“At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.”
My Notes
What Does Matthew 11:25 Mean?
Jesus prays with thanksgiving for something that would offend intellectuals: God has hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes — the simple, the childlike, the unlearned.
The revelation is not anti-intellectual. It is anti-proud. The wise and prudent who are excluded are those whose sophistication has made them self-sufficient — they do not need God to explain things because they can figure it out themselves.
The babes who receive revelation are those who come with nothing — no credentials, no assumptions, no intellectual pride. They are open precisely because they are empty.
"Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight" — Jesus affirms this as God's deliberate, good pleasure. The distribution of revelation is not random. It is intentional. God reveals himself to the humble and conceals himself from the self-sufficient.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where has intellectual sophistication or self-sufficiency become a barrier to receiving from God?
- 2.What does it mean to come to God as a 'babe' — simple, open, unpretentious?
- 3.How does God 'hiding' things from the wise challenge your assumptions about who receives spiritual insight?
- 4.What would it look like to approach God today with genuine childlike openness?
Devotional
Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Jesus is not mocking intelligence. He is naming the danger of self-sufficiency. The people who think they already know are the last to learn.
Revealed them unto babes. The simple. The ones who come with open hands and no agenda. The ones who do not know enough to be jaded. They receive what the experts miss — not because they are smarter, but because they are emptier.
For so it seemed good in thy sight. This is God's choice — deliberate, intentional, good. He did not accidentally overlook the sophisticated. He chose to reveal himself to the humble. That is his pleasure.
What posture are you bringing to God? The wise and prudent posture — I have this figured out, I know the answers, I am the expert in my own life? Or the babe posture — I do not understand, I need help, I am open to being taught?
The revelation goes to the second group. Every time. Not because God dislikes intelligence. But because he cannot fill what is already full.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight. Or, "so is the good will", or "pleasure before thee": thus, "let it…
From the wise and prudent - That is, from those who “thought” themselves wise - “wise” according to the world’s…
In these verses we have Christ looking up to heaven, with thanksgiving to his Father for the sovereignty and security of…
The revelation to "Babes."
St Luk 10:21-22, where the words are spoken on the return of the Seventy.
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture