Matthew 11:1-19 - A Question From John The Baptist

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 to him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?

⁴ Jesus answered and said to them, Go and show John again those things which ye 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, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. ⁶ And blessed is he to whom I shall not be the cause of his falling into sin.

⁷ And as they departed, Jesus began to say to 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 to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. ⁹ But what went ye out to see? A prophet? yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰ For this is he concerning whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee.

¹¹ Verily, I say to 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. 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 Elijah who was to come. ¹⁵ He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

¹⁶ But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like to children sitting in the markets, and calling to their fellows,

¹⁷ And saying, We have piped to you, and ye have not danced; We have mourned to you, and ye have not lamented.

¹⁸ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a demon. ¹⁹ The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a man gluttonous, and a wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified by her children.

¹⁸ And the disciples of John informed him of all these things. ¹⁹ And John calling two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?

²⁰ When the men had come to him, they said, John the Baptist hath sent us to thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?

²¹ And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities, and diseases, and of evil spirits; and to many that were blind he gave sight. ²² Then Jesus answering, said to them, Go, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; that the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached. ²³ And blessed is he, to whom I shall not be a stumbling block. ²⁴ And when the messengers of John had departed, he began to speak to the people concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? ²⁵ But what went ye out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they who are gorgeously appareled, and live delicately, are in kings' courts. ²⁶ But what went ye out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and much more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is he, concerning whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee.

²⁸ For I say to you, Among those that are born of women, there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God, is greater than he.

²⁹ And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized by him.

³¹ And the Lord said, To what then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the market-place, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped to you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept.

³³ For John the Baptist came neither eating bread, nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a demon. ³⁴ The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold, a gluttonous man, and a wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. ³⁵ But wisdom is justified by all her children.