“And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.”
But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away — the rootlessness is the rocky-ground person's defining characteristic, and it only becomes visible under pressure. The shallow response looks exactly like a deep response until the pressure test reveals the difference. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word — the persecution is specifically because of the word, not general life difficulty. The word itself is the reason for the persecution: those who identify with the kingdom face the same opposition that Jesus faces. The shallow-rooted fall away quickly when this cost becomes apparent.
Church Fathers on Mark 4:17
Although the Lord appears in the transactions mentioned above to neglect His mother, nevertheless He honours her; since on her account He goes forth about the borders of the sea.
For if we look into the Gospel of Matthew, it appears that this same teaching of the Lord at the sea, was delivered on the same day as the former. For after the conclusion of the first sermon, Matthew immediately subjoins, saying, 'The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea-side.'
But He began to teach at the sea, that the place of His teaching might point out the bitter feelings and instability of His hearers.
Read all 22 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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