Matthew 11:21-24

Matthew 11:21: “Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.”

I have to think that Jesus is talking about the people who lived in these towns, and not the towns themselves. After all, a building can’t repent – only people can do that! So let’s make it clear that Jesus is talking about the citizens of Chorazin, and Bethsaida, and Sodom.

The point is this: Chorazin saw Jesus Christ in person, performing unheard-of miracles, and they did not repent. Had Jesus appeared in Sodom instead, they would have repented. Chorazin was given a much greater reason to repent – and to whom much is given, much is required. They knew more and they saw more, so they were held to a higher standard. Therefore, they will be judged more harshly.

People say that all sins are the same and everyone will be judged the same. That is not true. As we can see here, Sodom will not be judged nearly as harshly as Chorazin. Some people will be judged more harshly than others, because more was revealed to them or because their iniquity was greater.

To look at it a different way: suppose that you have two people. One of them saw Jesus in person, watched Him raise people from the dead, and saw the resurrected Lord. This person refused to repent. The other person lived in modern times, saw none of these things, and refused to repent. Which of the two will be more harshly judged? The first one, because He saw Jesus with his own eyes and yet did nothing. The first one had the benefit of sight, whereas the second one had to live by faith.

That is why Jesus said that blessed are those who do not see, and yet believe. It is harder to believe what you don’t see than what you do see.