Verse 25 opens with the words, “At that time.” This refers to the time the Lord was rebuking the cities. Verse 25 says, “At that time Jesus answered and said, I praise You, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth.” When the Lord was rebuking those leading cities, He answered and said, “I praise You, Father.” The word “answered” is very meaningful. Whom did the Lord answer? He answered the Father. While the Lord was rebuking the cities, He fellowshipped with the Father. At that time, answering the Father, He spoke praise to Him.
As the Lord was rebuking the cities, a third party was present. The Lord was the first party, the cities were the second party, and the Father, who was with Him, was the third party. As the Lord was rebuking Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, the Father might have asked Him, “Are you happy about this?” Then the Lord answered and said, “I praise You, Father.” The Father might have said to the Son, “You are rebuking these cities because they have rejected You. Do You feel good about this?” The Lord immediately answered and praised the Father, the Lord of heaven and earth.
Sometimes a third party is present when you are talking to your wife. You are the first party, your wife is the second party, and the Lord is the third party. Perhaps you say to your wife, “Yesterday, you did not treat me very well; your behavior was poor.” As you are saying these words, the third party standing by may ask, “How about it? Do you like it? Yes, your wife was not so good yesterday.” At such a time could you say, “I praise You, Father”? This is not an easy thing for us to do. But the Lord Jesus could do it, saying, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. I recognize Your authority. If this were not of You, none of these cities would reject Me. Even their rejection is of You. Father, I take sides with You. This situation is quite good. I tell You that I feel good about it, and I can praise You for it.”
The Greek word rendered “praise” in verse 25 means to make acknowledgment with praise. The Lord acknowledged the Father’s way in carrying out His economy with praise. Although people, instead of responding to His ministry, slandered Him (vv. 16-19), and the leading cities rejected Him (vv. 20-24), He praised the Father, acknowledging the Father’s will. He did not seek prosperity in His work, but He sought the Father’s will. He would be satisfied and rest, not in man’s understanding and welcome, but in the Father’s knowing (vv. 26-27). Christ believed that the cities’ rejection of Him was of the Father. What about our situation today? When we are rejected, opposed, criticized, attacked, and condemned, could we praise the Father? Have you ever said, “Father, I praise You for the rejection and opposition of my parents and friends”? We need to recognize that such rejection is sovereignly of the Lord and praise Him for it.
In the Lord’s address of praise, Father refers to the Father’s relationship with Him, the Son; whereas the Lord of the heaven and of the earth refers to God’s relationship with the universe. When God’s people were defeated by His enemy, He was called the God of heaven (Ezra 5:12; Dan. 2:18, 37). But when there was a man standing for God on the earth, He was called the Possessor of heaven and earth (Gen. 14:19, 22). Now, the Lord, as the Son of Man, also called the Father the “Lord of the heaven and of the earth,” indicating that He was standing on the earth for God’s interest.
Verse 25 also says that the Father has “hidden these things from the wise and intelligent.” “These things” refer to the things regarding the knowledge of the Son and of the Father (v. 27). The “wise and intelligent” refer to the people of the three cities condemned in verses 20 through 24, who were wise and intelligent in their own eyes. The Father’s will was to hide the knowledge of the Son and the Father from such people.