A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things

 

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."

 

- Matthew 12:33-42 

 

Yesterday we read that one was brought to Jesus who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.  Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come." 

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?"  Jesus is addressing an agricultural society; to understand the fruit of a tree is meaningful in context, and also in the light of the words of John the Baptist, which He echoes here.  Brood of vipers was a phrase John used for the Pharisees and Sadducees who came to his baptism.  Brood means "offspring," indicating their deception and malice, and it's also an image of being under the influence of Satan.  John also said, "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  See Matthew 3:7-10.  Jesus will use the expression "Brood of vipers" for them again in Matthew 23:33.

"For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."  My study Bible comments that the heart in Scripture refers to the center of consciousness, the seat of the intellect and the will, and the place from which spiritual life proceeds.  When God's grace permeates the heart, it says, grace masters the body and guides all actions and thoughts.  On the other hand, when malice and evil capture the heart, a person becomes full of darkness and spiritual confusion.  

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."  My study Bible remarks that after so many signs, the Pharisees show their wickedness by demanding yet another.  Jesus does not cater to those who demand a sign out of wicked intent.  The only sign to them will be His Passion and Resurrection.  In the story of the prophet Jonah, we read of his being swallowed up for three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, as well as the men of Nineveh who practiced repentance at Jonah's preaching.  (See Jonah 1-4.)   Jonah's experience in the belly of the fish is used here as an image of Christ's experience of death and Resurrection.  The queen of the South is the Queen of Sheba, who did indeed come from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon (see 1 Kings 10:1-13).  Adulterous generation is an echo of the illustration which the prophets used for Israel, when Israel was unfaithful to God (Jeremiah 2; Hosea 2:2-13).  

The things Jesus says in today's reading are highly related for us to His admonition in yesterday's reading about the Holy Spirit.  All of the works to which He refers, whether or not He speaks of His own "signs" or mighty works, or the wisdom of Solomon and the preaching of Jonah, are all signs of the Kingdom, and especially the work of the Holy Spirit in the world.  When Jesus cites the Queen of the South and the men of Nineveh, He speaks of those in the spiritual history contained in the Old Testament Scripture who were able to see, to repent, and to have faith at the signs that were given to them.  The Queen of the South and the men of Nineveh grasped the reality of God at work in their presence.  But the scribes and Pharisees, those whom Jesus calls the "brood of vipers" are incapable of this understanding and recognition.  Through their own hardness of heart, their own lack of desire to recognize any authority in Jesus which would in some way upset their own, they fail to do what those foreigners had done.  They deride Jesus and His works, they declare them to be works of the devil, and they demand signs as proofs before they will recognize any authority in Him as being from God or done by the Spirit of God (see yesterday's reading, above).  We hear Jesus speak of those in the past who were capable of recognizing God at work in the world through the prophecy of Jonah or the wisdom of Solomon.  We hear Him condemn those of His time who fail to recognize anything that He does, although they are the religious leaders and experts in Scripture.  But this passage invites us to ask ourselves if we can recognize the work of God in our midst, in our lives.  Can we perceive the Spirit at work?  Do we understand how grace can be at work in us?  Can we recognize the work of the Spirit of God in others?  Can we perceive it in Scripture or other works?  Do we know the saints?  These remain  living questions for us.  Let us hear in the words of Christ His burning and vibrant call.  We are to guard our hearts, and lay down firm foundations through prayer, study, participation in the life He offers.  In this way we will have "good treasure" from which we can draw forth good things, and recognize also "good treasure"  in what we may see and hear.  A good heart, as Jesus says, may also speak that which is given by grace.