Luke 8:8

8:8 But ¹  other seed fell on good soil and grew, ²  and it produced a hundred times as much grain.” ³  As he said this, ⁴  he called out, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” ⁵ 

Luke 8:15

8:15 But as for the seed that landed on good soil, these are the ones who, after hearing ⁶  the word, cling to it ⁷  with an honest and good ⁸  heart, and bear fruit with steadfast endurance. ⁹ 

Luke 14:35

14:35 It is of no value ¹⁰  for the soil or for the manure pile; it is to be thrown out. ¹¹  The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” ¹² 

Luke 13:7

13:7 So ¹³  he said to the worker who tended the vineyard, ‘For ¹⁴  three years ¹⁵  now, I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and each time I inspect it ¹⁶  I find none. Cut ¹⁷  it down! Why ¹⁸  should it continue to deplete ¹⁹  the soil?’

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¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in the final stage of the parable.

² tn Grk “when it grew, after it grew.”

³ sn Unlike the parallel accounts in Matt 13:8 and Mark 4:8, there is no distinction in yield in this version of the parable.

⁴ tn Grk “said these things.”

⁵ tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; Luke 14:35).

⁶ tn The aorist participle ἀκούσαντες (akousante") has been taken temporally, reflecting action antecedent (prior to) that of the main verb.

⁷ sn There is a tenacity that is a part of spiritual fruitfulness.

⁸ sn In an ancient context, the qualifier good described the ethical person who possessed integrity. Here it is integrity concerning God’s revelation through Jesus.

⁹ sn Given the pressures noted in the previous soils, bearing fruit takes time (steadfast endurance), just as it does for the farmer. See Jas 1:2-4.

¹⁰ tn Or “It is not useful” (L&N 65.32).

¹¹ tn Grk “they throw it out.” The third person plural with unspecified subject is a circumlocution for the passive here.

¹² tn The translation “had better listen!” captures the force of the third person imperative more effectively than the traditional “let him hear,” which sounds more like a permissive than an imperative to the modern English reader. This was Jesus’ common expression to listen and heed carefully (cf. Matt 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; Luke 8:8).

¹³ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the man’s response as a result of the lack of figs in the preceding clause.

¹⁴ tn Grk “Behold, for.”

¹⁵ sn The elapsed time could be six years total since planting, since often a fig was given three years before one even started to look for fruit. The point in any case is that enough time had been given to expect fruit.

¹⁶ tn The phrase “each time I inspect it” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied to indicate the customary nature of the man’s search for fruit.

¹⁷ tc ‡ Several witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ A L Θ Ψ 070 ˹³ 33 579 892 al lat co) have “therefore” (οὖν, oun) here. This conjunction has the effect of strengthening the logical connection with the preceding statement but also of reducing the rhetorical power and urgency of the imperative. In light of the slightly greater internal probability of adding a conjunction to an otherwise asyndetic sentence, as well as significant external support for the omission (א B D W ˹ Ï), the shorter reading appears to be more likely as the original wording here. NA²⁷ puts the conjunction in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

¹⁸ tn Grk “Why indeed.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

¹⁹ sn Such fig trees would deplete the soil, robbing it of nutrients needed by other trees and plants.