Recapitulation
All the various religious parties who controlled the
Sanhedrin and the Temple precincts had exhausted their champion debate teams in
their tag team efforts to destroy Jesus’ reputation in the eyes of the people
and the government. In our last study,
we saw one of their own was so impressed by Jesus’ answers that he was nearly
drawn in to become a follower, too. Mark reports that Jesus told him, “You are
not far from the Kingdom of heaven.”
Jesus’ Questions the Religious Leaders
Now while the assembled leaders were together Jesus took the
opportunity of speaking to them. He asked
three simple questions—the first two of which had been discussed endlessly by
the rabbis for many years. His final
question would point to the answer that none of them dared to entertain.
1) Who is the Christ?
In Matthew 22:41-45,
we have the simple record of this interchange.
“What do you think about the Christ?
Whose Son is He?” They said to
him, “The Son of David.”
This issue first came to a head as Jesus entered Jerusalem
in triumph the previous Sunday. The
people had cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David” which was a well-known Messianic
psalm of salvation (Ps 118:25-26). So,
if Jesus is the Son of David,
then they would do well to take heed.
2) Why Does David Call Him Lord, if He is His Son?
But Jesus does not leave it there. He asks the third follow-up question: “How is
it then that David, in the Spirit, calls Him Lord, saying, ‘The Lord said to my
Lord, Sit at My right hand until I put your enemies under your feet?’ If then
David calls Him Lord, how is He his Son?”
In the Hebrew of Psalm 110:1 (where this is quoted from) this is “Na’am Yahweh
l’Adonai.” (Yahweh said to my
Lord!) So, David wrote about Yahweh
speaking to His Son, the Messiah, Who He calls “My Lord!” This greater Son of
David is the Messiah and also the Son of God!
The Vineyard Auditor Has Come
Matthew says, “And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor
from that day did anyone dare to ask Him any more questions.” If Jesus is David’s son then, He is not only
the Messiah, He is also God’s Son. The
Owner’s Son has come to audit the vineyard!
And as the quote indicates, the Son is told to sit at God’s right hand “until
I put your enemies under your feet.” The
Messiah has enemies that the Father will deal with. Meanwhile, the Messiah is told to sit at
God’s right hand which would be soon fulfilled when Jesus ascended into heaven. He is currently at the Father’s right hand waiting
until His enemies are dealt with.
This part is as yet unfulfilled prophecy. Who are His enemies?
The Auditor’s Management Letter
This is what Matthew unravels in chapter 23:1-33. The audit
completed He now gives his management letter detailing His official findings. He
begins with an assessment of the leaders’ teaching and modeling of the law
followed by an indictment for not following the second great commandment to
love your neighbor as yourself. Finally,
there are seven distinct issues that Jesus points out in a series of seven “woes.”
If Jesus audited us today, what would He say?
Do as They Say, Not as They Do
In 23:1-12, although Jesus gave a scathing reprimand to the
scribes and the Pharisees He did not tell the people to ignore their
teaching. Rather, they were to follow
their teaching of the Law because they sit in Moses’ seat! But they were to ignore their actions. Don’t copy them because they are hypocrites,
self-centered and self-serving, and they are full of pride. There was no mention of the Sadducees at all
probably because Jesus and the people considered them as unbelievers
anyway. His audit was reserved for those
who claimed to be seeking the kingdom.
The Sadducees didn’t even believe in an afterlife so Jesus doesn’t deal
with them here.
Woe #1: Terrible Effects of Hypocrisy
The first woe is in verse 13. It deals with the terrible effect of their
hypocrisy. They “shut the kingdom of
heaven in people’s faces. For you
neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.” Their behavior actually misdirects people.
What kind of things can a believer do that would prevent someone from finding
the way?
Translation Note
Most translations do not have a verse 14 because most
scholars believe these words were apparently inserted here in the middle ages
to add the wording found in Mark and Luke about devouring widow’s houses and
praying long prayers which the gospels elsewhere make clear really was a
horrendous sin of the Pharisees (pretending to be pious by fake long prayers
and then quietly using their power to steal from widows.) Whether this verse was originally put there
by Matthew or inserted later, the indictment was certainly true since
Mark and Luke both report it.
Woe #2: Following People Instead of God
For most translations, the second woe is in verse 15. The Pharisees spent a lot of effort in their
missionary and evangelistic zeal but it was not to gain followers of God but of
themselves—Jesus calls them “children of hell.”
Be very careful of Christian organizations that center around a person
other than the Lord Jesus Christ.
Woe #3: Changing the Clear Teaching of Scripture
Woe 3 is in verse 16.
They were spin doctors who re-interpreted words to keep them from
keeping their word and honoring contracts.
Promises were considered binding when they swore an oath but they
weaseled out of them by procedural means.
Broken promises are an abomination to God. As we pointed out in the past, God’s holiness
in Scripture is very frequently associated with His covenant keeping
character. The Bible is a Holy Bible
because it is a record of God’s promises.
Woe #4: Failure to Emphasize God’s Priorities
Woe 4 is in verse 23.
The Pharisees loved the finer points regarding tithing even garden herbs
but there were weightier matters of justice, mercy, and faithfulness that they
completely ignored. Apparently, they
were more concerned about money and minutiae than mercy and justice.
Woes #5 and #6: Self-Centeredness and Inner Rebellion
Woes 5 and 6 sound somewhat similar. They both involve an
audit of our inner life but the woe in verse 25 deals with our
self-centeredness and the woe in verse 27 deals with our inner bent toward
lawlessness and rebellion even though we may appear pious in our outer world.
Woe #7: Hatred of God’s Messengers
Woe 7 is in verse 29.
They also talked as if they would have honored the prophets their own ancestors
had killed. They even decorated their
tombs and monuments. But Jesus said, you
will prove to be just like your fathers.
“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being
sentenced to hell?” It was quite
purposeful that they were compared to the guise in which Satan tempted
Eve. They had no use for God’s written
revelation or His messengers, the prophets.
Is there a Way of Escape?
Is there a way of escape for those who have sinned like this? These indictments could apply to any or all
of us in some measure. And even if no
one else knows our heart, God’s Son does.
Here He is warning them that the evil in their hearts will be fully
exposed.
Next time we will begin to examine Jesus’ final warning to
Israel, and indeed, it is a warning to all of us.
© 2018 Eric Thimell
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