Matthew 11:2-11. ² When John heard in prison of the works of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to him ³ with this question, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” ⁴ Jesus said to them in reply, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵ the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. ⁶ And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.” ⁷ As they were going off, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? ⁸ Then what did you go out to see? Someone dressed in fine clothing? Those who wear fine clothing are in royal palaces. ⁹ Then why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰ This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way before you.’ ¹¹ Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he..

Some Final Thoughts. Within the narrative of Matthew, John the Baptists helps establish the identity of Jesus – something especially key during the Advent Season. “Whose birth are we preparing for, anyway?”  And this is as important a question for us in our day as it was in the life and time of John the Baptist.

Then as now I suspect Jesus would still not fit our messianic expectations, would fail to conform to our popular messianic expectations. Why? Then as now, and in keeping with Gospel tradition, our expectations of Jesus probably mostly correct but almost certainly incomplete. We should not think ourselves immune from “hometown expectations.” In contrast to what Jesus was did and said, many contemporary people harbor false or incomplete expectations about Christ that need correcting.

A friar priest, a friend of mine, holds that if one hasn’t been offended by the gospel that is Jesus, it is likely that one has an incomplete understanding of the gospel.  A Jesus who is always comforting and never afflicting is an incomplete Jesus.

Matthew 11:2  in prison: see Matthew 4:12; 14:1-12. The works of the Messiah: the deeds of Matthew 8-9.

Matthew 11:3 the one who is to come: This is not known as a Messianic title in OT usage, however, Is 59:20 uses the same verbal construction to refer to God coming as Redeemer to Zion.

Matthew 11:4 Jesus said…in reply: Jesus does not answer directly rather telling John’s followers to report the things they have witnessed and heard. There are two possible understandings of such a response. (a) Jesus does the deeds of the Messiah (cf. 11:2) and his works answer John in the affirmative. (b) Jesus demands a reinterpretation of the signs by which the “the one who is to come” is to be discerned – i.e., by such deeds and not military conquests.

Matthew 11:5 the blind regain….the poor have the good news proclaimed to them”  Jesus’ response is taken from passages of Isaiah (Isaiah 26:19; 29:18-19; 35:5-6; 61:1) that picture the time of salvation as marked by deeds such as those that Jesus is doing. The beatitude is a warning to the Baptist not to disbelieve because his expectations have not been met.

Matthew 11:6 who takes no offense: The Greek verb is skandalízō which can mean to ‘cause to stumble’ or ‘cause to take offense.” The latter is preferred here because it expresses the theme of the next several chapters in which people do take offense at him (ch. 12).

Matthew 11:7 reed swayed by the wind: The word reed (kalamos) refers to tall, hollow grasses growing in shallow water near the Jordan River.  The question may ask (a) what were you going to see?  The landscape or the prophet?  Alternatively, (b) the question may imply a contrast between the flexible reeds and the unbending prophet.  A third explanation is possible: (c) the reed appears on coins minted under Herod Antipas – thus comparing the unbending John and his jailer Herod.

Matthew 11:8 fine clothing…in royal palaces: Compares and contrasts John and Herod, but also echo the prophetic dress of John (3:4) as the antithesis of such finery.

Matthew 11:9 a prophet…more than a prophet: In common Jewish belief there had been no prophecy in Israel since the last of the Old Testament prophets, Malachi. The coming of a new prophet was eagerly awaited, and Jesus agrees that John was such. Yet he was more than a prophet, for he was the precursor of the one who would bring in the new and final age. The Old Testament quotation is a combination of Malachi 3:1; Exodus 23:20 with the significant change that the “before me” of Malachi becomes “before you.” The messenger now precedes not God, as in the original, but Jesus.

Matthew 11:10 he will prepare your way before you:  This passage is taken from Mal 3:1 and points forward to that same “he” in Malachi 4:5.  That verse eventually became a fundamental part of Jewish eschatological expectation that the literal Elijah would return from heaven to prepare for the coming of the Messiah. The oldest known text to reflect this hope predates the Christian era by two centuries (Sir. 48:10), though no specific reference to the Messiah appears in this context. At least in the later rabbinic literature it is clear that Mal. 3:1 and 4:5 were connected, so that the messenger in the former text was equated with Elijah in the latter (e.g., Tg. Ps.-J. Num. 25:12). A late midrash also links Exod. 23:20 with Mal. 3:1 because of the similar language: God’s pattern of sending special messengers recurs (Exod. Rab. 32.9).

Matthew 11:11 none greater than John: John’s preeminent greatness lies in his function of announcing the imminence of the kingdom (Matthew 3:1). yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he: to be in the kingdom is so great a privilege that the least who has it is greater than the Baptist.

• G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI;  Nottingham, UK: Baker Academic;  Apollos, 2007) pp. 38-40
• Eugene Boring, The Gospel of Matthew in The New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1994) pp. 266-68
• Warren Carter, Matthew and the Margins: A Sociopolitical and Religious Reading (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2000)  p. 249
• R.T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary in the Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, Vol. 1, ed. Leon Morris  (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1989) pp. 195-98
• Daniel J. Harrington, The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 1 of Sacra Pagina, ed. Daniel J. Harrington (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1991) pp. 154-62
• Daniel J. Harrington, “Matthew” in The Collegeville Bible Commentary, eds. Diane Bergant and Robert J. Karris (Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 1989) pp. 878
• John P. Meier, Matthew, New Testament Message 3 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1990) pp. 119-20
• Brian Stoffregen, “Brian P. Stoffregen Exegetical Notes” at www.crossmarks.com
• D. Turner and D.L. Bock, Matthew and Mark in the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, vol. 11 (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2005) pp. 158-63

Dictionaries

G. Kittel, G. W. Bromiley & G. Friedrich, eds., Theological dictionary of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1995)  Stählin, skandalízō, 7:339–58