Matthew 11:25-30

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Matthew 11:25 tn Grk “At that time, answering, Jesus said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.
2. Matthew 11:25 tn Or “thank.”
3. Matthew 11:25 sn The title Lord is an important name for God, showing his sovereignty, but it is interesting that it comes next to a reference to the Father, a term indicative of God’s care. The two concepts are often related in the NT; see Eph 1:3-6.
4. Matthew 11:25 tn Or “that.”
5. Matthew 11:25 sn See 1 Cor 1:26-31, where Paul states that not many of the wise, powerful, or privileged had responded to the gospel.
6. Matthew 11:25 tn Or “to the childlike,” or “the innocent” (BDAG 671 s.v. νήπιος 1.b.β).
7. Matthew 11:26 tn Grk “for (to do) thus was well-pleasing before you,” BDAG 325 s.v. ἔμπροσθεν 1.b.δ states: “as a reverential way of expressing oneself, when one is speaking of an eminent pers., and esp. of God, not to connect the subject directly w. what happens, but to say that it took place ‘before someone.’”
8. Matthew 11:27 sn This verse, frequently referred to as the “bolt from the Johannine blue,” has been noted for its conceptual similarity to statements in John’s Gospel (10:15; 17:2). The authority of the Son and the Father are totally intertwined. The statement here also occurs in Luke 10:22, and serves as a warning against drawing a simplistic dichotomy between Jesus’ teaching in the synoptic gospels and Jesus’ teaching in the Gospel of John.
9. Matthew 11:27 tn Or “wishes”; or “intends”; or “plans” (cf. BDAG 182 s.v. βούλομαι 2.b). Here it is the Son who has sovereignty.
10. Matthew 11:29 sn A yoke is a wooden bar or frame that joins two animals like oxen or horses so that they can pull a wagon, plow, etc. together. Here it is used figuratively of the restrictions that a teacher or rabbi would place on his followers.