The Sower, the Soils, and God’s Promise for His Word in Mark 4

In Mark 4, Jesus tells a parable in which a farmer sows seed in his field. As he scatters, the seed falls on four kinds of soils: on the path, on rocky ground, among thorns, and then on good soil (vv. 3–8). The sower in the story, as verse 14 makes clear, is the one who declares God’s Word, beginning with Jesus and extending to faithful Bible teachers in every age. Jesus’ parable teaches that whenever God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed, it is met with different kinds of responses.

As we consider each of the four soils and how they’re instructive for us, we should remember God’s promise through the prophet Isaiah. The material in Isaiah 55:10–11 almost certainly informed Jesus’ parable in Mark 4:

  As the rain and the snow come down from heaven
 and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
 giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
 it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
 and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

In short, no matter the response people have to the Word when they hear it, God always accomplishes His purposes through it. His Word never returns empty.

The Parable Explained

In Mark 4:13–20, Jesus explains to the Twelve how the Word works from the vantage point of the sower and then in terms of the soils.

The Sower

In the immediate context, “the word” refers to the teaching of Jesus in Galilee. In particular, it is His proclamation of the Gospel—the good news—as in Mark 1:15: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the gospel.”

The people at the time were thrilled in anticipation of the coming kingdom. They expected something dramatic. And in the course of Mark’s opening chapters, as Jesus was demonstrating the powerful coming of the kingdom, people had responded in numerous ways—some believing, others opposing. The parable of the seed and the soils summarizes these responses. As the Gospel is sown, Jesus reminds us, the kingdom inches closer to its fulfillment.

Whenever the Bible is faithfully proclaimed, it is met with different kinds of responses.

We can learn a lot from how Jesus taught the truths of the kingdom. Commenting on Jesus’ distinctive approach, Archibald G. Brown says, “Jesus pitied sinners, pleaded with them, sighed over them, warned them, and wept over them; but never sought to amuse them.”¹

The application for Christians, and especially those who preach and teach on various levels, is clear: Our job is not to entertain but to do the hard work of a farmer, faithfully scattering the seed of the Gospel.

The Soils

The soils in the parable represent the various responses people have to the Word.

First, Jesus describes the response of those seeds sown along the hard, beaten path of a person’s heart (Mark 4:15). This group hears the Gospel and shows fleeting, superficial interest, but they ultimately prove impervious to it, Jesus’ words bouncing off of their hearts like rain on a tin roof.

Indeed, whenever the Word of God is sown, the activity of the Evil One is present. It’s Satan who—sometimes directly, usually indirectly—snatches the seed before it can ever take root in some people’s hearts. And his work is usually subtle. It may be a voice in someone’s head saying, “You don’t need this,” or “This would change too much and be too hard.” Being taken away, there’s no hope for the seed’s growth.

The second kind of soil is the “rocky ground,” where there is no depth (vv. 5, 16–17). Although the seed springs up quickly, it has no roots, eventually withering in the heat. This is the person who receives the Word with an apparently immediate, joyful heart. It may even be followed by a quick baptism and ministry involvement. But something happens along the way. Trouble comes. Persecution comes, by way of the Word, and they fall away—instant bloom, instant fade.

Third, there’s the thorny soil in verses 18–19. In this instance, internal pressures and divided loyalties frustrate the Word’s growth in a person, bearing no fruit. Jesus lists three factors that choke out the Word: the worries of life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and desires for other things. Importantly, it’s not only things that are inherently bad that may keep us from receiving the Gospel. It may be good things—a love of sports, concern for our family’s well-being, and so on—that steal our affections that belong to God and lead us away from zeal for Christ. These lesser goods, if managed foolishly, can become thorns, imperceptibly and inevitably choking the life out of us.

Finally, there is the heart represented by the “good soil” (Mark 4:20). This group hears the Gospel, accepts it, and bears fruit. They are those Jesus speaks of in John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

Make no mistake: The hearing of God’s Word in and of itself will do nothing until He enables us to accept it, bow down under it, and believe it. But when God’s Word is received in humility, it makes a lasting impact. This person prospers in trial, holds up in storms, and endures to the end.

The Parable Applied

When we reflect on the different kinds of soils Jesus describes in the parable, we can probably think of individuals we know who would fit into each group. Some hear the Word and prove disinterested; others seem to embrace the Gospel but eventually reject it on account of hardship; and still others show initial zeal for Christ that is later choked out by the thorns of life. Discouraged by these responses, we may wonder, “Why all this waste?”

Hearing God’s Word in and of itself does nothing until we accept it, bow under it, and believe it.

But at the heart of Jesus’ parable is a lesson we can’t afford to miss: God has pledged Himself to fulfill all the purposes for His Word (Isa. 55:11). We may not see it immediately or even in our lifetimes, but the promises He’s made concerning the Gospel and His kingdom will come to pass. God has watched over His Word throughout history, seeing His people through the Dark Ages, the Cultural Revolution in China, the Covenanting times in Scotland, and so on. We can be confident that the same God who accomplished His purposes then is accomplishing them today.

While we sow Gospel seed, we must also pay attention to the condition of our own hearts. God’s people are simultaneously sowers and soil, sharing and hearing God’s Word. If we do not humbly accept the Word of God planted in us, it will not help us. It will harden us. To sit under God’s Word preached week after week without responding in faith and obedience is a dangerous prospect. We’ll eventually lose interest, drifting away and bearing no fruit.

And so we heed the exhortations of Scripture: “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you,” (Mark 4:24) and “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Ps. 95:7–8; Heb. 3:7–8; 3:15; 4:7–8).

This article was adapted from the sermon “The Seed and the Soils” by Alistair Begg.