Matthew 11:23 - Exposition

And thou, Capernaum ( Matthew 4:13 , note), which art exalted unto heaven; Shalt thou be exalted unto heaven ? (Revised Version); ΄ὴ ἕως οὐρανοῦ ὑψωθήσῃ ; i.e. Shalt thou be raised high in public estimation, as thou thinkest, who art so proud of thy share in the busy and gay life on the lakeside? Shalt be brought down to hell ; thou shalt go down unto Hades (Revised Version). The change of voice in the two clauses ( ὑψωθήση … καταβήσῃ ) may imply that if thou 'art indeed raised, it will be by Another; but if thou fallest, it will be by thyself. Observe that our Lord's words are an adaptation of Isaiah's address to the King of Babylon ( Isaiah 14:13-15 ). For if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom (transposed in the Revised Version, as in verse 21), it would have remained until this day . In this verso the stress lies on the effect of the moral attitude; in verse 21, on the moral attitude itself.