10-Minute Catholic Bible Study

Sunday, June 13, 2027 · Year B

Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

It springs up and grows, he knows not how

The Sower, by Jean-François Millet
The Sower, Jean-François Millet, 1850

Ezekiel sees God plant a tender shoot on a high mountain that becomes a majestic cedar. Jesus compares the kingdom of God to seed that grows while the farmer sleeps, and to a mustard seed, the smallest of seeds, that becomes the largest of plants.

Mass Readings

  • First Reading Ezekiel 17:22-24
  • Responsorial Psalm Psalm 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16
  • Second Reading 2 Corinthians 5:6-10
  • Gospel Mark 4:26-34

Open the Mass Readings on USCCB.org →

First Reading Ezekiel 17:22-24

The Lord takes a tender shoot from the top of the cedar and plants it on a high mountain. It becomes a majestic cedar where birds of every kind dwell. The Lord brings low the high tree and lifts high the lowly tree.

Psalm Psalm 92

Lord, it is good to give thanks to You.

Second Reading 2 Corinthians 5:6-10

We walk by faith, not by sight. Whether at home in the body or away, we aspire to please the Lord, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

Gospel Mark 4:26-34

The kingdom of God is like seed scattered on the ground that sprouts and grows while the farmer sleeps, until the harvest. It is like a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, which grows into the largest of plants. Jesus speaks in parables and explains everything to His disciples privately.

Step Into the Story

Ezekiel, a priest among the exiles in Babylon, told a riddle about a great eagle that snapped off the top of a cedar and carried it away. The eagle was Nebuchadnezzar; the treetop was young King Jehoiachin, hauled to Babylon in 597 B.C. Today’s reading turns the riddle around: God Himself will plant a tender shoot of David’s line on a high mountain, where birds of every kind will nest. In Corinth’s forum, around 51 A.D., the proconsul Gallio threw Paul’s case out of court.

  1. 597 B.C.Jehoiachin taken to Babylon
  2. 4 B.C.Antipas rules Galilee
  3. 14 A.D.Tiberius becomes emperor
  4. c. 20 A.D.Antipas founds Tiberias
  5. This week’s scene: c. 28 A.D.Parables from a boat

Sit on the shore of the Sea of Galilee in about 28 A.D., by most reckonings. The crowd is so large that Jesus has climbed into a boat and pushed off a little, and He teaches from the water while the people sit along the beach. Hear His voice carry across the water. Behind you the slopes are cut into small fields, stony and hand-tilled, and every listener here has sown seed in ground like that.

Let your eyes rest on a mustard plant at the field’s edge. The seed was proverbial for smallness, yet black mustard by this lake can shoot up eight or ten feet in a season, big enough for birds to shelter in its shade. Settle into the sand with the farmers and fishermen. Watch His face over the water as He begins: “To what shall we compare the kingdom of God?”

Encounter the Lord

Picture a Galilean farmer at the end of a long day. He has scattered his seed and gone to bed. While he sleeps, under the soil, the seed is splitting open and sending down roots. He does nothing, yet it grows.

God’s work in you often looks like that. You pray, receive the sacraments, try to love, and see little change. But the kingdom grows quietly, by God’s power, not yours. Your part is to sow faithfully and to let the Word take root. Paul says we walk by faith, not by sight. The mustard seed reminds you that God loves to begin with small things: a short prayer, a small act of kindness, a little faith.

This week, read the Sunday Gospel again at home and ask the Lord one simple question: “What are You saying to me?”

Know Your Faith

Catechism
YOUCAT
  • 89·to whom the kingdom of God is promised
  • 16·the right way to read the Bible
  • 470·what prompts a person to pray

The Kingdom of God

Everyone is called to enter the kingdom. To enter it, one must first accept Jesus’ word (CCC 543). The word of the Lord is compared to a seed sown in a field; those who hear it with faith have received the kingdom (CCC 543).

Small Beginnings

Jesus’ invitation to enter His kingdom comes in the form of parables. Through them He invites people to the feast of the kingdom, but also asks for a radical choice (CCC 546).

The Word Takes Root

The Church encourages all the faithful to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ by frequent reading of the Scriptures, accompanied by prayer (CCC 2653). The Word of God is a source of prayer (CCC 2654).

Walking by Faith

We walk by faith, not by sight, and faith is already the beginning of eternal life (CCC 163-164). Each of us will appear before Christ to give an account of our life (CCC 1021).

Key Takeaways

  • Scripture
  • Doctrine
  • Sacraments
  • Christian Life
  1. Doctrine: The kingdom of God grows by God’s power, often quietly and unseen.
  2. Doctrine: God often begins great things with small beginnings.
  3. Scripture: We receive the kingdom by accepting Jesus’ word with faith.
  4. Christian Life: Reading Scripture with prayer helps the word take root in us.

Test Your Knowledge

True or false? Tap your answer.

  1. Ezekiel sees God plant a tender shoot that becomes a majestic cedar.

    True.

  2. In the parable, the farmer stays awake and makes the seed grow by his own effort.

    False: the seed grows while he sleeps, he knows not how.

  3. Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a mustard seed.

    True.

  4. The Catechism teaches that one must first accept Jesus’ word to enter the kingdom.

    True.

  5. Paul writes, “We walk by sight, not by faith.”

    False: we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).

  6. Jesus explained His parables to His disciples privately.

    True.

  7. The Church recommends that prayer accompany the reading of Scripture.

    True.

  8. Ezekiel prophesied to the Jewish exiles in Babylon.

    True.

  9. Parables were meant only to entertain the crowds.

    False: they invite people into the kingdom and demand a choice, CCC 546.

  10. Paul says we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.

    True.

Answers: 1 T · 2 F (the seed grows while he sleeps, he knows not how) · 3 T · 4 T · 5 F (we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:7)) · 6 T · 7 T · 8 T · 9 F (they invite people into the kingdom and demand a choice, CCC 546) · 10 T

Journal Prompts

  1. Where have I seen God’s work grow in my life without my noticing?

  2. What small seed of faith or love could I plant this week?

  3. How often do I read Scripture? How do I listen to God when I do?

  4. Where am I impatient with God’s timing?

Talk to God

Lord Jesus, You sow the seed of Your kingdom in my heart. Give me patience to let it grow. Help me hear Your word and pray with it, trusting that You are at work even when I cannot see. Amen.