Matthew 13:24-30; Matthew 13:36-43. The Wheat and the Tares. Mt. only. The parable is a substitute for rather than an adaptation of Mark 4:26-29 *. We need not deny its genuineness on the plea that the standpoint is that of the Church with its mixed elements. The field is the world, not the Church. As in the parable of the seed growing secretly, the non-interference of man is illustrated. Only the great Assize can determine between good and bad. The genuineness of the explanation is more doubtful than in the case of the Sower, and may be an imitation of it. It is mechanical and conventionally apocalyptic.
Matthew 13:31-35. The Mustard Seed and the Leaven (Mark 4:30-34 *, Luke 13:18-21) The leaven (omitted from Mk.), usually an illustration of evil, is here a ferment of good (cf. salt, Matthew 5:13), either the disciples or the Gospel the doctrine of the Kingdom. The point of the quotation (Psalms 78:2; some MSS. curiously add Isaiah after the prophet) in Matthew 13:35 is in the second clause the Kingdom foreordained and predestined is now ushered in by Jesus.
Matthew 13:36-43. See above.