Matthew 11
11
1And it came to pass when Jesus had finished commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and preach in their cities. 2But John, having heard in the prison the works of the Christ, sent by his disciples, 3and said to him, Art thou the coming one? or are we to wait for another? 4And Jesus answering said to them, Go, report to John what ye hear and see. 5Blind men see and lame walk; lepers are cleansed, and deaf hear; and dead are raised, and poor have glad tidings preached to them: 6and blessed is whosoever shall not be offended in me.
7But as they went away, Jesus began to say to the crowds concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? a reed moved about by the wind? 8But what went ye out to see? a man clothed in delicate raiment? behold, those who wear delicate things are in the houses of kings. 9But what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say to you, and more than a prophet: 10this is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee. 11Verily I say to you, that there is not arisen among the born of women a greater than John the baptist. But he who is a little one in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he. 12But from the days of John the baptist until now, the kingdom of the heavens is taken by violence, and the violent seize on it. 13For all the prophets and the law have prophesied unto John. 14And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, who is to come. 15He that has ears to hear, let him hear.
16But to whom shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the markets, which, calling to their companions, 17say, We have piped to you, and ye have not danced: we have mourned to you, and ye have not wailed. 18For John has come neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He has a demon. 19The Son of man has come eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a man that is eating and wine-drinking, a friend of tax-gatherers, and of sinners: — and wisdom has been justified by her children. 20Then began he to reproach the cities in which most of his works of power had taken place, because they had not repented. 21Woe to thee, Chorazin! woe to thee Bethsaida! for if the works of power which have taken place in you, had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they had long ago repented in sackcloth and ashes. 22But I say to you, that it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in judgment-day than for you. 23And thou, Capernaum, who hast been raised up to heaven, shalt be brought down even to hades. For if the works of power which have taken place in thee, had taken place in Sodom, it had remained until this day. 24But I say to you, that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in judgment-day than for thee.
25At that time, Jesus answering said, I praise thee, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to babes. 26Yea, Father, for thus has it been well-pleasing in thy sight. 27All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son but the Father, nor does any one know the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son may be pleased to reveal him. 28Come to me, all ye who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest to your souls; 30for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
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First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Matthew 11
11
John the Baptizer
1When Jesus finished placing this charge before his twelve disciples, he went on to teach and preach in their villages.
2-3John, meanwhile, had been locked up in prison. When he got wind of what Jesus was doing, he sent his own disciples to ask, “Are you the One we’ve been expecting, or are we still waiting?”
4-6Jesus told them, “Go back and tell John what’s going on:
The blind see,
The lame walk,
Lepers are cleansed,
The deaf hear,
The dead are raised,
The wretched of the earth learn that God is on their side.
“Is this what you were expecting? Then count yourselves most blessed!”
7-10When John’s disciples left to report, Jesus started talking to the crowd about John. “What did you expect when you went out to see him in the wild? A weekend camper? Hardly. What then? A sheik in silk pajamas? Not in the wilderness, not by a long shot. What then? A prophet? That’s right, a prophet! Probably the best prophet you’ll ever hear. He is the prophet that Malachi announced when he wrote, ‘I’m sending my prophet ahead of you, to make the road smooth for you.’
11-14“Let me tell you what’s going on here: No one in history surpasses John the Baptizer; but in the kingdom he prepared you for, the lowliest person is ahead of him. For a long time now people have tried to force themselves into God’s kingdom. But if you read the books of the Prophets and God’s Law closely, you will see them culminate in John, teaming up with him in preparing the way for the Messiah of the kingdom. Looked at in this way, John is the ‘Elijah’ you’ve all been expecting to arrive and introduce the Messiah.
15“Are you listening to me? Really listening?
16-19“How can I account for this generation? The people have been like spoiled children whining to their parents, ‘We wanted to skip rope, and you were always too tired; we wanted to talk, but you were always too busy.’ John came fasting and they called him crazy. I came feasting and they called me a boozer, a friend of the misfits. Opinion polls don’t count for much, do they? The proof of the pudding is in the eating.”
The Unforced Rhythms of Grace
20Next Jesus unleashed on the cities where he had worked the hardest but whose people had responded the least, shrugging their shoulders and going their own way.
21-24“Doom to you, Chorazin! Doom, Bethsaida! If Tyre and Sidon had seen half of the powerful miracles you have seen, they would have been on their knees in a minute. At Judgment Day they’ll get off easy compared to you. And Capernaum! With all your peacock strutting, you are going to end up in the abyss. If the people of Sodom had had your chances, the city would still be around. At Judgment Day they’ll get off easy compared to you.”
25-26Abruptly Jesus broke into prayer: “Thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. You’ve concealed your ways from sophisticates and know-it-alls, but spelled them out clearly to ordinary people. Yes, Father, that’s the way you like to work.”
27Jesus resumed talking to the people, but now tenderly. “The Father has given me all these things to do and say. This is a unique Father-Son operation, coming out of Father and Son intimacies and knowledge. No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does. But I’m not keeping it to myself; I’m ready to go over it line by line with anyone willing to listen.
28-30“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.