The Parable of the Weeds

24 He put another parable before them, saying, ^w“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds¹ among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants² of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ^x‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, ^y“Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowds and went into ⁱthe house. And his disciples came to him, saying, ^j“Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is ^kthe sons of the kingdom. The weeds are ^lthe sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. ^mThe harvest is ⁿthe end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds ^oare gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at ⁿthe end of the age. 41 ^pThe Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all ^qcauses of sin and ^rall law-breakers, 42 ^sand throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place ^tthere will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then ^uthe righteous will shine like the sun ^vin the kingdom of their Father. ^wHe who has ears, let him hear.

The Rider on a White Horse

11 Then I saw ^jheaven opened, and behold, ^ka white horse! The one sitting on it is called ^lFaithful and True, and ^min righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 ⁿHis eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are ^omany diadems, and he has ^pa name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in ^qa robe dipped in¹ blood, and the name by which he is called is ^rThe Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, ^sarrayed in fine linen, white and pure, ^twere following him on white horses. 15 ^uFrom his mouth comes a sharp sword ^vwith which to strike down the nations, and ^whe will rule² them with a rod of iron. ^xHe will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh ^yhe has a name written, ^zKing of kings and Lord of lords.

The New Heaven and the New Earth

1 Then I saw ^ya new heaven and a new earth, for ^zthe first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw ^athe holy city, ^bnew Jerusalem, ^ccoming down out of heaven from God, ^dprepared ^eas a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, ^fthe dwelling place¹ of God is with man. He will ^gdwell with them, and they will be his people,² and God himself will be with them as their God.³ 4 ^hHe will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and ⁱdeath shall be no more, ^jneither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

5 And ^khe who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I ^lam making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for ^mthese words are trustworthy and true.”