1 Corinthians 3:7

3:7 So neither the one who plants counts for anything, ¹  nor the one who waters, but God who causes the growth.

Genesis 1:11-12

1:11 God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: ²  plants yielding seeds according to their kinds, ³  and ⁴  trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.” It was so. 1:12 The land produced vegetation – plants yielding seeds according to their kinds, and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. God saw that it was good.

Psalms 104:14

104:14 He provides grass ⁵  for the cattle,

and crops for people to cultivate, ⁶ 

so they can produce food from the ground, ⁷ 

Isaiah 61:11

61:11 For just as the ground produces its crops

and a garden yields its produce,

so the sovereign Lord will cause deliverance ⁸  to grow,

and give his people reason to praise him in the sight of all the nations. ⁹ 

Mark 4:26-29

The Parable of the Growing Seed

4:26 He also said, “The kingdom of God is like someone who spreads seed on the ground. 4:27 He goes to sleep and gets up, night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 4:28 By itself the soil produces a crop, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. 4:29 And when the grain is ripe, he sends in the sickle ¹⁰  because the harvest has come.” ¹¹ 

[3:7]  ¹ tn Grk “is anything.”

[1:11]  ² tn The Hebrew construction employs a cognate accusative, where the nominal object (“vegetation”) derives from the verbal root employed. It stresses the abundant productivity that God created.

[1:11]  ³ sn After their kinds. The Hebrew word translated “kind” (מִין, min) indicates again that God was concerned with defining and dividing time, space, and species. The point is that creation was with order, as opposed to chaos. And what God created and distinguished with boundaries was not to be confused (see Lev 19:19 and Deut 22:9-11).

[1:11]  ⁴ tn The conjunction “and” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation to clarify the relationship of the clauses.

[104:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “causes the grass to sprout up.”

[104:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “for the service of man” (see Gen 2:5).

[104:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “to cause food to come out from the earth.”

[61:11]  ⁸ tn Or perhaps, “righteousness,” but the context seems to emphasize deliverance and restoration (see v. 10 and 62:1).

[61:11]  ⁹ tn Heb “and praise before all the nations.”

[4:29]  ¹⁰ tn The Greek word εὐθύς (euqus, often translated “immediately” or “right away”) has not been translated here. It sometimes occurs with a weakened, inferential use (BDAG 406 s.v. 2), not contributing significantly to the flow of the narrative. For further discussion, see R. J. Decker, Temporal Deixis of the Greek Verb in the Gospel of Mark with Reference to Verbal Aspect (SBG 10), 73-77.

[4:29]  ¹¹ sn Because the harvest has come. This parable is found only in Mark (cf. Matt 13:24-30) and presents a complete picture of the coming of God’s kingdom: (1) sowing; (2) growth; (3) harvest. Some understand the parable as a reference to evangelism. While this is certainly involved, it does not seem to be the central idea. In contrast to the parable of the sower which emphasizes the quality of the different soils, this parable emphasizes the power of the seed to cause growth (with the clear implication that the mysterious growth of the kingdom is accomplished by God), apart from human understanding and observation.