The Baptist's Inquiry and Jesus' Discourse Suggested Thereby.

  ^c 29 And all the people [the common peopple, and not the rulers] when they heard, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. [They justified or approved the wisdom of God in sending such a prophet as John and establishing such an ordinance as baptism.]

  30 But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected for themselves the counsel of God, being not baptized of him. [The counsel of God was that the nation should be brought to repentance by John, that it might be saved by Jesus; but the Pharisees frustrated this plan so far as they were concerned, by their proud refusal to repent. All who followed their example shared their unhappy success. It is noteworthy that Jesus emphasizes baptism as the test as to whether men justify or reject God's counsel.]

  ^a 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now [a period of about three years] the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and men of violence take it by force. [Jesus here pictures the kingdom of heaven as a besieged city. The city is shut up, but the enemies which surround it storm its walls and try to force an entrance--an apt illustration which many fail to comprehend. The gates of Christ's kingdom were not opened until the day of Pentecost ( Acts 2: .), but men hearing it was about to be opened sought to enter prematurely, not by the gates which God would open when Simon Peter used the keys ( Matthew 16:19 ), in the walls. Examples of this violence will be seen in the following instances ( John 6:15 ; Matthew 20:21 ; Luke 19:11 Luke 19:36-38 ; 22:24-30 ; Acts 1:6 .) The people were full of preconceived ideas with regard to the kingdom, and each one sought to hasten and enjoy its pleasures as one who impatiently seizes upon a bud and seeks with his fingers to force it to bloom. The context shows that John the Baptist was even then seeking to force the kingdom.]

  13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.

  14 And if ye are willing receive it, this is Elijah, that is to come.

  15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

[The Old Testament was the work of a long series of prophets, and this series was closed by John the Baptist. But John differed from all the others in the series; for they prophesied concerning the kingdom, while John turned from their course to preach that the kingdom was at hand, and thereby incidentally brought upon it the assaults of violence. As to John the Baptist being the prophetic Elijah, see Section 20.]

  14 And if ye are willing receive it, this is Elijah, that is to come.

  15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

  16 But whereunto ^c then shall I liken the men of this generation, and to what are they like?   32 They are {^a It is} like unto children sitting {^c that sit} in the marketplace {^a marketplace} ^c and ^a who call ^c one to another; ^a unto their fellows

  17 and ^c who say, We piped unto you, and ye did not dance; we wailed, and ye did not weep. {^a mourn}.

  ^c 33 For John the Baptist is come {^a came} neither eating nor drinking, {^c eating no bread nor drinking wine;} and ye {^a they} say, He hath a demon.

  19 The Son of man came {^c is come} eating and drinking; and ye {^a they} say, Behold a man gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! And wisdom is justified ^c of all her children. ^a by her works.

[Oriental market-places were open squares where men transacted business and where children held their sports. Jesus here pictures two groups of little ones, one of which wishes to play, the other of which is sullen and intractable. The mirthful group first seeks to play a wedding game. They pipe and dance, but the sullen group sits unmoved. disheartened by failure to succeed, the mirthful ones try their hand again and hope for better luck by playing funeral. But this also fails, causing them to lift up their voices in questioning remonstrance. Singular enough, the authorities are about equally divided as to what parties this picture represents. Some say that the dancers and mourners are the Jewish rulers, and that Jesus and John refused to comply with their wishes. The grammatical construction rather favors this view, if we say that "men of this generation" are "like children who call." But such grammatical constructions are not reliable in interpreting Oriental imagery. Jesus means that the men of this generation are like the entire picture presented and does not intend that they shall be taken as the subjects of the leading verbs of the sentence. A parallel instance will be found in Matthew 13:24-43 . In the twenty-fourth verse Jesus says, "The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man who sowed good seed," but in the thirty-seventh verse he says "He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man," thus making the kingdom of heaven like the entire parabolic picture, and not the mere subject of its leading verb. Others say that John came mourning and Jesus came piping, and that the Jews were satisfied with neither. This was the older view, and had not expositors been confused by the grammatical difficulties above mentioned, it would never have been questioned. For the context favors it, and the whole trend of Scripture demands it. It was God in his messengers--his prophets and his Son--who came to set the world right. It was these messengers who took the initiative and who demanded the changes. It was the people who sulked and refused to comply with the divine overtures. The whole tenor of Christ's teaching--the parables of the supper, etc.--represents the Jews as being invited and refusing the invitation. It was John and Jesus who preached repentance, but there was no instance where any called on them to repent. Jerusalem never wept over an intractable Jesus, but Jesus wept over the people of Jerusalem because they "would not." Jesus and John each besought the people to prepare for the kingdom of God, but the people as too strict and at the other as too lenient, and would be won by neither. To justify them in rejecting God's counsel, they asserted that John's conduct was demoniacal and that of Jesus was criminal, thus slandering each. But the lives or works of Jesus and John were both directed by the wisdom of God, and all those who were truly wise towards God--children of wisdom (see Luke, verse 29, above)--justified or approved of God's course in sending such messengers. We should observe that with all the cares of his great mission upon him, the great heart of our Lord took note of the sports of children.]

  17 and ^c who say, We piped unto you, and ye did not dance; we wailed, and ye did not weep. {^a mourn}.

  ^c 33 For John the Baptist is come {^a came} neither eating nor drinking, {^c eating no bread nor drinking wine;} and ye {^a they} say, He hath a demon.

  19 The Son of man came {^c is come} eating and drinking; and ye {^a they} say, Behold a man gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! And wisdom is justified ^c of all her children. ^a by her works.

  20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not. [That is to say, those cities which were especially favored. It does not mean that more miracles were worked in them than in all the other cities; but that more were done in each of these than in any other.]

  21 Woe [rather, "Alas for thee!" an exclamation of pity more than anger] unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. [Jerome says that Chorazin was two, and Eusebius (probably through the error of his transcriber) says it was twelve miles from Capernaum. Its site is identified by the Exploration Fund with the modern Kerazeh, at the northwest end of the lake, two miles from Tell Hum (Capernaum). Its site is marked by extensive ruins, including the foundations of a synagogue, columns, and walls of buildings. Bethsaida was probably a suburb of Capernaum. We have no record of a miracle wrought at Chorazin, nor of one wrought at Bethsaida either, unless the miracles wrought at Simon's house--see Sec. xxxii, Section 32 were in Bethsaida. Tyre and Sidon were neighboring Phoenician cities on the Mediterranean coast and were noted for their luxury and impiety. This comparison between the pagan cities on the seacoast and the Galilean cities by the lake no doubt sounded strange to Jesus' disciples, but in the years which followed, Tyre and Sidon received the ( Acts 21:3 ; 27:3 ), and Tyre became a Christian city, while Tiberias, just south of Capernaum, became the seat of Jewish Talmudism. Sackcloth was a coarse fabric woven of goat's or camel's hair, and was worn by those who mourned. It was called sackcloth because, being strong and durable, it was used for making the large sacks in which rough articles were carried on the backs of camels. Such sacks are still so used. Ashes were put upon the head and face as additional symbols of grief. Jesus here uses these symbolic words to indicate that these cities would have repented thoroughly.]

  22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.

  23 And thou, Capernaum, shalt thou be exalted unto heaven? thou shalt go down unto Hades: for if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in thee, it would have remained until this day.

  24 But I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

[Several great truths are taught in this paragraph. We note the following: 1. Every hearer of the gospel is left either much more blessed or much more wretched. 2. That the miracles which Jesus wrought were calculated to lead men to repentance, for they demonstrated his authority to demand that man should repent. 3. That even among those who stand condemned at the judgment there is a difference, and that it shall be more tolerable for some than for others. 4. That God takes account of our opportunities when he comes to measure our guiltiness ( Matthew 5:21 Matthew 5:22 ; 10:15 ; Luke 11:47 Luke 11:48 ; John 9:41 ; 15:22-24 ; Romans 2:12 ). Capernaum was the most favored spot on earth, for Jesus made it his home. He therefore speaks of it figuratively as being exalted to heaven. Hades means the abode of the dead. It stands in figurative contrast to heaven and indicates that Capernaum shall be brought to utter ruin. Though Jesus was not displeased with the walls and houses, but with those who dwelt in them, yet the uncertain sites of these cities are marked only by ruins, and present to the traveler who rank weeds for their weather-worn stones the tokens of God's displeasure against the people who once dwelt there. In less than thirty years these three cities were destroyed. Sin destroys cities and nations, and permanent temporal prosperity depends upon righteousness. The history of the destruction of Sodom in the time of Abraham is well known. As it was one of ( Numbers 13:22 ) the oldest cities of any great importance in Palestine, this reference to its remaining is the more striking, showing that its destruction did not come from the mere operation of natural law, but as a divine punishment meted upon it for its sins--a punishment which might have been avoided by repentance ( Jonah 3:10 ). There is hope for the greatest sinner if Sodom might thus escape.]

  23 And thou, Capernaum, shalt thou be exalted unto heaven? thou shalt go down unto Hades: for if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in thee, it would have remained until this day.

  24 But I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

  25 At that season [while these thoughts of judgment were in his mind] Jesus answered [replying to the thoughts raised by this discouraging situation--this rejection] and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou didst hide these things from the wise and understanding [the selfish and shrewd; the scribes and Pharisees, wise in their own conceit-- John 9:40 John 9:41 ], and didst reveal them unto babes [the pure and childlike; the apostles and their fellows who were free from prejudice and bigoted prepossession. God hid and revealed solely by his method of presenting the truth in Christ Jesus. The proud despised him, but the humble received him]:

  26 yea, Father, for so it was well-pleasing in thy sight. [This is a reiteration of the sentiment just uttered. It means "I thank thee that it pleases thee to do thus." The Son expresses holy acquiescence and adoring satisfaction in the doings of Him who, as Lord of heaven and earth, had right to dispose of all things as it pleased him.]

  27 All things have been delivered unto me of my Father [ John 3:35 . All things necessary to the full execution of his office as Lord of the kingdom were entrusted to Jesus, but for the present only potentially. The actual investiture of authority did not take place until the glorification of Jesus ( Matthew 28:18 ; Colossians 1:16-19 ; Hebrews 1:8 ). again-- 1 Corinthians 15:28 ]: and no one knoweth the Son, save the Father; neither doth any know the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to reveal him. [Here again are many important truths taught: 1. While we may have personal knowledge of Jesus, we can not know him completely. His nature is inscrutable. And yet, in direct opposition to our Lord's explicit assertion, creeds have been formed, defining the metaphysical nature of Christ, and enforcing their distinctions on the subject which Jesus expressly declares that no man understands, as necessary conditions of church membership in this world, and of salvation in the world to come. "It would be difficult to find a more audacious and presumptuous violation of the words of Jesus than the Athanasian Creed, with its thrice repeated curses against those who did not receive its doctrines" (Morison). 2. We can have no correct knowledge of God except through revelation. 3. Jesus begins the revelation of the Father in this world, and completes it in the world to come. 4. By this exclusive claim as to the knowledge of the Father, Jesus asserts his own divinity. 5. Christ's exalted power comes by reason of his exalted being.]

  28 Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

  29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

  30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

[The preceding remarks are prefatory to this invitation. The dominion which Jesus exercises, the nature which he possess, and the knowledge which he can impart justify him in inviting men to come to him. The labor and the rest here spoken of are primarily those which affect souls. That is, the labor and the heavy burden which sin imposes, and the rest which follows the forgiveness of that sin. Incidentally, however, physical burdens are also made lighter by coming to Jesus, because the soul is made stronger to bear them. The meekness and lowliness of Jesus lend confidence to those whom he invites that no grievous exactions will be made of them. "Taking the yoke" is a It means, "Submit to me and become my disciple," for the yoke is symbolic of the condition of servitude--see Jeremiah 27:11 Jeremiah 27:12 ; Isaiah 9:4 ; Acts 15:10 ; Galatians 5:1 ; 1 Timothy 6:1 .]

  29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

  30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.