Revelations from the Word

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The one to whom the Son wishes to reveal the Father

by Jean-Louis Coraboeuf

"At that time Jesus began to speak and said: I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent, and that You have revealed them to children; even so, Father, it seemed good [eudokia] to You. Everything has been delivered [paradidomi] to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father except the Son and the one to whom the Son wishes to reveal Him. Come to Me all you who are weary and heavy laden (burdened), and I will give you rest. Take My yoke [zugos] upon you and learn [manthano] of Me, for I am meek and lowly [tapeinos] of heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy (well fitting), and My burden light" (Matthew 11:25-30 Interlinear).

The heavenly Father approved [eudokia] of the fact that those things which are hidden are revealed to children just as He approved [eudokia] of Jesus as Son at the time of His baptism (Matthew 3:17) and on the mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:5). So the Father approved of the Son and delivered all things to Him, the Greek word paradidomi meaning to pass on to one's descendants, to one's son. In return, Jesus was given the mission of making the Father known. That is why, by means of the image of the yoke [zugos], he revealed how and why He wished to make the Father known.

The Greek word zugos translated by yoke also means the beam of a set of scales, the piece which joins the two opposite sides of a vessel, the bench of the rower and in the figurative sense, the seat of authority. The function of the yoke was to link two animals so that the more experienced one may teach the other how to work. The Greek verb manthano means 'to learn from another', 'to learn as a disciple'. So Jesus asks us to come close to Him, under His authority, in order that He may reveal to us what the Father has passed on to Him; then He adds, "I am meek and I am within your reach [tapeinos]". The Greek word tapeinos means not great of physical stature and humble when speaking of the soul. The Holy Spirit is the yoke that Jesus promised to send us, so that the latter may unite us to Him in a gentle, light and non-constraining way.

A child has total confidence in his father, he speaks to him of all his joys and all his difficulties. When he has a burden, he asks him to carry it for him, "Daddy, it is too heavy for me, please can you carry it?..." Jesus is the only Way to the Father and the only One who can reveal the Father to us. By coming under His authority, by having an intimate relationship with Him under the same yoke, we will receive the revelation of the Father. Like children, we shall be able then to share our joys and our difficulties (our burdens) with our heavenly Father and in return receive rest for our souls.