Matthew 13:32

ὃ, neuter, by attraction of σπερμάτων, instead of ὃν in agreement with κόκκῳ, masculine. μικρότερον, not less perhaps than all the seeds in the world. An American correspondent sent me a sample of the seeds of the cotton tree, which he thinks Christ would have made the basis of His parable had He spoken it in America. μεῖζον τῶν λαχάνων, greater than (all) the herbs. The comparison implies that it too is an herb. There would be no point in the statement that a plant of the nature of a tree grew to be greater than all garden herbs. This excludes the mustard tree, called Salvadora Persica, to which some have thought the parable refers. δένδρον, not in nature but in size; an excusable exaggeration in a popular discourse. Koetsveld remarks on the greatly increased growth attained by a plant springing from a single seed with plenty of room all round it (De Gelijk., p. 50). ὥστε here indicates at once tendency and result, large enough to make that possible, and it actually happened. The birds haunted the plant like a tree or shrub. Mark refers only to the possibility (Mark 4:32). κατασκηνοῦν (cf. κατασκηνώσεις, Matthew 8:20), not nidulari, to make nests (Erasmus), but to “lodge,” as in A. V [82] The mustard plant is after all of humble size, and gives a very modest idea of the growth of the kingdom. But it serves admirably to express the thought of a growth beyond expectation. Who would expect so tiny a seed to produce such a large herb, a monster in the garden?

[82] Authorised Version.