From: Matthew 11:25-30
Jesus Thanks His Father
[25] At that time Jesus declared, "I thank Thee, Father, Lord of
Heaven and earth, that Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and
understanding and revealed them to babes; [26] yea, Father, for such
was Thy gracious will. [27] All things have been delivered to Me by My
Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows
the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal
Him. [28] Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will
give you rest. [29] Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me; for I am
gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
[30] For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light."
Commentary:
25-26. The wise and understanding of this world, that is, those who
rely on their own judgment, cannot accept the revelation which Christ
has brought us. Supernatural outlook is always connected with
humility. A humble person, who gives himself little importance, sees;
a person who is full of self-esteem fails to perceive supernatural
things.
27. Here Jesus formally reveals His divinity. Our knowledge of a
person shows our intimacy with Him, according to the principle given by
St. Paul: "For what person knows a man's thoughts except the spirit of
the man which is in him?" (1 Corinthians 2:11). The Son knows the
Father by the same knowledge as that by which the Father knows the
Son. This identity of knowledge implies oneness of nature; that is to
say, Jesus is God just as the Father is God.
28-30. Our Lord calls everyone to come to Him. We all find things
difficult in one way or another. The history of souls bears out the
truth of these words of Jesus. Only the Gospel can fully satisfy the
thirst for truth and justice which sincere people feel. Only our Lord,
our Master--and those to whom He passes on His power--can soothe the
sinner by telling him, "Your sins are forgiven" (Matthew 9:2). In this
connection Pope Paul VI teaches: "Jesus says now and always, `Come to
Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.' His
attitude towards us is one of invitation, knowledge and compassion;
indeed, it is one of offering, promise, friendship, goodness, remedy of
our ailments; He is our comforter; indeed, our nourishment, our bread,
giving us energy and life" ("Homily on Corpus Christi", 13 June 1974).
"Come to Me": the Master is addressing the crowds who are following
Him, "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew
9:36). The Pharisees weighed them down with an endless series of petty
regulations (cf. Acts 15:10), yet they brought no peace to their
souls. Jesus tells these people, and us, about the kind of burden He
imposes: "Any other burden oppresses and crushes you, but Christ's
actually takes weight off you. Any other burden weighs down, but
Christ's gives you wings. If you take a bird's wings away, you might
seem to be taking weight off it, but the more weight you take off, the
more you tie it down to the earth. There it is on the ground, and you
wanted to relieve it of a weight; give it back the weight of its wings
and you will see how it flies" (St. Augustine, "Sermon" 126).
"All you who go about tormented, afflicted and burdened with the burden
of your cares and desires, go forth from them, come to Me and I will
refresh you and you shall find for your souls the rest which your
desires take from you" (St. John of the Cross, "Ascent of Mount
Carmel", Book 1, Chapter 7, 4).
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.