Matthew 11:19 (WEB)

Passage

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.”

Nearby Context

Matthew 11:17 and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you didn’t dance. We mourned for you, and you didn’t lament.’

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

Matthew 11:19 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.”

Matthew 11:20 Then he began to denounce the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done, because they didn’t repent.

Matthew 11:21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "justified", "came", "eating", "drinking", "behold", "gluttonous", "drunkard", and "friend". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "justified" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "For John came neither eating nor drinking..." into verse 20's "Then he began to denounce the cities...", so "justified" 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 "justified" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.