QUESTION: Pr Isaiah, please shed some more light on this verse. Matthew 11:12. I have read the 11 preceding verses to get the context, it seems to be the imprisonment of John the Baptist, and perhaps also foreshadows his subsequent beheading. In some fellowships I attend, this verse is used by Pastors to fire up their congregants to be militant, in claiming blessings, fighting for “church” land, etc. What was Jesus’ meaning behind that statement? the violent take it by force. Nsubuga
RESPONSE: The question is a difficult one and it requires the grace of God to attempt a response and to understand the response as well. The question also calls for some theological expertise and I will briefly employ some in the name of the Lord. However, it serves all of us well to begin from the place where most of us and say that the pastors and preachers who use the verse to motivate and inspire action do well. It matters that sometimes we use the verses to fire-up ourselves especially if we are not inciting crime or sin.
Scripture is for us to use and personally, I don’t have any problem relating biblical verses to present situations. My only problem is founding a doctrinal belief and constructing a creed on a mere homily or biblical chicken soup from the pulpit. Our faith and core belief system must be founded on real Biblical exegesis (analytical Bible study) and not on Homilies (Devotional and emotional use of the Bible). To attempt a response to this question there is no better place to begin from than the context.
Context
My exegesis teacher at college used to begin the classes by saying: context…context…context. He always reminded us that Context might not be everything but everything makes sense with a proper understanding of context. In my further studies and deliberations, I have confirmed that my professor was right. Mathew 11:12 is situated in Mathew 11:2-19 passage. That is the passage context. What we can deduce from this passage context is that whatever Jesus is saying, he is talking about John the Baptist (JB). Let’s outline:
11:2-3 John is was in Prison and it is there he (JB) sent his disciples to confirm whether Jesus was the Christ. 11:4-6 Jesus responds to John’s inquiry. 11:7-10 Jesus commends John and his Ministry. And praises him as one the greatest messengers heaven has ever sent even prophesied by prophet Isaiah. 11:11 Jesus praises the humanity of JB as none greater than he of all born of women, yet JB himself inferior to the least in Heaven. 11:13-15 Jesus addresses JB as the Elijah of then. 11:16-19 Jesus deals with the same criticisms that JB (just like Jesus himself) received.
From this, we can see, the discourse is about John and you need to know that John was a preacher of repentance for the entrance of nowhere else but into the kingdom of God. By the time Mathew 11:12 is mentioned by Jesus however, the charismatic and uncompromising preacher is in jail for being assertive and rebuking the unlikely relationships of the mighty Herod (Mathew 4:12; 11:2; 14:3-4). It is from this background that one doesn’t have to struggle to understand the violence, violent men and taking by force in relation to the kingdom of God in the verse in question.
Key Words in the Greek Text
I have to always remind Bible readers that the English Old Testament is a translation and the New Testament in English is as well a translation. It matters therefore that we don’t always depend on a translation especially if we can read the original language. Here is the text: From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and men of violence take it by force. (Mathew 11:12 RSV) the Greek translated words for the underlined are; Biazo= suffers violence, Biastes= Violent Men and Harpazo= take by force. The meaning of these terms cannot be appreciated through our translations as they can when one does a Greek word study and Syntax on the text.
To not bother you, my reader, (who is not trained theologically), let me put it this way; those who take the verse to be saying that the Kingdom of God is violent and coerces are they that have assumed the term Biazo is in the middle voice. This is a mistake for the term is not in a middle voice but in a passive voice. Space won’t allow me to explain each but for now understand it this way; Biazethai (Biazo) is in the passive and the meaning of the text is: the kingdom of Heaven suffers violence through violent men like Herod (that is why Jesus started by saying; ‘FROM JOHN’) who place hindrances before it. Again, the Kingdom of God suffers violence through violent men like John the Baptist who forcibly (Harpazousin) introduce it in repellant communities/individuals.
Evil and Good: Violent Neighbors
In the evil world, good and what is right, is violent (Biazo), and so it is in the world of good, evil and what is wrong is violent (Biazo). The acts of Herod were Biazo to the coming Kingdom that JB announced and at the same time the correction of JB was Biazo to the sinful world of Herod. The practicality of both kingdom values is an aggressive Harpazo…as good comes full force against what is evil, evil unleashes all its arsenal against good. John the Baptist ought to have minded his own business and not poke his nose into the affairs of Herod and Herodias, but that is what John as a man would do but not GOOD. Good does not mind its own business in the presence of evil and neither does evil in the presence of good. They are both violent to each other.
The gospel is violent and offensive to evil in all its forms (1Corinthians 1:18, 1Peter 2:7-8). The Gospel of Grace and the gossip of salvation by works are aggressively violent to each other. The kingdom of works suffers the violence (Biazo) of Grace and so does the kingdom of works suffer the violence (Biazo) of works. John the Baptist was put in prison for doing and saying what is right (2Timothy 3:12, Mathew 5:10-14; 10:22; 24:9-10). You are probably an enemy of certain sinners whose dear sin you rebuked or actually the sinner enemy to a certain John the Baptist who rebuked your wrongness. Some evil that will become violent to the kingdom of God will be ecclesiastical (Acts 4:1-3). The enemy of the kingdom of God has a divine label on his gown.
Jesus praises the forceful advance of the kingdom of God (by John and whoever else), and at the same time condemns evil violent men (Biastai) opposed to its (Kingdom) values. Still, this is violence to evil. The verse theologically is abused if it is used by Christians to materialistically rob/claim from the other kingdom, be militant or as a blessings key. For theologically the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17 ASV). The verse is moral but not monetary, it is about a bigger mission of winning a war than a mere battle victory. Christianity is an offensive and painful cross reality and then a crown promise.
God bless you I invoke TRUTH, REASON, and FAITH (2Tim 2:7)
Priest Isaiah White (+256-793/775 822833 for further inquiries)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
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