Luke 8:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

However, when the atmosphere shines bright and the ripened harvest bows like an elder awaiting collection, the villagers, wielding their sharp sickles, labor diligently, fulfilling their desires and reaping the rewards of their expectations. At this point, the ox, with a joyful gait and a serious demeanor, heads to the threshing floor while the other animals find rest at home. The goats, pigs, and sheep, unaccustomed to the yoke and overwhelmed by guilt, timidly approach the threshing floor, trying to pilfer the gathered sheaves. Only the ox, extending its wide tongue, boldly claims the fruits of its labor. Observe the reapers, witness the fruitful fields, the threshing floor, and the ox; now transition to the Church’s adornment, where you will encounter the sacred cultivation of the Church.

‘Out went the sower to sow.’ This line resonates from the Gospel. ‘He went out.’ Who is this? It is Christ, who descended from heaven to earth. ‘The sower’ represents Christ, while the seed signifies the word of God; humanity acts as the plough, with the apostles as the oxen. The cross serves as the plough, and unity binds the apostles together like a yoke, with divine love tying their hearts. ‘Out went the sower to sow.’ Christ emerged not to harvest but to plant; the seeds of resurrection had yet to be sown in human hearts. ‘The sower went out to sow,’ not the earthly grains of rye, barley, or millet, but faith in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; the hope of the resurrection; genuine love for God and one another. Christ, the sower, came forth from the Father’s embrace, dwelling with us as He declared: ‘I came from the Father and am coming back’ (John 8:42; John 16:28). His coming from the Father did not signify separation but a persistent presence among us. This sower aims to uproot the tares sown by the adversary within the hearts of humanity. ‘Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted shall be uprooted’ (Matthew 15:13). The sun of truth emerged to illuminate the darkened human hearts with His divine light. The shepherd of the flock appeared to provide the sheep with nourishing guidance through the written law, sowing the salt of righteousness. The sower advanced with ten teams of oxen to yield a single meager vessel, sowing six measures to produce only three.

Speak, Isaiah, and do not hold back! ‘Where ten pairs of oxen plough, it will yield one scanty vessel’ (Isaiah 5:10). Ten teams translate to twenty oxen, while ten reasonable teams represent the twelve apostles of Christ alongside the seven men chosen. Who were these chosen ones? Stephen, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenus, Nicholas from Antioch, and also the apostle who spread the word from Jerusalem to Illyricum. These ten teams sowed the confession of Christ in the fields of humanity, who clothed Himself with our frail earthly form. The divine message refers to this earthly manifestation of Christ; listen! Before His impending suffering, His disciples inquired, ‘Where wilt Thou have us prepare the passover for Thee?’ He directed them: ‘Go into the city; a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you... and... say to the owner of that house, ‘Our Teacher... Where is the room where I am to eat the Passover with my disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room, furnished and ready: there prepare it for us’ (Matthew 26:17; Mark 14:13-15).

Who is this man with a pitcher of water, what is the city, and what is the furnished upper room? These you must discern through diligent study. The man with the pitcher symbolizes John the Forerunner of Christ, who proclaimed that Christ invested Himself in our mortal form and brought with Him the waters of baptism. The furnished room signifies the future place of rest for the saints after the resurrection. ‘Enter into this new city,’ not the old synagogue of the Jews, where the stale law had soured, mixing vinegar with gall offered to the Lord, but the new Jerusalem, where the fresh word and the grace of the Spirit flow with the new wine of faith; a place where no outdated Passover is celebrated, but a new resurrection occurs; where the sacrificial lamb is replaced by Christ’s deliverance; and where no old leaven exists, but instead the heavenly bread prepared on the cross. ‘Where ten pairs of oxen plough, it will yield one mug.’ Where ten teams toil—the apostles, likened to oxen, as Paul affirms: ‘Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn’ (1 Cor. 9:9)—they proclaim the confession of Jesus, who donned the frailty of our humanity.

The sower of six measures (artabs) will yield merely three measures. Do farmers truly experience such a lack of harvest that sowing six artabs results in only three? Yet investigate the deeper significance within the Scriptures, dear ones, and let us encounter the divine wisdom of the Spirit. The sower of six artabs will produce three measures. The six artabs represent the New Testament: the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and the apostolic teachings. When one sows these six artabs into a soul, they yield three measures—the confession to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. ‘The sower went out to sow’ not grain for bread but the life-giving faith; not barley to sustain the unwise but nourishing sustenance for the spirit of mankind; not millet to nourish the birds but the divine word, which is as potent as a mustard seed, igniting warmth in our souls towards righteousness and wisdom.

Those who stand in opposition are Arian; the thorns represent Eunomians; that which lies on rock pertains to the Marathonian. Notice closely, beloved! ‘The sower went out to sow his seed, and as he sowed, some fell by the wayside.’ He did not say ‘in the way,’ but ‘by the wayside.’ What is the way but Christ, who said: ‘I am the way and the truth’ (John 14:6)? Those who are along the way are Arians; they are neither on the path nor entirely off it, unlike the Greeks or Jews, but are caught under Christ, adhering to the true faith. Their acknowledgment of Christ brings them close to the path, while their failure to recognize Him as the Son of God prevents them from truly being along the way. Thus, the heavenly birds, representing deceitful spirits, swoop in and snatch away the divine word from their hearts, stripping them of true faith.

In sharing the truths of the Gospel, He spoke with authority that was uniquely His, rather than quoting another; the prophets, by contrast, always declared what was given to them by the Spirit, often saying, ‘These things saith the Lord.’ However, Christ proclaimed, ‘I say unto you.’ As He sowed, which means He taught, some seeds fell along the path. It is noted that it was not merely said, ‘The sower cast it down,’ but rather, ‘It fell,’ indicating that while the sower teaches, the reception of the word depends on the nature of the hearer's heart—whether it is like the road, the rocky ground, the thorns, or fertile soil.

The seeds that fell on the paths were carried away; those on the stones barely took root and quickly withered under the heat; the seeds among the thorns became choked; but those that landed on the rich soil thrived and produced an abundant yield, as He said, a hundredfold. (interpretation - see Luke 8:12-15)

This knowledge should encourage us to labor not only in anticipation of a harvest that provides temporal benefits but also to strive in hope of a harvest that grants us eternal life. "Behold," Christ proclaims, "he that soweth to sow his seed." Who then is this sower? It is none other than the Lord Himself, who foretold His coming through the Psalmist: "I will open My mouth in parables" (Psalm 77:2). How can we comprehend He who is omnipresent? He Himself proclaims, "He went out from the Father, and came into the world" (John 16:28). He emerged from the Father and His eternal embrace, entering a world steeped in existence, "by Whom the world began to be" (John 1:10), coming down from heaven to earth (John 3:13), the one who fills both heaven and earth. Hence, the "going forth" of the only-begotten Son of God and His descent from heaven signify His manifestation in the flesh, a journey from the unfathomable heights of divinity to the confines of human nature. Thus, He went forth "to sow His seed." What is this seed? It is the word of teaching, the words of eternal life, imperishable precepts, the promise of salvation, the gospel of the kingdom of heaven. These represent His seeds. For He states, "The words that I speak are spirit and life" (John 6:63), and Peter acknowledges, "The words of eternal life you have" (John 6:68). Therefore, this seed is exclusively His, and He is the one who continually sows it. Through this seed, the existence of God is revealed. Every teacher, evangelist, or preacher of righteousness who shares words of life—Gospel and divine doctrine—leaves behind a legacy, for the word of salvation he imparts is not his own but belongs to God, who aids him and "gives the word at the opening of his mouth" (Eph. 6:19). Yet our Lord Jesus Christ, the true God, possesses this seed of eternal life uniquely, continually sowing it through the natural law woven into existence, the law inscribed in scripture given to Israel, through the prophets, and later through the Gospel of grace. The time of this sowing encompasses each person's entire life, particularly the era following His First Coming, extending until the end of time. The time for harvesting this seed pertains to the anticipated Second Coming and manifestation of the Lord, for the Apostle states, "for hope there must be an oration" (1 Cor. 9:10), and "he that soweth in the spirit, of the spirit shall he reap everlasting life" (Gal. 6:8). The Psalmist-Prophet declares, "He that soweth in tears shall reap in joy" (Ps. 125:5). Therefore, the Lord has come forth to sow His seed. Where should it be sown? Into the hearts of men, for they represent the fields that will receive the spiritual seed. However, some hearts resemble a path, trampled and crushed by unwholesome thoughts and desires, governed by the worst of demons. Others are akin to rocky soil, consisting of those who, due to timidity and insensitivity, fail to nurture the seeds of teaching and ultimately bear fruit for eternal life. Still others are compared to ground overrun with thorns, a result of the relentless pursuit of wealth, material gain, and fleeting pleasures. Such differences in human hearts yield varied responses. The parable states, "He went out to sow his seed, and when he had sown, it fell by the way, and was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it." Some of the seeds landed along the path, representing those whose hearts are not aligned with the Lord's path (Acts 13:10), making them vulnerable to being trampled by evil spirits traversing their misguided ways. Consequently, the birds of the air, symbolizing wicked spirits, pecked and devoured these seeds, rendering these individuals akin to those who have not heard the word of God at all. As it is written, "those who fell by the way are the hearers, to whom the devil comes afterwards, and takes away the word from their hearts, lest they believe and be saved" (Luke 8:12). Let us take note, dear friends, that the Lord did not say He went out to plow the fields of the word, nor to cultivate or level the soil, but rather, He explicitly stated, "He went out to sow." Why is this? It is because preparation must precede His sowing within us. Thus, the Forerunner of the Gospel of Grace called out, urging, "Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight," and "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2-3). The essence of preparation and the inception of repentance involves self-reflection, confession, and a commitment to turn away from sin. Additionally, he warns those who fail to adequately prepare to bear the fruit of repentance: "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire" (Matthew 3:10). This cutting off is God's judgment upon those who do not turn from their sins, a decree that results in their separation from both this life and the one to come, casting them into the relentless Gehenna of fire. Therefore, let us repent, dear brothers and sisters, and manifest fruits befitting repentance; let us turn away from our wickedness; let us strive to speak and act righteously; let us prepare ourselves to accept the heavenly seed, the word of life; let us guard our tongues from malignity, from vain talk, harmful words, and from deceitful speech (Psalms 33:14). These idle words may be likened to the birds of the air mentioned in the Lord's parable, which devour and annihilate the good seed. Every word is akin to a creature soaring in the air, as words are often said to be "winged." The harmful words that emanate from a negative treasure of the heart serve as a nest that deprives the soul of holiness; the Lord reminds us: "What comes out of the mouth defiles a man" (Matthew 15:11). Instead, let our speech be fitting for the edification of those who hear.

Through this narrative, He not only unveiled Himself as the herald of the Gospel but also included the Apostles, the holy Hierarchs, and all faithful teachers of piety and sound doctrine.

It is important to note that He did not say, "Out goes the laborer," but rather, "Out goes the sower," illustrating that just as a genuine farmer is defined not merely by having seed but by actively sowing it, likewise, a true teacher is not merely someone capable of teaching but one who, endowed with the gift of teaching, endeavors to instruct both in action and in truth. Observe what happens to the scattered seed; the same principles apply to the preaching of the Word. When he states that the farmer sowed seed, it is noted that some of the seed fell along the pathway, where it was trampled by passersby and devoured by birds of the air.

Thus, the Lord provided clarity through the parable of the sower and the four types of soil. A sower cast out seed that was uniform, yet the soil varied, leading to different outcomes: three portions of the seed failed to thrive, while only one section yielded fruit, and not uniformly so. This parable illustrated the impact of His message among the Jews, both at the time and in the future. In some, like the Pharisees, it found no acceptance; in others, it was initially received with enthusiasm but lacked depth or full commitment. When trials arose, many who followed Christ would not withstand persecution from their own people and would abandon the teachings of the kingdom. If they were not faced with persecution, the anxieties of daily life would stifle the word of God within them, preventing them from striving to cleanse their hearts from sinful desires. Many who are currently turning to Christ fall into this category. Ultimately, only a few will treasure the word of the kingdom, and even among them, there will be varying degrees of vitality and effectiveness.

While Jesus referred to Himself as the sower in His parable about the tares, indicating that He is "the Son of Man" who sows good seed (Matthew 13:37), He does not explicitly name the sower in this particular parable. This indicates that Jesus embodies the role of the sower, as do the Apostles and all who preach the Word of God, whether orally or through written means.

The diverse nature of the soil represents the varied hearts of the listeners who hear the preacher's message. As the sower casts seeds, some fall along the path and are quickly taken by birds; the sower's efforts yield no fruit. Similarly, the work of God's messenger may seem futile when the audience is hardened or distracted. In such cases, one may recall Christ's teaching: "Do not give what is holy to dogs, nor throw your pearls before swine" (Matthew 7:6). However, the parable indicates that, despite the differences among people, there are indeed receptive hearts ready to receive God's message. Thus, the act of preaching remains essential, and the fear of lack of acceptance should not deter the sower.

Christ explains that those who hear the Word but do not grasp it are likened to seeds sown along the path. Mark records that "Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts" (Mark 4:15). This message is similarly conveyed by Matthew and Luke, with Matthew elaborating that for those who hear the message of the Kingdom and do not understand, the evil one engages to snatch away what has been planted in their hearts (Matthew 13:19). Consequently, they remain unable to believe and be saved (Luke 8:12). This illustrates that the seeds cast along the path represent those who cannot understand God's Word, akin to how packed earth cannot nurture the seeds that land upon it.

Consider a real-life example: during a church service, a man attentively listened to the Gospel being read but left without understanding its meaning. Upon encountering a friend who similarly found it incomprehensible, he sought clarification from another acquaintance, only to meet a disbeliever who dismissed the message altogether, conveying that his time spent listening was in vain. Without proper guidance, the man's exposure to the Word bore no fruit, and he quickly forgot it—it was taken from him. Conversely, had he sought clarification from a knowledgeable believer, the seed would have taken root in him, akin to how seeds flourish in prepared soil.

Some may ask what fault lies with those who hear but fail to comprehend, or those unable to retain the message due to a lack of purity in their hearts. If they possessed the qualities necessary for the seed's successful growth, might it then bear fruit? However, all individuals are born with goodness, and any subsequent inclination toward evil arises from personal choices—whether through deliberate will or careless impulses. Consequently, one’s heart can become hardened and unreceptive due to deliberate inattention. It is feasible to cultivate even the most unyielding ground into a flourishing field. This parable concerns not those devoid of intelligence but rather those who could understand yet choose not to. With the desire to comprehend, even that which is initially perceived as obscure can become clear through earnest effort, leading to a transformation of the heart. Thus, the onus lies with individuals to respond to the truth of God's Word, for they must bear the consequences of their indifference and their refusal to seek understanding.

Yet, some seeds landed on fertile soil and yielded a bountiful harvest: some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, and others thirtyfold. After sharing this parable, the Savior emphasized, ‘he that hath ears to hear, let him hear!’ This remark seemed superfluous, as many listeners, despite having ears, lacked the insight necessary to grasp the meaning of the parable.