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Response
In Matthew 23, Jesus pronounces “woes” on the scribes and Pharisees, the religious elite of that time. The term “woe” expresses grief, denunciation, or distress. This was not the first occasion when Jesus had strong words for the religious leaders of His time. Why did Jesus rebuke them so severely here? Examining each woe provides some insight.
Before delivering the woes, Jesus instructed His audience to show respect to the scribes and Pharisees because of their authority but not to imitate them, “for they do not practice what they preach. They burden people with heavy loads and do not lift a finger to help. Everything they do is for show” (Matthew 23:3-5). The scribes and Pharisees were meant to lead people to God and guide them in His ways. Instead, the religious leaders added extra rules to God’s Law, making it burdensome and oppressive. Moreover, they lacked sincerity in their devotion to God. Their worship was not genuine but stemmed from a prideful heart. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount highlights the true purpose of the Law rather than just following it literally. The scribes and Pharisees focused on the literal interpretation, missing the essence of it.
The first woe is, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You block the entrance to the kingdom of heaven for others. You yourselves do not enter, nor do you allow those who are trying to enter to do so” « 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. », (Matthew 23:13). Jesus has a deep concern for people. He wants them to know Him and to be part of His kingdom.dom (John 3:16-17;10:10,17;2 Peter 3:9). After rebuking the scribes and Pharisees, Jesus lamented over rebellious Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37-39). Clearly, His heart is for people to find life in Him. It stands to reason, then, that He would have harsh words for those who hindered people from finding salvation. The teachers of the Law and Pharisees were not genuinely seeking after God, although they acted as if they were. Their religion was hollow, and it was obstructing others from following the Messiah.
In the second woe, Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees for making strenuous efforts to win converts and then leading those converts to be “twice as much” children of hell as the scribes and Pharisees were « For this people’s heart is waxed gross, And their ears are dull of hearing, And their eyes they have closed; Lest at any time they should see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And should understand with their heart, And should be converted, and I should heal them. », (Matthew 13:15). In other words, they were more focused on spreading their religion than on upholding the truth.
The third woe Jesus pronounces against the scribes and Pharisees calls the religious leaders “blind guides” and “blind fools” (Matthew 23:16-17). Specifically, Jesus points out, they nitpicked about which oaths were binding and which were not, disregarding the sacred nature of all oaths and the significance of the temple and God’s holiness (verses 15–22).
The fourth woe calls out the scribes and Pharisees for their practice of diligently paying the tithe while neglecting to actually care for people. While they were counting their mint leaves to ensureThey gave one-tenth to the temple, but they “neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness” « 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. », (Matthew 23:23). Once again, they focused on the letter of the Law and obeyed it with pride, but they missed the weightier things of God. Their religion was external; their hearts were not transformed.
Jesus elaborates on their hypocrisy in the fifth woe. He tells the religious leaders they appear clean on the outside, but they have neglected the inside. They perform religious acts but do not have God-honoring hearts. It does no good, Jesus says, to clean up the outside when the inside is “full of greed and self-indulgence” «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. », (Matthew 23:25). The Pharisees and scribes are blind and do not recognize that when the inside is changed, the outside will be transformed.
In the sixth woe, Jesus claims the scribes and Pharisees are “like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean” «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. », (Matthew 23:27). The deadness inside of tombs is likened to the “hypocrisy and wickedness” inside the religious leaders (verse 28). Once again, they
Appear to obey God, but their hearts are far from Him (see Matthew 15:7-9 and Isaiah 29:13).
Jesus concludes His seven-fold rebuke by telling the religious leaders that they are just like their fathers, who persecuted the prophets of old. In building monuments to the prophets, they testify against themselves, openly admitting that it was their ancestors who killed the prophets (Matthew 23:29-31). Although they arrogantly claim that they would not have done so, they are the ones who will soon plot the murder of the Son of God Himself «and consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him. », (Matthew 26:4).
Jesus’ words are harsh because there was so much at stake. Those who followed the Pharisees and scribes were being kept from following God. So much of the teaching in Jesus’ day was in direct contradiction of God’s Word see Matthew 15:6. The religious leaders made a mockery out of following God. They did not truly understand God’s ways, and they led others away from God. Jesus’ desire was that people would come to know God and be reconciled with Him. In Matthew 11:28–30 Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Unlike the burdens the scribes and Pharisees laid on the people in a human effort to gain reconciliation with God, Jesus gives true rest. The religious leaders spread lies covered in a veneer of godliness «Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks…», (John 8:44).
With a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” , (John 8:44); Jesus spoke harshly against them because He came to bring life “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” , (John 10:10).
Also, the word woe carries with it a tinge of sorrow. There is an element of imprecation, to be sure, but with it an element of compassionate sadness. The seven woes that Jesus pronounces on the religious leaders are solemn declarations of future misery. The stubbornness of the sinners to whom He speaks is bringing a judgment to be feared. The scribes and Pharisees are calling down God’s wrath upon themselves, and they are to be pitied.
Immediately after Jesus’ rebuke of the scribes and Pharisees, we see Jesus’ compassion. He asks, “How will you escape being condemned to hell?” “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” , (Matthew 23:33). Jesus then expresses His desire to gather the people of Israel to Himself for safety, if only they were willing (verse 37). God longs for His people to come to Him and find forgiveness. Jesus was not harsh to be mean. He was not having a temper tantrum. Rather, love guided His actions. Jesus spoke firmly against the deception of Satan out of a desire for people to know truth and find life in Him.
