The other day I was reading Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” After letting it sink in my mind and heart for awhile, I read several verses before and after to better understand the context and noticed that the word “rest” appears in the next verse (29) also, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.”
A quick review of the concordance entries for “rest” indicates that “rest” in verse 28 is a different word than “rest” in verse 29. This is intriguing because for many years I read the two verses together as if “rest” meant the same thing in both usages.
In verse 28, the usage of “rest” refers to ceasing from labor to recover or to take a rest from work to be refreshed. This is a brief respite from our labor to be refreshed. The implication is that in Jesus Christ we can find the rest we need in life to be effective in our work for His kingdom. More than this, though, it means that in Jesus we will have the rest we need when the going gets tough and we find ourselves exhausted.
In reading these two verses, we are also given an insight into His heart and how He promises to treat us when He says He is gentle and humble. These words as used here mean what they appear to mean. Blueletterbible.org has this entry for the word gentle: “Gentleness or meekness is the opposite [of] self-assertiveness and self-interest… The gentle person is not occupied with self at all.” Humble is the opposite of proud and one who afflicts pain on others. Thayer’s Lexicon refers here to a word derived from Proverbs 3:34, where Thayer’s Lexicon has this entry: “modest mind, which prefers to bear injuries rather than return them.” Such is the heart and mind of our Savior, one that always has our best interest at the center of His attention. Gentle and humble as used and defined here represent the true definition of love.
In verse 29, the usage of “rest” has a much different meaning because the definition is cessation from work without any future resumption of labor. Similar usages appear in Revelation 4:8 and 14:11. Verse 28 refers to rest during our labors in this life, and verse 29 refers to freedom from the guilt and shame of sin and our permanent rest in heaven. Both refer to the definite rest we find in our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.
These two verses taken together with this understanding of their meanings has significant importance for our understanding of Him. Here we have a glimpse of what we can anticipate heaven to be as well as a look into the character of Jesus Christ. In an earlier article, I made the comment that the purpose of this life is to so acquaint ourselves with Jesus Christ that our entering heaven will be a time of reuniting old friends, rather than a guarded greeting of someone new. We will have eternity to enjoy Him, but heaven is not the place to grow more like Him. That place is here and now, with each breath you take and each movement of your hands and feet.
With each new experience we face, whether positive or negative, we have an opportunity to learn more about Him and become more like Him. It is as we filter these experiences through Him, rely on Him for our strength, and praise Him that we learn more about Him and deepen our trust in Him. Remember, we cannot become more like someone unless we know that person, so it is vitally important that we take every opportunity we have to learn more about our Lord.
We also have the opportunity to read and apply Scripture to each of our experiences and understand anew who He is. We need not know His face to know who He is, we only need to know His heart.
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