Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves

 

 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.  Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?  And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?  Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it.  He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.  And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:  justice and mercy and faith.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

 

- Matthew 23:13-26 

 

Yesterday we read the beginning of what is known as Christ's final public discourse, which continues in today's reading.  Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.  Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?  And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?  Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it.  He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.  And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it."  My study Bible comments that because the example of a leader can be so influential, leaders who do not love God can hinder others from finding God as well.  Therefore, leaders are held to a higher standard (see James 3:1).  Let us notice that the examples Jesus chooses here emphasize the centrality of God, whether we are speaking of holiness (sanctifies the gold) or power and authority (he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it).  When Christ speaks of the leaders who make their proselyte twice as much a son of hell as yourselves, He's speaking of the importance of correction, for whatever bad path we're on, the further it is traveled, the worse the condition becomes.  Above all, Christ's condemnation is for hypocrisy. He says they devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers -- evidence of predatory behavior covered with appearances of piety.  The work of false teachers hinders and misleads those who truly seek God:  He says they "shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in."

 

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:  justice and mercy and faith.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."  My study Bible comments that these warnings are especially important to Orthodox Christians (and by extension they apply to the practice of all traditions in Christian churches).  It says that the Church has maintained the ancient practices of tithing, to which Jesus refers here when He says "These you ought to have done"; sacred vessels; holy rites; and following the tradition that we've inherited.  It says that these practices can be expressions of deep faith, lead a person to deeper commitment to God, and safeguard our life in Christ -- or they can be observed without ever taking them to heart and lead to condemnation.  In all ways, throughout this discourse, Jesus emphasizes the condition of the heart and the state of our love for God.  Note that when Jesus speaks of those who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel, He's referring to the practice of the Pharisees of attaching strainers to the mouths of decanters in order to avoid accidentally consuming a ritually unclean substance.  But we should take note of the value of the metaphor!

During His time being questioned in the Temple, in this final week of Christ's earthly life, Jesus has been quizzed by one of the experts in the Law as to which was the greatest commandment.  See Tuesday's reading and commentary.  Jesus' answer was to give two great commandments, in ranking order of first and second, but which go together.  His formula was simple but entirely profound:  "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."  In today's reading, in which He criticizes from a long list of the failures of the religious leadership, He puts down the example of what it is to fail to live these two commandments.  Why is the love of God with all one's heart and soul and mind the first great commandment?  Because this act of love in the heart sets down the pattern for all of life and the rest of our relationships.  Without the depth of connection to God (Who is love) in our hearts, the rest of the practices will fail to be meaningful.  From that love of God, we are taught love and the correct relationship to creation, including our neighbor.  Hypocrisy comes from an outward appearance which seeks to convey an image, but couple with an emptiness in the heart.  Christ's focus is always with an emphasis on the heart and the state of the heart, the condition of the heart.  And this is particularly given in the context of relationship to God, the foundation of love and our understanding of love and good relationship.  So let us take this in the context in which it is given.  Jesus is not seeking to tear down the Temple nor the whole of Jewish spiritual tradition;  He is criticizing the corruption of these authorities and the practices that stem from that.  His byword here is hypocrisy, and this is therefore the thing we most need to note.  This is His greatest warning to us, His followers, and the things we also need to guard against in the practice of our faith and worship.  Let us note also that this is not simply a credal statement, a system of belief, or a philosophy, but what Jesus speaks about is the life He lives and teaches us through His Incarnation.  That is, it is a living, dynamic, mystical relationship of love. This is a reality of the heart that informs, empowers, and shapes our behavior as we live our faith and the trust we put in God, in Christ.  In short, it shapes us and our lives.  This is always the basis for Christ's emphasis on the state of the heart and its relationship to how we live our lives.  So let us do our part to guard against hypocrisy.  Let our worship and prayers be meaningful, and let the love of God in the heart -- that place where we know God's love -- inform the ways in which we live our faith and how we approach the world.  When Jesus teaches that one must first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also, it is a clear metaphor about us and about our lives.  He's not telling us to throw out beautiful or traditional worship practices, such as tithing or almsgiving, but that these you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.