Section 7
The Son in 10:21 praised the Father that He "hid these things from the wise and intelligent, and revealed them to babes." The "wise and intel ligent" may refer in particular to the people of the three cities mentioned in verses 13 and 15, people who were wise and intelligent in their own eyes. The Father's will was to hide the knowl edge of the Son and the Father from such people. The "babes" in verse 21 refer to the disciples, who were children of wisdom. The Father was pleased to reveal both the Son and the Father to them.
We should not regard ourselves as wise and intelligent. If we have such a view of ourselves, we shall not receive the revelation of the Son and the Father. Instead of considering ourselves wise and intelligent, we should regard ourselves as babes, as those who are not knowledgeable. It is well-pleasing in the Father's sight to reveal the knowledge of the Son and the Father to babes, but to hide it from the wise and intelligent.
In verse 22 the Lord says that no one knows who the Son is except the Father and who the Father is except the Son, and he to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. The word "knows" here denotes full knowledge, not mere objec tive acquaintance. Concerning the Son, only the