Has The Whole Become Leavened?

"The Sneaky Woman"

"Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.” (Luke 13: 33 NKJV)

Like some other passages of scripture, most commentators have gotten their interpretations of this parable wrong. That is my strong opinion. There are able Christian expositors who disagree dramatically on the meaning of the parable. There are two chief views on it. One says that the "leaven" represents something good and pure, i.e., the gospel. Others, like I do, interpret the leaven as representing something evil and corrupt, i.e., a false gospel, a corruption of the pure religion of Christ. 

Needless to say, each view of the meaning of leaven has its consequences. If the leaven is the gospel, then such a view leads one to a Postmillennial idea that the gospel will have become so successful in converting the world and changing societal life that Christ will come and set up his Millennial kingdom. If, however, the leaven is a corrupting element, then such would denote just the opposite, i.e. that the world at the end will have little pure religion in it. It would speak of the corrupt state of the professing Christian world, or of the visible militant church. 

In "The Case of the Sneaky Housewife" by Ray C. Stedman, a worthy commentator, Stedman said (emphasis mine - See here):

I have entitled this study "The Case of the Sneaky Housewife," not because I am trying for a tricky title but because that was doubtless the reaction of the disciples when they heard this little story. Our Lord arrested them with this story and shocked them somewhat. When he told them that there was a woman who hid leaven in three measures of meal they must immediately have thought, "What a dirty trick! What a sneaky thing to do!" Perhaps it does not strike us that way, but this is because we are not in their shoes. We do not understand the symbols as Jesus used them. So the purpose of our study together is to put ourselves back in their place and to hear this story as they heard it.

For this is one of those parables which has been greatly misinterpreted. It has been treated in a very cavalier fashion and its meaning has been grossly distorted into something entirely different from what our Lord intended. Most of the major commentators on this passage seem to throw all principles of interpretation to the winds and to take no notice of how Scripture uses these symbols in other places. So they arrive at a meaning which is simply a result of their own wishful thinking.

Most commentators who interpret the "leaven" as the gospel, something good, acknowledge that this is not the common way it is used in scripture which is universally a symbol of corruption. But, they nevertheless insist that this parable gives an exception to the rule. In this case leaven does not denote a corrupting element but simply that which expands and permeates. Some will cite from the old testament where the people of God were told to offer a certain meal offering "with leaven." (Lev. 7: 13) But, in that case there was no signification or symbolism intended as in ritual. So too were the people normally allowed to eat leavened bread. It was only forbidden on certain holy days and in symbolic ceremonies. Therefore, the rule still stands with no exceptions. When leaven is intended to be a symbol it is a symbol of permeating corruption, of moral depravity and sin. So, we are forced to view "leaven" in the parable as not being the gospel nor something good. There is nothing in the context to force us to see "leaven" in an exceptional manner. Jesus always, when he spoke of leaven, spoke of it as being what is evil. This parable would be an exception and the burden of proof is on those who see it as an exception to prove why it is so. 

Stedman said:

The usual interpretation is that the leaven is the gospel and the woman is the church. The church is to take the gospel and put it into the world of humanity which is represented by the three measures of meal. The gospel quietly but surely will work away like leaven, like yeast in bread, until all of humanity is reached by the gospel and the whole world is changed. Then, finally, the kingdom of heaven will come in. Though that is far and away the most popular interpretation of this parable, it is absolutely wrong! On the basis of that interpretation men have thought at various times and places that the church was going to introduce the millennium to the world, that it would bring in the kingdom, that the gospel would so permeate the affairs and the thinking of men that the outlooks and insights and moral standards of Christianity would be universally accepted all over the world.

In many cases the "majority" opinion in bible interpretation is not right. Oftentimes it is the minority interpretation that is correct. The majority is certainly wrong in regard to the interpretation of this short parable. 

He also said:

But if I were convinced that this is the true meaning of this parable I would be greatly tempted to throw away my Bible and to give up the ministry. If this is the correct interpretation then Jesus Christ was mistaken. For here we are, two thousand years after the time our Lord told this story. And there are outstanding, increasingly significant signs, from day to day almost, which indicate that we are nearing the time which our Lord at the end of this series of parables called the "close of the age." If that is the correct interpretation then we should see the world almost completely leavened by the gospel, almost entirely Christian.

Exactly! This is quite reasonable. Yet, if the leaven represents corruption, then what would we expect to see of the state of the church and the world at the time of the end? We would expect to see just what we now see, a church and world permeated with moral, religious, and spiritual corruption. 

He also said:

Now let's look at the leaven. The disciples would quickly recognize its meaning. It is used all through the Old Testament and it is always used the same way. Never once is leaven ever used as a symbol of anything good. Everyone in this crowd knew that this woman had no business putting leaven into these three measures of meal. That was to destroy the very meaning of this significant offering, for Scripture had taught them that the three measures of meal were to be unleavened.

Amen. I believe this commentary is "spot on."

Now, understanding the true meaning of the parable, we see how it foretells how the church would become infected with false teaching (leaven) within her communion. The letters to the seven churches, being prophetic in nature, show us the progression of the church through seven periods of time within the time period between the first and second coming. The final state of the church, or of the professing Christian world, will be one described in the seventh letter, to Laodicea, a totally corrupt church with few exceptions.

The prophecy of the parable of the leaven in the meal is similar to the question asked of the disciples in Luke 18: 8:

"I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" 

The implied answer is that Christ will not find true faith when he comes, for the most part. True Christians will be the exception. 

What think ye?