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OET (OET-LV) And the one having_been_sown on the rocky, this is the one hearing the message and immediately receiving it with joy,
OET (OET-RV) The seed that landed on the rocky ground, that’s the person who hears the message and is immediately happy to accept it,
In this section, Jesus explained the meaning of the parable of the sower. As you translate this section, it is important to understand and remember the main elements in this parable and what they represent.
There are three main metaphors in this parable:
The seed represents the message about the kingdom.
The sowing of the seed represents telling the message to people.
The four types of soil represents four types of people who hear the message.
The first type of soil is the soil along the path. This soil represents people whom Satan causes to forget the message of the kingdom. The second type of soil is the rocky soil. This soil represents people who initially accept the message, but when troubles or persecution happen to them, they quickly reject the message. The third type of soil is the thorny soil. This soil represents people who accept the message, but worries about daily living cause them to not do anything for God. Finally, the forth type of soil is the good soil. This soil represents people who hear and understand the message, and the message produces results in their lives.
In these verses, the Greek text sometimes keeps the metaphor and sometimes explains the meaning of the metaphor. For example 13:19c–d has: “the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.” The words “snatches away what was sown” keep the metaphor of birds eating the grain that the farmer sowed. But the words “the evil one comes” explains the meaning of the metaphor of “birds” (13:4c).
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Jesus explained the parable of the four soils
The Parable of the Sower Explained (NRSV)
There are parallel passages for this section in Mark 4:13–20 and Luke 8:11–15.
The seed sown on rocky ground
The rocky places where some seed fell
The meaning of what happened to the seeds that the farmer sowed/scattered on bedrock
The seed sown on rocky ground: This clause indicates that another explanation is coming. It is the explanation of what happened when some seed fell on rocky ground. Be careful not to imply that the seed is being compared to a person. The comparison is to the entire situation.
This clause is passive. Here are some ways to translate it:
Use a passive verb. For example:
The meaning of what happened to the seeds that were planted on rocky places is this:
Use an active verb. For example:
As for the seeds that the farmer planted on bedrock, that is like
Use another type of verb. For example:
As for the shallow ground where some seeds fell, that is like
sown: Some English translations (like the NIV and GNT) translate sown here as “fell.” This indicates that the farmer did not sow the seeds on the rocky ground on purpose.
rocky ground: The Greek word that the BSB translates as rocky ground is the same word that occurs in 13:5a. It refers to ground that has a layer of solid rock underneath. There is not much soil on top of the solid rock. This clause does not refer to soil and rocks mixed together.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
shallow soil with underlying rock
solid rock with a thin layer of soil
bedrock where there is only a little soil on top
is the one who hears the word
show/represent a person who hears the message
is this: some people hear the message/truth about the kingdom,
is: The word is indicates a comparison. It means “the situation in 13:20a represents….” In other words, sowing on rocky ground “is like” or “represents” someone who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. For example:
represents (NLT)
stand for (GNT)
the one who hears the word: The word one refers to a certain type of person. In some languages, it may be more natural to use a plural word here. For example:
the people who gladly hear the message (CEV)
those who hear the message (NLT)
the word: This word refers to the “message,” “talk,” or “news” of the kingdom. You should translate the word in the same way as you translated it in 13:19a (BSB: “the message”).
and at once receives it with joy.
and immediately accepts it and is glad/happy.
and right away they welcome/believe it with gladness.
at once: Here are some other ways to translate this word:
without hesitation
immediately (ESV)
as soon as they hear it (GNT)
receives it with joy: The word receives indicates that the person accepts the message about God’s kingdom. He accepts it and is happy.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
welcomes it…with joy (NJB)
accepts it…with joy (REB)
believes it and is happy
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases
δὲ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here, the word Now introduces the next thing that Jesus wants to say. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces the next topic, or you could leave Now untranslated. Alternate translation: [Next,]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
ὁ & ἐπὶ τὰ πετρώδη σπαρείς, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τὸν λόγον ἀκούων καὶ εὐθὺς μετὰ χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν
the_‹one› & (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here Jesus speaks about what happens to this person as if it were what happened in the parable when the seed was sown on the rocky ground. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the idea in simile form. Alternate translation: [what happened to the seed having been sown on the rocky ground is like what happens to the one hearing the word and immediately receiving it with joy]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicitinfo
ὁ & ἐπὶ τὰ πετρώδη σπαρείς, οὗτός
the_‹one› & (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here, the word this refers directly back to the one having been sown on the rocky ground. Jesus expresses the idea in this way to introduce the one having been sown on the rocky ground and then explain what it means. If stating the topic and then referring back to it with the word this would be redundant in your language, you could omit the redundant information. Alternate translation: [the one having been sown on the rocky ground]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
σπαρείς
˓having_been˒_sown
If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. If you need to say who did the action, it is clear from the context that it was the farmer who was sowing seed. Alternate translation: [that the farmer sowed]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
τὰ πετρώδη
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here, just as in [13:5](../13/05.md), Jesus refers to an area that has a thin layer of soil on top of a layer of rocks. Express the idea as you did in that verse. Alternate translation: [a thin layer of soil on top of rocks] or [a rocky area]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy
τὸν λόγον
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here, just as in [13:19](../13/19.md), Jesus is using the term word to mean something spoken in words. Express the idea as you did there. Alternate translation: [the proclamation] or [the news]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
τὸν λόγον
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
Here Jesus implies that this is the same “word of the kingdom” that he mentioned in the previous verse. You could include this information if that would be helpful to your readers. Alternate translation: [the word about the kingdom]
Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns
μετὰ χαρᾶς
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὁ Δέ ἐπί τά πετρώδη σπαρείς οὗτος ἐστίν ὁ τόν λόγον ἀκούων καί εὐθύς μετά χαρᾶς λαμβάνων αὐτόν)
If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of joy, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [joyfully]
OET (OET-LV) And the one having_been_sown on the rocky, this is the one hearing the message and immediately receiving it with joy,
OET (OET-RV) The seed that landed on the rocky ground, that’s the person who hears the message and is immediately happy to accept it,
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.