Verses 1-3 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: 3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
Chapter 23 is a continuation of the conversations Jesus had with His enemies. Here He instructed the multitude that the religious leaders and the legal leadership were holding positions of authority just as Moses had done and that they were to respect them and do what they commanded regarding Moses’ law, but they were not to behave like them. Why? Because they were hypocrites, demanding that the law of Moses and the religious rituals be observed by the people when they themselves were corrupt and not observing the law and making money off of the people.
Verses 4-7 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. 5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
The Greek word translated as “burdens” is “phortion” and it means a load, burdensome rites and/or obligations. The ten commandments and the laws and statutes God gave to Moses were not burdensome. They were commonsense ways to live a healthy and productive life on Earth. The Pharisees and scribes, on the other hand, “legislated” additional rules that caused the people grief and took away their God-given freedoms. An example was that on the Sabbath, travel was restricted to the area around a person’s house. To overcome this rule, the Pharisees would take an item such as a small rug and declare that it was their house. They would then walk the allowable distance and place the rug on the ground, declaring that it was their house. Then they could walk another allowable distance from that rug and keep this process up so that they could go wherever they wanted to go on the Sabbath and declare that they kept the law. If a person had a crisis or health emergency involving their family member in another town and hurried to that town on the Sabbath, they were held responsible for breaking the Sabbath. Punishment could be severe and include removal from the Temple or the synagogues.
The Greek word translated as “phylacteries” is “phulakterion” and it means a fortified place provided with a garrison, a preservative or safeguard, or an amulet. For the Jewish leaders, this amulet consisted of strips of parchment with Old Testament passages written on them which were kept in small, usually leather containers which they fastened by leather straps to their foreheads and/or to their left arms. This was witchcraft and a perversion of the verses recorded in Exodus 13:9 and 16, and Deuteronomy 6:8 and 11:18. They taught and believed that these amulets could drive away evil spirit or demons. By making these amulets bigger, they were drawing attention to themselves in an effort to make the people think they were more righteous and more important than others. The same principle was involved with the adjustments they made to the hems of their garments, the message spoken without words being, “Look at me and see how great I am.”
The word “rabbi” means my great one or my honourable sir. As these hypocrites sauntered through the streets of Jerusalem and any other Israeli city, the expectation was that the people would reverence them. This took away the worship of God and placed it on these evil men. No wonder the people were so surprised at the teachings of Jesus Christ who was so humble and caring of others and yet more knowledgeable and righteous than the leaders of Israel and of Rome.
Application: “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.” This statement of King Solomon recorded in Ecclesiastes 1:9 is referred to by this writer throughout this web site as it is so true. Just as the Pharisees and scribes lorded it over the people paying the taxes that kept their corrupt system alive, so in every country of the Earth today the leaders expect to be reverenced by the people who pay the taxes to keep their corrupt systems of governance alive. Just like the leaders in Israel when Jesus was performing His ministry, these leaders care nothing for the people they govern but exploit them continually and then expect to receive respect and adulation because of the positions they hold.
Verse 8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
The only person that is great and honourable is Jesus Christ. The only one that should be reverenced is God who lowered Himself to inhabit the body of Jesus for the purpose of providing a blood sacrifice to pay or remit for all mankind’s sins and who then later, while dwelling in the Heavens, inhabited and now inhabits the bodies of believers in the form of the Holy Ghost/Spirit. Furthermore, all people are on and at the same level of importance. No one is more important that any one else. Respect should be shown to every person, but worship or reverence should be reserved for God and Him alone.
Verse 9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
God is the Father of all because He is the Creator of all. People refer to their parents as mother and father. Jesus was not referring to a person’s physical male parent, but to the use of the term, father, as an honorary title bestowed on someone that is not a biological father. The institution of Catholicism ignores this commandment as all their priests are called “father” by their parishioners. These Catholic men assume a position higher than that of the people they are supposed to shepherd and teach which is totally contrary to the commandments of Jesus. Furthermore, these priests claim celibacy and therefore have no business being called “father” as they have done nothing to create the people honoring them with that title.
Verse 10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
The Greek word translated as “master” is “kathegetes” and it occurs only three times in the Bible. It means a guide or a teacher. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6 All wisdom and knowledge comes from the LORD, therefore the only master or teacher is Jesus. Men cannot give wisdom or knowledge on their own. Everything that a person understands and thinks he/she knows is nothing more than knowledge given by the LORD and discovered by the person. To accept teaching or guidance from parents or Christian pastors and lay persons is all good and well, but every piece of information should line up with Scripture. If it does not, it is untrue and not to be trusted. This writer has come to the conclusion that most everything that has been told or presented as fact, particularly from the public educational system, is a lie. The challenge is to find the truth and erase the misinformation from the mind so that the truth can replace the error. The truth is in the Word of God and it is from this Word that wisdom comes. What is the origin of life? Read the Bible. What is the origin of sin? Read the Bible. What should a successful marriage and family look like? Read the Bible. What is the true history of the world? Read the Bible. How should one grow food and treat the soil? Read the Bible. How should one view politics and religious leaders? Read the Bible. How does a sick person get well? Read the Bible. How does a person stay healthy in a sinful, contaminated world? Read the Bible. What should friendships consist of and look like? Read the Bible. How should animals be treated and cared for? Read the Bible. How should money and property be handled? Read the Bible. How does one keep out of Hell? Read the Bible. Every answer to every problem and situation in life is in Scripture. Just search out the answers and God will bless the effort.
Verses 11-12 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
The Greek word translated as “exalt” is “hupsoo” and it means to lift up on high, to raise to the very summit of opulence and prosperity. The Greek word translated as “abased” is “tapeinoo” and it means to bring low, level or reduce. To repeat, in the Kingdom of God all people are on the same level of importance. No one is better than or more important than another. In the physical world, those people who think and behave as if they are the best and the brightest will be reduced by the LORD to a position of humility. This has been seen over and over again when so called pastors of wealthy church establishments who are seen as righteous leaders are caught in sexual sin or financial criminal activity and those people who “worshipped them” are devastated when these pastors are exposed and fall from public approval. The same has been seen in the political realm and in the circle of the Hollywood elite. Jesus is saying that all Christian believers need to be servants to others. It is very difficult to develop an attitude of superiority when serving others. But by serving others, believers becomes trusted and appreciated in the area in which they are ministering and God sees and rewards His servants and is pleased.
Verse 13 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.
The rest of this chapter records eight statements by Jesus in which He preferences the statements with the word “woe”. The Greek word translated as “woe” is “ouai” and it is an expression of grief and means alas or woe. The dictionary definitions of “woe” is great sorrow or distress, or a thing that causes sorrow or distress. Jesus is speaking these words of criticism aimed at the Pharisees and scribes but the emotion behind these words is one of sorrow and distress.
First, Jesus describes these leaders as hypocrites or, as the word actually means, actors. They are pretenders and they are not what they seem. Remember that there is a multitude of people listening to this public discourse. What do these men do? They obstruct the entrance into the Kingdom of God through their false teachings and through their laws. They were not obeying the laws of Moses, but their Babylonian Talmud which was/is witchcraft. They were not serving God and they were leading the people astray while they were pretending to be followers of the God given Mosaic laws and statutes.
Application: The Pharisees’ spirit is alive and well today in many main stream evangelical churches in that they are serving the purposes of Satan either knowingly or by default. Using false bible versions, perverting the teachings of the LORD, running their churches as profitable enterprises instead of spiritual hospitals for the spiritually wounded and sick, not shepherding their flock, agreeing with and allowing corrupt governmental oversight to avoid paying taxes, etc. And then there is the institution of Catholicism which claims, like the Pharisees, to be of God, but is actually full of witchcraft and idolatry while using “Christian” terminology to deceive the people. The Mormon institution claims to be Christian but their teachings are contrary to the Word of God. The list is lengthy and will not be further presented here, but suffice it to say that the same conditions Jesus was confronting publicly as recorded in these verses, are the same conditions in the world today that true Christian believers are to confront and expose publicly.
Verse 14 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.
The Greek word translated as “devour” is “katesthio” and it means to eat up, to squander, to waste, to forcibly appropriate, to strip one of his goods, or to ruin. The religious leaders took advantage of those who were the weakest and the least able to provide for themselves. They did outward shows of religious piety but inwardly they were deceitful, evil men who Jesus promised would receive greater judgement and punishment than the sinners they were exploiting.
Application: There have been churches that call themselves Christian that charge admission or that charge a fee for a particular seat in their building. Catholics pay their priests for services such as mass for a dead loved one. The demonic spirits of the Pharisees and scribes live on today. The names of the organizations or individuals have changed, but the rotten fruits of their practices continue to negatively impact the message of the Gospel and the people that are under their leadership. There is no buying or selling in the Kingdom of God, only giving and receiving. Think about it.
Verse15 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.
The Greek word translated as “compass” is “periago” and it means to go about, lead about, or walk about. The Greek word translated as “twofold” is “diplous” and it means double. Jesus was letting the multitudes know that these leaders were already children of Hell, and that any disciples they made would be worse than they were by the time the disciples sat under their tutorage. A person was better off being in their sins than being taught wrongly by the Pharisees and scribes and having more sins to answer for when standing before a righteous God for eternal judgement and punishment.
Verses 16-17 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! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
Jesus said, “But I say unto you, Swear not at all: neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.” Matthew 5:34-37
“But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let you yea be yea: and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.” James 5:12
The Pharisees even had rules as to how a person could swear. If the temple was used to emphasize or affirm a promise, it did not mean anything. But if the gold in and on the temple was used then the person was guilty of breaking a law and incurred a debt. This was a stupid, backwards practice as the temple was more valuable than the gold. The people were not to swear period, but the Pharisees failed to teach and uphold this fact.
Verses18-22 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
Again, Jesus was pointing out the stupidity of the rules placed on the people by the Pharisees and scribes. They were petty and controlling and not in line with the commandments of the LORD.
Application: Try to imagine what it must have been like for the people in the multitude who were hearing these words of Jesus that publicly rebuked the Pharisees and scribes and debunked their teachings and doctrine. The people were in religious and civil bondage and they only knew what they had been taught by the Jewish elite. Now they were hearing the truth and seeing the shallowness of the false facade that these leaders had demonstrated to keep the people in line and under their control.
Verses 23-24 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. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
Mint was used by the Jews in their houses and in the synagogues to freshen the smell, much in the same manner that people today use infusers with essential oils. Anise was used as a spice and for medicine. Cumin seeds had a bitter taste and is the major component of curry powder. These herbs were not chosen randomly by Jesus in this rebuke. This writer’s translation is, “No matter how you scribes and Pharisees try to make your doctrine, your rules, and your regulations smell good and then pretend that it is good for the people, what you teach and impose on others has a bitter taste and is difficult to swallow.” Jesus told these leaders that they were busy wasting their time on insignificant things and guilty of ignoring the things that were important. They were not teaching and enforcing Mosaic law, their judgements were unjust, they had no mercy, and they had no faith in the people and in the LORD God Almighty.
Verses 25-26 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. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
It does not matter how clean an object is if it is filled with dirt and rottenness. The clean vessel will not make the contents clean if they are defiled. The Pharisees and scribes looked righteous on the outside because of their clothing and their overly pious behavior, but inside their hearts, minds and souls were contaminated by greed and excess. Their god was money and power, and they robbed the people to get the wealth and the power that goes with it. Sound familiar in today’s geopolitical arena?
Verses 27-28 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. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Mankind is part flesh and bone, and part spirit and soul. The physical body can be healthy, but if the spirit and soul is rebelling against God and serving Satan, God views that person as being dead: a walking dead person. Physical death is ugly. People try to hide the ugliness by dressing the dead fleshly body as if it wasn’t dead and by applying makeup to make the facial features look alive. Then, for those that can afford it, a beautiful coffin is provided and a lovely crypt or grave site is provided, all for the purpose of making death more palatable for the living. Jesus, able to see the corrupted spirit and soul of these religious leaders, compares them to sepulchres that were/are cut in rock or built of stone or marble and which were/are usually quite lovely on the outside but that contain the rotting remains of dead people and all the microorganism or germs the body may be shedding. Not a pretty picture.
Verses 29-33 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
The Jews were very aware of the story of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden where they were tempted by the Devil in the form of a snake. Serpents can be venomous and bite and serpents have always been associated with evil spirits/devils/demons, often being described as dragons. Here Jesus calls the Pharisees and scribes snakes and vipers. A viper is a venomous snake and it is metaphor for a treacherous person. One cannot trust a viper not to bite, nor can one trust a treacherous person not to cause harm. This was a very strong statement of condemnation by Jesus and the multitude heard it as well.
Application: Notice that Jesus reported that these religious leaders said they would not have killed the prophets like their fathers did. Yet at the time of this conversation, the Pharisees and scribes were plotting the murder of Jesus. The people believed Jesus to be a prophet but the religious leaders were going to do exactly as their fathers or ancestors had done: kill the messenger from God. The difference was that they would not accept the fact that Jesus was not just a prophet, but God, very God inhabiting a human body. They were worse than their fathers or ancestors in that they were going to kill the very Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament Scripture. And their only reason for wanting Jesus dead was envy. “But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? for he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy. But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them.” Mark 15:9-10
Verses 34-36 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: 35 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. 36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
Abel was Adam’s son who was killed by his older brother, Cain, also because of envy. The Zacharias, son of Barachias may be the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah who wrote the Old Testament book of Zechariah. This writer does not know for sure who Zacharias was and when he was slain, but Jesus is placing the shedding of the blood of these righteous men and all the other blood shed needlessly clearly upon the shoulders of, not only the religious leaders, but the entire Jewish nation.
The words all and generation define the verses above. The generation Jesus was talking about was His generation. This is not dealing with the end of time or the end of the physical cosmos.
Jesus said, “I send unto you. . .” which is in the present tense. This was not referring to the past where the men of God were scourged, persecuted and killed. After Jesus’ ascension into Heaven, His disciples, starting in Jerusalem, traveled about and established churches in different cities and nations. These disciples were prophets, wise men and scribes who wrote the books of the New Testament. The Jewish leadership did everything they could to kill these men and to kill the message they preached. The book of Acts records arrests, imprisonment, court cases, floggings, and murders of these men. The Apostle Peter is reported to have been crucified upside down. So Jesus predicted that the generation of Jews He was ministering to would continue to mistreat His servants in the same manner that their fathers had done.
Verses 37-39 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! 38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39 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. (Matthew 23)
Very specific people and a very specific city are being talked about here. This was a pronouncement of judgement to the covenant people of Jesus’ time. The Greek word translated as “desolate” is “eremos” and it means solitary, lonely, uninhabited, and a wilderness. The Greek word translated as “house” is “oikos” and it means a building, any dwelling place, a palace, or the house of God – the Temple. Jesus was predicting the destruction of the Temple which occurred in 70 AD, and the destruction of the physical nation Israel which also ended with the Roman occupation in 70 AD. The Jewish people became scattered all over the world and, because the Temple with all its records was burnt to the ground, no person calling themselves Jewish today can prove they are descendants of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. The present nation Israel is a political creation and not the nation that God ordained. The majority of those identifying politically and religiously as Jews are descendants of the Khazars, people who lived in the geographical area of Ukraine. Like so many other things in today’s world, it is a deception of Satan with the goal of world dominion by a wicked and evil financial system, religious system, and one-world governmental system.