Matthew 11:18 (YLT)

Passage

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

Nearby Context

Matthew 11:16 `And to what shall I liken this generation? it is like little children in market-places, sitting and calling to their comrades,

Matthew 11:17 and saying, We piped unto you, and ye did not dance, we lamented to you, and ye did not smite the breast.

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, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and wisdom was justified of her children.'

Matthew 11:20 Then began he to reproach the cities in which were done most of his mighty works, because they did not reform.

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 saying 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.