Denunciation of the guilty cities

St Matthew Chapter XI : Verses 20-24

Contents

• Matt. xi. 20-24 Douay-Rheims text & Latin text (Vulgate).
• Notes on the text

Matt. xi. 20-24

The guilty cities.(From Palestine in the time of Christ).

20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein were done the most of his miracles, for that they had not done penance.

Tunc cœpit exprobrare civitatibus, in quibus factæ sunt plurimæ virtutes ejus, quia non egissent pœnitentiam :

21 Woe to thee, Corozain, woe to thee, Bethsaida: for if in Tyre and Sidon had been wrought the miracles that have been wrought in you, they had long ago done penance in sackcloth and ashes.

Væ tibi Corozain, vae tibi Bethsaida : quia, si in Tyro et Sidone factae essent virtutes quæ factæ sunt in vobis, olim in cilicio et cinere pœnitentiam egissent.

22 But I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment, than for you.

Verumtamen dico vobis : Tyro et Sidoni remissius erit in die judicii, quam vobis.

23 And thou Capharnaum, shalt thou be exalted up to heaven? thou shalt go down even unto hell. For if in Sodom had been wrought the miracles that have been wrought in thee, perhaps it had remained unto this day.

Et tu Capharnaum, numquid usque in caelum exaltaberis? usque in infernum descendes, quia si in Sodomis factæ fuissent virtutes quae factæ sunt in te, forte mansissent usque in hanc diem.

24 But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

Verumtamen dico vobis, quia terræ Sodomorum remissius erit in die judicii, quam tibi.

Notes

    21. Woe to thee, Corozain. The site of Corozain was long unknown. It has been recently identified with Keraseh, formerly a town some 2 miles inland from Capharnaum. Now it is in ruins, and only a few heaps of basaltic stones mark the site ; not a single dwelling remains.

    This reference to Corozain is another illustration of the fragmentary character of our gospel narratives. Of all the mighty works done there, not one is mentioned in detail, nor is the city even named, except in this verse and in its parallel (St Luke x. 13). St Luke records our Lord’s denunciation of these cities in another context, and his order seems preferable, since he places it after the last Galilean mission, and it seems more likely that Jesus would only foretell the woes to come, when He had done all He could to lead the cities to repentance.

    Bethsaida. This must mean the native town of St Peter and St Andrew, since we only know of one occasion when Christ visited Bethsaida Julias, when He fed the five thousand, whereas He was frequently in Bethsaida on the coasts of the lake.

    sackcloth. A coarse material made of goat’s hair. It was worn next to the skin. Sacks as well as garments were made of it. To wear sackcloth and sit on ashes was a sign of mourning.

    Cf. And the word came to the king of Ninive : and he rose up out of his throne, and cast away his robe from him, and was clothed with sackcloth, and sat in ashes (Jonas iii, 6),

    22. Tyre and Sidon. The inhabitants of these towns welcomed Christ and followed Him in crowds. The prophets had frequently denounced these cities (see Is. xxiii.).

    23. Capharnaum. Christ’s own city.

    shalt thou he exalted. In St Luke’s gospel this stands affirmatively, which art exalted. (ἡ . . . . ἡψωθεῖα, instead of interrogatively μὴ . . . . ὑψωθήσῃ ;)

    This exaltation of the city may refer to—

    (a) the fact that Jesus honoured it by dwelling there.

    (b) its wealth, derived chiefly from its fisheries.

    (c) its lofty site.

    The threat, “ Thou shalt he thrust down to hell,” brings out the contrast between the expectations of the inhabitants of the city, and the utter destruction that was to come upon it.

    unto hell. Lit. to the abode of “Hades” (ἕως ᾅδου). The Jews distinguished between “ Gehenna,” the place of torment, and Hades, which was often spoken of as Abraham’s bosom. Many people regard Hades as meaning “ unseen.” If this be so, the prophecy would be very literally fulfilled.

    “When our Lord uttered this woe, these cities on the shores of Genesareth were bright, populous, and prospering ; now, they are desolate heaps of ruins in a miserable land. The inhabitants who lived thirty years longer may have recalled these woes in the unspeakable horrors of slaughter and conflagration which the Romans then inflicted on them. It is immediately after the celebrated description of the loveliness of the Plain of Genesareth that Josephus goes on to tell of the shore strewn with wrecks and putrescent bodies,” insomuch that the misery was not only an object of commiseration to the Jews, but even to those that hated them and had been the authors of that misery (Jos., B.J., iii. 10).

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.