RSV ~ Matthew 11 Notes
Mt 11:2 | ISB Notes
deeds of the Christ: i.e., the works and credentials of the awaited Messiah. Jesus performs messianic signs in Galilee in chaps. 8-9 (11:5). His works stir such great public interest that John hears of his ministry even in prison.
Mt 11:5 | ISB Notes
the blind ⌠the lame ⌠lepers: Jesusâ miracles recall Isaian prophecy and link him with an agent of Godâs healing (Is 26:19; 29:18; 35:4-6; 61:1-2; CCC 549). See note on Mt 8:17.
Mt 11:7 | ISB Notes
A reed shaken ⌠?: John is not swayed by earthly comforts or diverted from the path of discipline.
Mt 11:10 | ISB Notes
Behold, I send: John the Baptistâs ministry recalls Mal 3:1 (Sir 48:9-10). As in Is 40:3 (Mt 3:3), this messenger is also the Lordâs forerunner.
⢠Malachiâs prophesies associate the Lordâs forerunner with Elijah, the great prophet of the OT (Mal 4:5). Jesus views John as this prophet, who preaches repentance to Israel in the âspiritâ of Elijah (Lk 1:17) and offers Godâs faithful remnant a final opportunity for salvation (11:15). Even Johnâs clothing recalls Elijahâs distinctive dress. See note on Mt 3:1.
Mt 11:11 | ISB Notes
no one greater: John is the greatest OT prophet (11:9). In the New Covenant, however, even the least NT saint outshines the most illustrious saints of old. These prophets looked ahead to the New Covenant but did not share fully in its blessings (13:17; 1 Pet 1:10-12). Jesus thus contrasts the Old and New Covenants; he does not undermine the saintly life of John (CCC 523, 719).
Mt 11:12 | ISB Notes
suffered violence: Notoriously obscure. Some interpret the word violence as a reference to asceticism. In this case, it is those who discipline themselves by prayer and fasting who seize hold of the kingdom. From a historical viewpoint, it seems likely that Jesus is referring to the onset of the âmessianic woesâ. This was the Jewish expectation that the kingdom of God would come during a time of intense tribulation and distress. These days would witness mass apostasy, rampant lawlessness, and a violent persecution of the saints. John the Baptist, executed for his witness to the Messiah (14:10), is the first of the faithful to perish with the arrival of these woeful days. Jesus will suffer the same violence (20:18-19), as will his disciples (10:17-18, 23; 24:9).
Mt 11:17 | ISB Notes
Jesus exposes the excuses of his contemporaries. The childrenâs song highlights both the joyousness of a wedding (We piped) reflected in Jesusâ ministry (11:19; 9:15), and the solemnity of a funeral (we wailed) reflected in Johnâs ministry of penance. The unbelievers of Jesusâ generation (11:16) refuse invitations to embrace the kingdom.
Mt 11:19 | ISB Notes
a glutton and a drunkard: Jesus is accused of dangerous and irreligious behavior.
⢠Many viewed Jesus as a âstubborn and rebelliousâ son, in accordance with Deut 21:20. Evoking the context of this OT verse, they implied that Jesus should be killed (Deut 21:21). wisdom âŚ
her deeds: Recalls OT traditions that personify wisdom (Prov 8-9; Wis 7:22-8:21; Sir 51:13-30). Jesus transfers these to himself in light of his messianic signs (11:1-5). Paul similarly regards Jesus as âour wisdomâ (1 Cor 1:30). See note on Mt 11:28-30.
Mt 11:21 | ISB Notes
Chorazin ⌠Bethsaida: Two cities north of the Sea of Galilee. Both are within five miles of Jesusâ home in Capernaum, and both are unresponsive to his ministry. Privileged by Jesusâ presence and works, they bear greater guilt for rejecting him than the Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon, north of Palestine on the coast of Phoenicia (cf. Lk 12:48).
Mt 11:23 | ISB Notes
Capernaum: Jesusâ home during his Galilean ministry (4:13). Like his childhood home of Nazareth, this city too rejects Jesus and his works (13:53-58; Lk 4:1630).
⢠Jesusâ rebuke upon the city recalls Godâs judgment on the king of Babylon in Is 14:13-15.
⢠Morally: Capernaum signifies the soul that receives Christ but falls into mortal sin. Because Christ dwelt there, the fallen-away and prideful soul is subject to harsher judgment (2 Pet 2:20-22; CCC 678).
Sodom: The city destroyed by God in Gen 19:24-25. It was a proverbial OT example of sexual sin and inhospitality that called down Godâs wrath (Is 1:9; Jer 23:14; Ezek 16:44-46; Amos 4:11).
Mt 11:25-27 | ISB Notes
Jesusâ thanksgiving prayer stands in contrast to kilkJ the preceding narrative (11:20-24). While several towns reject Christ, there is a remnant (including the disciples) who trust him with the simplicity of infants (11:25; cf. 18:1-4; 19:13-15). Jesusâ language is similar to several statements in Johnâs Gospel that articulate his unique relationship with the Father (Jn 3:35; 10:14-15; 17:25).
⢠The intimacy between the Father and Son points to their oneness within the Blessed Trinityâi.e., their shared divine knowledge implies a shared divine nature.
Mt 11:28-30 | ISB Notes
Jesus invites disciples to follow and learn from him as the model of perfect obedience to the Father (11:27; CCC 520).
⢠Jesus evokes âwisdomâsâ invitation to the humble in the OT. In Sir 51, wisdom calls âDraw near to meâ (51:23), âput your neck under the yokeâ (51:26), and âsee with your eyes that I have labored little and found for myself much restâ (51:27). These parallels reinforce Jesusâ self-identification as âwisdomâ in 11:19.
Mt 11:29 | ISB Notes
you will find rest: Jesusâ invitation cues the following controversies regarding the spiritual significance of the Sabbath (12:1-14). While the Old Covenant celebration of the Sabbath centered on earthly rest from earthly labor (Ex 20:811), Jesus offers heavenly rest in the New (Heb 4:1-11).