Plants of the Bible

Mustard

Greek sinapi · only in the Gospels · probably black mustard

Mustard appears in the Bible only in the sayings of Jesus: the parable of the mustard seed and the saying about faith the size of a mustard seed. Which plant he meant is debated. By the most common view it is black mustard, Brassica nigra, which is common in the fields of Galilee and can grow taller than a person in a single season. By another view it is the wild mustard, or charlock, a smaller plant. A shrub of the Dead Sea thickets, Salvadora persica, has also been suggested, but it does not grow as far north as Galilee.

Mustard was sown in gardens and fields, and its seeds were used as a spice. A mustard seed is only about a millimeter across. It is not the smallest seed in nature, but it was probably the smallest seed that farmers in Galilee sowed, and Jesus’ hearers knew how big a plant grew from it — big enough, the Gospels say, for birds to nest in its branches.

Sources

Adapted and shortened from the Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0

Adapted from Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary: articles chosen, shortened and retold in our own words (history, nature and daily life only) and, in languages other than English, machine-translated. The original work by Tyndale House Publishers is available for free at tyndaleopenresources.com.

Key verses

The parable of the mustard seedMatt 13:31–32He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. Although it is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

It puts forth great branchesMark 4:31–32It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds sown upon the earth. But after it is planted, it grows to be the largest of all garden plants and puts forth great branches, so that the birds of the air nest in its shade.”

Tossed into a gardenLuke 13:19It is like a mustard seed that a man tossed into his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”

Faith the size of a mustard seedMatt 17:20“Because you have so little faith,” He answered. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

A mustard seed and a mulberry treeLuke 17:6And the Lord answered, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.

Plants of the Bible

Mustard

Sources

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