Matthew 23:23 - Printer Friendly

ESV: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

NIV: Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

NASB: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

CSB: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You pay a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, and yet you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These things should have been done without neglecting the others.

NLT: 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.

KJV: 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.

NKJV: “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.

Jesus launches into the fourth or His seven "woes" against Israel's religious leaders, the scribes and Pharisees. These are more than just a performance review, or a debate-style attack against Jesus' opponents. These are pronouncements of judgment. They come from the Son of God against those entrusted by God with the religious and spiritual leadership of His people.

After calling them hypocrites once again (Matthew 23:13, 15), Jesus describes what may be the heart of the Pharisees' problem when it comes to their practice of Judaism. Over time, Jewish leaders developed a system of intricate details meant to "protect" people from accidentally breaking one of God's commandments. Men like scribes and Pharisees pour intense energy into obeying the smallest details of these traditional, manmade rules. At the same time, they are missing the point of the actual God-given laws which inspired their traditions. They are blind to the heart of God for His people.

The Israelites were commanded to tithe—give ten percent of—certain specific crops. This included oil, grain, and wine (Deuteronomy 14:22–29). Leviticus 27:30–32 goes a bit further, specifying seed of the land, fruit from trees, and animals from the herds. The Pharisees had chosen to apply this requirement to even the tiniest of the garden plants, including mint, dill, and cumin. Jesus does not condemn their choice. In fact, He says that aspect of their obedience is legitimate. At the same time, it is an example of the exacting lengths the Pharisees went to—and imposed on the people—to try to be legalistically perfect.

In focusing on these details, the Pharisees became insensitive to the greater point of those laws. Obedience was important, of course, but just as important is to know the purpose the regulations given by God. Only by knowing the purpose can a person rightly judge (John 7:24) how to apply those laws. The Lord intended for His people to live in justice, mercy, and faithfulness. Without those end goals, all the rules became mere religious exercise instead of a way to accomplish the will of God for His people.

Matthew 23:13–36 contains seven layers of condemnation, from Jesus, towards the religious leaders of His era. Each of these is introduced with the word "woe," which is an exclamation like "oh!" or "alas!" Pronouncing God's judgment on these men, He repeatedly describes them as "blind" and "hypocrites." Convincing others of their views only adds victims to hell. They follow the letters of manmade law to the tiniest detail but miss the real meaning of Scripture: God's heart for justice, mercy, and faithfulness. Their outer appearance of righteousness hides inner lives full of greed, self-indulgence, hypocrisy, and lawlessness. Those in Jesus' generation will pay for many of the righteous people unjustly killed in the past.

After thoroughly dismantling scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees in debate, Jesus even more thoroughly condemns these religious leaders for their religious hypocrisy. They do all their religious acts and works to be seen and approved of by other people. Jesus pronounces God's judgment on the scribes and Pharisees in a series of seven "woe to you" statements. He repeatedly calls them "blind" and "hypocrites." He concludes with a lament for Jerusalem and her children who rejected His protection. God's judgment is coming.

Matthew 23 concludes Matthew's multi-chapter account of all of Jesus' interactions in the temple during the last week before His arrest and crucifixion. After silencing the religious leaders with parables and brilliant responses (Matthew 21—22), He pronounces God's judgment on the scribes and Pharisees in a series of seven "woe to you" statements. Jesus mourns for the judgment that will come on Jerusalem for her rejection of God. This leads Jesus to leave the temple, sadly remarking on its impending destruction (Matthew 24:1–2). As the disciples ask about this, Jesus begins an extended teaching on the end times in chapter 24.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.