Matthew 13:32

Least of all seeds. Mustard seed was smaller than any other then sowed by Palestinian farmers, far smaller than either wheat or barley seed, for example. But the bush itself, when grown, was larger than any other cultivated plant. The Jewish leaders looked with contempt upon the motley throng now intently listening to Jesus, particularly the few unlearned peasants and fishermen who, as His disciples, sat next to Him. They concluded that Jesus could not possibly be the Messiah and that the “kingdom” He proclaimed, composed of this insignificant group of followers, would never amount to anything. Jesus could have chosen no better representation of the way His “kingdom” appeared to the minds of unregenerate men than the illustration of the insignificant mustard seed.

Becometh a tree. Not in nature but in size. The Sinapis nigra, or black mustard, of Palestine (see on v. 31) commonly reaches a height of from 6 to 12 ft., with branches an inch or more thick. Here the figure of a “tree” represents the triumph of the gospel message throughout the world. The kingdom and its subjects might appear insignificant now, but, says Christ, this will not always be the case.