Parables

Passages on this topic

From Nave’s Topical Bible (1896), a historical reference index. The groupings are Nave’s; the verses are shown in the text used across this site.

Of the trees

• Judges 9:8–15 One day the trees set out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ But the olive tree replied, ‘Should I stop giving my oil that honors both God and man, to hold sway over the trees?’ Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come and reign over us.’ But the fig tr…

Of the lamb

• 2 Samuel 12:1–6 Then the LORD sent Nathan to David, and when he arrived, he said, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a great number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him…

Of the woman of Tekoa

• 2 Samuel 14:5–12 “What troubles you?” the king asked her. “Indeed,” she said, “I am a widow, for my husband is dead. And your maidservant had two sons who were fighting in the field with no one to separate them, and one struck the other and killed him. Now the whole clan has risen up against your maidservant and sa…

Of the garment which was torn in pieces

• 1 Kings 11:30–32 And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces, and said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and I will give you ten tribes. But one tribe will…

Of the prisoner of war

• 1 Kings 20:39–41 As the king passed by, he cried out to the king: “Your servant had marched out into the middle of the battle, when suddenly a man came over with a captive and told me, ‘Guard this man! If he goes missing for any reason, your life will be exchanged for his life, or you will weigh out a talent of sil…

Of the thistle and cedar

• 2 Kings 14:9 But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.

Of a vine of Egypt

• Psalm 80:8–16 You uprooted a vine from Egypt; You drove out the nations and transplanted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered by its shade, and the mighty cedars with its branches. It sent out its branches to the Sea, and its shoots toward the River.…

Of the vineyard

• Isaiah 5:1–7 I will sing for my beloved a song of his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. He dug it up and cleared the stones and planted the finest vines. He built a watchtower in the middle and dug out a winepress as well. He waited for the vineyard to yield good grapes, but the fruit…
• Isaiah 27:2–3 In that day: “Sing about a fruitful vineyard. I, the LORD, am its keeper; I water it continually. I guard it night and day so no one can disturb it;

Of the husbandman

• Isaiah 28:23–29 Listen and hear my voice. Pay attention and hear what I say. Does the plowman plow for planting every day? Does he continuously loosen and harrow the soil? When he has leveled its surface, does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin? He plants wheat in rows and barley in plots, and rye within its bor…

Of the skins filled with wine

• Jeremiah 13:12–14 Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’ And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’ then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD says: ‘I am going to fill…

Of the vine

• Ezekiel 15 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any other branch among the trees in the forest? Can wood be taken from it to make something useful? Or can one make from it a peg on which to hang utensils? No, it is cast into the fire for fuel. The fi… (whole chapter)
• Ezekiel 17:5–10 He took some of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil; he placed it by abundant waters and set it out like a willow. It sprouted and became a spreading vine, low in height, with branches turned toward him; yet its roots remained where it stood. So it became a vine and yielded branches…
• Ezekiel 19:10–14 Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard, planted by the water; it was fruitful and full of branches because of the abundant waters. It had strong branches, fit for a ruler’s scepter. It towered high above the thick branches, conspicuous for its height and for its dense foliage. But it was upro…

Of the two eagles

• Ezekiel 17 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, pose a riddle; speak a parable to the house of Israel and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers of many colors, came to Lebanon and took away the top of the cedar. H… (whole chapter)

Of lions' cubs

• Ezekiel 19:1–9 “As for you, take up a lament for the princes of Israel and say: ‘What was your mother? A lioness among the lions! She lay down among the young lions; she reared her cubs. She brought up one of her cubs, and he became a young lion. After learning to tear his prey, he devoured men. When the nations…

Of Aholah and Aholibah

• Ezekiel 23 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother, and they played in Egypt, prostituting themselves from their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin bosoms caressed. The older was named Oholah, and her sister was name… (whole chapter)

The boiling pot

• Ezekiel 24:3–5 Now speak a parable to this rebellious house and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Put the pot on the fire; put it on and pour in the water. Put in the pieces of meat, every good piece— thigh and shoulder — fill it with choice bones. Take the choicest of the flock and pile the fuel be…

The gourd

• Jonah 4:10–11 But the LORD said, “You cared about the plant, which you neither tended nor made grow. It sprang up in a night and perished in a night. So should I not care about the great city of Nineveh, which has more than 120,000 people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well?”

The sheet lowered down from the sky (in Peter's vision)

• Acts 10:10–16 He became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven open and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth, as well as birds of t…

The two covenants

• Galatians 4:22–31 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born through the promise. These things serve as illustrations, for the women represent two covenants. On…

The mercenary soldier

• 2 Timothy 2:3–4 Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. A soldier refrains from entangling himself in civilian affairs, in order to please the one who enlisted him.

The farmer

• 2 Timothy 2:6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to partake of the crops.

Furnished house

• 2 Timothy 2:20–21 A large house contains not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay. Some indeed are for honorable use, but others are for common use. So if anyone cleanses himself of what is unfit, he will be a vessel for honor: sanctified, useful to the Master, and prepared for every good work.

The athlete

• 2 Timothy 2:5 Likewise, a competitor does not receive the crown unless he competes according to the rules.

The mirror

• James 1:23–25 For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror, and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom, and continues to do so — not being a forgetful h…

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