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Advent · Third Sunday in Advent · Year A

Matthew 11:2-15

The One Who Is to Come

December 14, 2025

Saint John the Baptist in Prison Visited by Two Disciples, Giovanni di Paolo
Saint John the Baptist in Prison Visited by Two Disciples, Giovanni di Paolo, c. 1455–1460Art Institute of Chicago
A Sienese panel from a series on the Baptist's life, with the prison drawn as a pink stone box and the disciples leaning in at a grille.This is the scene the reading describes: John, locked up, sending to ask whether he was right about who Jesus was.Giovanni di PaoloA Sienese painter who ignored the Florentine Renaissance entirely and kept gold grounds and strange colour into old age.Art Institute of ChicagoFounded in 1879 as both a museum and a school, and the home of American Gothic and of a famous Impressionist collection.Art Institute of Chicago
LSB Three-Year Lectionary
GospelMatt. 11:2-15Mt 11:2-15
EpistleJas. 5:7-11Jas 5:7-11
Old TestamentIsa. 35:1-10Is 35:1-10
PsalterPs. 146Ps 146

Overview & Insights

“Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk” (Matthew 11:4-5)

John asks his question from prison (v. 2), and the answer given is not an argument but an inventory. The list in v. 5 assembles phrases from Isaiah 35:5-6 and 61:1, with one item, the cleansing of lepers, that no prophetic text supplies and the Gospel has already narrated at 8:1-4. The reply closes with a beatitude that concedes the difficulty rather than removing it (v. 6). Jesus then speaks about John rather than to him, and the assessment is double: no one born of women is greater, and the least in the kingdom is greater still (v. 11), a sentence that leaves John on the far side of a line he himself announced. Verse 12 is notoriously ambiguous in Greek and can describe the kingdom as suffering violence or as breaking in by force. The quotation of Malachi 3:1 at v. 10 and the identification at v. 14 make John the Elijah of Malachi 4:5.

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Commentary

Commentary on Matthew 11:2-11Commentary on Mt 11:2-11 workingpreacher.org

Explores why John the Baptist, in prison, asks whether Jesus is 'the one who is to come' despite recognizing him at the baptism.

Gospel: Matthew 11:2-15 (Advent 3: Series A)Gospel: Mt 11:2-15 (Advent 3: Series A) 1517.org

1517's Series A gospel article covers the full LSB pericope, Matthew 11:2-15, John's question from prison and Jesus' answer about the kingdom.

Matthew 11:2-11 CommentaryMt 11:2-11 Commentary cepreaching.org

CEP commentary on Jesus' answer to John's doubt, blessing those who accept God's plan even against their own expectations.

Matthew 11 Commentary: Not the Messiah they Expected Him to BeMt 11 Commentary: Not the Messiah they Expected Him to Be enduringword.com

Guzik walks through Jesus' reply to John's disciples (11:2-6) and his praise of John (11:7-15) as not the Messiah John expected.

Advent 3 • Matthew 11:2–15 • December 12, 2010Advent 3 • Mt 11:2–15 • December 12, 2010 concordiatheology.org

Concordia Seminary's Advent 3 homiletical help on Matthew 11:2-15, on Jesus' kingdom lifting the weak over the powerful.

Background & Word Study

Matthew 11:2-11 – The Question of John the BaptistMt 11:2-11 – The Question of Jn the Baptist enterthebible.org

Luther Seminary background piece on John's question from prison, its place in the movement of Matthew's Gospel.

Matthew 11:2 Greek InterlinearMt 11:2 Greek Interlinear biblehub.com

Word-by-word Greek parsing of Matthew 11:2, John hearing in prison of the works of the Christ.

The Church Fathers

Matthew 11Mt 11 catenabible.com

Catena's Matthew 11 text with patristic comments, including Chrysostom on John's greatness in verse 11, framing the 2-15 pericope.

Sermons & Reflections

Has It All Been for Nothing? journeywithjesus.net

Debie Thomas's Advent 3 essay on John's crisis of doubt from prison in Matthew 11:2-11 and Jesus' compassionate answer.

Worship & Prayers

Three-Year Series Prayers of the Church lcms.org

LCMS's Three-Year Series Prayers page, the authentic Lutheran source of intercessions keyed to the Advent propers.

Podcast

Third Sunday of Advent - Sermon Brainwave workingpreacher.org

Sermon Brainwave discusses all three Advent 3 Year A readings, including Matthew 11:2-11 and John's question from prison.

Study Hub

Matthew 11:2-11Mt 11:2-11 textweek.com

Text Week's curated resource index specifically compiled for Matthew 11:2-11, the Advent 3 gospel.

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