Luke 8:5

8:5 “A sower went out to sow ¹  his seed. ²  And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled on, and the wild birds ³  devoured it.

Luke 12:1

Fear God, Not People

12:1 Meanwhile, ⁴  when many thousands of the crowd had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus ⁵  began to speak first to his disciples, “Be on your guard against ⁶  the yeast of the Pharisees, ⁷  which is hypocrisy. ⁸ 

[8:5]  ¹ sn A sower went out to sow. The background for this well-known parable is a field through which a well-worn path runs in the Palestinian countryside. Sowing would occur in late fall or early winter (October to December) in the rainy season, looking for sprouting in April or May and a June harvest. The use of seed as a figure for God’s giving life has OT roots: Isa 55:10-11.

[8:5]  ² tn Luke’s version of the parable, like Mark’s (cf. Mark 4:1-9) uses the collective singular to refer to the seed throughout, so singular pronouns have been used consistently throughout this parable in the English translation. However, the parallel account in Matt 13:1-9 begins with plural pronouns in v. 4 but then switches to the collective singular in v. 5 ff.

[8:5]  ³ tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).

[12:1]  ⁴ tn The phrase ἐν οἷς (en Jois) can be translated “meanwhile.”

[12:1]  ⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:1]  ⁶ tn According to L&N 27.59, “to pay attention to, to keep on the lookout for, to be alert for, to be on your guard against.” This is another Lukan present imperative calling for constant vigilance.

[12:1]  ⁷ sn See the note on Pharisees in 5:17.

[12:1]  ⁸ sn The pursuit of popularity can lead to hypocrisy, if one is not careful.