Parables of Jesus quiz, with every parable, its meaning and its verses
A parables of Jesus quiz with 47 questions, plus a list of 39 parables with a one-line meaning and where each appears in Matthew, Mark and Luke.
In this article
A parable is a short story or comparison from everyday life that Jesus used to teach about God and his kingdom. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke record about 40 of them, depending on how you count; John has none of the same kind. Below is a list of 39 parables, each with a one-line meaning and its references, followed by a 47-question quiz with answers and verses.
Counts vary because the line between a parable and a short saying is blurry. Is "a city that is set on an hill" a parable? Is the sheep and the goats? Most lists include between 30 and 46. We've included the ones the Gospels present as stories or extended comparisons, and noted where the meaning is given in the text itself.
Luke has the most parables found nowhere else, including the Good Samaritan and the prodigal son. Matthew gathers many into two big collections, chapters 13 and 25.
List of the parables of Jesus and their meanings
Meanings are kept close to the text. Where Jesus or the Gospel writer states the point, the reference is in the meaning column too. Other meanings follow the mainstream reading shared by most Christian traditions; some parables carry more than one layer.
| Parable | Matthew | Mark | Luke | Meaning in one line |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The sower | Matthew 13:3-23 | Mark 4:3-20 | Luke 8:5-15 | The same word of God bears fruit only in hearts that hear and keep it (Luke 8:15) |
| Lamp under a bushel | Matthew 5:14-16 | Mark 4:21-22 | Luke 8:16-17 | Light is meant to be seen: let your good works glorify the Father |
| Wise and foolish builders | Matthew 7:24-27 | none | Luke 6:47-49 | Hearing Jesus without doing what he says is building on sand |
| New cloth and new wine | Matthew 9:16-17 | Mark 2:21-22 | Luke 5:36-39 | What Jesus brings can't be stitched onto old forms |
| Wheat and tares | Matthew 13:24-30 | none | none | Good and evil grow together until the final harvest (Matthew 13:37-43) |
| Mustard seed | Matthew 13:31-32 | Mark 4:30-32 | Luke 13:18-19 | The kingdom starts tiny and grows beyond all expectation |
| Leaven | Matthew 13:33 | none | Luke 13:20-21 | The kingdom works quietly until it fills everything |
| Hidden treasure | Matthew 13:44 | none | none | The kingdom is worth giving up everything for, with joy |
| Pearl of great price | Matthew 13:45-46 | none | none | Same point: one thing is worth all you have |
| The net | Matthew 13:47-50 | none | none | A final separation of the just and the wicked is coming |
| Seed growing secretly | none | Mark 4:26-29 | none | God makes the kingdom grow in ways we don't see or control |
| Lost sheep | Matthew 18:12-14 | none | Luke 15:3-7 | God seeks the one who strays, and heaven rejoices when one repents (Luke 15:7) |
| Unmerciful servant | Matthew 18:23-35 | none | none | Those forgiven a huge debt must forgive others from the heart (Matthew 18:35) |
| Labourers in the vineyard | Matthew 20:1-16 | none | none | God's generosity isn't earned by hours worked; "the last shall be first" |
| Two sons | Matthew 21:28-32 | none | none | Doing God's will matters more than saying the right words |
| Wicked husbandmen | Matthew 21:33-46 | Mark 12:1-12 | Luke 20:9-19 | Israel's leaders rejected God's messengers and finally his Son |
| Marriage feast | Matthew 22:1-14 | none | none | The invited refused, so the king invited everyone; but guests must come clothed for it |
| Budding fig tree | Matthew 24:32-35 | Mark 13:28-31 | Luke 21:29-33 | Read the signs and know the end is near |
| Faithful and wise servant | Matthew 24:45-51 | none | Luke 12:42-48 | Be found doing your Master's work whenever he returns |
| Ten virgins | Matthew 25:1-13 | none | none | Be ready: "ye know neither the day nor the hour" (Matthew 25:13) |
| Talents | Matthew 25:14-30 | none | none | Use what God entrusts to you; fear-driven burying is unfaithfulness |
| Sheep and goats | Matthew 25:31-46 | none | none | What we do for "the least of these" we do for Christ (Matthew 25:40) |
| Watchful servants | none | Mark 13:34-37 | Luke 12:35-40 | Stay awake; the master comes at an hour you don't expect |
| Two debtors | none | none | Luke 7:41-43 | The one forgiven most loves most |
| Good Samaritan | none | none | Luke 10:30-37 | Your neighbor is anyone in need; "Go, and do thou likewise" |
| Friend at midnight | none | none | Luke 11:5-8 | Keep asking; God is far readier to give than a sleepy friend |
| Rich fool | none | none | Luke 12:16-21 | Life isn't in possessions; be "rich toward God" (Luke 12:21) |
| Barren fig tree | none | none | Luke 13:6-9 | God is patient, but the time to bear fruit is limited |
| Lowest seat at the feast | none | none | Luke 14:7-11 | "He that humbleth himself shall be exalted" (Luke 14:11) |
| Great supper | none | none | Luke 14:16-24 | Excuses shut people out; the poor and outcasts are brought in |
| Counting the cost | none | none | Luke 14:28-33 | Following Jesus means weighing the full cost first |
| Lost piece of silver | none | none | Luke 15:8-10 | God searches carefully for each lost person and rejoices when found |
| Prodigal son | none | none | Luke 15:11-32 | The Father runs to welcome the repentant, and invites the resentful in too |
| Unjust steward | none | none | Luke 16:1-13 | Use money shrewdly for eternal ends; "Ye cannot serve God and mammon" |
| Rich man and Lazarus | none | none | Luke 16:19-31 | Ignoring the poor has eternal stakes, and Scripture is warning enough |
| Unprofitable servants | none | none | Luke 17:7-10 | Obedience earns no credit with God; we've only done our duty |
| Unjust judge | none | none | Luke 18:1-8 | "Men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18:1) |
| Pharisee and the publican | none | none | Luke 18:9-14 | God justifies the humble who ask for mercy, not the self-righteous |
| Pounds | none | none | Luke 19:11-27 | Each servant must answer for how he used what the king gave him |
Whether the rich man and Lazarus is a parable is debated: it's the only one where a character is named, and some readers take it as an account rather than a story. The sheep and the goats is also sometimes classed as a prophecy with parable-like images. John's Gospel uses the word "parable" once in the KJV, for Jesus' picture of the shepherd and the sheepfold (John 10:6), but it isn't a story parable like those above.
Each linked parable has its own story page with the passage explained. In the app, those 200+ stories each end with a short quiz, so the meaning sticks.
Parables of the kingdom quiz
- In the parable of the sower, what happened to the seeds that fell by the wayside? Answer: The fowls came and devoured them (Matthew 13:4).
- According to Luke, what does the seed stand for? Answer: "The seed is the word of God" (Luke 8:11).
- What harvest did the seed on good ground produce? Answer: Some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold (Matthew 13:8).
- Who sowed tares among the wheat? Answer: An enemy, while men slept; Jesus explains the enemy is the devil (Matthew 13:25, 13:39).
- What did the householder tell his servants to do with the tares? Answer: "Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matthew 13:30).
- The mustard seed is "the least of all seeds". What does it become? Answer: The greatest among herbs, a tree where the birds lodge in its branches (Matthew 13:32).
- In how many measures of meal did the woman hide the leaven? Answer: Three (Matthew 13:33).
- What did the merchant sell everything to buy? Answer: One pearl of great price (Matthew 13:46).
- Which Gospel alone has the parable of the seed that grows "he knoweth not how"? Answer: Mark (Mark 4:26-29).
- When the disciples asked why he spoke in parables, what did Jesus say about the crowds? Answer: "Because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand" (Matthew 13:13).
Lost and found quiz (Luke 15)
- What complaint led Jesus to tell the three parables of Luke 15? Answer: The Pharisees and scribes murmured, "This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them" (Luke 15:2).
- How many sheep did the shepherd leave in the wilderness to look for the lost one? Answer: Ninety and nine (Luke 15:4).
- How many pieces of silver did the woman have before she lost one? Answer: Ten (Luke 15:8).
- What work did the younger son take in the far country? Answer: Feeding swine in a citizen's fields (Luke 15:15).
- What did he long to eat? Answer: "The husks that the swine did eat" (Luke 15:16).
- What three things did the father call for when his son came home? Answer: The best robe, a ring for his hand and shoes for his feet (Luke 15:22).
- Who was angry and would not go in to the feast? Answer: The elder son (Luke 15:25-28).
Forgiveness and grace quiz
- Which question from Peter led to the parable of the unmerciful servant? Answer: "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?" (Matthew 18:21).
- How much did the servant owe the king? Answer: Ten thousand talents (Matthew 18:24).
- How much did his fellow servant owe him? Answer: An hundred pence (Matthew 18:28).
- In the labourers in the vineyard, what was each worker paid, including those hired at the eleventh hour? Answer: Every man a penny (Matthew 20:9-10).
- What saying ends that parable? Answer: "So the last shall be first, and the first last" (Matthew 20:16).
- In the parable of the two debtors, one owed five hundred pence and the other fifty. Who loves the creditor more? Answer: The one to whom he forgave most, as Simon the Pharisee answered (Luke 7:41-43).
- How often did the Pharisee in the temple say he fasted? Answer: Twice in the week (Luke 18:12).
- What did the publican pray? Answer: "God be merciful to me a sinner" (Luke 18:13).
Neighbors and money quiz
- What question led Jesus to tell the parable of the Good Samaritan? Answer: A lawyer, "willing to justify himself", asked, "And who is my neighbour?" (Luke 10:29).
- On which road was the man attacked? Answer: Going down from Jerusalem to Jericho (Luke 10:30).
- What did the Samaritan pour into the man's wounds? Answer: Oil and wine (Luke 10:34).
- How much did he give the host of the inn? Answer: Two pence, with a promise to repay any more (Luke 10:35).
- What did the rich fool plan to do with his harvest? Answer: Pull down his barns and build greater (Luke 12:18).
- What did God say to him? Answer: "Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee" (Luke 12:20).
- Where was Lazarus the beggar carried by the angels when he died? Answer: Into Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:22).
- What did the rich man ask Abraham to send Lazarus to do? Answer: Dip the tip of his finger in water and cool his tongue (Luke 16:24).
- What line closes the teaching on the unjust steward? Answer: "Ye cannot serve God and mammon" (Luke 16:13).
Prayer and readiness quiz
- How many loaves did the man ask his friend for at midnight? Answer: Three (Luke 11:5).
- What reason does Luke give for the parable of the unjust judge? Answer: "That men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18:1).
- How many of the ten virgins were wise? Answer: Five (Matthew 25:2).
- What did the foolish virgins fail to take? Answer: Oil with their lamps (Matthew 25:3).
- How many talents did the master give each of the three servants? Answer: Five, two and one, "to every man according to his several ability" (Matthew 25:15).
- What did the servant with one talent do with it? Answer: He dug in the earth and hid it (Matthew 25:18).
- In Luke's parable of the pounds, how many servants received a pound? Answer: Ten (Luke 19:13).
- For how many years had the barren fig tree failed to bear fruit? Answer: Three (Luke 13:7).
Judgment and the kingdom quiz
- In the parable of the wicked husbandmen, whom did the lord of the vineyard send last? Answer: His one well-beloved son (Mark 12:6).
- Which Scripture did Jesus quote at the end of that parable? Answer: "The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner" (Mark 12:10).
- In the marriage feast, what did the king find one guest without? Answer: A wedding garment (Matthew 22:11-12).
- In the sheep and the goats, what does the King say about serving "the least of these my brethren"? Answer: "Ye have done it unto me" (Matthew 25:40).
- In the parable of the two sons, which one did his father's will? Answer: The first, who said "I will not" but afterward repented and went (Matthew 21:28-31).
Here's a three-question sample from the app's question bank on Luke, the Gospel with the most parables:
Quick quiz: Luke
To whom does Luke dedicate his Gospel?
Luke writes that it seemed good to him to set everything down “in order, most excellent Theophilus.” Luke 1:3
To whom does an angel announce the Savior’s birth on the very night Jesus is born in Bethlehem?
Shepherds were keeping watch over their flock by night when the angel told them: “unto you is born this day… a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:8–11
Which tree does Zacchaeus climb to see Jesus?
Being short, Zacchaeus “ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him.” Luke 19:4
There are many more questions like these in Bible Academy, each with its explanation and verse. Start free, no card needed.
Why did Jesus teach in parables?
Jesus gave two reasons, and they pull in different directions. Parables open the truth to people who want to understand, and hide it from those who don't. When the disciples asked him directly, he said:
And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mark adds that he explained everything privately to his disciples (Mark 4:34). So a parable works like a door. It draws you in with an ordinary picture (a seed, a coin, a son), then asks whether you'll actually step through. That's why so many end with a question or a command: "Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour?" (Luke 10:36).
Three habits help when you read them:
- Find the audience. Luke 15 was told to Pharisees who objected to Jesus eating with sinners (Luke 15:2). That changes how you hear the elder brother.
- Look for the main point before the details. Not every detail in a parable stands for something. The Good Samaritan's two pence don't need a hidden meaning.
- Notice the surprise. The hero is a Samaritan. The worker hired last is paid first. The tax collector goes home justified. The twist is usually the teaching.
Our guide to how to study the Bible goes further on reading a passage in context, and the parables make good Bible study topics for young adults because each one fits a single session.
How to use this quiz
Take a section at a time and read the parable behind any question you miss. For the rest of Jesus' ministry, the miracles of Jesus quiz uses the same format, and the Bible trivia questions about Jesus follow his life from birth to the ascension. The Luke quiz and Matthew quiz on this site test the full Gospels, and the Jesus Christ character page gives an overview of his life and teaching.
If you'd like to learn the parables one at a time, the app gives you each story with its passage, what it means, and a short quiz to make it stick.
Frequently asked questions
How many parables did Jesus tell?
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke record about 40 parables of Jesus, though lists range from about 30 to over 40 depending on whether short sayings like the lamp under a bushel are included. This page lists 39. Luke has the most, including many found nowhere else, such as the Good Samaritan and the prodigal son.
What is the most famous parable of Jesus?
The prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) and the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) are the best known, and both appear only in Luke. The parable of the sower is the one Jesus explained in the most detail, and it appears in Matthew, Mark and Luke (Matthew 13:3-23).
What is the shortest parable in the Bible?
The parable of the leaven is usually named the shortest, a single verse in Matthew: "The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened" (Matthew 13:33). The hidden treasure (Matthew 13:44) is also one verse, but a longer one.
Why are there no parables in the Gospel of John?
John doesn't include story parables like the sower or the prodigal son. He records long teaching discourses and "I am" sayings instead, such as "I am the good shepherd" (John 10:11). The KJV does call the sheepfold picture a "parable" (John 10:6), but it's an extended image rather than a story.
What is the purpose of a parable?
A parable teaches a truth about God through a familiar picture, so hearers can grasp it and remember it. Jesus also said parables reveal truth to those willing to understand and conceal it from those who aren't (Matthew 13:10-13). Many end with a question or command that asks the listener to respond.