Bible Commentaries

Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,

The first twelve verses were addressed more immediately to the disciples, the rest to the scribes and Pharisees.

Then spake Jesus to the multitude, [ ochlois (G3793) - 'to the multitudes,'] and to his disciples,

Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:

Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit. The Jewish teachers stood to read, but sat to expound the Scriptures, as will be seen by comparing Luke 4:16 with Matthew 23:20.

In Moses' seat - that is, as interpreters of the law given by Moses.

All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

All therefore - that is, all which, as sitting in that seat and teaching out of that law,

They bid you observe, that observe and do. The word "therefore" is thus, it will be seen, of great importance, as limiting those injunctions which He would have them obey to what they fetched from the law itself. In requiring implicit obedience to such injunctions. He would have them to recognize the authority with which they taught over and above the obligation of the law itself-an important principle truly; but He who denounced the traditions of such teachers (Matthew 15:3) cannot have meant here to throw His shield over these. It is remarked by Webster and Wilkinson that the warning to beware of the scribes is given by Mark and Luke without any qualification; the charge to respect and obey them being reported by Matthew alone, indicating for whom this Gospel was especially written, and the writer's desire to conciliate the Jews.

For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them - "touch them not" (Luke 11:46),

With one of their fingers - referring not so much to the irksomeness of the legal rites, though they were irksome enough (Acts 15:10); as to the heartless rigour with which they were enforced, and by men of shameless inconsistency.

But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

But all their works they do for to be seen of men. Whatever good they do, or zeal they show, has but one motive-human applause.

They make broad their phylacteries - strips of parchment with Scripture-texts on them, worn on the forehead, arm, and side, in time of prayer.

And enlarge the borders of their garments - fringes of their upper garments (Numbers 15:37-40).

And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

And love the uppermost rooms. The word "room" is now obsolete in the sense here intended. It should be 'the uppermost place' [ prootoklisian ], that is, the place of highest honour.

At feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues. See the notes at Luke 14:7-8.

And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. It is the spirit rather than the letter of this that must be pressed; though the violation of the letter, springing from spiritual pride, has done incalculable evil in the Church of Christ. The reiteration of the word "Rabbi" shows how it tickled the ear and fed the spiritual pride of those ecclesiastics. [Tregelles improperly, as we think, omits the repetition, but Tischendorf does not.]

But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master , [ Katheegeetees ] - 'your Guide, your Teacher,' "even Christ; and all ye are brethren."

And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. To construe these injunctions into a condemnation of every title by which church rulers may be distinguished from the flock which they rule, is virtually to condemn that rule itself; and accordingly the same persons do both-but against the whole strain of the New Testament and sound Christian judgment. But when we have guarded ourselves against these extremes, let us see to it that we retain the full spirit of this warning against that itch for ecclesiastical superiority which has been the bane and the scandal of Christ's ministers in every age. (On the use of the word "Christ" here, see the note at Matthew 1:1.)

But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. This plainly means, 'shall show that he is so by becoming your servant;' as in Matthew 20:27, compared with Mark 10:44.

And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

See the note at Luke 18:14.

What follows was addressed more immediately to the scribes and Pharisees.

But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in [yourselves], neither suffer ye that are entering to go in. Here they are charged with skutting heaven against men: in Luke 11:52, they are charged with what was worse, taking away the key - "the key of knowledge" - which means, not the key to open knowledge, but knowledge as the only key to open heaven. A bright knowledge of God's revealed word is eternal life, as our Lord says (John 17:3, and Matthew 23:39); but this they took away from the people, substituting for it their wretched traditions.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Taking advantage of the helpless condition and confiding of "widows," they contrived to obtain possession of their property, while by their "long prayers" they made them believe they were raised far above "filthy lucre." So much "the greater damnation" awaits them. What a life-like description of the Romish clergy, the true successors of those scribes!

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte - from paganism. We have evidence of this in Josephus.

And when he is made, ye make him two-fold more the child of hell than yourselves - condemned, for the hypocrisy he would learn to practice, both by the religion he left and that he embraced.

Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

Woe unto you, ye blind guides. Striking expression this of the ruinous effects of erroneous teaching. Our Lord, here and in some following verses, condemns the subtle distinctions they made as to the sanctity of oaths, distinctions invented only to promote their own avaricious purposes.

Which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing (he has incurred no debt), but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple (meaning not the gold that adorned the temple itself, but the Corban, set apart for sacred uses (see the note at Matthew 15:5)), he is a debtor! - that is, it is no longer his own, even though the necessities of a parent might require it. We know who the successors of these men are.

Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? Ye fools, and blind! for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?

And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty , [ ofeilei ]. It should have been rendered, "he is a debtor," as in Matthew 23:16.

Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?

Ye fools, and blind! for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? (See Exodus 29:37.)

Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.

Whose therefore shall swear by the altar ... And ... by the temple ... And ... by heaven ... See the notes at Matthew 5:33-37.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise - rather 'dill,' as in margin [ aneethon ],

And cummin. In Luke (Luke 11:42) it is "and rue, and all manner of herb." They grounded this practice on Leviticus 27:30, which they interpreted rigidly. Our Lord purposely names the most trifling products of the earth, as examples of what they punctiliously exacted the tenth of.

And have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith. In Luke (Luke 11:42) it is, "judgment, mercy, and the love of God" - the expression being probably varied by our Lord Himself on the two different occasions. In both His reference is to Micah 6:6-8, where the prophet makes all acceptable religion to consist of three elements - "doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with our God;" which third element presupposes and comprehends both the "faith" of Matthew and the "love" of Luke. See the notes at Mark 12:29; Mark 12:32-33. The same tendency to merge greater duties in less besets even the children of God; but it is the characteristic of hypocrites.

These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. There is no need for one set of duties to jostle out another; but it is to be carefully noted that of the greater duties our Lord says, "Ye ought to have done" them, while of the lesser He merely says, "Ye ought not to leave them undone."

Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat. The proper rendering-as in the older English translations, and perhaps our own as it came from the translators' hands-evidently is, 'strain out.' It was the custom, says Trench, of the stricter Jews to strain their wine, vinegar, and other potables through linen or gauze, lest unawares they should drink down some little unclean insect therein, and thus transgress (Leviticus 11:20; Leviticus 11:23; Leviticus 11:41-42}-just as the Buddhists do now in Ceylon and Hindustan-and to this custom of theirs our Lord here refers.

And swallow a camel - the largest animal the Jews knew, as the "gnat" was the smallest: both were by the law unclean.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion , [ harpagees ]. In Luke (Luke 11:39) the same word is rendered "ravening," that is, 'rapacity.' "and excess."

Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. In Luke (Luke 11:40) it is, "Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?" - `He to whom belongs the outer life, and of right demands its subjection to Himself, is the inner man less His?' A remarkable example this of our Lord's power of drawing the most striking illustrations of great truths from the most familiar objects and incidents in life. To these words, recorded by Luke, He adds the following, involving a principle of immense value: "But rather give alms of such things as ye have, and behold, all things are clean unto you" (Luke 11:41). Since the greed of these hypocrites was one of the most prominent features of their character (Luke 16:14), our Lord bids them exemplify the opposite character, and then their outside, ruled by this, would be beautiful in the eye of God, and their meals would be eaten with clean hands, though never so fouled with the business of this worky world. (See Ecclesiastes 9:7).

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like whited (or 'white-washed') sepulchres

(cf. Acts 23:3). The process of white-washing the sepulchres, as Lightfoot says, was performed on a certain day ever year, not for ceremonial cleansing, but, as the following words seem rather to imply, to beautify them.

Which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. What a powerful way of conveying the charge, that with all their fair show their hearts were full of corruption! (Compare Psalms 5:9; Romans 3:13.) But our Lord, stripping off the figure, next holds up their iniquity in naked colours!

Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,

Woe unto you ... hypocrites! ye build the tombs of the prophets ... And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not ... Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets that is, 'ye be witnesses that ye have inherited, and voluntarily served yourselves heirs to, the truth-hating, prophet-killing, spirit of your fathers.' Out of pretended respect and honour, they repaired and beautified the graves of the prophets, and with whining hypocrisy said, "If we had been in their days, how differently should we have treated these prophets?" while all the time they were witnesses to themselves that they were the children of them that killed the prophets, convicting themselves daily of as exact a resemblance, in spirit and character to the very classes over whose deeds they pretended to mourn, as child to parent. In Luke 11:44 our Lord gives another turn to this figure of a grave: "Ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them." As one might unconsciously walk over a grave concealed from view, and thus contract ceremonial defilement, so the plausible exterior of the Pharisees kept people from perceiving the pollution they contracted from coming in contact with such corrupt characters.

Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? In thus, at the end of his His ministry, recalling the words of the Baptist at the outset of his, our Lord would seem to intimate that the only difference between their condemnation now and then was, that now they were ripe for their doom, which they were not then.

Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes , [ Egoo apostelloo ]. The I here is emphatic: 'I am sending,' that is, 'am about to send.' In Luke 11:49, the variation is remarkable: "Therefore also, said the wisdom of God, I will send them," etc. What precisely is meant by "the wisdom of God" here, is somewhat difficult to determine. To us it appears to be simply an announcement of a purpose of the Divine Wisdom, in the high style of ancient prophecy, to send a last set of messengers whom the people would reject, and rejecting, would fill up the cup of their iniquity. But, whereas in Luke it is 'I, the Wisdom of God, will send them,' in Matthew it is 'I, Jesus, am sending them;' language only befitting the one Sender of all the prophets, the Lord God of Israel now in the flesh. They are evidently Evangelical messengers, but called by the familiar Jewish names of "prophets, wise men, and scribes," whose counterparts were the inspired and gifted servants of the Lord Jesus; for in Luke (Luke 11:49) it is "prophets and apostles."

And some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some scourge ... and persecute ...

That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Since there is no record of any flesh murder corresponding to this description, probably the allusion is not to any recent murder, but to 2 Chronicles 24:20-22, as the last recorded and most suitable case for illustration. And as Zacharias' last words were, "The Lord require it," so they are here warned that of that generation it should be required.

Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. As it was only in the last generation of them that "the iniquity of the Amorites was full" (Genesis 15:16), and then the abominations of ages were at once completely and awfully avenged, so the iniquity of Israel was allowed to accumulate from age to age until in that generation it came to the full, and the whole collected vengeance of Heaven broke at once over its devoted head. In the first French Revolution the same awful principle was exemplified, and Christendom has not done with it yet.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathered her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! How ineffably grand and melting is this apostrophe! It is the very heart of God pouring itself forth through human flesh and speech. It is this incarnation of the innermost life and love of Deity, pleading with men, bleeding for them, and ascending only to open His arms to them and win them back by the power of this Story of matchless love, that has conquered the world, that will yet "draw all men unto Him," and beautify and ennoble Humanity itself! "Jerusalem" here does not mean the mere city or its inhabitants; nor is it to be viewed merely as the metropolis of the nation, but as the center of their religious life - "the city of their solemnities, where the tribes went up, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord;" and at this moment it was full of them. It is the whole family of God, then, which is here apostrophized, by a name dear to every Jew, recalling to him all that was distinctive and precious in his religion. The intense feeling that sought vent in this utterance comes out first in the redoubling of the opening word - "Jerusalem, Jerusalem!" but, next, in the picture of it which He draws - "that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee!" - not content with spurning God's messages of mercy, that canst not suffer even the messengers to live! (See 2 Chronicles 36:15-16; Nehemiah 9:26; Matthew 5:12; Matthew 21:35-39; Matthew 23:29-32; Acts 7:51-54; Acts 7:57-59.)

When He adds, "How often would I have gathered thee!" He refers surely to something beyond the six or seven times that He visited and taught in Jerusalem while on earth. No doubt it points to "the prophets," whom they "killed," to "them that were sent unto her," whom they "stoned;" for, says Peter, it was "the Spirit of Christ which was in them that did testify beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the following glories" [ tas meta tauta doxas , 1 Peter 1:11]. He it was that "sent unto them all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate!" (Jeremiah 44:4). In His divine and eternal nature, as Olshausen says, He was the Prophet of the prophet. But whom would He have gathered so often? "Thee," truth-hating, mercy-spurning, prophet-killing Jerusalem-how often would I have gathered Thee! Compare with this that affecting clause in the great ministerial commission, "that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nation, beginning at Jerusalem!" (Luke 24:47).

What encouragement to the heart-broken at their own long-continued and obstinate rebellion! But we have not yet gotten at the whole heart of this outburst I would have gathered thee, He says, "even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings." Was ever imagery so homely invested with such grace and such sublimity as this, at our Lord's touch? And yet how exquisite the figure itself-of protection, rest, warmth, and all manner of conscious well-being in those poor, defenseless, dependent little creatures, as they creep under and feel themselves overshadowed by the capacious and kindly wing of the mother-bird! If, wandering beyond hearing of her special call, they are overtaken by a storm or attacked by an enemy, what can they do but in the one case droop and die, and in the other submit to be torn in pieces! But if they can reach in time their place of safety, under the mother's wing, in vain will any enemy try to drag them thence. For rising into strength, kindling into fury, and forgetting herself entirely in her young, she will let the last drop of her blood be shed out and perish in defense of her precious charge, rather than yield them to an enemy's talons. How significant all this of what Jesus is and does for men! Under His great Mediatorial wing would He have "gathered" Israel. For the figure, see Deuteronomy 32:10-12; Ruth 2:12; Psalms 17:8; Psalms 36:7; Psalms 61:4; Psalms 63:7; Psalms 91:4; Isaiah 31:5; Malachi 4:2.

The ancient rabbis had a beautiful expression for proselytes from the pagan-that they had 'come under the wings of the Shechinah.' For this last word, see the note at Matthew 23:38. But what was the result of this tender of all this tender and mighty love? The answer is, "And ye would not." (See Nehemiah 9:26; Psalms 81:11; Psalms 81:13; Isaiah 6:9-10; Isaiah 28:12; Isaiah 30:8-9; Isaiah 30:15; Isaiah 49:4; Isaiah 53:1; with John 12:37-40.) O mysterious word! mysterious word! mysterious the resistance of such patient Love-mysterious the liberty of self-undoing! The awful dignity of the will, as here expressed, might make the ears to tingle.

Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

Behold your house - the Temple, beyond all doubt; but their house now, not the Lord's. See the note at Matthew 22:7.

Is left unto you desolate , [ ereemos ] - 'deserted;' that is, of its Divine Inhabitant. But who is that? Hear the next words:

For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

For I say unto you - and these were His last words to the impenitent nation: see opening remarks on Mark 13:1-37 --

Ye shall not see me henceforth. What? Does Jesus mean that He was Himself the Lord of the temple, and that it became "deserted" when HE finally left it? It is even so. Now is thy fate sealed, O Jerusalem, because the glory is departed from thee! That glory, once visible in the holy of holies, over the mercy-seat, when on the day of atonement the blood of typical expiation was sprinkled on it and in front of it-called by the Jews the Shechinah, or the Dwelling [Sh***