Luke 7:18-35

Exegetical Work

In context:

There is quite a strong contrast we have at the beginning of ch 7, we have the account of the centurion in Pernaum and how he believes Jesus’ word and his servant is healed from a distance coz he understands how authority works, and that is followed immediately by the healing of the widows son in the town “nane?” It was the south of Nazareth is southern Galilee.

And so we have two clear evidences that Jesus really is the one. And then vs 17- the raising of the widows son ends with, “and this word went out in the whole of Judea about him and in all the surrounding region.”

Presumably this is the word that John hears but ofcourse he is in prison. And so his experience is contradicting the report he is hearing about Jesus. And so that is where the text picks up at vs 18.

In Luke 7, it is like Zephania, of people within the ppl, hiddeness, trusting that YHWH has delivered and will deliver, even when it maybe doesnt look like it. This is also in Luke 7.

This is out of the blue, we have not heard from John since 3:20.

See CROSS REFERENCE: Mathew 11:2-19 - Gibbs

*18 ⸂Καὶ ἀπήγγειλαν Ἰωάννῃ οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ περὶ πάντων τούτων.*⸃ καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος δύο τινὰς τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ ⸋ὁ Ἰωάννης⸌

And the disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John,

And the subject –his disciples, announced-from “ἀπαγγέλλω” , we are going to have more announcing going on, to John and for John’s sake. And John we have a participle, nom, sg, masculine referent.

After he had (proskaleomai) summoned two of his disciples, John

*19 ⸂ἔπεμψεν πρὸς τὸν ⸀κύριον λέγων⸃· σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἢ ⸁ἄλλον προσδοκῶμεν;*

 calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”

John, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you” emphatic, the su there is unnecessary so there is a little emphasis there. ARE YOU, the coming one OR and a deliberative subjunctive, προσδοκῶμεν “to look for or expect” or shall we look, or because it is present subjunctive, “shall we go on looking” for another.

There is some irony here, Luke 3:15 “As the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ,”

Related to the word prosdokaov, it is interesting, in the ministry of John himself, in 3:15 that verse starts with a genitive absolute “as all the people were expecting and asking John” and John says, no I am not the Christ. But now, in light of his own experience, John is asking a genuine question.

In ancient commentaries, some of the early church fathers were very reluctant to imagine that John was actually asking a question. How could the baptizer have any questions or doubts whatsoever? And they typically quote John 1” behold the lamb who takes away the sin of the world.”

And so John didn’t really have a question, the question was really for the sake of his disciples. That’s what they said. But, this is not what it says.

The question is offered not only once but twice in Mathew. We don’t need to think of John as losing faith completely, but he is actually asking a question, “are you the coming one or shall we look for another?”

Coz Luke repeats himself, vs 20,

TANNEHILL - different view

John’s question does not represent the weakening of previous belief but the hopeful exploration of a possibility. The possibility occurs BECAUSE of his disciples’ report concerning “all these things” that Jesus has been saying and doing. John raises a question that others, too, will raise concerning the implications of Jesus’ work for an understanding of Jesus himself and his future role.

John asks if “the one who is to come” There are different opinions on this. Some think it is a reference to Elijah of Mal 3:1-2; 4:5, who will be a fiery reformer, this view thinks jesus rejects this role.

Others see a general eschatological expectation, not an expectation for a specific figure. Nolland 1989, 328-29) has this view.

Tannehill - thinks in Luke this is applied to Messiah. John’s question is linked to his earlier statement, “that the one…more powerful than I is coming” 3:16 John is responding to the peoples question whether John is the Messiah in 3:15; therefore he is referring to the Messiah in 3:16.

ALSO: the word “wait for”prosdokao in 7:19 is also used in 3:15 to express the people’s expectation. Furthermore, the phrase in question (ho erchomenos) returns in 19:38, and there the expected figure is identified as “the king,” that is the Messiah.

EXEGETICAL SUMMARY

20 παραγενόμενοι δὲ πρὸς αὐτὸν οἱ ἄνδρες εἶπαν· Ἰωάννης ὁ βαπτιστὴς ⸀ἀπέστειλεν ἡμᾶς πρὸς σὲ λέγων· σὺ εἶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἢ ⸁ἄλλον προσδοκῶμεν;*

And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”

παραγενόμενοι means to show up, appear. “And after they had appeared to him, the men said, and notice the redundancy, “John the baptizer sent us to you, saying, legw-sg participle- this is John saying it. Are you the coming one or shall we look for another? The question is actually repeated which of course lends some emphasis to it. And it is not too difficult to imagine why, and there are other examples of this in Scripture. Think of Elijah, where in ch 18, he is killing the prophets of Baal, and in chapter 19, he is on the run, saying Lord kill me because I am the only one that is left.

And so it is a genuine question, and it is occasioned by the contrast between what John had hoped for and what seems to be his own experience. (I think also add to this what Seccombe says about John’s expectations. John might be focusing on the texts that speak of judgment.

21 ἐν ⸀ἐκείνῃ τῇ ὥρᾳ ἐθεράπευσεν πολλοὺς ἀπὸ νόσων καὶ μαστίγων καὶ πνευμάτων πονηρῶν καὶ ⸂τυφλοῖς πολλοῖς ἐχαρίσατο⸃ βλέπειν.

 In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.

Now- we get kinda the answer to the question and the springboard to the second part of the text.

He freely gave to many blind ppl to see.

Not sure about verbal aspect- but, maybe we can give this present infinitive an inceptive force, almost as if it were “unablepw” “to begin to see” to regain their sight, but it is the object of the verb ἐχαρίσατο⸃. So it interesting that Luke highlights at that very time, maybe we are to imagine that while the two disciples comes to Jesus and say, “are you the coming one?” he says, well, “hold on just a second, and then he goes, wam wam wam, and heals a bunch of people. And then turns back. That is the way the narrative is structured, but maybe it is just in that general context. And so after doing these deeds of restoring creation, that’s what they are, He is not just showing off.

TANNEHILL

Literally the text reads, “In that hour he cured.” and he did this in the presence of John’s disciples. They are eyewitnesses of Jesus’ healing ministry and can report what they had seen to John. pg 129

22 καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· πορευθέντες ⸂ἀπαγγείλατε Ἰωάννῃ ἃ εἴδετε καὶ ἠκούσατε⸃·

⸆τυφλοὶ ἀναβλέπουσιν,* ⸇ χωλοὶ περιπατοῦσιν,

λεπροὶ καθαρίζονται °καὶ κωφοὶ ἀκούουσιν,

νεκροὶ ἐγείρονται, πτωχοὶ εὐαγγελίζονται·

And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers[a] are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.

Here we have what Wallace would call, an attendant circumstant participle “go and”- “go, announce to John” what you saw and heard. Notice the announcing, there is already a report about Jesus, that was announced to John in vs18 but that didnt help, it didnt take John’s doubts or fears. So Jesus simply, in a sense repeats the message. Look, “I am here, I am doing these things, I am the coming one, that is the import of it.”

Then we have what is not really an OT quotation. If you look at the in the Nesltle Alan, you will see Is 29 and 25 in the margin and 42 etc. And so it is more like the language of Isaiah. “So go and announce to John what you saw and heard,” and here is what it was....blind people are receiving sight, (bunch of present indicatives now) lame people are walking, lepers are being cleansed, and deaf people are hearing, the adj “kofas” is a funny word coz it means “blunt” and you can be blunt with more than one sense, in this case coz the verb is akouw, it means blunt of hearing. In Mark in one place a man is blunt of tongue, so he is mute.

So deaf ppl are hearing, dead are being raised, poor people are being, “good newsed” or as we might say, “having good news preached to them.”

So this is going on and this picks up the Nazareth sermon in Luke 4 where “the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, “set the captive free, announce good news to the poor and proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord’s favor.

Look at my ministry, yes, I am the one and now comes this somewhat cryptic verse 23.

Here we have a gathering of phrases from Is 29, 35, 61, all lists of reversals. Again from Zephaniah that will happen in the age of salvation. So Jesus is saying that the age of salvation is happening. But there is something odd about it and so vs 23.

TANNEHILL V22. pg 130 and 131

Jesus says what the messengers are to tell John in a series of short phrases that, in the Greek consist only of plural nouns followed by third-person plural verbs…the repetition of the same types of words in the same order has a marked rhythmic effect. Use of this formal pattern required reformulation of the texts in the background. We need to see the scriptural background because it gives Jesus’ response in verse 22 its full significance.

Is a group of texts in Isaiah that list in a series, some of the same disabilities as vs 22 and proclaim that these will be eliminated at the time of God’s redemption Is 29:18-19; 35:5-6; 42:18.

Is 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;”

this must be added too for it includes reference to good news for the poor. Is 26:19 “Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead.”

speaks of resurrection of the dead.

However, Lepers and the dead in vs 22, probably reflect the mighty acts of Elijah and Elisha for the widow and Naaman figures , mentioned in 4:25-27 and allusively recalled inn 7:1-17.

Jesus words then mean that not only is He a great prophet like Elijah and Elisha, but reveals that the time of God’s redemption, prophesied in Isaiah, is being realized through Jesus’ ministry.

John asks concerning an eschatological figure called “the one who is to come.” Jesus responds by pointing to the fulfillment of eschatological expectation. He does not give an explicit answer to John’s question, and the answer he does give may puzzle John. These are acts that might be expected of a prophet in the time of fulfillment but not of the Messiah. For the narrator this isn’t a problem. The one sent to “bring good news to the poor” is also the one whom the Lord “annointed” according to 4:18, where Is. 61:1 is quoted. The Messiah appears in the role of a prophet during his earthly ministry. But John and others may not take the same connections.

The reference to good news for the poor is a reference back to Jesus’ announcement in Nazareth, and the blind and the poor are the first and last items in the list of 7:22. Placement of these items in positions of emphasis shows that the fulfillment of Jesus’ announced task in 4:18 is especially in mind.This is a retrospective summary of Jesus’ ministry showing that Jesus has been fulfilling the commission from God that he publicly accepted in Nazareth.

The favorable impression Jesus made in Nazareth turned to rage quickly. The final verse of that scene was a beatitude, but also a warning- this tells John and the Lukan audience that Jesus may still cause offense.

He may offend because He does not fit one’s expectations, and there are other more specific reasons for offense as the Lukan narrative indicates.

We can only rejoice if we can move beyond this offense.

23 καὶ μακάριός ἐστιν ὃς ἐὰν μὴ σκανδαλισθῇ ἐν ἐμοί.*

 And blessed is the one who(whoever) is not offended by me.”

And whoever is not stumblelized, because of me is blessed.

And you can actually stop the reading there and that would work in explaining the major part of the theology of the text because although Jesus in truth is the coming one, there are odd things about His ministry and odd things will happen to those who are attached to it. Even to John himself whom Jesus is about to reveal as someone who is even greater than a prophet but is someone who is prophecied about. This scripture puts to death Jesus as the one who if you follow will make you happy.

This is bizzarre to our way of thinking and yet, it is a hopeful message for those who are struggling, with their sins, with their hardships in life. Are you the coming one? the answer is yes.

And all the signs of Jesus which are about the restoring of life, eyeballs working, legs working, skin being cleaned and ppl restored to the community life, ears working, life restored, poor restored,

All of those came to a focus in the moment when Jesus Himself was restored to life after taking all of that against Himself. And He offers good news. It is an opportunity to walk by faith and not by sight.

24 Ἀπελθόντων δὲ τῶν ἀγγέλων* Ἰωάννου ἤρξατο λέγειν πρὸς τοὺς ὄχλους περὶ Ἰωάννου·* τί ⸀ἐξήλθατε εἰς τὴν ἔρημον˸ θεάσασθαι˸1;* κάλαμον ὑπὸ ἀνέμου σαλευόμενον;

When John's messengers had gone, Jesus[b] began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? (likely a metaphor for a reed that gets shaken back n forth)

start here with a gen absolute. Angelos means messenger, though it is often translated, “angels” this may be the only place in the synoptic gospels where “angelos” refers to messengers.

So after, since it is an aorist prt, apelthontwv, “after the angels of John had departed,” it is kindof a double movement, they were messengers from John, and now, guess what? they have just become messengers to John. Not only do we receive messengers but we also become messengers to encourage one another.

τί ⸀ἐξήλθατε εἰς τὴν ἔρημον then a series of questions. then a semi colon, then θεάσασθαι˸1;* number 1= there are different ways to punctuate. The difference would be, if u follow the 1st punctuation and pause after dessert then “ti” has to be translated as “why.” which it readily can be. Why did you plural, go out into the dessert, pause. And the suggested answer, ironic, to see a reed.

The other way you can do it, it is just a textual decision. It doesnt change much. Is to read θεάσασθαι˸1; with what preceeds in which case, you will translate “ti” not as why but as “what.” So, “What did you go out into the dessert to see?” we will for grins take it that way.

question…now the accusative of the implied repeated verb “to see, a reed by wind shaken?” no one quite knows what to do with this. Gibbs tends to think of it as a metaphor for vasalater. A reed shaken by the wind, bends this way and that way.

And so is this what you thought John was? and the answer is, well, hardly anyone thought that.

So the answer is no.

25 ἀλλὰ τί ⸀ἐξήλθατε˸ ἰδεῖν˸1;* ἄνθρωπον ἐν μαλακοῖς ἱματίοις ἠμφιεσμένον; ἰδοὺ οἱ ἐν ἱματισμῷ ἐνδόξῳ καὶ τρυφῇ ⸁ὑπάρχοντες ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις εἰσίν.

What then did you go out to see? notice the shift to ἰδεῖν˸1;* from erasothai, dont think it means any difference. It is word variation for stylistic purposes. What did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? ἠμφιεσμένον it is not a common verb, means to clothe something. Eida is the duplication of the perfect stem.

What is the sign that this is the perfect prt rather than present? the accent. If present it would go back to the antipenalt. Went out to see a man in soft clothing, being dressed. Take it as passive.

Answer- Behold, and this is an interesting phrase -

those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings' courts. or “those who exist in spendid clothing or luxury are in the kingly things/dwelling/Mathew has the houses of kings.” (John clearly isn’t in a kings house, he is in a kings jail.)

And so no, John isn’t that kind of a guy either, he doesn’t shop at fancy stores. He is a wallmart kind of guy.

26 ἀλλὰ τί ⸀ἐξήλθατε˸ ἰδεῖν˸1;* προφήτην; ναὶ λέγω ὑμῖν, καὶ περισσότερον προφήτου⸆.

What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.

Rather, what did you go out to see? A prophet? (notice this is an inadaquite answer. Yeah, in a way.) Yes, I say to you, here is a comparitive adjective, by the genitive of comparison, “one greater, one more abundant” than a prophet.

Then here is the payoff- vs 27.

*27 οὗτός ⸆ ἐστιν περὶ οὗ γέγραπται·

ἰδοὺ ἀποστέλλω τὸν ἄγγελόν μου πρὸ προσώπου σου,*

ὃς κατασκευάσει τὴν ὁδόν σου ⸋ἔμπροσθέν σου⸌.

This is he of whom it is written,

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

here is the payoff, we have the quote, first line could be from Ex 23:20 ““Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared.”

and the 2nd line is from Malachi 3:1 ““Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.”

Probably the case that in both Mathew and Luke, we are supposed to work a little bit with both. But the dominant reference here is I think to the Malachi verse.

It is the promise of the one who will prepare the way for the Lord before He comes to His temple to judge and to cleanse and to save, ultimately. And the Greek is easy, Behold, I am sending my angel, before your face. Notice how it has become “your face” in the OT it is my face. So as happens so often, Jesus gets put into the place of YHWH.

Who will prepare your way before you, = who is John? he is this figure, he is this messenger. - and again there is irony here, coz John has to send angeloi, and then angeloi get sent back to him and so even the messenger himself needs to receive the message.

Mal 3 talks about the one who will prepare the way before YHWH. “The way of the Lord.” But here it is the way of Jesus. Get it? Jesus is YHWH coming. Mal 3:1 is an eschatological passage talking about the terrible day of YHWH. And so John, even though he is in jail, and even though he is asking these questions, is nevertheless so great that Jesus can say vs 28 “...”

TANNEHIL pg 132

mal 3:1

quote is based on Ml3:1 but the references to “you” and “your” are not found there. The quote has been adapted so that the messenger prepares not for the coming of God (who is speaking) but for another figure, addressed as “you.” This adaptation may have been facilitated by Exo 23:20, which begins in the same way and includes “you” (meaning in context, the ppl of Israel). In the context of Luke, this adaptation of Mal 3:1 is understood to present God speaking to the Messiah about John the Baptist, the messenger who will prepare the Messiah’s way 1:17, 76; 3:4.

By identifying John with Malachis “messenger” there is also the strong suggestion that he is the returning Elijah of Mal 4:5-6. cf Luke 1:17.

*28 ⸀λέγω ὑμῖν,* ⸋μείζων ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν ⸁Ἰωάννου οὐδείς ἐστιν⸌· ⸂ὁ δὲ μικρότερος⸃ ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ μείζων αὐτοῦ ἐστιν.

I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

This is a little awkward, the subject is οὐδείς and then the verb ἐστιν⸌· no one is μείζων becomes the predicate nominative, and it is the comparitive of megas, which means “greater,” no one is greater among born ones of women, γεννητοῖς is just an adj that is functioning as a noun. There is no article on it. Now we have the genitive of comparison -Then John. You have to fix it, “no one is greater than John among those born of women.”

But the μικρότερος⸃ which is a comparative, but in the NT the comparatives often function as superlatives. And so this is often translated not as smaller but as smallest. Not lesser but least. There is a superlative form that would fit here and it would be eilageistas, that would be least, but it is translated here, the least in the reign of God in greater than he.

These verses are debated. Sometimes ppl want to suggest that the referent here in this last clause is to Jesus Himself. That He is the least in the reign of God. Gibbs, that seems unlikely, and is not fitting as nicely into the context. Certainly we could understand that in a good way doctrinally but Jesus seems to be saying to the ppl listening to Him that as amazingly NB in the history of salvation John is, what is happening now in me, is so great that if you belong to that then in some sense you are greater than John. And so it is kinda a historical point. It is not meant to denigrate John at all but it is meant to uplift for Jesus hearers the significance of what Jesus Himself is doing and what John himself announced. And that is kinda reinforced if you took the next 2 verses,

the least are greater than John, this is not putting John down, it is exulting the reign of God. It is exulting the new thing that has begun in Jesus and the new thing that John has prophecied and been the forerunner of.

John is greater than all before him 7:28, because, he, by his call to repentance and his witness to the coming one, directly prepares for the messianic time of salvation when God’s promises will be fulfilled.

The 2nd half of vs 28 qualifies the high ranking of John : even “the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” This statement emphasizes the wondrous nature of the kingdom in which John does not yet participate.

*29 Καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἀκούσας καὶ οἱ τελῶναι ἐδικαίωσαν τὸν θεὸν βαπτισθέντες τὸ βάπτισμα Ἰωάννου·*

(When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just,[c] having been baptized with the baptism of John,

For lectionary- perenthetical suggestion for the lectionary. “all the crowd when they heard this, and the tax...” they declared God in the right. They justified God in the right. They said, God is doing. These are God’s ways because they had been baptized with the baptism, we would have to translate “with the baptism of John.” But the Pharisees and the law experts set aside the will of God unto themselves, because they had not been baptized by him.

So again the ppl and the tax gatherers here who at this point at least are following Jesus and at least some of them believing in Him, are rejoicing at this proclamation where the smallest one has been attached and claimed for the reign of God, and Jesus is greater than John.

Which of course brings up our cultural standards of greatness and importance etc. Oh, this is the gospel where God has cast down the mighty from their throne. And exulted them of low degree. In a sense it is a law application but it flows out of the gospel. What would it look like if in the church I consistently believed this and acted as if God’s standard of greatness is what counted, rather than those most gifted. It would probably be those in nursing homes. Ppl who have been crushed by divorce or tradgedy.

POINT OF TEXT: You can believe even when you have experienced bites against it. Because Jesus has actually come to do what He is doing. And as we have heard, actually our days are not the days of Jeremiah, yes, there is the not yet to come, but the now has actually occured and we rejoice in that.

30 οἱ δὲ Φαρισαῖοι καὶ οἱ νομικοὶ τὴν βουλὴν τοῦ θεοῦ ἠθέτησαν ⸋εἰς ἑαυτοὺς⸌ μὴ βαπτισθέντες ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ.*

but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)

Why? coz they had not been baptized by him. So notice who is rejoicing, it is the outcasts, the lowly, the ones you would look at and say, those are the least.

In context- in the beginning of ch 7 you have the centurion story, and Luke tells us that the elders of the synagogue present the centurions request, and what do they say about the centurion? he is worthy,

Jesus sends a message back and says I am not worthy. It is not about me, it is about you because you have authority and even I a centurion understand what authority is, and Jesus is amazed at his faith.

Jesus has authority for the ones who are not worthy.

Next, the healing of the widows son, Jesus has compassion again, on the littlest, the lowliest, He marvels at the faith of a gentile soldier. He has compassion, upon a widow and on her dead son…and now John’s question comes,

The Jesus we have in ch 7 is the Jesus who responds to those who have faith in Him, even though they themselves are unworthy, He has compassion on those in need.

And now John sends this question? what is the kicker? John is in jail. In ch 9 it becomes known that Herod cuts his head off.

THE QUESTION IS: Are you the right one? not just when you make things better, not just when you respond in obvious ways to our need…Jesus doesnt say, go and tell John, I have just released him. Why not, he raised the widows son from death.

Couldnt Jesus have set John loose? yes. But He didnt.

What a text for people struggling. The answer is BLESSED IS THE ONE WHO IS NOT CAUSED TO STUMBLE BECAUSE OF ME. I am the right Jesus, I am the one, I am bringing God’s kingdom, ultimately I will raise all the dead and heal all the sick and restore sight to all the blind. But there will be times when I wont give you what you think you need.

In those times blessed is the one who is not caused to stumble coz of me.

Yes, Christ does fulfill the promises, and yes of course you take it all the way to the cross, and ultimately you can proclaim the final day, the day which is coming says the Lord.

*31 Τίνι οὖν ὁμοιώσω τοὺς ἀνθρώπους τῆς γενεᾶς ταύτης καὶ τίνι εἰσὶν ὅμοιοι;*

“To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?

32 ὅμοιοί εἰσιν παιδίοις τοῖς ἐν ἀγορᾷ καθημένοις καὶ προσφωνοῦσιν ἀλλήλοις ⸂ἃ λέγει⸃·

ηὐλήσαμεν ὑμῖν καὶ οὐκ ὠρχήσασθε,

ἐθρηνήσαμεν ⸆ καὶ οὐκ ἐκλαύσατε.

They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

33 ἐλήλυθεν γὰρ Ἰωάννης ὁ βαπτιστὴς ⸀μὴ ⸂ἐσθίων ἄρτον μήτε πίνων οἶνον⸃,* καὶ λέγετε· δαιμόνιον ἔχει.

For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’

34 ἐλήλυθεν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐσθίων καὶ πίνων,* καὶ λέγετε· ἰδοὺ ἄνθρωπος φάγος καὶ οἰνοπότης, φίλος τελωνῶν καὶ ἁμαρτωλῶν.

The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

35 καὶ ἐδικαιώθη ἡ σοφία ἀπὸ ⸂πάντων τῶν τέκνων αὐτῆς⸃.*

Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

See CROSS REFERENCE: Mathew 11:2-19 - Gibbs