4:26–29 This parable and the one following (4:30–32) both make use of the imagery of seed and agriculture, and in this way are similar to the parable that opens this chapter (4:1–9). No doubt the term seed acted as a memory device for early Christians, enabling them to link these parables.

When examining the parable in 4:1–9 we noted that it is probably to be seen as a parable of encouragement, with an emphasis on the incredibly rich harvest. Though the crowds might take warning from the examples of bad soils, the disciples would find encouragement for their less-than-glamorous itinerant preaching in the assurance of great results. The parables in 4:26–32 are li…