Matthew 11:7-14

11:7 While they were going away, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness ¹  to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ²  11:8 What ³  did you go out to see? A man dressed in fancy clothes? ⁴  Look, those who wear fancy clothes are in the homes of kings! ⁵  11:9 What did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more ⁶  than a prophet. 11:10 This is the one about whom it is written:

‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, ⁷ 

who will prepare your way before you.’ ⁸ 

11:11 “I tell you the truth, ⁹  among those born of women, no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least ¹⁰  in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. 11:12 From ¹¹  the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and forceful people lay hold of it. ¹²  11:13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John appeared. ¹³  11:14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah, who is to come.

Matthew 21:25-27

21:25 Where did John’s baptism come from? From heaven or from people?” ¹⁴  They discussed this among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 21:26 But if we say, ‘From people,’ we fear the crowd, for they all consider John to be a prophet.” 21:27 So ¹⁵  they answered Jesus, ¹⁶  “We don’t know.” ¹⁷  Then he said to them, “Neither will I tell you ¹⁸  by what authority ¹⁹  I am doing these things.

Matthew 21:31-32

21:31 Which of the two did his father’s will?” They said, “The first.” ²⁰  Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, ²¹  tax collectors ²²  and prostitutes will go ahead of you into the kingdom of God! 21:32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe. Although ²³  you saw this, you did not later change your minds ²⁴  and believe him.

John 1:15

1:15 John ²⁵  testified ²⁶  about him and shouted out, ²⁷  “This one was the one about whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is greater than I am, ²⁸  because he existed before me.’”

John 1:29

1:29 On the next day John ²⁹  saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God ³⁰  who takes away the sin of the world!

John 1:34

1:34 I have both seen and testified that this man is the Chosen One of God.” ³¹ 

John 1:36

1:36 Gazing at Jesus as he walked by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” ³² 

John 3:29-36

3:29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly ³³  when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. This then is my joy, and it is complete. ³⁴  3:30 He must become more important while I become less important.” ³⁵ 

3:31 The one who comes from above is superior to all. ³⁶  The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things. ³⁷  The one who comes from heaven ³⁸  is superior to all. ³⁹  3:32 He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 3:33 The one who has accepted his testimony has confirmed clearly that God is truthful. ⁴⁰  3:34 For the one whom God has sent ⁴¹  speaks the words of God, for he does not give the Spirit sparingly. ⁴²  3:35 The Father loves the Son and has placed all things under his authority. ⁴³  3:36 The one who believes in the Son has eternal life. The one who rejects ⁴⁴  the Son will not see life, but God’s wrath ⁴⁵  remains ⁴⁶  on him.

[11:7]  ¹ tn Or “desert.”

[11:7]  ² tn There is a debate as to whether one should read this figuratively (“to see someone who is easily blown over?”) or literally (Grk “to see the wilderness vegetation?… No, to see a prophet”). Either view makes good sense, but the following examples suggest the question should be read literally and understood to point to the fact that a prophet drew them to the desert.

[11:8]  ³ tn Grk “But what.” Here ἀλλά (alla, a strong contrastive in Greek) produces a somewhat awkward sense in English, and has not been translated. The same situation occurs at the beginning of v. 9.

[11:8]  ⁴ sn The reference to fancy clothes makes the point that John was not rich or powerful, in that he did not come from the wealthy classes.

[11:8]  ⁵ tn Or “palaces.”

[11:9]  ⁶ tn John the Baptist is “more” because he introduces the one (Jesus) who brings the new era. The term is neuter, but may be understood as masculine in this context (BDAG 806 s.v. περισσότερος b).

[11:10]  ⁷ tn Grk “before your face” (an idiom).

[11:10]  ⁸ sn The quotation is primarily from Mal 3:1 with pronouns from Exod 23:20. Here is the forerunner who points the way to the arrival of God’s salvation. His job is to prepare and guide the people, as the cloud did for Israel in the desert.

[11:11]  ⁹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[11:11]  ¹⁰ sn After John comes a shift of eras. The new era is so great that the lowest member of it (the one who is least in the kingdom of God) is greater than the greatest one of the previous era.

[11:12]  ¹¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[11:12]  ¹² tn Or “the kingdom of heaven is forcibly entered and violent people take hold of it.” For a somewhat different interpretation of this passage, see the note on the phrase “urged to enter in” in Luke 16:16.

[11:13]  ¹³ tn The word “appeared” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[21:25]  ¹⁴ tn The plural Greek term ἀνθρώπων (anqrwpwn) is used here (and in v. 26) in a generic sense, referring to both men and women (cf. NAB, NRSV, “of human origin”; TEV, “from human beings”; NLT, “merely human”).

[21:27]  ¹⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “So” to indicate that the clause is a result of the deliberations of the leaders.

[21:27]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “answering Jesus, they said.” This construction is somewhat awkward in English and has been simplified in the translation.

[21:27]  ¹⁷ sn Very few questions could have so completely revealed the wicked intentions of the religious leaders. Jesus’ question revealed the motivation of the religious leaders and exposed them for what they really were – hypocrites. They indicted themselves when they cited only two options and chose neither of them (“We do not know”). The point of Matt 21:23-27 is that no matter what Jesus said in response to their question, they were not going to believe it and would in the end use it against him.

[21:27]  ¹⁸ sn Neither will I tell you. Though Jesus gave no answer, the analogy he used to their own question makes his view clear. His authority came from heaven.

[21:27]  ¹⁹ tn On this phrase, see BDAG 844 s.v. ποῖος 2.a.γ. This is exactly the same phrase as in v. 23.

[21:31]  ²⁰ tc Verses 29-31 involve a rather complex and difficult textual problem. The variants cluster into three different groups: (1) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. The second son is called the one who does his father’s will. This reading is found in the Western mss (D it). But the reading is so hard as to be nearly impossible. One can only suspect some tampering with the text, extreme carelessness on the part of the scribe, or possibly a recognition of the importance of not shaming one’s parent in public. (Any of these reasons is not improbable with this texttype, and with codex D in particular.) The other two major variants are more difficult to assess. Essentially, the responses make sense (the son who does his father’s will is the one who changes his mind after saying “no”): (2) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. But here, the first son is called the one who does his father’s will (unlike the Western reading). This is the reading found in (א) C L W (Z) 0102 0281 ˹ 33 Ï and several versional witnesses. (3) The first son says “yes” but does not go, and the second son says “no” but later has a change of heart. This is the reading found in B Θ Ë¹³ 700 and several versional witnesses. Both of these latter two readings make good sense and have significantly better textual support than the first reading. The real question, then, is this: Is the first son or the second the obedient one? If one were to argue simply from the parabolic logic, the second son would be seen as the obedient one (hence, the third reading). The first son would represent the Pharisees (or Jews) who claim to obey God, but do not (cf. Matt 23:3). This accords well with the parable of the prodigal son (in which the oldest son represents the unbelieving Jews). Further, the chronological sequence of the second son being obedient fits well with the real scene: Gentiles and tax collectors and prostitutes were not, collectively, God’s chosen people, but they did repent and come to God, while the Jewish leaders claimed to be obedient to God but did nothing. At the same time, the external evidence is weaker for this reading (though stronger than the first reading), not as widespread, and certainly suspect because of how neatly it fits. One suspects scribal manipulation at this point. Thus the second reading looks to be superior to the other two on both external and transcriptional grounds. But what about intrinsic evidence? One can surmise that Jesus didn’t always give predictable responses. In this instance, he may well have painted a picture in which the Pharisees saw themselves as the first son, only to stun them with his application (v. 32).

[21:31]  ²¹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[21:31]  ²² sn See the note on tax collectors in 5:46.

[21:32]  ²³ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[21:32]  ²⁴ sn The word translated change your minds is the same verb used in v. 29 (there translated had a change of heart). Jesus is making an obvious comparison here, in which the religious leaders are viewed as the disobedient son.

[1:15]  ²⁵ sn John refers to John the Baptist.

[1:15]  ²⁶ tn Or “bore witness.”

[1:15]  ²⁷ tn Grk “and shouted out saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant is English and has not been translated.

[1:15]  ²⁸ tn Or “has a higher rank than I.”

[1:29]  ²⁹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (John) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:29]  ³⁰ sn Gen 22:8 is an important passage in the background of the title Lamb of God as applied to Jesus. In Jewish thought this was held to be a supremely important sacrifice. G. Vermès stated: “For the Palestinian Jew, all lamb sacrifice, and especially the Passover lamb and the Tamid offering, was a memorial of the Akedah with its effects of deliverance, forgiveness of sin and messianic salvation” (Scripture and Tradition in Judaism [StPB], 225).

[1:34]  ³¹ tc ‡ What did John the Baptist declare about Jesus on this occasion? Did he say, “This is the Son of God” (οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, |outo" estin Jo Juio" tou qeou), or “This is the Chosen One of God” (οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐκλεκτὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, outo" estin Jo eklekto" tou qeou)? The majority of the witnesses, impressive because of their diversity in age and locales, read “This is the Son of God” (so {Ì^66,75 A B C L Θ Ψ 0233^vid Ë^1,13 33 1241 aur c f l g bo as well as the majority of Byzantine minuscules and many others}). Most scholars take this to be sufficient evidence to regard the issue as settled without much of a need to reflect on internal evidence. On the other hand, one of the earliest mss for this verse, {Ì⁵} (3rd century), evidently read οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐκλεκτὸς τοῦ θεοῦ. (There is a gap in the ms at the point of the disputed words; it is too large for υἱός especially if written, as it surely would have been, as a nomen sacrum [uMs]. The term ἐκλεκτός was not a nomen sacrum and would have therefore taken up much more space [eklektos]. Given these two variants, there is hardly any question as to what Ì⁵ read.) This papyrus has many affinities with א*, which here also has ὁ ἐκλεκτός. In addition to their combined testimony Ì^106vid b e ff^2* sy^s,c also support this reading. ̹⁰⁶ is particularly impressive, for it is a second third-century papyrus in support of ὁ ἐκλεκτός. A third reading combines these two: “the elect Son” (electus filius in ff^2c sa and a [with slight variation]). Although the evidence for ἐκλεκτός is not as impressive as that for υἱός, the reading is found in early Alexandrian and Western witnesses. Turning to the internal evidence, “the Chosen One” clearly comes out ahead. “Son of God” is a favorite expression of the author (cf. 1:49; 3:18; 5:25; 10:36; 11:4, 27; 19:7; 20:31); further, there are several other references to “his Son,” “the Son,” etc. Scribes would be naturally motivated to change ἐκλεκτός to υἱός since the latter is both a Johannine expression and is, on the surface, richer theologically in 1:34. On the other hand, there is not a sufficient reason for scribes to change υἱός to ἐκλεκτός. The term never occurs in John; even its verbal cognate (ἐκλέγω, eklegw) is never affirmed of Jesus in this Gospel. ἐκλεκτός clearly best explains the rise of υἱός. Further, the third reading (“Chosen Son of God”) is patently a conflation of the other two. It has all the earmarks of adding υἱός to ἐκλεκτός. Thus, ὁ υἱός τοῦ θεοῦ is almost certainly a motivated reading. As R. E. Brown notes (John [AB], 1:57), “On the basis of theological tendency…it is difficult to imagine that Christian scribes would change ‘the Son of God’ to ‘God’s chosen one,’ while a change in the opposite direction would be quite plausible. Harmonization with the Synoptic accounts of the baptism (‘You are [This is] my beloved Son’) would also explain the introduction of ‘the Son of God’ into John; the same phenomenon occurs in vi 69. Despite the weaker textual evidence, therefore, it seems best – with Lagrange, Barrett, Boismard, and others – to accept ‘God’s chosen one’ as original.”

[1:36]  ³² sn This section (1:35-51) is joined to the preceding by the literary expedient of repeating the Baptist’s testimony about Jesus being the Lamb of God (1:36, cf. 1:29). This repeated testimony (1:36) no longer has revelatory value in itself, since it has been given before; its purpose, instead, is to institute a chain reaction which will bring John the Baptist’s disciples to Jesus and make them Jesus’ own disciples.

[3:29]  ³³ tn Grk “rejoices with joy” (an idiom).

[3:29]  ³⁴ tn Grk “Therefore this my joy is fulfilled.”

[3:30]  ³⁵ sn Some interpreters extend the quotation of John the Baptist’s words through v. 36.

[3:31]  ³⁶ tn Or “is above all.”

[3:31]  ³⁷ tn Grk “speaks from the earth.”

[3:31]  ³⁸ sn The one who comes from heaven refers to Christ. As in John 1:1, the Word’s preexistence is indicated here.

[3:31]  ³⁹ tc Ì⁷⁵ א* D ˹ 565 as well as several versions and fathers lack the phrase “is superior to all” (ἐπάνω πάντων ἐστίν, epanw pantwn estin). This effectively joins the last sentence of v. 31 with v. 32: “The one who comes from heaven testifies about what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.” On the other side, the phrase may have been deleted because of perceived redundancy, since it duplicates what is said earlier in the verse. The witnesses that include ἐπάνω πάντων ἐστίν in both places are weighty and widespread (Ì^36vid,66 א² A B L W^s Θ Ψ 083 086 ˹³ 33 Ï lat sy^s,p,h bo). On balance, the longer reading should probably be considered authentic.

[3:33]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “is true.”

[3:34]  ⁴¹ tn That is, Christ.

[3:34]  ⁴² tn Grk “for not by measure does he give the Spirit” (an idiom). Leviticus Rabbah 15:2 states: “The Holy Spirit rested on the prophets by measure.” Jesus is contrasted to this. The Spirit rests upon him without measure.

[3:35]  ⁴³ tn Grk “has given all things into his hand” (an idiom).

[3:36]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “refuses to believe,” or “disobeys.”

[3:36]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “anger because of evil,” or “punishment.”

[3:36]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “resides.”