NOTES for Mat 13:31-35
31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: |
32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. |
33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. |
34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them: |
35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world. |
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Of course, it is not quite right to pull these two parables about the Kingdom of Heaven out of the whole set of parables. Scripture's ways of describing the Kingdom are varied. But let us imagine something like both this mustard seed and this leaven. It is something very small, yet capable of growth (other parables speak of this through their own images), growth that cannot be compared with its original size. This growth can take place both through inner change and development (seed-tree) and through influence on what surrounds it (leaven-dough), but in one way or another the original quality disappears, being transformed into something new that benefits someone else (the birds of the air, the housewife). Interesting, is it not?
Readings for 16 July 2025
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