With patience - Rather, with perseverance. The Greek word ὑπομονη, which our translators render patience, properly signifies here, and in Romans 2:7, perseverance. The good ground, because it is good, strong and vigorous, continues to bear: bad or poor ground cannot produce a good crop, and besides it is very soon exhausted. The persons called the good ground in the text are filled with the power and influence of God, and therefore continue to bring forth fruit; i.e. they persevere in righteousness. From this we may learn that the perseverance of the saints, as it is termed, necessarily implies that they continue to bring forth fruit to the glory of God. Those who are not fruitful are not in a state of perseverance.

But that on the good ground are they,.... The seed that fell on good ground design such hearers,

which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it: who hear with an honest and good intention, and faithfully keep it, and hold it fast:

and bring forth fruit with patience; with great constancy, suffering much for the sake of it; and the more they suffer, the more fruitful they are. See this explanation of the parable more largely insisted on in the following notes. See Gill on Matthew 13:19, Matthew 13:20, Matthew 13:21, Matthew 13:22, Matthew 13:23

These are they which (οὗτοί εἰσιν οἵτινες)

Which denotes them as belonging to a class. Hence Rev., rightly, such as.

Honest and good heart

Peculiar to Luke. Honest; lit., fair, noble. Honest, not in the popular sense, but in the sense of the Latin honestus ; noble, virtuous, worthy.

Keep (κατέχουσιν)

Much better Rev., hold it fast, giving the force of the compound verb.

With patience

Or in patience. Peculiar to Luke. In contrast with fall away, Luke 8:13.

But that on the good ground are they, which in an {d} honest and good heart, having heard the word, {e} keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

(d) Who seek not only to seem to be such, but are indeed so: so that this word honest refers to the outward life, and the word good refers to the good gifts of the mind.

(e) With much difficulty, for the devil and the flesh fight against the Spirit of God, who is a new guest.

8:15 Who - keep it - Not like the highway side: And bring forth fruit - Not like the thorny ground: With perseverance - Not like the stony.

8:4-21 There are many very needful and excellent rules and cautions for hearing the word, in the parable of the sower, and the application of it. Happy are we, and for ever indebted to free grace, if the same thing that is a parable to others, with which they are only amused, is a plain truth to us, by which we are taught and governed. We ought to take heed of the things that will hinder our profiting by the word we hear; to take heed lest we hear carelessly and slightly, lest we entertain prejudices against the word we hear; and to take heed to our spirits after we have heard the word, lest we lose what we have gained. The gifts we have, will be continued to us or not, as we use them for the glory of God, and the good of our brethren. Nor is it enough not to hold the truth in unrighteousness; we should desire to hold forth the word of life, and to shine, giving light to all around. Great encouragement is given to those who prove themselves faithful hearers of the word, by being doers of the work. Christ owns them as his relations.