Matthew 21:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, "‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?"

NIV: "Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, " ‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’ ?"

NASB: and they said to Him, 'Do You hear what these children are saying?' And Jesus *said to them, 'Yes. Have you never read, ‘FROM THE MOUTHS OF INFANTS AND NURSING BABIES YOU HAVE PREPARED PRAISE FOR YOURSELF’?'

CSB: and said to him, "Do you hear what these children are saying?" Jesus replied, "Yes, have you never read: You have prepared praise from the mouths of infants and nursing babies?"

NLT: They asked Jesus, 'Do you hear what these children are saying?' 'Yes,' Jesus replied. 'Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’ '

KJV: And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise

NKJV: and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise’?”

The chief priests and scribes, along with the Pharisees, will grow increasingly furious with Jesus during these last days leading up to the crucifixion. In Matthew's gospel, this is the first confrontation with them during this week but certainly not the last. Right now, the religious leaders are angry with Jesus because some children in the temple who saw Him heal blind and lame people are praising Him. Specifically, they are echoing the shouts of the triumphal entry from the previous day (Matthew 21:1–10), "Hosanna to the Son of David!"

The priests and scribes ask Jesus if He hears what the children are saying. They know, of course, that Jesus can hear the children as well as they can. The question is meant to tell Jesus He should stop the children from speaking blasphemy. After all, those words are for the Messiah and, perhaps, for God Himself. Jesus should know that and put an end to it.

Jesus, though, responds with a question back to them. He asks, in essence, if they have never read Psalm 8:2. As with their question to Him, Jesus understands they know the passage well. This was a common Jewish way of making a point. Jesus references a Greek translation of the verse, "Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise." The Hebrew version of the verse translates to "strength" in most English versions, rather than "praise."

Jesus' point is that God is the one who causes children to praise Himself. The fact that Jesus applies this verse to Himself could only infuriate the religious leaders even further. In essence, Jesus is acknowledging that not only is He the Messiah, He is also equivalent with God. He will not stop the children from the praise God has prepared them to give to Him.

Matthew 21:12–17 describes Jesus' entrance into the massive Jewish temple in Jerusalem during what we now call Holy Week. He immediately drives a marketplace out of the temple and overturns the money-changers' tables. He also heals some blind and lame people and refuses to silence some children who are praising Him as the Son of David. He quotes part of a psalm to chief priests and scribes who find this inappropriate.

Jesus fulfills a prophecy from Zechariah about the coming of the king to Jerusalem by riding in on a donkey. The people celebrate and praise Him as the Messiah. Jesus drives the marketers and moneychangers out of the temple and heals some people. He curses a fig tree and tells the disciples nothing will be impossible for them with faith. Jesus forces cowardly and hypocritical religious leaders to back down with a question about John the Baptist. He then exposes their fraudulent spirituality with two parables about vineyards. Jesus applies to Himself a psalm about a rejected stone being made the cornerstone by the Lord.

Matthew 21 finds Jesus arriving near Jerusalem after leaving Jericho in the previous chapter. His triumphal entry is accomplished riding a donkey, and to raucous praise, fulfilling a prophecy about the Messiah. Jesus cleanses the marketplace from the temple, heals, and presents lessons about faith and Israel's failed leadership. This leads into further conversations which Matthew compiles from Jesus' interactions with the Pharisees.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.