Matthew 11: 20 - 24 Woe to Unrepentant Cities.

Denunciation of the Cities in which most of His Miracles were performed.

Mat 11:20  Then He began to upbraid the cities in which most of His mighty works were done, because they did not repent.

Mat 11:21  Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the powerful acts which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes!

Mat 11:22  But I say to you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.

Mat 11:23  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to the heaven, shall be brought down to hell. For if the mighty works which have been done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

Mat 11:24  But I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.MKJV

Introduction

Jesus Speaks of the Eternal Consequences for some of the cities where he had done His Mighty Miracles but they had not REPENTED. I is very Important how we respond to what the Lord has shown us. Even cities notorious for doing evil will be better off in the judgment than the cities that fail to respond to Jesus and His Mighty Works.

Mat 11:20  Then He began to upbraid the cities in which most of His mighty works were done, because they did not repent.

Notes

upbraid G3679 ὀνειδέζω oneidezō

Thayer Definition: 1) to reproach, upbraid, revile 1a) of deserved reproach 1b) of undeserved reproach, to revile 1c) to upbraid, cast (favours received) in one’s teeth

in which most of His mighty works were done,

The more God has done to draw men unto himself, the less excusable are they if they continue in iniquity. If our blessed Lord had not done every thing that was necessary for the salvation of these people, he could not have reproached them for their impenitence.

Mat 11:21  Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the powerful acts which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes!

Plain of Bethsaida

The northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee is a fertile plain where the feeding of the 5,000 likely took place.  Israeli maps and excavators currently locate the New Testament city of Bethsaida at an ancient ruin known as "et-Tell."  The excavation team, headed by Rami Arav, is insistent that this site be identified with ancient Bethsaida.  Others suggest that Bethsaida may be better located at el-Araj near the lakeshore. Wikipedia.com

Notes

Woe G3759  οὐαί ouai Thayer Definition: 1) alas, woe

Woe unto thee, Chorazin! — not elsewhere mentioned, but it must have lain near Capernaum.

woe unto thee, Bethsaida — “fishing-house,” a fishing station - on the western side of the Sea of Galilee, and to the north of Capernaum; the birthplace of three of the apostles - the brothers Andrew and Peter, and Philip. These two cities appear to be singled out to denote the whole region in which they lay - a region favored with the Redeemer’s presence, teaching, and works above every other.

for if the mighty works — the miracles

which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon — ancient and celebrated commercial cities, on the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, lying north of Palestine, and the latter the northernmost. As their wealth and prosperity engendered luxury and its concomitant evils - irreligion and moral degeneracy - their overthrow was repeatedly foretold in ancient prophecy, and once and again fulfilled by victorious enemies. Yet they were rebuilt, and at this time were in a flourishing condition.

they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes — remarkable language, showing that they had done less violence to conscience, and so, in God’s sight, were less criminal than the region here spoken of.

Port of Tyre today

Mat 11:22  But I say to you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.

Notes

It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.

Reader! in the view of Chorazin and Bethsaida, and the awful woe pronounced upon those cities, which had been favoured with such high privileges, and regarded them not, think what will be the final condemnation of Great Britain in this particular? Would Jesus find faith, real saving faith, were he now to come among us? It is an awful thought! Luk_18:8; Mat_7:22-23; Heb_2:3.Hawker

Mat 11:23  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to the heaven, shall be brought down to hell. For if the mighty works which have been done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

The Ruins of the Synagogue at Capernaum

Notes

And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to the heaven, shall be brought down to hell.

Capernaum had been filled with people carrying their sick to the feet of Jesus and He healed them all. The Blind, the Lame and the deaf and the diseased were all cured. The demoniacs delivered and the dead raised to life again.

Which art exalted to heaven - Barnes This is an expression used to denote great privileges. He meant that they were especially favored with instruction. The city was prosperous. It was signally favored by its wealth. Most of all, it was signally favored by the presence, the preaching, and the miracles of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here he spent a large portion of his time in the early part of his ministry, and in Capernaum and its neighborhood he performed his chief miracles.

Shalt be brought down to hell - This does not mean that all the people would go to hell, but that the city which had flourished so prosperously would lose its prosperity, and occupy the “lowest place” among cities. The word “hell” is used here, not to denote a place of punishment in the future world, but a state of “desolation and destructions.” It stands in contrast with the word “heaven.” Barnes

If the mighty works ...had been done in Sodom - See the notes at Mat_10:15. Sodom was destroyed on account of its great wickedness. Christ says if his miracles had been performed there, they would have repented, and consequently the city would not have been destroyed. As it was, it would be better for Sodom in the day of judgment than for Capernaum, for its inhabitants would not be called to answer for the abuse of so great privileges.

Mat 11:24  But I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.

Notes

Question: "What was the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah?"

Answer: The biblical account of Sodom and Gomorrah is recorded in Genesis chapters 18-19. Genesis chapter 18 records the Lord and two angels coming to speak with Abraham. The Lord informed Abraham that "the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous." Verses 22-33 record Abraham pleading with the Lord to have mercy on Sodom and Gomorrah because Abraham's nephew, Lot, and his family lived in Sodom.

Genesis chapter 19 records the two angels, disguised as human men, visiting Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot met the angels in the city square and urged them to stay at his house. The angels agreed. The Bible then informs us, "Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom — both young and old — surrounded the house. They called to Lot, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.'" The angels then proceed to blind all the men of Sodom and Gomorrah and urge Lot and his family to flee from the cities to escape the wrath that God was about to deliver. Lot and his family flee the city, and then "the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah — from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities..."

In light of the passage, the most common response to the question "What was the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah?" is that it was homosexuality. Gotquestions.com

But I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.

But - it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom - Γη Σοδομων, the land of the Sodomites; i.e. the ancient inhabitants of that city and its neighborhood.

In Jude, Jud_1:7, we are told that these persons are suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah happened A. M. 2107, which was 1897 years before the incarnation. What a terrible thought is this! It will be more tolerable for certain sinners, who have already been damned nearly four thousand years, than for those who, live and die infidels under the Gospel! There are various degrees of punishments in hell, answerable to various degrees of guilt, and the contempt manifested to, and the abuse made of; the preaching of the Gospel, will rank semi-infidel Christians in the highest list of transgressors, and purchase them the hottest place in hell! Great God! save the reader from this destruction!

Day of judgment - May either refer to that particular time in which God visits for iniquity, or to that great day in which he will judge the world by the Lord Jesus Christ. The day of Sodom’s judgment was that in which it was destroyed by fire and brimstone from heaven, Gen_19:24; and the day of judgment to Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, was the time in which they were destroyed by the Romans, Mat_11:23. But there is a day of final judgment, when Hades itself, (sinners in a state of partial punishment in the invisible world) shall be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, which is the second death. See Rev_20:14.

What Privileges have been ours as a society and now we have turned away from our Moral Moorings and gone into all sorts of debauchery and wickedness. Isn't this Scripture a warning to us as a People.