Luke 13:19

“It is like a grain of mustard, which a man took and put in his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.””
Luke 13:19 · direct translation from the Greek

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With the Greek beneath

It isἐστὶνlikeὁμοίαa grainκόκκῳof mustard,σινάπεωςwhichὃνa manἄνθρωποςtookλαβὼνandputἔβαλενinεἰςhis ownἑαυτοῦgarden;κῆπονandκαὶit grewηὔξησενandκαὶbecameἐγένετοa tree,εἰς δένδρονandκαὶthe birdsτὰ πετεινὰof the skyτοῦ οὐρανοῦnestedκατεσκήνωσενinἐνits branches.”τοῖς κλάδοις αὐτοῦ

Allusion · Daniel 4:12

Go to Daniel 4:12

Both texts speak of a tree in whose branches the birds of the sky nest.

They share words that are rare in the original, without a quotation.

κλάδοιςkladoisG2798עַנְפוֹanfoH6056“branch”
πετεινὰpeteinaG4071צִפֲּרֵיtsipareH6853“bird”
οὐρανοῦouranouG3772שְׁמַיָּshemayaH8065“heaven”

Luke 13:19, word by word

It isἐστὶνestin

To be: says who or what something is.

Where else “estin” appears

likeὁμοίαhomoia

Like, similar.

Where else “homoia” appears

a grainκόκκῳkokkōi

grain, seed

Grain, seed.

Where else “kokkōi” appears

of mustardσινάπεωςsinapeōs

mustard

Mustard, a plant with a tiny seed that grows very large.

Where else “sinapeōs” appears

a manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos

person

A person, man or woman.

Where else “anthrōpos” appears

tookλαβὼνlabōn

take

To grasp something in the hand, or take it from someone.

Where else “labōn” appears

putἔβαλενebalen

put

To place something somewhere.

Where else “ebalen” appears

gardenκῆπονkēpon

garden

Garden, orchard.

Where else “kēpon” appears

it grewηὔξησενēuxēsen

grow

To become larger or stronger over time, like a plant or a child.

Where else “ēuxēsen” appears

becameἐγένετοegeneto

become

To turn into something new, different from before.

Where else “egeneto” appears

a treeδένδρονdendron

tree

Tree.

Where else “dendron” appears

the birdsπετεινὰpeteina

bird

Bird.

Where else “peteina” appears

of the skyοὐρανοῦouranou

sky

The vault we see above the earth, where birds fly and the stars are.

Where else “ouranou” appears

nestedκατεσκήνωσενkateskēnōsen

nest, dwell

Nest, settle down to live.

Where else “kateskēnōsen” appears

its branchesκλάδοιςkladois

branch

Branch.

Where else “kladois” appears

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

The mustard seed

Matthew 13:31-32 Mark 4:30-32

See them side by side

Luke 13:18-19

¹⁸So he was saying, “What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it? ¹⁹It is like a grain of mustard, which a man took and put in his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the sky nested in its branches.”

Matthew 13:31-32

³¹He put before them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard, which a man took and sowed in his field; ³²it is smaller than all the seeds, but when it has grown, it is greater than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.”

Mark 4:30-32

³⁰And he was saying, “How shall we compare the kingdom of God, or in what parable shall we put it? ³¹It is like a grain of mustard, which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds that are on the earth; ³²and when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest under its shade.”

The context

18So he was saying, “What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it?

19 · This verse (above)

20And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God?

Read all of Luke 13

To study Luke 13 in a group

1. What it says
Jesus heals a bent-over woman on the Sabbath. What does the synagogue leader object to, and how does Jesus answer? (vv. 10-17)
2. What it means
In the parable of the fig tree, what does the vineyard worker ask of the owner, and why? What does that teach about patience? (vv. 6-9)
3. How I live it
Jesus speaks of the narrow door and of striving to enter (v. 24). What concrete effort is yours to make today?

How to use it