“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 not 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 including 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 and earthly reign of 1,000 years. It
is during 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 would
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 are 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 by
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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