OUR Lord compares the kingdom of heaven to “leaven which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened” (Matt. 13:3333Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. (Matthew 13:33); see also Luke 13:2121It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. (Luke 13:21)). The duty of bread making in primitive times fell upon the woman, and was performed either by the mistress of the house or a female servant. Three measures of meal, or flour, was an ordinary amount of a day’s baking, and the size of the oven commonly used was suited to bake this quantity. A lump of old dough in a high state of fermentation was the leaven commonly employed, which would be placed in the vessel containing the kneaded meal, and left there for some hours, probably during the night, until the whole was leavened and in a fit state to be rolled out into cakes, or loaves for baking. This would be the usual course, day by day, in the household.
The Lord uses very simple things of daily life to illustrate the great matters of spiritual mysteries, and by regarding His illustrations naturally, we are often helped in obtaining the spiritual meaning conveyed. We cannot take the illustration of a simple thing too simply, whether it is borrowed from the flowers of the field, the birds of the air, or the habits of Palestine.
Leaven is really corruption. Yet bread baked without it, is insipid to the taste. Leaven was strictly forbidden in all offerings made by fire to the Lord, for corruption cannot be offered to Him, and in such offerings as figure the excellence of Christ His Son, the offering of corruption would be but to offer God a corrupt figure of Him who is holy and undefiled. In keeping the feast of the Passover, Israel were commanded to search their houses for leaven and to remove it, under penalty of death, for corruption was not to be allowed a place in those homes, which owed their security to the blood of the lamb. God will have no leaven offered to Him, though bread without leaven be insipid to man’s palate.
The heathen, as well as God’s people, understood the significance of leaven, for in some cases, at least, the priest of their gods was not allowed to touch it, and one of them thus explains its character: “Leaven itself is born from corruption, and corrupts the mass with which it is mixed.”
When the flour is mingled with water and kneaded into dough, a little leaven very soon leavens the whole lump, especially if the mass be exposed to some degree of heat. The Epistles teach us of this “secretly penetrative and diffusive power” of leaven, by using it as a figure of the corrupting influence of evil conduct, or evil teaching (1 Cor. 5:66Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? (1 Corinthians 5:6); Gal. 5:99A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. (Galatians 5:9)).
The parable of the Lord before us is one of seven relating to the mysteries of the kingdom―“Why,” inquired His disciples, “speakest Thou unto them in parables?”
And further He did so, “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world” (vers. 34., 35).
The kingdom of heaven and of God will be established in power in due season, when the King, now despised and rejected of men, comes out from heaven and subdues all nations by His strength, and in the meantime the secrets concerning it are being gradually worked out as this age rolls by. We shall only understand what is progressing around us as we read the Scriptures. Those who form their estimate of the world’s progress by the world’s standard entirely mistake God’s estimate of the world’s development.
In our own times, the leaven of unbelief in the inspiration of the Scriptures, and in the atoning blood of Christ, is rapidly corrupting the faith of Christendom. In former year; persecution has wrenched the Bible out of the hands of those who loved it; in our own times, a secret power is penetrating churches and chapels and corrupting whole companies of Christians with infidelity as to the very truth of the Scriptures. In former times Satan said, as it were, “You shall not have God’s word,” now he says, “It is not God’s won that you have.” The leaven is working rapidly.
Many passages of Scripture, which, some thirty years ago, seemed far off from us in their application, now are present at our very doors, for “evil men and seducers wax worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” What then is the devout believer in the Scriptures to do? The passage, from which we have just quoted, stating the spread of the poison, gives the antidote, “Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of knowing of whom thou hast learned them And that from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Tim. 3:14-1714But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; 15And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:14‑17).)
First, we are to abide in the things we have learned. New light, and development of truth are not consistent with the fact that the true light now shines, and that the truth is in our hands. Abide, continue in the truths of the Scriptures. Here positive good is put before us to enable us to refuse the evil.
Next, we are to remember that all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and, being divinely inspired, it cannot be altered or varied.
Further, we are told the Scriptures are sufficient in themselves, both to make thy man of God complete, or perfect, and also to render him fully equipped for every good work Both as regards himself and his service for God the Scriptures are sufficient.
May our readers each one choose the good and refuse the evil.