501st Post Jesus Parables Con't. - Parable of the Sower - Matthew 13: 3 - 9.

Matthew 13: 3 - 9; Mark 4: 3 - 9; Luke 8: 5 - 8. Parable of the Sower, 1st Post.
Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside;  and the birds came and devoured them.  Some fell on stoney places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they have no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and chocked them.  But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
This was spoken by Jesus about 1.1/2 years into His earthly ministry.  The Sower is Jesus, the seed is the Word of God, the birds represent Satan.  The different places mentioned where the seed fell is the condition of the soil, meaning not all soil has been prepared to accept the seed.  And the seed fails, because of the soil it is placed in.  The good soil produces some a hundred fold, some sixty and some thirty.  Then Jesus ends this parable with "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."  When Jesus said the words, "He who has ears...", means that what he had just said is quite important, and don't miss it.