18 Then
He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what
shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden;
and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its
branches.”
Commentary
Having healed and released the bowed over woman who had been bound by Satan for eighteen years, and thus with crowds rejoicing and jubilation at this, and all over His wondrous and mighty works which was demonstrating the Preeminence and Power of the Kingdom of God over Satan and all of his realm, The Lord Jesus Christ having manifested the majesty and mercy of God now asks the crowds a rhetorical question, so that He might by way of parable reveal to us who believe what will first be, before it is fully established on earth amongst men, and so Jesus asks, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”
First then is Jesus use of the mustard seed (the smallest of all seeds that they would’ve been commonly aware of) to describe the Kingdom of God’s humble beginnings on earth through Him and His twelve disciples. Now though the Kingdom of God (think Christianity) starts off very small on earth, yet it will experience erroneous and unimageable growth. And so, Jesus says though it starts of as the smallest of seeds, yet it metaphorically becomes a large tree, and the “birds of the air” (think unclean birds of prey) come and nest in its branches, and so they themselves are not a part of the tree, (for they haven’t been born of His seed, that is born again by His Spirit through faith in His Word) rather they themselves are only “nesting” in its branches. Therefore, what Jesus is describing in His parable is not only the massive growth that Christianity (i.e. the Kingdom of God) would experience on earth, but also the corruption that would come to it, from those who (though abiding in its branches) do not belong to it.
Commentary
Having healed and released the bowed over woman who had been bound by Satan for eighteen years, and thus with crowds rejoicing and jubilation at this, and all over His wondrous and mighty works which was demonstrating the Preeminence and Power of the Kingdom of God over Satan and all of his realm, The Lord Jesus Christ having manifested the majesty and mercy of God now asks the crowds a rhetorical question, so that He might by way of parable reveal to us who believe what will first be, before it is fully established on earth amongst men, and so Jesus asks, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”
First then is Jesus use of the mustard seed (the smallest of all seeds that they would’ve been commonly aware of) to describe the Kingdom of God’s humble beginnings on earth through Him and His twelve disciples. Now though the Kingdom of God (think Christianity) starts off very small on earth, yet it will experience erroneous and unimageable growth. And so, Jesus says though it starts of as the smallest of seeds, yet it metaphorically becomes a large tree, and the “birds of the air” (think unclean birds of prey) come and nest in its branches, and so they themselves are not a part of the tree, (for they haven’t been born of His seed, that is born again by His Spirit through faith in His Word) rather they themselves are only “nesting” in its branches. Therefore, what Jesus is describing in His parable is not only the massive growth that Christianity (i.e. the Kingdom of God) would experience on earth, but also the corruption that would come to it, from those who (though abiding in its branches) do not belong to it.
Scripture Quotations
New King James Version (1982): Thomas Nelson
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