TEXT: TWO PARABLES: The Kingdom of God: (i) seed; (ii) grain of mustard seed
Parable of Seed
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, 27 and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
Parable of Mustard Seed
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
Parables
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.
EXPLANATION
Introduction
This Gospel has two parables taken from a chapter containing three parables about sowing seed, two of which, today’s Gospel Reading, refer to the growth that leads to the kingdom of God. The three may be described as the sowing, the patient waiting and the end–time.
The first of these two parables is proper to Mark’s Gospel.
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, 27 and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
“The kingdom of God” — Mark gave us the first recorded words of Jesus as he began his public ministry: “The time has come and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and believe the Good News” (Mk. 1: 14–15). This is the essential content of his mission. Later Jesus will say (Mk 4: 11) that the kingdom of God is a secret given to the Twelve, together with the others who formed his company. Today’s Gospel illustrates two aspects of this secret.
“if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, should sleep and rise night and day” — This parable is about an ordinary human being like ourselves. He lives a normal Jewish day when night-time began at 6.00 p.m. on one day to 6.00 p.m. the following day in the Western way of reckoning the twenty–four hour day. The sower goes about his rest and daily chores that have nothing to do with the seed planted. Once planted the seed does not depend on the sower.
“the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how” — This germinating and growing is beyond the ability of the sower to help develop the seed sown. The seed has power in itself which implies that God has given it the power of nature.
“The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear” — It is nature, not the sower, that produces the blade, the ear and the fruit. What this means is that the seed sown must be allowed develop naturally; growth is mysterious and must take its course; time is required.
This parable does not explain the meaning of the “seed” but from the previous parable of the sowing we know that the seed is the proclamation of the Gospel, the word of God announced by Jesus and later by his disciples and by us.
29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
“But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come” — The harvest is assured in time. The harvest is the fulfilment of the seed, that is the kingdom of God.
The harvester is identified with the sower. Jesus is the sower and harvester. The initiative in sowing the kingdom of God is his even though it is the human being who does the actual preaching of the word (“the seed”).
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
“And he said, ‘With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth’ — The Jews had a proverb that the mustard seed was the smallest of all seeds. In fact it is not but Jesus followed the proverb. Both Matthew (17: 20) and Luke (17: 6) refer to this parable in other contexts.
The parable does not explain the meaning of the mustard seed but, as with the previous parable, the explanation in the first parable of this chapter allows us interpret it as the proclamation of the Gospel, the word of God announced by Jesus.
“yet when it is sown upon the ground, it is the smallest of of all the seeds on earth; yet when ititis sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches” — The normal height of this shrub would be about three meters. The point of the parable is the contrast between the small size of the seed and the height of the shrub. It is not a lesson in biology. The meaning of the parable is that the kingdom of God may appear insignificant in its beginnings, a mere tiny seed, but when it develops it has phenomenal size.
The tree as an image of God’s sovereignty and rule is a frequent image in the bible: Jgs. 9: 15; Dn. 4: 7–9, 11, 17–19; Ez. 17: 23; 31: 1–9.
“the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” — The shrub is a home and place of protection and comfort. The application is that all nations will find their true home in the kingdom of God.
See Ezek 17: 22–23 (the First Reading for this Sunday) for a parallel passage.
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.
“With many such parables” — Mark tells us that the parables he writes are only a sampling of the many parables Jesus preached.
“he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it” — Jesus knew that his listeners were not ready to make an immediate decision to accept his teaching. That is why he spoke in parables so that they would reflect on his words and develop a positive response in time. On three instances already in this chapter we hear Jesus say that his listeners must have ears to hear (Mk. 4: 9, 13, 23); they must be attuned to his words.
“privately to his own disciples he explained everything” — Jesus explained not only the parables but all his teachings to the disciples. Throughout Mark’s Gospel it is clear that his disciples did not understand when he explained. The reason for this was that they had pre–conceived ideas that had to be corrected and this would not occur until after his resurrection. After the transfiguration Jesus instructed Peter, James and John to tell no one about what they had seen until “after the Son of Man had risen from the dead”, words they did not then understand (Mk. 9: 9–10).
APPLICATION
Introductory Note
The term “Kingdom of God” is mentioned 122 times in the New Testament. 99 of these occur in the three Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. This shows the importance and scope of this topic.
In the “Application” section of these notes the intention is not to cover a particular subject entirely but to give the point or points which the author of the Gospel passage had in mind in the quotation. In this Reading from Mark today, while it might seem that little was written, we find the richness of these few words limited to an aspect or two of Jesus’ teaching on the Kingdom of God.
Kingdom of God
When Jesus began his public ministry his first words summed up his mission, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel”. (Mk. 1: 15). Jesus will speak directly about the Kingdom of God ninety times in the Synoptic Gospels. His teaching on the Kingdom is most important.
To carry out the will of his Father that the world be saved, Jesus founded his Church as the instrument of salvation. The Church is not the Kingdom; it is the seed and beginning of that kingdom on earth (see II Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium, no. 5). The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “Everyone is called to enter the kingdom. First announced to the children of Israel, this messianic kingdom is intended to accept men of all nations. [This is the meaning of the parable of the mustard seed where, we are told, the birds of the air, a biblical symbol of all nations, find a home.] To enter it, one must first accept Jesus’ word: The word of the Lord is compared to a seed which is sown in a field; those who hear it with faith and are numbered among the little flock of Christ have truly received the kingdom. Then, by its own power, the seed sprouts and grows until the harvest” (n. 543).
This does not mean that membership in the Catholic Church is a matter of indifference. In Mark 16 we hear Jesus tell his disciples to go into the whole world and baptise people which is the rite of entering the Church, what he called elsewhere “my Church”.
The Church which Christ founded is divine in origin and in the power of the presence of Christ which he promised until the end of the world. Then the Church will cease but the Kingdom will endure for eternity.
The Church is also a human reality: it is composed of sinners. Jesus made it clear that he came for sinners to offer them salvation. As a human reality, the Church must be ready always to be reformed and perfected. For many, a great consolation is that the Church is ‘a Church of sinners for sinners’. When Jesus founded his Church he had as its foundation twelve apostles who were weak and sinners. But as the word took root in their minds and hearts eleven became saints and transformed the world.
So, what is the Kingdom of God? It is not a geographical domain but the reign of God in the world and in peoples’ minds and hearts. It is a present reality (“The Kingdom of God is among you”) and it is a future reality. Mark identifies the Kingdom with Jesus in whom the Kingdom comes (Mk. 9: 1; 11: 10).
The Kingdom grows through God’s power. It does not depend on the planning and achievements of people. That is why we can be absolutely certain that it will be victorious in spite of all the hatred and persecutions that may assail it (Mk. 13: 5–23).
Nevertheless people are required to play an important part in sowing the seed by word and by witness. Like farmers they prepare the ground and sow the seed but after that it is God’s work. Without the farmer, the seed would not be sown; the ground might not accept the seed. But the seed is not a human product. The seed is the word of God. That is why the parable teaches that once the seed is sown, the farmer has no further input until the harvest. Growth is a divine reality. What a privilege for humans to be part of God’s plan of bringing salvation to the world by sowing the seed. The II Vatican Council keeps emphasizing that the role of the laity is the sanctification of the world.
The Kingdom of God also refers to the action of God in peoples’ minds and souls. God is quietly and without our being aware of it, transforming us into his own image, into subjects of his Kingdom.
Today’s Gospel contrasts the smallness of the seed and the greatness of the final product. We should never lose heart or confidence. As already said, Jesus began with the most unlikely basic group to change the world: small and without any obvious qualities for the work. That, of course, is a Biblical theme: so many prophets and leaders asked to be relieved because they were aware of their own shortcomings. God refused their requests because he intended to accompany them on their missions. So too with each of us. We should keep in mind that God is at work constantly and imperceptibly, helping us to grow and do his work. There is nothing we cannot achieve — great sanctity and great achievements in the Kingdom of God.
So often we meet people who at this time are devastated by the attacks on the Church, the scandals, the faith–sufferings in one’s own family, and so forth. The parables from today’s Gospel offer great consolation. When seed is sown it dies. But death is not the end; it is the beginning of something unbelievably greater, new life. It will take time and patient waiting to see the result. How often do we experience this — a family member stops practising but in God’s time returns with great fervour; a scandal in the parish crushes many but others grow in faith; those crushed return; a modern–day Saul (who became Paul) gets the light of faith and becomes a great apostle, and so forth. We are taught patience and trust in God. No matter how bad thing become or we are upset, God will produce excellent life–giving results when he knows that the harvest is ready with its phenomenal results from simple and unbelievable beginnings.
Commentary on the 11th Sunday of the year (B) 13th June 2015
TEA; Text, Explanation, Application
Mark 4: 26–34
TEXT: TWO PARABLES: The Kingdom of God: (i) seed; (ii) grain of mustard seed
Parable of Seed
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, 27 and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
Parable of Mustard Seed
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
Parables
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.
EXPLANATION
Introduction
This Gospel has two parables taken from a chapter containing three parables about sowing seed, two of which, today’s Gospel Reading, refer to the growth that leads to the kingdom of God. The three may be described as the sowing, the patient waiting and the end–time.
The first of these two parables is proper to Mark’s Gospel.
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, 27 and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.
“The kingdom of God” — Mark gave us the first recorded words of Jesus as he began his public ministry: “The time has come and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and believe the Good News” (Mk. 1: 14–15). This is the essential content of his mission. Later Jesus will say (Mk 4: 11) that the kingdom of God is a secret given to the Twelve, together with the others who formed his company. Today’s Gospel illustrates two aspects of this secret.
“if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, should sleep and rise night and day” — This parable is about an ordinary human being like ourselves. He lives a normal Jewish day when night-time began at 6.00 p.m. on one day to 6.00 p.m. the following day in the Western way of reckoning the twenty–four hour day. The sower goes about his rest and daily chores that have nothing to do with the seed planted. Once planted the seed does not depend on the sower.
“the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how” — This germinating and growing is beyond the ability of the sower to help develop the seed sown. The seed has power in itself which implies that God has given it the power of nature.
“The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear” — It is nature, not the sower, that produces the blade, the ear and the fruit. What this means is that the seed sown must be allowed develop naturally; growth is mysterious and must take its course; time is required.
This parable does not explain the meaning of the “seed” but from the previous parable of the sowing we know that the seed is the proclamation of the Gospel, the word of God announced by Jesus and later by his disciples and by us.
29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
“But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come” — The harvest is assured in time. The harvest is the fulfilment of the seed, that is the kingdom of God.
The harvester is identified with the sower. Jesus is the sower and harvester. The initiative in sowing the kingdom of God is his even though it is the human being who does the actual preaching of the word (“the seed”).
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
“And he said, ‘With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth’ — The Jews had a proverb that the mustard seed was the smallest of all seeds. In fact it is not but Jesus followed the proverb. Both Matthew (17: 20) and Luke (17: 6) refer to this parable in other contexts.
The parable does not explain the meaning of the mustard seed but, as with the previous parable, the explanation in the first parable of this chapter allows us interpret it as the proclamation of the Gospel, the word of God announced by Jesus.
“yet when it is sown upon the ground, it is the smallest of of all the seeds on earth; yet when ititis sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches” — The normal height of this shrub would be about three meters. The point of the parable is the contrast between the small size of the seed and the height of the shrub. It is not a lesson in biology. The meaning of the parable is that the kingdom of God may appear insignificant in its beginnings, a mere tiny seed, but when it develops it has phenomenal size.
The tree as an image of God’s sovereignty and rule is a frequent image in the bible: Jgs. 9: 15; Dn. 4: 7–9, 11, 17–19; Ez. 17: 23; 31: 1–9.
“the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” — The shrub is a home and place of protection and comfort. The application is that all nations will find their true home in the kingdom of God.
See Ezek 17: 22–23 (the First Reading for this Sunday) for a parallel passage.
33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.
“With many such parables” — Mark tells us that the parables he writes are only a sampling of the many parables Jesus preached.
“he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it” — Jesus knew that his listeners were not ready to make an immediate decision to accept his teaching. That is why he spoke in parables so that they would reflect on his words and develop a positive response in time. On three instances already in this chapter we hear Jesus say that his listeners must have ears to hear (Mk. 4: 9, 13, 23); they must be attuned to his words.
“privately to his own disciples he explained everything” — Jesus explained not only the parables but all his teachings to the disciples. Throughout Mark’s Gospel it is clear that his disciples did not understand when he explained. The reason for this was that they had pre–conceived ideas that had to be corrected and this would not occur until after his resurrection. After the transfiguration Jesus instructed Peter, James and John to tell no one about what they had seen until “after the Son of Man had risen from the dead”, words they did not then understand (Mk. 9: 9–10).
APPLICATION
Introductory Note
The term “Kingdom of God” is mentioned 122 times in the New Testament. 99 of these occur in the three Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. This shows the importance and scope of this topic.
In the “Application” section of these notes the intention is not to cover a particular subject entirely but to give the point or points which the author of the Gospel passage had in mind in the quotation. In this Reading from Mark today, while it might seem that little was written, we find the richness of these few words limited to an aspect or two of Jesus’ teaching on the Kingdom of God.
Kingdom of God
When Jesus began his public ministry his first words summed up his mission, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel”. (Mk. 1: 15). Jesus will speak directly about the Kingdom of God ninety times in the Synoptic Gospels. His teaching on the Kingdom is most important.
To carry out the will of his Father that the world be saved, Jesus founded his Church as the instrument of salvation. The Church is not the Kingdom; it is the seed and beginning of that kingdom on earth (see II Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium, no. 5). The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “Everyone is called to enter the kingdom. First announced to the children of Israel, this messianic kingdom is intended to accept men of all nations. [This is the meaning of the parable of the mustard seed where, we are told, the birds of the air, a biblical symbol of all nations, find a home.] To enter it, one must first accept Jesus’ word: The word of the Lord is compared to a seed which is sown in a field; those who hear it with faith and are numbered among the little flock of Christ have truly received the kingdom. Then, by its own power, the seed sprouts and grows until the harvest” (n. 543).
This does not mean that membership in the Catholic Church is a matter of indifference. In Mark 16 we hear Jesus tell his disciples to go into the whole world and baptise people which is the rite of entering the Church, what he called elsewhere “my Church”.
The Church which Christ founded is divine in origin and in the power of the presence of Christ which he promised until the end of the world. Then the Church will cease but the Kingdom will endure for eternity.
The Church is also a human reality: it is composed of sinners. Jesus made it clear that he came for sinners to offer them salvation. As a human reality, the Church must be ready always to be reformed and perfected. For many, a great consolation is that the Church is ‘a Church of sinners for sinners’. When Jesus founded his Church he had as its foundation twelve apostles who were weak and sinners. But as the word took root in their minds and hearts eleven became saints and transformed the world.
So, what is the Kingdom of God? It is not a geographical domain but the reign of God in the world and in peoples’ minds and hearts. It is a present reality (“The Kingdom of God is among you”) and it is a future reality. Mark identifies the Kingdom with Jesus in whom the Kingdom comes (Mk. 9: 1; 11: 10).
The Kingdom grows through God’s power. It does not depend on the planning and achievements of people. That is why we can be absolutely certain that it will be victorious in spite of all the hatred and persecutions that may assail it (Mk. 13: 5–23).
Nevertheless people are required to play an important part in sowing the seed by word and by witness. Like farmers they prepare the ground and sow the seed but after that it is God’s work. Without the farmer, the seed would not be sown; the ground might not accept the seed. But the seed is not a human product. The seed is the word of God. That is why the parable teaches that once the seed is sown, the farmer has no further input until the harvest. Growth is a divine reality. What a privilege for humans to be part of God’s plan of bringing salvation to the world by sowing the seed. The II Vatican Council keeps emphasizing that the role of the laity is the sanctification of the world.
The Kingdom of God also refers to the action of God in peoples’ minds and souls. God is quietly and without our being aware of it, transforming us into his own image, into subjects of his Kingdom.
Today’s Gospel contrasts the smallness of the seed and the greatness of the final product. We should never lose heart or confidence. As already said, Jesus began with the most unlikely basic group to change the world: small and without any obvious qualities for the work. That, of course, is a Biblical theme: so many prophets and leaders asked to be relieved because they were aware of their own shortcomings. God refused their requests because he intended to accompany them on their missions. So too with each of us. We should keep in mind that God is at work constantly and imperceptibly, helping us to grow and do his work. There is nothing we cannot achieve — great sanctity and great achievements in the Kingdom of God.
So often we meet people who at this time are devastated by the attacks on the Church, the scandals, the faith–sufferings in one’s own family, and so forth. The parables from today’s Gospel offer great consolation. When seed is sown it dies. But death is not the end; it is the beginning of something unbelievably greater, new life. It will take time and patient waiting to see the result. How often do we experience this — a family member stops practising but in God’s time returns with great fervour; a scandal in the parish crushes many but others grow in faith; those crushed return; a modern–day Saul (who became Paul) gets the light of faith and becomes a great apostle, and so forth. We are taught patience and trust in God. No matter how bad thing become or we are upset, God will produce excellent life–giving results when he knows that the harvest is ready with its phenomenal results from simple and unbelievable beginnings.