10 After this, his apprentices came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

11 “You guys have been permitted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens,” replied Yeshua, “but not those others.” 12 [ref]Because anyone who already has will be given more and they will end up with plenty, but anyone who doesn’t have, even what they have will be taken away from them. 13 That’s why I speak to them in parables, because when they look they don’t see, and when they listen, they don’t hear or understand, 14 [ref]and so the prophecy written by Isayah is being fulfilled:

‘When you listen you will hear but you certainly won’t understand,

and when you look you will see but you certainly won’t perceive anything.

15 Because these people’s hearts are insensitive and they can barely hear with their ears,

and they shut their eyes so they can’t see with them.

Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,

and understand with their heart and then return to me and then I would heal them.’

16 [ref]“But your eyes are blessed because they can see, and your ears also, because they can hear, 17 because I can assure you all that many prophets and godly people wanted to see what you’re seeing, but they didn’t see, and they wanted to hear what you’re all hearing, but they didn’t hear it either.