“And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
My Notes
What Does Matthew 17:20 Mean?
Jesus responds to his disciples' inability to cast out a demon by diagnosing the problem: unbelief. Then he gives them an image of what even minimal faith can accomplish — faith the size of a mustard seed, the smallest seed known in their agricultural world.
The contrast is the point: the smallest possible faith moves the largest possible obstacle. A mountain isn't just big — it's the image of something immovable, permanent, anchored in bedrock. Jesus says even that yields to faith.
"Nothing shall be impossible unto you" is as sweeping as it sounds. Jesus places no ceiling on what faith-empowered people can accomplish. The limiting factor is never God's power. It's always the faith that accesses it.
The mustard seed image is hopeful. Jesus doesn't require great faith. He requires real faith — faith that is small, alive, and genuinely planted. A tiny seed is more powerful than a massive mountain, because the seed is alive and connected to a power source.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What 'mountain' are you facing that feels immovable?
- 2.How does it change things to know Jesus asks for mustard-seed faith, not mountain-sized faith?
- 3.Where have you been waiting to have 'enough' faith before acting?
- 4.What's the difference between small faith and no faith? Where do you fall right now?
Devotional
Faith as a grain of mustard seed. Not faith like a mountain. Faith like the smallest thing you can imagine. And Jesus says that's enough to move the mountain.
If you've been waiting to act until your faith feels big enough — strong enough, certain enough, impressive enough — Jesus says you've been waiting for the wrong thing. He's not asking for great faith. He's asking for real faith. Small, alive, genuinely planted.
A mustard seed is almost invisible. But it's alive. And a living thing, no matter how small, operates with a power that dead things don't have. Your small, shaky, barely-holding-on faith is more powerful than the mountain in front of you — because it's connected to the God who moves mountains.
Nothing shall be impossible unto you. That's a sentence worth reading twice. Not "some things will be easier." Nothing shall be impossible. The variable isn't the size of the problem. It's the presence of faith — any amount of real, living faith.
What mountain are you staring at? And what tiny seed of faith do you have? It's enough. Jesus says it's enough.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And Jesus said unto them, because of your unbelief,.... The Arabic and Ethiopic versions read, "because of your little…
As a grain of mustard-seed - See the notes at Mat 13:31-32. The mustard-seed was the smallest of all seeds. It has been…
We have here the miraculous cure of a child that was lunatic and vexed with a devil. Observe,
I. A melancholy…
ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence Such expressions are characteristic of the vivid imagery of Eastern speech…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture