Matius 13:24

The Parable of the Weeds

13:24 He presented them with another parable: ¹  “The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in his field.

Matius 13:31

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

13:31 He gave ²  them another parable: ³  “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed ⁴  that a man took and sowed in his field.

Matius 13:33

The Parable of the Yeast

13:33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with ⁵  three measures ⁶  of flour until all the dough had risen.” ⁷ 

Matius 13:44-45

Parables on the Kingdom of Heaven

13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field, that a person found and hid. Then because of joy he went and sold all that he had and bought that field.

13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls.

Matius 13:47

13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea that caught all kinds of fish.

Matius 13:52

13:52 Then he said to them, “Therefore every expert in the law ⁸  who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his treasure what is new and old.”

[13:24]  ¹ tn Grk “He set before them another parable, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.

[13:31]  ² tn Grk “put before.”

[13:31]  ³ tn Grk “He set before them another parable, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.

[13:31]  ⁴ sn The mustard seed was noted for its tiny size.

[13:33]  ⁵ tn Grk “hid in.”

[13:33]  ⁶ sn This measure was a saton, the Greek name for the Hebrew term “seah.” Three of these was a very large quantity of flour, since a saton is a little over 16 pounds (7 kg) of dry measure (or 13.13 liters). So this was over 47 lbs (21 kg) of flour total, enough to feed over a hundred people.

[13:33]  ⁷ tn Grk “it was all leavened.”

[13:33]  sn The parable of the yeast and the dough teaches that the kingdom of God will start small but eventually grow to permeate everything. Jesus’ point was not to be deceived by its seemingly small start, the same point made in the parable of the mustard seed, which preceded this one.

[13:52]  ⁸ tn Or “every scribe.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4. It is possible that the term translated “expert in the law” (traditionally, “scribe”) here is a self-description used by the author, Matthew, to represent his role in conveying the traditions about Jesus to his intended audience. See David E. Orton, The Understanding Scribe [JSNTSup].