed, some seeds fell by the highway side, and the birds came and devoured them - It is observable, that our Lord points out the grand hinderances of our bearing fruit, in the same order as they occur. The first danger is, that the birds will devour the seed. If it escape this, there is then another danger, namely, lest it be scorched, and wither away.It is long after this that the thorns spring up and choke the good seed. A vast majority of those who hear the word of God, receive theseed as by the highway side. Of those who do not lose it by the birds, yet many receive it as on stony places. Many of them who receive it in a better soil, yet suffer the thorns to grow up, and choke it: so that few even of these endure to the end, and bear fruit unto perfection: yet in all these cases, it is not the will of God that hinders, but their own voluntary perverseness.