THE PRINCIPAL PARABLES OF JESUS LIST
The current generation, The Stubborn Children, Matt. 11, 16-19; Luke 7, 31-35. NAB.
The Two Debtors, Luke 7, 41-42. NAB
Fig tree, A Sign of Summer, Matt. 24: 32- 35; Mark 13: 28-29; Luke 21: 29-31. NAB
The Unproductive Fig Tree, Luke 13, 6-9. NAB
The unjust Judge, Luke 18, 1-8. NAB
A Divided Kingdom, Matt. 12, 25-27; Mark 3, 23-26; Luke 11, 17-20. NAB
Laborers in the Vineyard, Matt. 20, 1-16. NAB
The Kingdom is like Leaven, Matt. 13, 33. NAB
The Banquet or Wedding Feast, Matt. 22, 1-10; Luke 14, 16-24. NAB
Mustard Seed, Matt. 13, 31-32; Mark 4, 30-32; Luke 13, 18-19. NAB
The Kingdom is like a Net, Matt. 13, 47-50. NAB
Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Publican), Luke 18, 9-14. NAB
The Gold Pieces, (parable of the talents) Luke 19, 12-27 (NIV) (or NIV). NAB
Rich Man and Lazarus, Luke 16, 19-31. NAB
The Foolish Rich Man, Luke 12, 16-21. NAB
How often must we forgive, and the Danger of riches, Matt, 18, 21-35. NAB
The Wedding Garment, Matt. 22, 11-14. NAB
The Good Samaritan, and who is my neighbor, Luke 10, 29-37. NAB
The Last Seat, humility, Luke 14, 7-14. NAB
The Growing Seed, Mark 4, 26-29. NAB
The Faithful and the Wicked Servant, Matt. 24, 45-51; Luke 12, 42-48. NAB
The Servant's duty, Luke 17, 7-10. NAB
The Lost Sheep, Matt. 18, 12-14; Luke 15, 3-7. NAB
The Good Shepherd, John 10, 1-21. NAB
The Prodigal Son, Luke 15, 11-32. NAB
The Two Sons, Matt. 21, 28-32. NAB
The Sower, Matt. 13, 3-23; Mark 4, 3-20, Luke 8, 4-15. NAB
The Unjust Steward, Luke 16, 1-13. NAB
The Talents, Matt. 25, 14-30. NAB
Wise and Foolish Virgins, Matt. 25:1-13. NAB. Comment.
Treasure Matt. 13:44 and the Pearl, Matt. 13, 45-46. NAB
Exhortation to Vigilance, Matt. 24, 43-44, Luke 12, 39-40 . NAB
The Vinedressers, Matt. 21, 33-46; Mark 12, 1-12; Luke 20, 9-19. NAB
The True Vine, John 15, 1-17. NAB
The Need of Watchfulness, Mark 13, 34-37; Luke 12, 36-38. NAB
The Weeds and Wheat, Matt. 13, 24-30. NAB
lit. denotes "a placing beside" (akin to paraballo, "to throw" or "lay beside, to compare"). It signifies "a placing of one thing beside another" with a view to comparison (some consider that the thought of comparison is not necessarily contained in the word). In the NT it is found outside the Gospels, only in Heb. 9:9; 11:19. It is generally used of a somewhat lengthy utterance or narrative drawn from nature or human circumstances, the object of which is to set forth a spiritual lesson, e.g., those in Matt. 13 and Synoptic parallels; sometimes it is used of a short saying or proverb, e.g., Matt. 15:15; Mark 3:23; Mark 7:17; Luke 4:23; Luke 5:36; Luke 6:39. It is the lesson that is of value; the hearer must catch the analogy if he is to be instructed (this is true also of a proverb). Such a narrative or saying, dealing with earthly things with a spiritual meaning, is distinct from a fable, which attributes to things what does not belong to them in nature.
Christ's "parables" most frequently convey truths connected with the subject of the kingdom of God. His withholding the meaning from His hearers as He did from the multitudes, Matt. 13:34, was a Divine judgment upon the unworthy.
Two dangers are to be avoided in seeking to interpret the "parables" in Scripture, that of ignoring the important features, and that of trying to make all the details mean something.
Eatons's Bible Dictionary (1897):
Parable - (Gr. parabole), a placing beside; a comparison; equivalent to the Heb. mashal, a similitude. In the Old Testament this is used to denote (1) a proverb (1 Sam. 10:12; 24:13; 2 Chr. 7:20), (2) a prophetic utterance (Num. 23:7; Ezek. 20:49), (3) an enigmatic saying (Ps. 78:2; Prov. 1:6). In the New Testament, (1) a proverb (Mark 7:17; Luke 4:23), (2) a typical emblem (Heb. 9:9; 11:19), (3) a similitude or allegory (Matt. 15:15; 24:32; Mark 3:23; Luke 5:36; 14:7); (4) ordinarily, in a more restricted sense, a comparison of earthly with heavenly things, "an earthly story with a heavenly meaning," as in the parables of our Lord.
Instruction by parables has been in use from the earliest times. A large portion of our Lord's public teaching consisted of parables. He himself explains his reasons for this in his answer to the inquiry of the disciples, "Why speakest thou to them in parables?" (Matt. 13:13-15; Mark 4:11, 12; Luke 8:9, 10). He followed in so doing the rule of the divine procedures, as recorded in Matt. 13:13.
The parables uttered by our Lord are all recorded in the synoptical (i.e., the first three) Gospels. The fourth Gospel contains no parable properly so called, although the illustration of the good shepherd (John 10:1-16) has all the essential features of a parable.
(Note that both of these definitions come from the Protestant tradition and are old and out of copyright.)