Luke 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 

Ge 26:12; Pr 1:20-23; Pr 8:1; Pr 20:12; Jer 13:15; Jer 25:4; Mt 11:15; Mt 13:8,23; Mt 13:9; Mr 4:8,20; Lu 8:15; Joh 1:12,13; Joh 3:3-5; Eph 2:10; Col 1:10; Re 2:7,11

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).