The Parables of the Mustard Seed and of the Yeast

³¹ He^(A) presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven^(B) is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. ³² It’s the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”^(C)

³³ He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into 50 pounds^[a] of flour until it spread through all of it.”^[b](D)

Using Parables Fulfills Prophecy

³⁴ Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables, and He would not speak anything to them without a parable,^{(E) 35} so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and of the Yeast

¹⁸ He said, therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like,^(A) and what can I compare it to? ¹⁹ It’s like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

²⁰ Again He said, “What can I compare the kingdom of God^(B) to? ²¹ It’s like yeast^(C) that a woman took and mixed into 50 pounds^[a] of flour until it spread through the entire mixture.”^[b]