What does it mean that the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John the Baptist? Matthew 11:11

Question

Matthew 11:11 (KJV):

Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Since the least person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John the Baptist, logically he is not part of the kingdom. From other passages, it seems that Jesus thought highly of John, so it seems strange that He would say that John isn't found in the kingdom. How can we resolve this apparent contradiction?

Answer 1

Jesus spoke using many traits of ordinary language, and forcing an interpretation on the passage that does not take into account the ordinary ways that language is used and people communicate ideas only leaves people with twisted conclusions.

Here Jesus is not making a point about John so much as he is making a point about the significance of being included in the Kingdom of heaven. There is a comparison being made about relative significance, but this has nothing to do with passing judgement on John as being in or out of the kingdom. In fact we have every reason to believe that he was himself included in it.

Basically, you're asking the wrong question. It's not a matter of what John the Baptist lacked or that made the other disciples great. In fact the point of the passage is exactly the opposite of that: the success or failure, greatness or smallness of our lives from an earthly view has exactly no bearing on our status in the Kingdom.

The point about John the Baptist was simply that although he played a very special role history -- a role itself foretold as one who would prepare the way at the coming of the Messiah -- this did not make him special in the Kingdom because that placement is dependent on the work of the Son of Man, not that of John. What greater honor could a man have than to be the immediate herald of the greatest event in all of history? And yet that honor and distinction is shown as insignificant compared to the honor that we are all given as believers grafted into God's family being made co-inheritors with Christ in His kingdom.

All this verse shows us is that any earthly rankings in honor are utterly irrelevant when it comes to our membership in the Kingdom.

Answer 2

Abstract

John is not part of the Kingdom of Heaven because his role is to point to and prepare the way for it. Jesus is speaking in the language of eschatology and not in the framework of modern Christian theology.

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The context of the passage is that John has been imprisoned by Herod:

Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”—Matthew 11:2-6 (ESV)

I think it would be natural for John to be worried about his legacy—he was about to be a martyr to an earthly authority and Jesus had not organized any resistance to that authority. In his distress, John sent his disciples for reassurance that Jesus is the Messiah the Israel was waiting for. Jesus' answer was to point to his work, which fulfilled prophecies such as Isaiah 29:17-24, which promised a restoration of the Kingdom of Israel after the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem.

Jesus then addresses the crowd about John's legacy. He contrasts John's poor attire and diet to that of someone living in a king's palace. People came to see John for the same reason they listened to Isaiah, Jeremiah, Elijah, and the rest of the great Biblical prophets: because he claimed to speak with God's voice against oppression and tyranny. John wasn't a draw because he brought God's blessing to the people, but because he was a messenger preparing the way.

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With that in mind, we get to the passage in question:

Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.—Matthew 11:11-15 (ESV)

There's a lot going on here and I can't address it all. However, the key analogy Jesus is drawing is between Herod/Herodias and Ahab/Jezebel (the violent who take the kingdom by force) and between John and Elijah (the ones who suffer violence, but are eventually vindicated). In other words, we should not be surprised John suffered under the thumb of a false king, since all the prophets suffered the same fate.

This analogy is immediately followed by Jesus comparing the people to fickle children. They complained because:

• John was too much of an ascetic, and
• Jesus was too worldly.

But this misses the broad sweep of Israel's history. Jesus saw himself as the master of the messianic banquet, which was anticipated in Jewish eschatology at the time. Those who are downtrodden in the oppressive kingdoms of earthly rulers will rejoice in a reversal of fortunes in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus illustrates the sea change (into something rich and strange) by contrasting the greatest outside of the kingdom to the least in it. At that moment, John certainly was not in the kingdom since he was a forerunner to it and was a prisoner of the violent powers.

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Later in the same address, Jesus says:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.—Matthew 11:28-30 (ESV)

This invitation is open to all people, including John the Baptist. Remember in the beginning of the passage, John expressed doubt that Jesus was who he said he was. Jesus' answer boils down to, "Trust me. It's all going to turn out ok." John the Baptist did die, but the message of Matthew (and the other gospels) is that Jesus overcame the power of death in his own death and resurrection.

Answer 3

I've always interpreted this as that Jesus was referring to the Baptism of the Spirit. John never received the Baptism that Jesus was offering (John even asked Jesus at the time of Christ Baptism that he would baptize him). I think John didn't necessarily want 'water' baptism, but the 'spirit' baptism that Christ only could offer. I think that when Christ said "notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he" he is referring to those that receive the baptism of the spirit.

Answer 4

It must be kept in mind that when Jesus uses the phrase "kingdom of God" or "kingdom of heaven," He is not referring generically to what moderns call "heaven." He is referring to the reign of God in His Messiah. This is why Jesus tells His hearers that the kingdom is "among" them in Luke 17:21. (Not "in"; the Greek is en and can mean either; here Jesus is addressing the Pharisees and surely is not saying that the kingdom is within them, which would make them greater than John!)

The "inferiority" of John is not a knock on his holiness or a comparison of his holiness to that of Jesus' followers. It is a rather a reflection of the fact that John belongs to "the prophets and the law" (see v 13) and not to the kingdom that is arriving in Himself. Paul later compares the time of the law to a period of being under a child custodian; those under it are subject to a minority (childhood) status and are thus unable and unqualified to inherit the eschatological promises (Gal 3:23–4:3). Jesus, however, comes as the mature Heir and all those in Him are full heirs of the promises and recipients of the Spirit (Gal 4:4–7).

Answer 5

I agree with others here who have suggested the simple explanation of a comparison between those born of the flesh and those born of the Spirit. Looking specifically at the phrasing here:

among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

This comparison between those born of women and those of the kingdom reminds me of John 3:1-21, where Jesus addresses something similar with Nicodemus. I'll mention it here as it might help provide insight to the passage of scripture in question.

Many Jews, especially the Pharisees, believed they could attain perfect righteousness through obedience to the law. Paul had believed this before Christ - Philippians 3:4-6. Yet in John 3:2, Jesus says you must be born again / of the Spirit, or you will not see the kingdom of God. He said this to Nicodemus--a ruler and teacher of the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, and one who many other Jews and Pharisees would look up to and respect as one who was circumspect, obedient, righteous, etc. According to the flesh, the law, this man would be considered righteous by their standards. But in John 3:6, Jesus says what is flesh is just flesh; what is spirit is spirit. The works Nicodemus had done according to the flesh was all nothing more than flesh. It didn't count in any way towards becoming worthy of the kingdom of God. He must be born of the Spirit. In this way, someone who had not followed all of the law, one who couldn't come close to the kind of obedience and discipline Nicodemus had, and yet who had been born again, would be greater in the kingdom of heaven. Because he is born again, born of the Spirit, regenerated, etc., he is greater than one who is not born again but who has discipline and obedience in his flesh.

This is what I think Jesus means as well, concerning John the Baptist. He is greater than anyone born of the flesh. But anyone born of the Spirit is greater than him. It's a great reminder that we must not model our lives after another person according to the flesh. Whatever actions or words John spoke, those don't add up to an invitation into the kingdom of God. John, himself, must be born again or else he won't see it. None of us will.

Answer 6

First of all, Jesus never said that John the Baptist "isn't found in the kingdom" as the O.P. statement claims.

Some take "the kingdom of heaven" to mean the place where only 144,000 humans will be found, and that there is an earthly kingdom where a few billion people will live forever (never getting to heaven), One answer does that grave injustice to what Jesus actually said about John.

That answer claims that "by anointing them [the disciples] with holy spirit, the total number of those to be redeemed/purchased from mankind total one hundred and forty four thousand". That view seems to be that John the Baptist had died before that arrangement for a kingdom was inaugurated by Jesus, so that all faithful ones who died prior to Jesus' death would await the still future Day of Resurrection on the earth. They would be raised with physical bodies to work their way (over 1,000 years) to eventual everlasting life on earth. None of those billions will ever see the "kingdom of heaven". The 144,000 are "greater than" all those resurrected to live in the earthly kingdom, with those in heaven ruling over them - hence, superior to them.

It is vitally important to mention this if your question is to be properly answered. Any who labour under a misapprehension, that John will never be found in the heavenly kingdom, which is what they mean when they said he "isn't found in the kingdom", will prevent understanding of my answer.

John was anointed with the Holy Spirit as Luke 1:13-17 makes clear. In part it states:

"For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord... and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb." (A.V.)

So, what did Jesus mean? The preparatory work of John was about to close. Antagonism to Jesus' ministry was open now and there was a turning point reached. This is what Jesus was announcing in Matthew chapter 11, as explained in this book:

"What was the response to the light of that glory of the Messiah which had been testified, and which had shone, throughout their land? The rulers and the nation of Israel totally rejected the light both of Messiah and the kingdom. And why? Because they loved darkness rather than light. This appears throughout the crucial passage in Matthew chapter 11. This is the turning point in the counsel of God toward Israel as a nation. A climax has been reached. At this point testimony has been rendered to the utmost both as to the person and work of Messiah, and the heavenly and spiritual nature of the kingdom." (The Evangel According to Matthew: an exposition p22, John Metcalfe, 2011)

John had, by the Holy Spirit, played his role in that, by preparing a people who, repentant and baptised, would receive Christ as Messiah. He had faithfully fulfilled Malachi 3:1 but would not live to see Christ bring in the New Covenant with his resurrection and ascension. Those he had prepared would. As this other book explains:

"John's ministry will cause men to turn from darkness and to face the Light... [John's] first preaching was in the wilderness. Then there was baptism in Jordan, with confession of sins. Forgiveness of sins is not mentioned. Confession of sins is entailed in receiving John's words and being baptised as a result... Under John's ministry, sins are exposed; sins are admitted; sins are confessed. No more." (The Beginning of the Gospel, page 39, Nigel Johnstone, 2012)

"The ministry of John the Baptist, the preparative messenger, is a ministry that prepares the heart and mind for the coming of Christ to the soul, as conveyed in the gospel. It, itself, does not convey Christ. It prepares for that event. And if the preparation is not received, nor will Christ be received." (Ibid. page 46)

To be prepared to receive the gospel of Christ is essential. Without it, the good seed of the kingdom will not be in rich, deep soil, so as to take root and grow. See Mark 4:1-20. Those properly prepared see Christ as the Light of the world. John's ministry took Christ's people so far, preparing them. It was what followed that was greater than anything John could do. John pointed to the Son, but the Son reveals the Father. After John's death, the mystery of the kingdom began to be opened up, and after Jesus' resurrection, the Holy Spirit was sent to empower all those who had been prepared by John to receive Christ the King of that kingdom. The power of the kingdom began to explode and expand. But up till John's death, there was the light of a new dawn in a dark land, to which John pointed, preparing people for the Light of the world. Thus, those who then saw and believed what John never got to see, could be said to be "greater", for their faith grew on the basis of the resurrection and ascension. Their testimony was therefore greater, as it dealt with the forgiveness of sins through faith in the risen Christ.

Answer 7

I think the answer lies in what Jesus told his disciples about who was greatest in the kingdom. There are children born of the law (flesh) and those born of the Spirit (Grace). In God's kingdom, children born of Grace are of higher rank. Those born of the flesh still see wealth and fame and power as being associated with greatness. Those born of the Spirit, however, are servants. John represented the LAW and the prophets while Jesus represented unmerited Grace. Note that at Jesus baptism, John said 'it is I who needs to be baptized by you'.

Answer 8

There are two interpretations to this passage, depending on how one chooses to interpret the Greek phrase μικρότερος ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν μείζων αὐτοῦ ἐστιν.

The interpretation given in the King James Version - he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he [i.e. John the Baptist] - is consistent with how Cyril of Alexandria, Augustine, Jerome and other Church Fathers read this passage. John, still living on earth, was lesser than any being in heaven, including believers and angels.

The Greek word μικρότερος is actually a comparative form, though (i.e. "lesser" not "least") and can refer to age as well as stature. Byzantine (i.e. Greek) commentators such as John Chrysostom (4th century) understood μικρότερος to mean "younger", rather than "lesser" (or "least"):

He that is younger is greater than he in the kingdom of heaven

"Since he has extolled the praises of John [Matthew 11:7-10]", writes Theophylact of Ohrid,

Lest they think that John is greater than He, He says here more clearly, I am the younger in age and the lesser in your opinion, yet I am greater than he in the kingdom of heaven, that is in regards to spiritual and heavenly good things. For here I appear less than he, both because his birth preceded Mine and because he appears great to you, but there in the kingdom of heaven I am greater.

Explanation of the Gospel According to Matthew

Answer 9

Simple answer those disciples who come after The baptist will receive the full and complete revelation of the word of God. Ergo the full revelation of the kingdom of God. Those true believers; his true church will be greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

So you also need to ask the question when do we enter into the kingdom of heaven/God? Is it when the Holy Spirit comes to dwell with you and in you? When a believer is born again? Heb 9:27 ~ And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, ~

Answer 10

In this case of the speech Christ gave about the Baptizer the translation suffers (and not only the English but the Greek from Hebrew/Aramaic already). What Jesus here was contrasting was the greatness of John as shown in his time and life compared to the coming greatness of the Sons of the Kingdom.

It is not at all excluding this man whom Christ held in highest regard (as the context unsurpassably shows) but indicating and thus announcing the transcending nobility of what is to come. (In his letter to brothers and sisters in Rome Paul wrote that even all human creation is awaiting the coming of the sons of God. (Romans 8).

This misunderstanding has some share in contributing to the widespead disregard of Law and Prophets that has been seen in the church from the 2nd century on. (Papias of Hierapolis wrote that Matthew's account had been translated to Greek by some as good as they could. (The account of events after the death of Christ, chapter 27, appear quite distorted as well. There was with certainty no resurrection of holy ones. Corpses had become exposed after the earthquake. Otherwise it would again have been a contradiction: The dead of Israel regarded holy, but John, great among the prophets, not even considered least of the Kingdom)). Even in translation camels seem to be swallowed easier than mosquitos.

Answer 11

Although John the Baptist was the greatest prophet among all prophets (Mt 11:11), he was spiritually dead. Up until the time of the giving of the Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13), all peoples of all times in the Old Covenant (Old Testament) were spiritually dead notwithstanding that only some were righteous-by-faith. Not until the inauguration of the New Covenant in the Christian New Testament are the righteous-by-faith now "born again" -- that is, they are spiritually born anew (and no longer spiritually dead). Thus the least of people (who is spiritually alive) in the New Covenant is greater than the greatest prophet (who was spiritually dead) in the Old Covenant, who in this case happens to be John the Baptist. Since he was beheaded before Pentecost, John the Baptist did not participate in the heavenly kingdom, or Kingdom of Heaven, which is the New Covenant (Acts 26:17-18 and Colossians 1:13). The exception of course were those from the Old Covenant who were resuscitated from the dead so that they would participate in New Covenant in Matthew 27:52, which correlated in partial fulfillment of Ezekiel 37:13-14, which spoke of the New Covenant.

Answer 12

What does it mean that the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John the Baptist?

Matthew 11:11 (KJV):

"Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

Jesus makes an agreement with his disciples to grant them a kingdom. It is Nisan 14th, the year 33 C.E. and Jesus had just celebrated the Lord's Super with his disciples and says to them: 28 “You are those who have stood by Me in My trials; 29 and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you 30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.(Luke 22:28-30 NASB)

Jesus makes an agreement/ covenant with his apostles like his Father made an agreement/ covenant with him and promises them that they will sit on thrones. This privilege was later extended to others in total about 120 followers of his, on the day of the Pentecost, by anointing them with holy spirit, the total number of those to be redeemed/purchased from mankind total one hundred and forty four thousand.(Rev. 14:1-5 NASB)

The Reward for those that conquer.

Jesus speaks of the reward to those that conquer; "The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. "(Rev.3;21 ESV) Although John prepared the way for Jesus , he was executed and died prior to Jesus making the agreement with his disciples, to grant them a Kingdom. Therefore as Jesus said to his disciples at verse 28 :“You are those who have stood by Me in My trials", John died and thus could not stand with Jesus -"By me in My trails."

Also Paul wrote to his close friend Timothy that: "If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us."( 2 Tim. 2:12 NASB) Again since John did not endure as Jesus did, he could not be rewarded to sit in the Kingdom of Heaven with Jesus.

And what about John and others?

Jesus said that the meek will inherit the earth , many centuries earlier, King David also wrote that the meek will to inherit the earth and live in abundance of peace. Isaiah wrote about the the New Heavens and a New Earth and , (Isaiah 65:17-25 NASB) in verse 20 writes : “No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days", so every child will have the opportunity to live a safe and endless life.

Psalm 37:10-11 KJV

10 "For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace."

Jesus may have had this verse in mind when he said : "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Matthew 5:35( KJV )

By means of the resurrection, (John 5:28-29) John and others will be raised from the dead and as an heir of God's Kingdom on earth, a mortal , will be lower than the least one , in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Paul applied Psalm 8 :4-6 when he wrote Hebrews 2:9 that Jesus as a mortal , was made lower than the angels: "But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone." Hebrews 2:9 ( NASB)

Answer 13

The conclusion is valid, that if the least in the Kingdom is greater than John, then John, the herald of the Kingdom, himself seems to be excluded. Though, we can assume that it doesn't necessarily exclude John, but merely show a hyperbolic comparison, calling John to be smaller than the least (least of the least) in the Kingdom.

However, this confusion is to be blamed on the translation errors such as KJV and Geneva Bible which renders it "least". Besides these, all other old Bibles from Wycliffe to Diaglott Bible use less; DouayRheims: lesser in stead. The Greek word mikroteros means "lesser" or less, not the superlative mikrotatos only in LXX 2Ch 21:17 for "youngest son". See commentaries like H. Meyer's:

ὁ δὲ μικρότερος, κ.τ.λ.] he, however, who is less in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. It is to be observed, (1) that neither here nor elsewhere does the comparative stand for the superlative; (2) that, according to the context, the reference of the comparative (see μείζων Ἰωάννου, and afterwards μείζων αὐτοῦ) need not be looked for elsewhere but in Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ;[442] (3) that, since ὁ μικρότερος cannot refer to Jesus, it is (Matthew 18:1; Matthew 18:4) necessarily limited and defined by ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῶν οὐρανῶν, with which it has been connected by Isidore, Cyril, Theodoret, Heracleon (see Cramer, Cat. p. 85). Hence it is to be explained thus: But he who stands lower in the kingdom of the Messiah, stands (according to the divine standard) higher than he. Not as if John would be excluded (as against this, see Matthew 10:41) from the kingdom of Messiah that was about to be established, but the standpoint of those who share in the kingdom is compared with the high position which, as still belonging to the ancient theocracy, the Baptist occupies in the αἰὼν οὗτος. There he is the greatest of all; yet he who is lower in the approaching kingdom of the Messiah, and can by no means compare himself with the eminent personage in question, is, nevertheless, greater than he.

The mistranslation may have been cased by their weak knowledge of Greek where some, such as Bengel believed that the comparative ho mikroteros with the article becomes superlative. The comparison with John doesn't mean he has been denigrated, rather it only shows the greater profitability of the believers in the Kingdom. The greatness or rank in the Kingdom of God is to be weighed by the profitability of the servants, as described in the parables, e.g. Matt 25:25-30.

It is absurd to argue that there was a strict historical time constraint which limits John from entering the Kingdom period. The lesser believers would yield a harvest greater than John, hence they are greater than he. It should be noted that the language of is still hyperbolical with respect to the explosion of the church of God under the Kingdom brought forth by Christ. The verse 12 is the key to understand the context, it also seems to imply that John's ministry is within the Kingdom period.

Matthew 11:11-12 NMB

¹¹Truly I say to you, among the children of women none greater than John the Baptist has arisen. Notwithstanding, he who is less in the kingdom of heaven, is greater than he. ¹²From the time of John the Baptist to now, the kingdom of heaven is sorely pressed, and those who go to it with effort seize it for themselves.

Compare the fact that believers will accomplish greater works than Christ himself, as stated in John 14:13 "he who believes in me, the works that I do, he will do also; and he will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father".

Someone can interpret Matt 11:11 as a prophecy concerning the apostle Paul who is evidently the greatest evangelist and the most profitable servant in the Kingdom. 1Cor 15:9 "For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God".

Regrettably, the term "least" in the King James Version (KJV) has perpetuated an inaccuracy that has been adopted by numerous modern English translations and, potentially, translations in other languages derived from the English versions. The Revised Version (RV) and the American Standard Version (ASV) offer a more accurate rendering: "but he who is little in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he".

Answer 14

Do you realise that in Physics, the smaller the particle or phenomenon, the more power we ascribe to them? And we spend trillions combined to look for as small and fundamental a particle as possible?

In Democracy, the principle is that the most powerful is the lowest denominator - the voter. Even though, whether this principal principle is observed is questionable.

In engineering, we frequently look for the lowest common denominator because action at the lowest common denominator is almost always the most effective.

The elementary and fundamental members are the tiny little bits that compose the macro-structure. They are the most significant members of a macro-structure.

The smallest are often the greatest in the physical world (and frequently in medicine and biology). The lowest common denominator directly correlates to the highest common factor - how can we resolve this contradiction?