What does Luke 20:47 mean?
Jesus is explaining to a large crowd why they shouldn't revere their generation's scribes. "Scribes" are lawyer-teachers. They hold people accountable to the Mosaic law and, if they're Pharisees, the Oral Law. They're greatly respected by the people for their expertise and their piety. Jesus says that Jerusalem's scribes don't deserve that respect. He has already mentioned what He thinks of the Oral Law: it puts an unbearable burden on the people that God did not intend (Luke 11:46).In this passage, Jesus doesn't talk about the scribes' teaching as much as how they manipulate people into giving them honor. He's mentioned how they love to get attention in the marketplace and covet the best seats in the synagogue and at feasts (Luke 20:46). Now, Jesus shows how they love neither other people nor God.
We don't know exactly what is meant by "devour widows' houses." One possibility is that religious leaders manage the homes of widows and pay themselves generously from the widow's estate. If a widow has no sons or other trustworthy male relatives, she is particularly vulnerable. Managing property as a woman was especially difficult in the ancient world, which is why God included the kinsman redeemer in the Law (Ruth 4). In some places today, it is still common for relatives or neighbors to steal widows' homes and land. Pharisees are already known for using pledges for the temple to launder money away from their own parents (Mark 7:9–13); stealing homes from widows is consistent with that vice.
These scribes also show their disdain for God. Their long prayers make them look pious, but they're for show, to garner attention from other people. Jesus spoke about this earlier in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. The Pharisee's prayer was not only pretentious, but it also included a directed jab at a repentant man begging God for mercy (Luke 18:9–14).
The scribes will "receive the greater condemnation" because they should know better. They know the Law. In Matthew 22:34–40 and Mark 12:28–34, Jesus' riddle about David and the Christ follows Jesus' teaching that the greatest commandments are to love God and others; a scribe agrees. The scribes know the point of the Mosaic law is to love God and give Him honor and to love those made in His image. John explains, "many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God" (John 12:42–43).
Matthew includes these warnings in a much longer recorded criticism aimed directly at the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 23:1–36). Luke contains a similar extended criticism at a banquet Jesus was invited to (Luke 11:37–52). Mark 12:38–40 is closer to Luke 20:45–47. It's possible Matthew condensed the two events. More likely is that Jesus taught the same thing more than once—a common practice in an era without recording devices or mass communication.
Both Mark 12:41–44 and Luke 21:1–4 present a foil for the scribes. A poor widow, the demographic of the scribes' victims, gives her last two copper coins to the temple treasury. The scribes do whatever they can to win honor from the people. Two coins and a faithful heart win the woman honor from Christ.
