Matthew 11
New King James Version
John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus(A)
11 Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to (B)teach and to preach in their cities.
2 (C)And when John had heard (D)in prison about the works of Christ, he [a]sent two of his disciples 3 and said to Him, “Are You (E)the Coming One, or do we look for another?”
4 Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: 5 (F)The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and (G)the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 And blessed is he who is not (H)offended because of Me.”
7 (I)As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? (J)A reed shaken by the wind? 8 But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 9 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, (K)and more than a prophet. 10 For this is he of whom it is written:
(L)‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face,
Who will prepare Your way before You.’
11 “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 (M)And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 (N)For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to receive it, he is (O)Elijah who is to come. 15 (P)He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
16 (Q)“But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, 17 and saying:
‘We played the flute for you,
And you did not dance;
We mourned to you,
And you did not [b]lament.’
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a [c]winebibber, (R)a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ (S)But wisdom is justified by her [d]children.”
Woe to the Impenitent Cities(T)
20 (U)Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago (V)in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I say to you, (W)it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, (X)who[e] are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I say to you (Y)that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.”
Jesus Gives True Rest(Z)
25 (AA)At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that (AB)You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent (AC)and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 27 (AD)All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. (AE)Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. 28 Come to (AF)Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you (AG)and learn from Me, for I am [f]gentle and (AH)lowly in heart, (AI)and you will find rest for your souls. 30 (AJ)For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 11:2 NU sent by his
- Matthew 11:17 Lit. beat your breast
- Matthew 11:19 wine drinker
- Matthew 11:19 NU works
- Matthew 11:23 NU will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be
- Matthew 11:29 meek
Matthew 11
GOD’S WORD Translation
11 After Jesus finished giving his twelve disciples these instructions, he moved on from there to teach his message in their cities.
John Sends Two Disciples(A)
2 When John was in prison, he heard about the things Christ had done. So he sent his disciples 3 to ask Jesus, “Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for someone else?”
4 Jesus answered John’s disciples, “Go back, and tell John what you hear and see: 5 Blind people see again, lame people are walking, those with skin diseases are made clean, deaf people hear again, dead people are brought back to life, and poor people hear the Good News. 6 Whoever doesn’t lose his faith in me is indeed blessed.”
Jesus Speaks about John(B)
7 As they were leaving, Jesus spoke to the crowds about John. “What did you go into the desert to see? Tall grass swaying in the wind? 8 Really, what did you go to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Those who wear fine clothes are in royal palaces.
9 “Really, what did you go to see? A prophet? Let me tell you that he is far more than a prophet. 10 John is the one about whom Scripture says,
‘I’m sending my messenger ahead of you
to prepare the way in front of you.’
11 “I can guarantee this truth: Of all the people ever born, no one is greater than John the Baptizer. Yet, the least important person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John. 12 From the time of John the Baptizer until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful people have been seizing it. 13 All the Prophets and Moses’ Teachings prophesied up to the time of John. 14 If you are willing to accept their message, John is the Elijah who was to come. 15 Let the person who has ears listen!
16 “How can I describe the people who are living now? They are like children who sit in the marketplaces and shout to other children,
17 ‘We played music for you,
but you didn’t dance.
We sang a funeral song,
but you didn’t show any sadness.’
18 “John came neither eating nor drinking, and people say, ‘There’s a demon in him!’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and people say, ‘Look at him! He’s a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
“Yet, wisdom is proved right by its actions.”
Jesus Warns Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum
20 Then Jesus denounced the cities where he had worked most of his miracles because they had not changed the way they thought and acted. 21 “How horrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How horrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! If the miracles worked in you had been worked in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed the way they thought and acted long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 I can guarantee that judgment day will be better for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to heaven? No, you will go down to hell! If the miracles that had been worked in you had been worked in Sodom, it would still be there today. 24 I can guarantee that judgment day will be better for Sodom than for you.”
Jesus Praises the Father and Invites Disciples to Come to Him
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from wise and intelligent people and revealing them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, this is what pleased you.
27 “My Father has turned everything over to me. Only the Father knows the Son. And no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son is willing to reveal him.
28 “Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. 29 Place my yoke [a] over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble. Then you will find rest for yourselves 30 because my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Footnotes
- 11:29 A yoke is a wooden bar placed over the necks of work animals so that they can pull plows or carts.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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