Preaching Paths 9 July 2023

Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary

Today’s Gospel lection, Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30, can seem an odd collection of rhetorically disparate fragments. A parable (vv.16-17), judgment in the form of an antimony (vv.18-19b), a proverb (v. 19c), a brief prayer (vv. 25-26), a chiastic theological self-identification (v.27) and a summons accompanied by promise (vv. 28-30) follow one upon another.  Were we to include the omitted verses (vv.20-24) we could add prophetic judgment and lament.  Jesus sharply contrasts responses to the message of the kingdom—resistance and embrace—and predicts their ultimate consequences.

At Mt 11:2 the spotlight has shifted to John the Baptist who is imprisoned. John may have expected that Jesus, if indeed God’s agent, would surely liberate him in a mighty display of divine power. But there has been no mighty deliverance.The Baptist’s anxious question for Jesus, sent by way of messengers, is the question that lingers through the rest of the gospel:  “Are you the one to come, or do we wait for another?” Jesus answers the messengers; “Go and tell John what you see and hear . . . Let those with ears listen!”  This suggests that these verses are best engaged when we lean in with John’s messengers, listening and watching to discover what the message will be.

Prior to our text, Jesus has publicly celebrated John’s ministry. John has been profoundly effective, and he is not forgotten.  Jesus underscores that he and John, different as they are, have both been rejected by the religious leadership. Like fickle children, those jealous of their power resist anyone who does not dance to their tune (vv. 16-17).Jesus assures his listeners (and John)  that ultimately, “wisdom will be vindicated by her deeds.” Preachers may find it helpful to include Jesus’ judgments against towns and cities indifferent to God’s visitation, skipped by today’s lection. The very winnowing process John himself predicted Jesus would undertake (Mt 3:12) has begun. Further, John predicted that the Coming One would bring purifying fire. Here, Jesus compares the fate of cities indifferent to his message to Sodom and Gomorrah, towns consumed by fire (vv. 21, 23).

Jesus’ self-identification as the very embodiment of the Father’s intent (v.27) employs Father/Son language in chiastic structure, resonating with the divine affirmation heard moments after Jesus’ baptism by John at the Jordan (Mt 3:17).  This constitutes further assurance to John that Jesus is indeed the awaited one.

 Finally, Jesus turns to the Father in prayer, giving thanks that wisdom is being revealed to the “little ones”/”infants” – those of low status and little power who eagerly receive Jesus’ message (vv. 25-26). Addressing those who are weary and bearing heavy burdens—which surely includes the Baptist—Jesus employs the metaphor of the yoke that enables animals to pull in tandem. The metaphor is accessible—even intimate. Jesus seems to suggest that he pulls with us, easing the pressure of the yoke and lightening the burden. Surely Jesus’ closing reassurance is a message to the Forerunner first, and then to all: “You shall find rest for your soul.”

Churches today struggle to proclaim gospel news in a world of instability and human desperation. Too often, injustice seems to win the day; prophetic voices are muzzled. Where is the God of redemptive love and justice in such a world?  Jesus’ report from the field of struggle, carried back to the Baptist by his faithful messengers, is reassurance for today’s congregations as it was to John the Baptist: “Come to me, you that bear heavy burdens . . . You shall find rest for your souls.”