THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN SUFFERS VIOLENCE (PART IV)

“Who Are the Violent Who Take It by Force”

By Akin Ojumu

Between the close of the Old Testament prophetic era and the opening events of the New Testament lay several centuries during which Scripture records no new prophetic revelation to Israel.

Then the New Testament opens—and suddenly the silence is broken.

The opening chapters of the Gospels are filled with extraordinary divine activity.

An angel announces to Zechariah that his wife, Elizabeth, will give birth to John, the forerunner of the Messiah. Gabriel appears to Mary and announces that she will miraculously conceive and give birth to Jesus, the Son of the Most High.

John the Baptist then bursts onto the scene proclaiming:

Matthew 3:2

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Something monumental was happening. The long-awaited Kingdom was drawing near. The Messiah had come. The forerunner was announcing His arrival. God’s redemptive purposes were unfolding dramatically before Israel.

It is against this backdrop that Jesus declares:

Matthew 11:12

“From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force.”

As we have seen, this notoriously difficult verse can be understood in more than one way. But none of its plausible meanings supports the modern idea that Christians must become spiritually aggressive or violently “take” blessings, breakthroughs, territories, or destinies.

To understand Jesus’ words, we must understand the world into which the Kingdom came.

1. The Religious Establishment

The Jewish religious establishment included the chief priests, scribes, elders, and members of the Sanhedrin—the supreme Jewish religious and judicial council.

Two influential groups were represented prominently within this religious world: the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

The Pharisees were known for their rigorous attention to the Law and oral tradition. The Sadducees, closely associated with the priestly aristocracy, rejected certain doctrines affirmed by the Pharisees, including the resurrection and the existence of angels and spirits.

Despite their differences, representatives of both groups would eventually oppose Jesus.

2. The Jewish Religious Militants

There was also another movement in Israel at this time. They are the Zealots.

The Zealots represented the militant impulse within Judaism that sought liberation from Roman domination. Unlike Jesus, who proclaimed a Kingdom “not of this world,” these revolutionaries were prepared to use political violence and armed resistance in pursuit of national deliverance.

For such people, the Kingdom could be advanced by the sword.

Jesus rejected that vision completely.

3. The Devout Folks Waiting for the Consolation of Israel

But there was yet another category of Jews—ordinary, devout men and women who quietly trusted God and eagerly awaited the fulfillment of His promises.

Luke describes them as those who were waiting for the “consolation of Israel” and the “redemption of Jerusalem.”

Among them was Simeon.

Luke 2:25

“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel.”

When Simeon saw the infant Jesus, he recognized in Him the fulfillment of God’s promise:

Luke 2:29–32

“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation… a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

There was also Anna, the prophetess.

Luke 2:37–38

“She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.”

Notice whom God highlights at the arrival of His Messiah.

Not the politically powerful. Not the religious aristocracy. Not militant revolutionaries attempting to establish God’s Kingdom through violence.

But humble, faithful people waiting expectantly for God to fulfill His Word.

Simeon and Anna represent the kind of people who welcomed the arrival of the Kingdom with faith, hope, repentance, and devotion.

SO, WHO ARE “THE VIOLENT”?

This is where the ambiguity of Matthew 11:12 becomes important.

In one legitimate interpretation, the “violent” are hostile opponents of the Kingdom.

From the days of John the Baptist onward, the Kingdom encountered fierce resistance.

John was arrested and eventually beheaded. Jesus was rejected, falsely accused, beaten, and crucified. The apostles were threatened, imprisoned, persecuted, and in many cases killed.

From this perspective, the Kingdom “suffers violence,” while violent men attack it and attempt to seize or suppress it.

The religious authorities who persecuted Jesus and His messengers fit comfortably within this picture. So do the militant revolutionaries who imagined that the purposes of God could be accomplished through political violence and bloodshed.

But there is another widely recognized interpretation.

The Greek verb translated “suffers violence” can also carry the sense of “forceful advancement,” while the expression translated “violent men” may describe people responding to the Kingdom with extraordinary urgency and determination.

On this reading, Jesus is not praising physical violence. He is describing the intense response generated by the proclamation of the Kingdom.

Since John began preaching, people had been urgently pressing toward it.

Luke records a parallel statement:

Luke 16:16

“The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it.”

These are not people attacking others. They are people desperately responding to the Gospel. They hear the announcement of the Kingdom and refuse to remain indifferent.

They repent. They believe. They follow Christ. They endure opposition. They count the cost. They press forward despite persecution, rejection, hardship, and loss.

In that sense, Simeon, Anna, the Apostles, the disciples, and later Paul exemplify the determined faith associated with entering the Kingdom.

Paul would eventually write:

Philippians 3:14

“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

That is determination. That is urgency. That is perseverance.

But it is not militancy. It is not physical aggression. It is not spiritual belligerence.

And it certainly is not a command to “violently” seize money, promotions, marriages, political offices, territories, miracles, breakthroughs, or material possessions from God.

Whether Matthew 11:12 is understood primarily as describing “violent opposition against the Kingdom” or “the urgent determination of those pressing into it,” one conclusion remains unmistakable:

Jesus was not teaching militant Christianity.

The Kingdom of God advances through the Gospel, not through aggression; through repentance and faith, not coercion; through suffering witnesses, not religious violence.

And those who truly receive the Kingdom do so not with clenched fists, but with repentant hearts.

In the next installment, we’ll take a closer look at Mr. David Oyedepo’s interpretation of Matthew 11:12 and how he applies the passage in his teaching.