Matthew 11:18 (ASV)

Passage

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a demon.

Nearby Context

Matthew 11:16 But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the marketplaces, who call unto their fellows

Matthew 11:17 and say, We piped unto you, and ye did not dance; we wailed, and ye did not mourn.

Matthew 11:18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a demon.

Matthew 11:19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold, a gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! And wisdom is justified by her works.

Matthew 11:20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "john", "came", "neither", "eating", "drinking", "hath", and "demon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "john" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "and say We piped unto you and..." into verse 19's "The Son of man came eating and...", so "john" and "came" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "john" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.