“And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.”
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain — the thorny ground is distinguishable from the path and the rocky ground in that the seed actually grows here — it is not immediately removed or quickly scorched. The thorn plants grow up alongside the grain, competing for light, water, and nutrients, and ultimately overwhelming the grain's productive capacity. The grain does not die but also does not bear — it exists in a compromised, fruitless state. Verse 19 interprets: the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. The thorns are not hostile oppositions but the ordinary concerns of life that crowd out the kingdom.
Church Fathers on Mark 4:7
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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