But wisdom is justified by all her children

 

 Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?'"  And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard:  that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."  

 

When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak 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 are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings' courts.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written:

'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, 

Who will prepare Your way before You.'

"For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."  

 

And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him. 

And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:

'We played the flute for you,

And you did not dance;

We mourned to you,

And you did not weep.'

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

 

- Luke 7:18–35 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus concluded all His sayings in the Sermon on the Plain in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.  And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.  So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue."  Then Jesus went with them.  And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.  Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You.  But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me.  And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"  And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.  Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd.  And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow.  And a large crowd from the city was with her.  When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."  Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still.  And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  So he who was dead sat up and began to speak.  And He presented him to his mother.  Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and, "God has visited His people."  And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region.   

 

  Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?'"  And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard:  that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."  My study Bible comments that John the Baptist was imprisoned shortly after Jesus was baptized (Mark 1:14).   Though John had directed his disciples to follow Christ (John 1:29-31, 35-37), some remained with him.  As John's own faith was no doubt strengthened by the signs performed by Jesus, patristic commentary university frames this encounter as a way used by John to convince his remaining disciples that Jesus Christ was truly the Coming One.

When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak 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 are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings' courts.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.'  For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."   Here, speaking of John the Baptist, Jesus quotes from the prophecy of Malachi (Malachi 3:1), teaching this crowd that John the Baptist was the fulfillment of that prophecy.  My study Bible comments that, although John was the greatest prophet, his life and ministry still belonged to the period of the old covenant.  It notes that the new covenant so far surpasses the old that the least in the kingdom is greater than the greatest outside of it.  This doesn't imply that John won't be resurrected to the Kingdom -- but only that his life in the world came before something much superior. 

 

 And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.  Again, we see the split among the people, the evidence for John's status as the greatest prophet acceptable to those who practiced repentance (the tax collectors), but not not to the Pharisees and lawyers (scribes).  See also Mark 11:27-33.

And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we mourned to you, and you did not weep.'  For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'"  Here Jesus is referring to a children's game of the time.  It was played in two groups.  One group would mimic musicians, with the other responding to the type of music being played (the flute for dancing, or singing a dirge for mourning).   My study Bible comments that the Pharisees were so rigid in their religion that they were unable to respond and engage the world around them.  So here they reject John as being too mournful and ascetic, and Christ as being too merciful and joyous.  

"But wisdom is justified by all her children."  My study Bible states that in spite of being rejected by the Pharisees, both John and Christ are justified, not by the opinions of men, but by their children.  That is, their spiritual children:  those who would come to believe and be faithful. 

Today Jesus gives us the image of playing a children's game:  one group mimics playing music for dancing, and the other's supposed to dance.  When they mime dirges for mourning, the other children are meant to feign weeping.  But of course, children will spite one another for a laugh, and then the first group will complain.  How delightful it is that Jesus uses a children's game, an image of kids playing in a marketplace, to make a point.  It makes us remember what a wonderful observer of human nature He is, and all the details He knows about our lives, and how we live and have grown up.  But on the other hand, He's giving us an example that emphasizes the childish (or perhaps we might say spiritually immature) attitude on display by "the men of this generation."  They expect God -- and all manifestations and ministries of the Holy Spirit at work in the world -- to conform to their demands and expectations.  This is a generation that scoffs at and rejects what God does in the world.  They will, apparently, find any excuse to criticize and to condemn.  Jesus says, "For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'"  John the Baptist was an extreme ascetic, one who lived in the wild, and made no reliance upon anyone but God (see Mark 1:6 for a description).  But then there is Jesus, who dines with sinners and tax collectors, even choosing one for His disciple (Matthew).  Note how Jesus begins by defending John against the criticisms of the people; why would they expect a holy man like John to be an effete person, wearing soft clothes, one who could be shaken by the wind.  Such people live in luxury in king's courts.  John the Baptist is in a king's palace, truly, but he's in the prison, and he will die in a gruesome manner in that king's court (Mark 6:14-29).  Clearly the people Jesus is speaking to object to John's rough outer appearance, his rigorous ascetic life, and so Jesus chides them for their expectations.  He tells them that John is a prophet and more -- no greater prophet has ever arisen in Israel, and John is the one who has announced the coming of the Messiah.  These sharp images teach us to understand what it means to come close to God working in the world.  God gives us surprises; sometimes those surprises may be vivid enough to hit us like a slap across the face.  Sometimes they might seem to offend all that we think is good, like Jesus eating and drinking with notorious people like tax collectors and other sinners.  But Jesus teaches us something very important:  we're not to judge by our expectations and appearances.  There is a different way to see with the heart.  All those people who went out to be baptized by John seemingly can accept Jesus' words.  But the ones who felt they had no need to repent in the first place cannot.  They think they know.  But Christ teaches a similar lesson to the one He taught in Monday's reading:  that one knows a tree by its fruit.  And both John and Jesus will be known by their children, their spiritual children, the fruits of the tree.  For God works by grace, and God will always surprise us.  With God, paradox is key -- both John and Jesus have ministries in which God is working in the world, regardless of how they might look on the surface.  In the Church, saints come in all forms and guises, in all centuries, each a vigorous expression of God's light and energies working through them in the world.  For wisdom is holy wisdom; the word in Greek is σοφια/sophia.  Let us learn to see as those who seek this light, with hearts true to wherever it is found.