The “sower” explained.—3. The seed among thorns

Of teaching by parables. The Sower explained.

(The Gospel History, Section 50)

And he that was sown among the thorns, this is he that heareth the word: and the cares of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, and the pleasures of this life choke the word, and he bringeth no fruit to perfection.

The “sower” explained.—3. The seed among thorns

(The Saviour of the World, Vol III Book II Poem XIV)

This other man, he hath a heart
In which or wife or child hath part;
Neighbour or friend or public weal
Bears witness that this man can feel!

He hears the Word, and, lo, a shoot—
The love of God—takes deepest root!
He thinks upon the Father’s grace,
And tender tears bedew his face;

“Ah, make me worthy, Lord,” he prays,
“To glorify Thy love with praise!”
So sprouts the seed, the roots strike deep—
Sure he will his fair promise keep?

Alas, he hath a hundred cares
Infesting e’en his secret prayers;
His wife—how make her worthy place,—
His child—how forward in life’s race?—

His friends he makes his kind concern,
And for the common weal doth burn;
Riches and place, why, these he needs
To give due scope for his good deeds:—

Well-meaning, he, but every hour
Spent in pursuit of wealth and power—
How shall that seed to yield be brought,
Whose cult compels men’s time and thought?

Anxieties and pleasures both
For God’s sweet service make him loth:
With loving heart and willing mind,
Yet fails he to yield fruit in kind!

St. Matthew xiii. 22.
St. Mark iv. 18, 19.
St. Luke viii. 14.