The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at this glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is vindicated by her actions.”
Parallel translations
- WEB The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”
- KJV The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.
- NKJV The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”
- NASB The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a heavy drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ And yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
- NLT The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ But wisdom is shown to be right by its results.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus' free association with sinners drew the opposite slander, yet wisdom is vindicated by its results. Critics rejected both John and Christ on contradictory pretexts.
Overview
Where John was condemned for abstaining, Jesus is condemned for eating and drinking with outcasts, proof that the fault lies in the critics, not the messengers. The friend of 'tax collectors and sinners' reveals God's seeking grace toward the lost. 'Wisdom is justified by her children' means God's wise plan is vindicated by its fruit in transformed lives.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Luke 7:34–36The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at this glutton and drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’
- Matt 9:10–11Later, as Jesus was dining at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with Him and His disciples.
- Luke 19:7And all who saw this began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinful man!”
- Luke 15:1–2Now all the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around to listen to Jesus.
- Luke 5:29–30Then Levi hosted a great banquet for Jesus at his house. A large crowd of tax collectors was there, along with others who were eating with them.
- Luke 14:1One Sabbath, Jesus went to eat in the home of a leading Pharisee, and those in attendance were watching Him closely.
- 1 Cor 1:24–29but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
- Prov 17:24Wisdom is the focus of the discerning, but the eyes of a fool wander to the ends of the earth.
- Ps 92:5–6How great are Your works, O LORD, how deep are Your thoughts!
- Luke 7:29All the people who heard this, even the tax collectors, acknowledged God’s justice. For they had received the baptism of John.
- John 12:2–8So they hosted a dinner for Jesus there. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with Him.
- John 2:2and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding.
- Rom 15:2Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
- Rev 5:11–14Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels and living creatures and elders encircling the throne, and their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands.
- Rev 7:12saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
- Eph 3:8–10Though I am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 11:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.