Matthew 23:13-39
Matthew 23:13-39 (New Living Translation)
13 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either. 15 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell you yourselves are! 16 “Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding. 19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 When you swear ‘by the
altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it. 21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it. 22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne. 23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. 24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!
25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! 26 You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too. 27 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. 28 Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed, and you decorate the monuments of the godly people your ancestors destroyed. 30 Then you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors,
we would never have joined them in killing the prophets.’ 31 “But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead and finish what your ancestors started. 33 Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell? 34 “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city. 35 As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation. 37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to
gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 38 And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate. 39 For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Devotional (by Marty Bennett)
You know when I read this passage, I cannot help but wonder how mad Jesus must have been with the Pharisees. These verses (26 in all) represent a verbal smack-down unlike any I’ve read from Jesus. Seven times in these twenty-six verses, Jesus uses the phrase “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites!” The Pharisees obsession with control, materialism, and focus on outward appearance are really convicting words. I know I’ve fallen into these earthly traps in my life when I would rather spend my money on things that make me look good. About 13 years ago, I bought a brand new sporty Honda Civic that I couldn’t afford, but hey, I looked good in it. I bought clothes and material items I didn’t need, but I felt that I needed to impress people with my appearance. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
These people that Jesus rails against, people with significant influence in the community, had so lost their focus on God’s message and teachings by bending, twisting and inventing rules that they were in danger of going to hell. The old phrase—to those whom much is given, much is expected—rings true here. Jesus was obviously so angry that these powerful men & leaders had abused the power of their position so consistently and blatantly that he foretold their downfall. Despite all their sins, Jesus gave the Pharisees ways to escape their fate (hell). He Jesus knew these corrupt leaders would not listen and in fact would do all in their power to bring him down, but he still offered them a chance.
In our lives in the 21st century, Jesus is still offering us hope, a way toward heaven, if we take him into our hearts, truly believe in him, and know that only with him can we see God. He has given us life, hope, and all the tools we need within us to be leaders in our community, leaders by the way we live our lives. Some of us may not feel like leaders in the traditional sense of presidents, politicians, pastors or popes, but we are all asked by God, by Jesus to live our lives through him, in him and with him. What better mentor could we have for our roles in this world. The imagery at the end of the passage is so poignant—Jesus like a hen protecting her chicks beneath her wings. Jesus is our protector, as long as we let him.
Prayer:
Thank you, Jesus, for teaching us this valuable lesson that as Christians we are given much to be thankful for, and that much is expected of us as we continue our walk with you. I pray that we all have the time today, to take stock of how we live our lives, and make the changes we need to honor you in all we do, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
13 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either. 15 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell you yourselves are! 16 “Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding. 19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 When you swear ‘by the
altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it. 21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it. 22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne. 23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. 24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!
25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! 26 You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too. 27 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. 28 Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed, and you decorate the monuments of the godly people your ancestors destroyed. 30 Then you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors,
we would never have joined them in killing the prophets.’ 31 “But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead and finish what your ancestors started. 33 Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell? 34 “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city. 35 As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation. 37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to
gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 38 And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate. 39 For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Devotional (by Marty Bennett)
You know when I read this passage, I cannot help but wonder how mad Jesus must have been with the Pharisees. These verses (26 in all) represent a verbal smack-down unlike any I’ve read from Jesus. Seven times in these twenty-six verses, Jesus uses the phrase “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites!” The Pharisees obsession with control, materialism, and focus on outward appearance are really convicting words. I know I’ve fallen into these earthly traps in my life when I would rather spend my money on things that make me look good. About 13 years ago, I bought a brand new sporty Honda Civic that I couldn’t afford, but hey, I looked good in it. I bought clothes and material items I didn’t need, but I felt that I needed to impress people with my appearance. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
These people that Jesus rails against, people with significant influence in the community, had so lost their focus on God’s message and teachings by bending, twisting and inventing rules that they were in danger of going to hell. The old phrase—to those whom much is given, much is expected—rings true here. Jesus was obviously so angry that these powerful men & leaders had abused the power of their position so consistently and blatantly that he foretold their downfall. Despite all their sins, Jesus gave the Pharisees ways to escape their fate (hell). He Jesus knew these corrupt leaders would not listen and in fact would do all in their power to bring him down, but he still offered them a chance.
In our lives in the 21st century, Jesus is still offering us hope, a way toward heaven, if we take him into our hearts, truly believe in him, and know that only with him can we see God. He has given us life, hope, and all the tools we need within us to be leaders in our community, leaders by the way we live our lives. Some of us may not feel like leaders in the traditional sense of presidents, politicians, pastors or popes, but we are all asked by God, by Jesus to live our lives through him, in him and with him. What better mentor could we have for our roles in this world. The imagery at the end of the passage is so poignant—Jesus like a hen protecting her chicks beneath her wings. Jesus is our protector, as long as we let him.
Prayer:
Thank you, Jesus, for teaching us this valuable lesson that as Christians we are given much to be thankful for, and that much is expected of us as we continue our walk with you. I pray that we all have the time today, to take stock of how we live our lives, and make the changes we need to honor you in all we do, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
posted by Mikey | 11:23 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home