But wisdom is justified by her children

 

"But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:

'We played the flute for you,

And you did not dance;

We mourned to you,

And you did not lament.'

"For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  woe to you, 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.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 

- Matthew 11:16-24 

 

Yesterday we read that, as the disciples of John the Baptist departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  For this is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.' Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.  And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.  For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.  And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"   

 

 "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Jesus here refers to a game which was played among Jewish children.  Perhaps the words are a singsong that accompanied the game.  The children would divide into two groups; one would pretend to play musical instruments or to sing, and the other group would respond in a manner opposite to what was expected.  So here Jesus draws a parallel to the Jewish leaders who responded in deliberate opposition both to John the Baptist as being too ascetic and to Christ as too liberal in mercy and joy.  When Jesus says that "wisdom is justified by her children," He seems to be referring to the fact that as different as the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus seem to be, they are both products of holy wisdom, and their spiritual fruits vindicate them.

 

 Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  woe to you, 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.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."  These are the Galilean cities in which Jesus had done great healings and exorcisms (mighty works) and so they are witness to the holy power at work in His ministry.  My study Bible comments that it is a far greater sin to have seen Christ's works and rejected Him than never to have known Him at all.

Jesus' reference to the children's game teaches us something about the attitude of the critics of both Jesus' and John the Baptist's ministries.  There are those who simply will find fault because they don't want to hear or receive the message that is being preached.  The criticism is erratic and it doesn't make sense -- and it's also immature and childish.  But as Jesus takes on His own criticism of the cities which have rejected Him and His ministry, the tone becomes more serious.  Because, in fact, they aren't simply rejecting His words and teaching, but the actual works -- the spiritual fruits -- that manifest the truth of who He is and what He has to teach, His word.  As my study Bible says, to have seen Christ's works and rejected Him is far more serious than never to have known Him at all.  At the end of yesterday's reading, Jesus called out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  Here there is a reflection of an idea that is similar to this, as Jesus is asking for spiritual ears that can hear the spiritual messages brought to the people through the work of the Spirit.  Those who saw His mighty works and still rejected Him haven't got spiritual eyes to see.  They don't understand the power of judgment that is inherent in anything with which God may bless and reveal truth to us.  For to reject such efforts is to reject God, and to reject God is to reject life, and all the blessings that includes for us.  We depend upon God for our being, and all that is true, or good, or beautiful.  What is rejected, then, is that substance that is manifest in the works, the reality of the holy power that  is unchanging, and not simply temporal.  Jesus is not performing magic tricks, or spiritual feats to impress people.  His entire Incarnation in the world is God reaching toward us, bringing salvation for those who can receive it, and truly "see" and "hear" it.  In the first letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul speaks of maturing in a spiritual sense:  "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.  And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:12-13).  He is speaking here about growth in spiritual maturity and understanding, and let us note the metaphors to sight.  His aspiration is for more understanding, to "know just as I also am known" [by God].  This is what Christ asks us for, this spiritual journey, where spiritual sight and hearing are cherished, sought, and known -- as well as the growth toward greater maturity that St. Paul writes about.  Let us especially note the final line.  Where is faith, hope, and love in the self-serving cynicism of the religious leaders?   Love is also known as "charity" in our traditional language of the King James Bible.  Where is the charity in hearts that are so hard they do not even receive the great healings of human beings they have seen?  Let us remember these words and this teaching, for it is our lack of charity and love that blinds us to such great things we are rejecting -- and the depth of loss that creates for us.