The Meaning of Matthew 11:15 Explained

Matthew 11:15

KJV: He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

YLT: he who is having ears to hear -- let him hear.

Darby: He that has ears to hear, let him hear.

ASV: He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

He that hath  ears  to hear,  let him hear. 

What does Matthew 11:15 Mean?

Context Summary

Matthew 11:11-19 - The Last Of The Prophets
The least in a higher dispensation has great advantages over the greatest in a lower one. A child on a hill can see farther than a giant in the valley. Many have tried to right the world by violence, by the vehemence of their speech and acts. But it is not so that the Kingdom comes. Its weapon is not the sword, but the cross. Its advent is not as the thunder shower, but as the summer dew or the opening of the dawn.
Our Lord truly estimated the temper of His age. It was fickle, changeable, and hard to please; but beneath its evident superficiality there was a substratum of rock. They refused John because of his austerity, and they refused Jesus because of His human kindness and gentleness. Never trim your sails for the world's breath. The breeze springs up and soon dies away. Do God's will!
O sinful brother and sister, can we ever estimate enough the assurance that Jesus is the friend of our souls? He does not disown, withdraw, or reproach. He knows what our temptations are, and makes allowances, and loves us steadfastly forever. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 11

1  John sends his disciples to Jesus
7  Jesus' testimony concerning John
16  The perverse judgment of the people concerning the Son
20  Jesus upbraids Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum;
25  and praising his Father's wisdom in revealing the Gospel to the simple,
28  he calls to him those who are weary and burdened

What do the individual words in Matthew 11:15 mean?

The [one] having ears let him hear
ἔχων ὦτα ἀκουέτω

  The  [one] 
Parse: Article, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
ὦτα  ears 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Plural
Root: οὖς  
Sense: the ear.
ἀκουέτω  let  him  hear 
Parse: Verb, Present Imperative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ἀκουστός 
Sense: to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, not deaf.