Church Fathers Commentary Luke 11:29-32

"And when the multitudes were gathering together unto him, he began to say, This generation is an evil generation: it seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah. For even as Jonah became a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and shall condemn them: for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, a greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh shall stand up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, a greater than Jonah is here." — Luke 11:29-32 (ASV)

The Venerable Bede: Our Lord had been challenged with two kinds of questions. Some accused Him of casting out demons through Beelzebub, and He had been responding to them until now. Others, tempting Him, sought a sign from heaven, and He now proceeds to answer them. As it follows, when the people were gathered together in a crowd, He began to say, This is an evil generation...

St. Ambrose of Milan: This shows you that the people of the Synagogue are treated with dishonor, while the blessedness of the Church is increased. Just as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to the Jews. Therefore, it is added, They seek a sign, and no sign will be given to them but the sign of the prophet Jonah.

St. Basil the Great: A sign is something openly displayed that reveals something hidden within itself. For example, the sign of Jonah represents the descent into hell, the ascension of Christ, and His resurrection from the dead. Therefore, it is added, For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. He gives them a sign not from heaven, because they were unworthy to see it, but from the lowest depths of hell—a sign of His incarnation, not of His divinity; of His passion, not of His glorification.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Just as the sign of Jonah is a type of our Lord’s passion, it is also a testimony to the grievous sins the Jews have committed. We can see at once both a mighty voice of warning and a declaration of mercy. Through the example of the Ninevites, a punishment is declared and a remedy is promised. Therefore, even the Jews ought not to despair of pardon, if only they will repent.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Now Jonah, after he came out from the whale’s belly, converted the Ninevites by his preaching; but when Christ rose again, the Jewish nation did not believe. So a sentence was already passed on them, for which a second example follows, as it is said: The queen of the south will rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them.

The Venerable Bede: She condemns them not by any authority to judge, but by the contrast of her better deed. As it follows: For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. The word here in this passage is not a pronoun but an adverb of place, meaning, “There is one present among you who is incomparably superior to Solomon.” He did not say, “I am greater than Solomon,” in order to teach us humility, even when we are fruitful in spiritual graces.

It is as if He said, “This foreign woman traveled a great distance to hear Solomon and be instructed about visible creatures and the properties of plants. But you, who stand by and hear Wisdom herself teaching you invisible and heavenly things, and confirming her words with signs and wonders, are strangers to the Word and senselessly ignore the miracles.”

But if the queen of the South, who is undoubtedly one of the elect, will rise up in judgment together with the wicked, this proves the single resurrection of all people, both good and bad. It also proves that this resurrection does not happen a thousand years before the judgment, as some Jewish fables claim, but at the judgment itself.

St. Ambrose of Milan: In this, while condemning the Jewish people, He also powerfully expresses the mystery of the Church. The Church, represented by the queen of the South, is gathered from the ends of the earth out of a desire for wisdom, to hear the words of Solomon, the Peacemaker. She is clearly a queen whose kingdom is undivided, formed into one body from different and distant nations.

Gregory of Nyssa: Just as she was queen of the Ethiopians and from a far distant country, so in the beginning the Church of the Gentiles was in darkness and far from the knowledge of God. But when Christ, the Prince of Peace, shone forth, the Gentiles—while the Jews were still in darkness—came to Him. They offered Christ the frankincense of piety, the gold of divine knowledge, and the precious stones of obedience to His commands.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Alternatively, because the South is praised in Scripture as warm and life-giving, the soul that reigns in the south—that is, in all spiritual conduct—comes to hear the wisdom of Solomon, the Prince of Peace, our Lord God. This soul is raised up to contemplate Him, and no one can come to Him unless he reigns by living a good life. But He next brings an example from the Ninevites, saying, The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it.

St. John Chrysostom: The judgment of condemnation can come from people who are either like or unlike those being condemned. It comes from those who are like them, as in the parable of the ten virgins, for example. But it also comes from those who are unlike them, as when the Ninevites condemn those who lived at the time of Christ, which makes their condemnation all the more remarkable.

For the Ninevites were foreigners, while these were Jews. The Jews enjoyed prophetic teaching, while the Ninevites had never received the divine word. A servant came to the Ninevites, but the Master came to the Jews. The servant foretold destruction, while the Master preached the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, it was clear to everyone that the Jews, above all, should have believed, but the opposite happened. For this reason, He adds, For they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Mystically speaking, the Church is comprised of two groups: those who are innocent of sin, which relates mainly to the queen of the South, and those who cease from sin, which relates to the repentant Ninevites. For repentance erases the offense, while wisdom guards against it.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Luke recounts this in the same context as Matthew, but in a slightly different order. But who does not see that it is a pointless question to ask in what order our Lord said these things? The precious authority of the Evangelist should teach us that there is no falsehood in the account. Not everyone repeats another's words in the exact order they were spoken, since the order itself makes no difference to the truth of the matter.