Emphasis Preaching Journal

Some biblical scholars think Jesus’ mustard plant is what the botanists call “black mustard” — more of a shrub, really, than a plant. It grows as large as six feet tall (Bruce J. Malina and Richard Rohrbaugh, Social-Science Commentary on the Synoptic Gospels [Fortress, 2003], p. 76). Black mustard is essentially a weed — the sort of plant gardeners with a sense of humor refer to as a “volunteer.” No self-respecting farmers let it grow up in their fields, if they could help it. Once established, it’s extremely difficult to root out.