Matthew 11
[1] And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.
[2] Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,
[3] And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?
This is John the Baptist, his cousin, son of Zecharias and Elisabeth. What he is asking is this the 1st. or the 2nd. Advent. He should know it is the 1st. advent. But you might ask what is an advent? For this we go to Zechariah chapter 9:9 and 9:10. And it reads.
Zech.9:9] Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
This is the first advent. Jesus came riding on an ass.
[10] And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from river even to the ends of the earth.
This is the second advent. The 7th. trump. Christ returns on a war horse. But why would he ask then? John knows scripture, and Jesus will give them scripture to take back to John.
[4] Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see:
[5] The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
This scripture is in Isaiah 35:5 and it reads.
Isa.35:5] Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
[6] Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
This prophesy is fulfilled here marking the first advent. Back to Matthew and it reads.
Mat.11:6] And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
Yes, some will be offended. 1Peter chapter 2 and it reads.
1Pet.2:8] And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
Lets’ get back to Matthew.
Mat.11:7] And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind?
[8] But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.
[9] But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet.
[10] For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
John the Baptist was a prophet, and fulfilled prophesy as well. Lets’ read Isaiah chapter 40, and it reads.
Isa.40:3] The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
[4] Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
[5] And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
And in Malachi. 3 it reads.
Mal.3:1] Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to this temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
And Luke chapter 1:76 reads.
Luke1:76] And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
[77] To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
Now back to Matthew and it reads.
Mat.11:11] Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
Meaning those in heaven are without the flesh.
[12] And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
[13] For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
[14] And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come.
Elias is Elijah in the Greek. So, we are talking about prophesies. from the prophets of old. There are a couple of places but I like Malachi 4:5-6, and it reads.
Mal.4:5] Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
[6] And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
And in Luke 1:17 reads.
[17] And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
Back to Matthew
Mat.11:15] He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
[16] But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows,
This word generation is offspring, G1085.We are talking about the serpents seed.
[17] And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented.
[18] For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.
[19] The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.
[20] Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not:
John was under the law of a Nazarene (they could not drink wine). And Jesus was talked about just as bad as they talked about John. But they came to preach salvation by repentance and they did not repent.
Mat.11:21] Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
[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, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, 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.
They were Kenites that were giving them trouble in Capernaum. And truth was hid from them. Ears to hear and eyes to see. For the Elect’s sake in these end times, he opens our eyes and ears.
[25] At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
The wise and prudent are of this world, they are not in Gods’ word.
[26] Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight.
[27] All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
Reveals it to his Elect.
[28] Come unto me, all ye that labour 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.
Rest is Sabbath. Christ became our Sabbath. This yoke is to make the work for the worker easier. I can say without a doubt, it’s a work of love and greatly rewarding.
Let’s go to his throne.
Father’ we thank you for your word and your work. Bless all that love you in Jesus’s precious name, Amen.
KJV along with The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Of The Bible