And it came to pass when Jesus had finished commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and preach in their cities.
Now when John heard in the prison the works of the Christ, he sent by his disciples
and said unto him, Art thou he that cometh, or look we for another?
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and tell John the things which ye hear and see:
the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have {Or, the gospel}good tidings preached to them.
And blessed is he, whosoever shall find no occasion of stumbling in me.
And as these went their way, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to behold? a reed shaken with the wind?
But what went ye out to see? a man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft raiment are in kings' houses.
{Many ancient authorities read But what went ye out to see? A prophet? }But wherefore went ye out? to see a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet.
This is he, of whom it is written,
{Malachi 3:1}Behold, I send my messenger before thy face,
Who shall prepare thy way before thee.
Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist: yet he that is {Greek: lesser.}but little in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and men of violence take it by force.
For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
And if ye are willing to receive {Or, him}it, this is Elijah, that is to come.
He that hath ears {Some ancient authorities omit to hear.}to hear, let him hear.
But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the marketplaces, who call unto their fellows
and say, We piped unto you, and ye did not dance; we wailed, and ye did not {Greek: beat the beast.}mourn.
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a demon.
The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of {See marginal note on chapter 5:46.}publicans and sinners! And wisdom {Or, was}is justified by her {Many ancient authorities read children: as in Luke 7:35.}works.
Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his {Greek: powers.}mighty works were done, because they repented not.
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the {Greek: powers.}mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
But I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment, than for you.
And thou, Capernaum, shalt thou be exalted unto heaven? thou shalt {Many ancient authorities read be brought down.}go down unto Hades: for if the {Greek: powers.}mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in thee, it would have remained until this day.
But I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
At that season Jesus answered and said, I {Or, praise}thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou didst hide these things from the wise and understanding, and didst reveal them unto babes:
yea, Father, {Or, that}for so it was well-pleasing in thy sight.
All things have been delivered unto me of my Father: and no one knoweth the Son, save the Father; neither doth any know the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to reveal him.
Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Querverweise zu Matthäus 11,14 Mt 11,14
And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house), yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elijah must first come?
And he answered and said, Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things:
but I say unto you, that Elijah is come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they would. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them.
Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thy heart, and hear with thine ears.
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah come.
And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
And they asked him, saying, {Or, The scribes say…come.}How is it that the scribes say that Elijah must first come?
And he said unto them, Elijah indeed cometh first, and restoreth all things: and how is it written of the Son of man, that he should suffer many things and be set at nought?
But I say unto you, that Elijah is come, and they have also done unto him whatsoever they would, even as it is written of him.
I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
And he shall {Some ancient authorities read come nigh before his face.}go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just; to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.
I fed you with milk, not with meat; for ye were not yet able to bear it: nay, not even now are ye able;
And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elijah? And he saith, I am not. Art thou the prophet? And he answered, No.
They said therefore unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as {Isaiah 40:3.}said Isaiah the prophet.
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as {See marginal note on chapter 3:9}worshipped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years.