“He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom
of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and
this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger
than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come
and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES.”” (Matthew 13:31–32, NASB95)
“And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or
by what parable shall we present it? “It is like a mustard seed, which, when
sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the
soil, yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants
and forms large branches; so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR can NEST UNDER ITS
SHADE.”” (Mark 4:30–32, NASB95)
“So He was saying, “What is the kingdom of God like, and to
what shall I compare it? “It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and threw
into his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and THE BIRDS OF THE AIR
NESTED IN ITS BRANCHES.”” (Luke 13:18–19, NASB95)
I’ve included all three passages where this parable is
retold for us in the Bible. Notice that all of them are consistent and not in conflict
with each other while each of them brings varying amounts of detail. The record
of Mark is the most complete, and following Mark’s retelling of this parable he
also wrote to inform us that while Jesus continued to speak in parables He also
continued to explain His parables privately to His disciples. “With many such
parables He was speaking the word to them, so far as they were able to hear it;
and He did not speak to them without a parable; but He was explaining
everything privately to His own disciples.” (Mark 4:33–34, NASB95)
For those of us who would have liked to continue reading the
rest of Jesus’ explanations we are left to study the Scriptures and looking to
what else God’s Spirit has disclosed to us through His inspired Word. But I
think the apostle John explained for us maybe why each parable’s explanation
was not given when he wrote in the last words of His gospel account, “And there
are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in
detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that
would be written.” (John 21:25, NASB95)
First of all, we read that the kingdom of God is like a
mustard seed. Jesus had just spoken two parables featuring seeds. The first had
to do the ground in which the seed is planted, where only one soil was found to
take root, grow, and produce fruit. The next two had to do with the types of
seed. In the parable of the wheat and the tares we find two seeds planted side
by side—one good and one bad—which were going to be separated at the time of
harvest. This we know represents both those who are saved and inherit the
kingdom of God and those who are lost and suffer eternal separation in the lake
of fire prepared for the devil and his angels. In this third parable we have another
seed, the mustard seed, which is of no significance when compared in size to
other seeds. In the notes of the ESV Study Bible we read this about the mustard
seed and its ultimate size at maturity, “It was the smallest of all
agricultural seeds in Palestine. The mustard “tree” grows to a height of 8 to
12 feet.” While it is actually a shrub and not a tree, its size clearly would
cause it to dwarf much of what it surrounds such that birds could rest in its
shade and nest in its branches. What is most significant in the parable is the
contrast between its beginning and its end.
In sharing this parable Jesus also quoted Old Testament
Scripture which some of His hearers would likely know whether they made the
current connection or not. In Ezekiel we read of the downfall of King Zedekiah
and the nation of Judah. The Lord God described what He was going to do for His
people with these words, “Thus says the Lord GOD, “I will also take a sprig
from the lofty top of the cedar and set it out; I will pluck from the topmost
of its young twigs a tender one and I will plant it on a high and lofty
mountain. On the high mountain of Israel I will plant it, that it may bring
forth boughs and bear fruit and become a stately cedar. And birds of every kind
will nest under it; they will nest in the shade of its branches. All the trees
of the field will know that I am the LORD; I bring down the high tree, exalt
the low tree, dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I am the
LORD; I have spoken, and I will perform it.”” (Ezekiel 17:22–24, NASB95) In
these words we read that God will take a sprig—a remnant—of the lofty cedar
(Israel) and that He would plant that sprig on the high mountain of Israel and
that the tree would grow strong and mighty such that all of the trees of the
field would know that He is the Lord. It is in this tree that we read both of
the birds finding shade (Mark’s account) and nesting (Matthew’s account).
We recently looked at the end times when Christ returns to
deliver His people Israel and to establish an earthly reign of 1,000 years. It
is at His return that we read the mountains will literally be thrown down and
that Jerusalem will be raised up. It is from there that Jesus will rule during
the Millennium. It is under His rule that all of the promises of Scripture
concerning preserving a remnant of Israel and returning all of Israel to God
will be fulfilled. It is in these promises that mankind will physically see the
King of kings sitting on a throne before His people, and it is following this period
when all of those who are saved will enter into the new heaven and the new
earth where man will live in the presence of God for all eternity.
And as we look at all of the prophecies concerning our
coming Savior we find our God bringing Him through a single people group among
all the possible nations, through a singular lineage among all of the lineages,
born to an insignificant young virgin among all of the women in a small and
seemingly insignificant town. Our God works all of this in His incredibly amazing
way. I was reminded of this again as I thought about a Moabite widow who would
become the great-grandmother of King David and mentioned in the book of Matthew
in the lineage of Jesus. Consider the blessing the people gave Boaz when he
came before the elders to redeem this destitute widow and take her as his wife
along with caring for her mother-in-law, “All the people who were in the court,
and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is
coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of
Israel; and may you achieve wealth in Ephrathah and become famous in Bethlehem.
“Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah,
through the offspring which the LORD will give you by this young woman.”” (Ruth
4:11–12, NASB95)
Truly our Lord has come as the fulfillment of the seed that
was planted in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob of the tribe of Jesse and the lineage
of King David. And truly through this seed of Abraham, born by the women spoken
of in Ruth, all of the nations will be blessed and those who are saved will
find their eternal home in His presence.
“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ
Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with
God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a
bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance
as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even
death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on
Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE
WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that
every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father.” (Philippians 2:5–11, NASB95)
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things
for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning
star.” (Revelation 22:16, NASB95)
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