Matthew 13:33 - Forerunner Commentary

Matthew 13:33

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Matthew 13:33
Excerpted from: The Two Wave Loaves of Pentecost

It is common for commentators to see the leaven in this parable as a force for good because it is likened to the kingdom of heaven. As a result, they will typically say this teaches about the kingdom spreading throughout the world. To me, that symbolism seems like a stretch because the future establishment of the Kingdom will not be a gentle or gradual spreading, like leavening consuming the sugars in dough and slowly expanding. God’s Kingdom will not spread—it will be imposed by divine power and with lethal force on the rebellious.

In addition, that interpretation overlooks the fact that Jesus does not speak of the Kingdom in just the future sense. He speaks of the Kingdom in other ways as well. Significantly, the physical nation of Israel is another application of God’s Kingdom. It is part of His dominion. God promised Abraham that kings would come from him, and thus, his family would grow into a kingdom that derived its authority from heaven. So, the nation of Israel is sometimes in view when the Kingdom is spoken of. This is seen most clearly in Matthew 21:43, where Jesus tells the chief priests and the elders of the people, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.”

Jesus considered the religious leaders to be part of God’s Kingdom, and He foretold that the Kingdom would be taken from them. They had a measure of responsibility within the Kingdom. They wielded religious authority that Jesus acknowledged, though He disagreed with their application of their authority because it bore bad fruit—it wasn’t in alignment with God. Thus, the physical nation was an aspect of the sovereign dominion of Heaven.

Now, if you look back up to verses 1-3, they show that the audience for the early parables in the chapter was the multitudes, not the disciples. This is also seen in verses 34 and 36, which again mention the multitudes. If you study the flow of the chapter, you will find that the first four parables—including the Parable of the Leaven—are spoken to the multitudes, even though Jesus has some side comments to His disciples. The first four are spoken to the citizens of the Kingdom at the time, while the last four parables are spoken to the disciples, the representatives of the spiritual nation that would receive the Kingdom. You will also find that the first four parables all contain negative symbols, because they teach about the deplorable spiritual state of the nation. They have elements like birds, which can be symbols of demons; and elements like poor soil, and thorns, and tares, which are weeds, planted by the enemy and which look just like wheat but are toxic. These all describe unrighteous elements in the nation, and leavening fits right in there as a negative symbol.

So, when we understand the audience of the parable of the leavening, and this other way that Jesus sometimes spoke of the Kingdom, we can see that the leavening in this parable is negative as well. The “three measures of meal” are a reference to God’s visitation of Abraham in Genesis 18. Abraham told Sarah to make three measures of meal into cakes. This was when God promised Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son. The meal symbolizes the fellowship between God and the family of Abraham, which would grow into a kingdom.

The Jews were quick to claim Abraham as their father, and the “three measures of meal” were something easily recognizable in their history. But then Jesus introduces a contaminating element into the story. Over time, something happened to the fellowship between God and the expanding house of Abraham. The kingdom became “all leavened.” We know from other places that leaven is a symbol of corruption, especially of apostate doctrine and practice, as well as hypocrisy.

The woman—Israel—“took” of pagan belief systems from the nations around her and subtly introduced those corrupting ways into her relationship with God. The Judaism that Jesus encountered was a … . . .

Matthew 13:33
Excerpted from: Remaining Free

This parable can be challenging to understand because Jesus says “the kingdom of heaven is like leaven.” In Scripture, leaven is consistently used to represent corruption of some kind. God is adamant that nothing with leaven is allowed on His altar, symbolizing His table (Leviticus 2:11).

On the other hand, Paul tells the members at Corinth, who were carnal and spiritually immature, that they “truly are unleavened” (I Corinthians 5:7). That’s interesting, because here was all manner of corruption in the members, and yet because they were in Christ, they had a state of being unleavened imputed to them. Paul was basically telling them, “God considers you to be unleavened—now, start acting like it.” Thus, because the church consists of those who are in Christ, and Christ is unleavened, the church can never be “all leavened,” even though there certainly can be corruption within it because of carnality.

As you can see, this parable sets up an apparent contradiction, because leaven is a symbol of corruption, and the church is deemed unleavened because of Christ, and yet here Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like leaven.

There is a way to understand this parable that allows the symbols to all work together. That is, in a couple of places, the phrase “kingdom of God” or “of heaven” is used to refer to the physical nation. The nation was a kingdom that had its origin in heaven and was still under heaven’s dominion. This is seen most clearly in Matthew 21:43, where Jesus tells the chief priests and the elders that the kingdom of God was going to be taken from them and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. Since the kingdom could be taken from them, as Jesus said, then the kingdom was under their care. They represented the kingdom. But, because of their rejection of Him, the kingdom would be given to a better, spiritual nation.

When we plug that meaning of the kingdom into the parable of the leaven, the parable takes on a different shape altogether. That parable was spoken to the multitudes, not to the disciples. In fact, the first four parables in the chapter were spoken to the nation. You can see that in verses 1-2, as well as verse 34. He was speaking to the physical nation as the kingdom, and He warned about corruption overtaking it.

The three measures of meal refer to the meeting between God, Abraham, and Sarah in Genesis 18:6, when Abraham told Sarah to “make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes” as part of the meal with the pre-incarnate Christ. That was when God promised Abraham and Sarah a son, a true heir. So, that meal, centered around the three measures of grain, is symbolic of the fellowship between God and the family of Abraham.

But in time, something happened to the fellowship between God and the expanding house of Abraham: That kingdom became "all leavened.” The covenantal relationship between God and Abraham’s family completely degenerated, in large part because Israel “took” of corrupted belief systems from the nations around her and introduced that leaven into her relationship with God.

Thus, the religious atmosphere that opposed the Son of God was a poisonous blend of what God had revealed through Moses, plus beliefs and practices picked up during the Babylonian captivity, as well as a Hellenistic influence. This unholy mixture had hardened into traditions, handed down from previous generations, and called Judaism. The major problem within the kingdom at Christ’s time was not the graven images like before the captivity, but the idolatry of false beliefs. Jesus did not contend with pagan temples, but with hearts hardened in doctrines and practices that kept them blind to the Truth.

When we understand the principles, we can see that leavening can be a symbol of slavery, just as, on the flipside, unleavened bread is a symbol of deliverance … . . .

Articles
God's Kingdom in the Parables (Part Four)
God's Kingdom in the Parables (Part Three)
God's Kingdom in the Parables (Part Two)

Bible Studies
The Parables of Matthew 13 (Part Five): The Parable of the Leaven  (3)

Sermons
God Expects a Return on His Investment (Part Three)
Parables of Matthew 13 (Part 2): Leaven
Parables of Matthew 13 (Part 3): Hidden Treasure
Matthew (Part Eighteen)
Born Again (Part 3)
Who Deserves Our Loyalties?
The Parable of the Leaven, Expanded

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