The possession of faith, Jesus says, is not a matter of quantity but of quality. Either a person has faith or he does not have faith. The very smallest amount of faith is sufficient to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks. It is not so much the amount of faith, as the genuineness of it.

 Gr. sukaminos, the black mulberry tree. The term sukaminos, though considered by some as distinct, was often used synonymously with the sukomorea, the name of the white mulberry tree, otherwise known as sycamore-fig tree. Sukomorea is commonly translated “sycomore” (see on Amos 7:14; Luke 19:4). Neither tree should be confused with our sycamore.

 It is probable that Jesus intentionally chose an illustration so difficult as to be absurd. It is evident that He did not intend His disciples to perform magic feats such as this. This illustration is similar to that of a camel going through the eye of a needle (see on Matt. 19:24). Both are difficult to the point of literal impossibility, and Jesus did not intend the disciples to contemplate doing either in a literal sense. None of His own miracles were of this sort.