Matthew 11:20-24

Jesus Castigates His Local Towns For Their Failure To Repent In View Of The Fact That They Too Have Seen The Messianic Signs, But Without Responding (11:20-24).

In this chapter Jesus has already been faced with two examples of men's attitudes towards Him, the puzzlement of John, whose heart was right towards God, and was genuine in its search for truth, even though he could not understand His ways, and the childishness of the people, whose hearts were not right towards anyone, whose attitude towards truth was casual, and who did not want to understand His ways. To the first He sent His gentle response, pointing to the Messianic signs that He had performed, knowing that John would respond in return. The second he dismissed with a proverb, in the same way as they had dismissed John and Himself. They would receive what they deserved.

But now Matthew wants to bring out and contrast the difference between all who were like John and all who were like the people, and that will take up the remainder of the chapter, and he does it in reverse order. He deals first with the people who have not responded to His works (Matthew 11:20), and he will then follow that with Jesus' words about those who have truly heard His voice and followed Him (Matthew 11:25). The verdicts are in total contrast, and it will be noted that while having passed His verdict on the towns He makes no further appeal to them, as He had made no appeal to ‘this generation' who sang their childish songs in Matthew 11:16, He does make an appeal to those who have had their eyes opened. They are called to join Him in His own relationship with God (Matthew 11:28), as John also had been called to trust Him (Matthew 11:6), in the case of John followed by his full vindication. Note the deliberate contrast of ‘blessed --' in Matthew 11:6 with ‘woe' in Matthew 11:21, which is a mini-picture of the blessings and woes of the Old Testament (e.g. Deuteronomy 28). Compare also Matthew 5:3 with chapter 23. John may have wondered why Jesus was not acting in judgment, but Jesus is making clear that one day He will.

It may also be that we are to see in these words to His three local towns a parallel to the disciples shaking off the dust of the feet against unresponsive towns (Matthew 10:14). That instruction too ended in a contrasting reference to Sodom. From now on His main ministry will not be in these towns. He is moving on. They have had their opportunity. So first Nazareth rejected Him (Luke 4:28), and now the area in which His family had taken up residence. He is being driven out to other places. (A similar thing is recorded in Acts where the Apostles are finally driven out of Jerusalem). But the idea is selective. This is not a rejection of Israel as a whole, but of unresponsive towns, and even then He will visit at least Capernaum again (Matthew 17:24; compare Mark 9:33 which is after the visit to Caesarea Philippi). In a sense therefore the rejection is symbolic, but nevertheless serious for all that.

Analysis.

a Then he began to upbraid the cities in which most of his mighty works were done, because they did not repent (Matthew 11:20).

b “Alas for you, Chorazin! Alas for you, 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” (Matthew 11:21).

c “ But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you” (Matthew 11:22).

b “And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to Hades, for if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you, it would have remained until this day” (Matthew 11:23).

a “But I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you” (Matthew 11:24).

As so often in Matthew we have here both a chiasmus and a sequence. Note that in ‘a' the cities are upbraided because they did not repent, and in the parallel the warning is given of the judgment that will come. In ‘b' and its parallel are two similarly worded condemnations. Centrally in ‘c' is the certainty of judgment. But even more effective are the sequences. ‘b' and ‘c' are sequentially parallel with the following ‘b' and ‘a'.