VIolent Take it By Force
12 From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.
11:12 Verse 12 forms an amazingly difficult interpretive crux. The difficulties arise because biazomai and biastēs (“forcefully advancing” and “forceful men”) can be taken as either positive or negative terms. The NIV renderings seem implausible. Biazomai is most commonly negative and passive, meaning to suffer violence. The de (but) that introduces v. 12 suggests a contrast with v. 11, also making v. 12a more likely negative. Biastai in conjunction with harpazousin (“lay hold of,” but more commonly attack) seems likely to be negative too: violent people attack the kingdom. This combination of translations would then lead the verse to be rendered something like “from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent people attack it.”
This translation fits well with the narrative flow of Matthew. Despite the many blessings of the arriving kingdom, from the early days of John’s ministry to the present moment in Jesus’ life, God’s reign has nevertheless received increasing opposition. John has been arrested by Herod. The Jewish teachers are increasingly opposing Jesus, and people are growing more and more discontent with Jesus’ refusal to promote revolution. Luke’s apparent parallel (Luke 16:16) is so isolated and in such a different context that it hardly seems germane to an interpretation of Matthew, despite its seemingly more positive sense there.
No enemy was ever yet won by a vindictive conduct. We may, it is true, silence him by power, but we never can gain his affections by anything but love.
CHARLES SIMEON*