Matthew 13:33

FOURTH PARABLE . The Leaven in the Meal, Matthew 13:33.

33. The kingdom of heaven The divine dispensation of the Gospel. In this parable the woman is the symbol of the divine agency, the meal is the human heart, the leaven is the Gospel. As leaven diffuses itself through the meal until the whole lump is leavened, so the grace of God and the power of the Gospel are a diffusive power, which impregnates the whole heart and transforms its character. As the parable of the mustard tree describes the external, so this parable describes the internal prevalence of the Gospel power. It describes the internal influence not upon the individual alone, but upon the masses of humanity. Three measures of meal A measure was the third part of an ephah, and these three were the usual quantity for a baking. Genesis 18:6; Jdg 6:19 ; 1 Samuel 1:24. Whole was leavened The grace of God in the heart, when properly received and cultivated, assimilates the whole character to its blessed nature.