The Gospel Of Matthew Chapter 23 Part 11: The Seventh Woe Against Scribes & Pharisees: Woe Against Religious Hypocrisy

Matthew 5:9  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 

The seventh Beatitude stands in contrast to the seventh "Woe" from Jesus.

Those who are blessed are those who have peace with God through faith in Christ. 

Children of God should be known as peacemakers by sharing the life changing gospel of Christ with lost people.

Scribes and Pharisees did not have peace with God because they did not hear Christ's gospel and heed His Words.

Their false religion produced more people who did not have peace with God and their hearts were wicked and corrupt.

Matthew 23:27-28  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. 28  Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 

Jesus powerfully rebuked Judaism and the religious practices of scribes and Pharisees.

He compared scribes and Pharisees to a "whited sepulchre" which is a structure that houses the bodies of deceased family members. 

Grave markers and above ground burial structures were coated with a lime, whitewash plaster that made them highly visible.

Tombs were whitewashed annually to prevent people from accidentally coming into contact with them as they went to Jerusalem.

The reason for this is so that the Jews did not touch or inadvertently walk on a grave and become ceremonially unclean.

Jewish custom for whitewashing graves was based upon the law of Moses concerning a person contacting a dead body or stumbling upon a human bone.

Numbers 19:16-19  And whosoever toucheth one that is slain with a sword in the open fields, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days. 17  And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel: 18  And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave: 19  And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day: and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even. 

God's law stated that anyone who came in contact with a dead body, a human bone or a grave was unclean for seven days.

He gave a purification procedure to be followed for a person who came in contact with a dead body, human bone or a grave.

A clean person was to gather some ashes from a heifer sacrificed for a burnt offering. 

The ashes were to be put in fresh water and he was to use a sprig of hyssop on the third and seventh days to sprinkle the unclean person, his tent and belongings. 

Last, the unclean person would use the same solution to purify himself by washing his clothes and bathing.

Certain supervisors managed men who repaired roads each spring and were commanded to white wash sepulchres (See 2 Kings 23:16-17). 

Jesus did not condemn the practice of whitewashing tombs.

Instead, He used it to illustrate how Judaism could not change a man's heart nor could it bring spiritual life to a sinner who was dead in trespasses and sins (See Ephesians 2:1-10).

What was a whited sepulchre?

In our culture these above ground structures are known as a mausoleum, usually dedicated to one family.

They are built to hold the remains of each generation of that family and usually have pull out drawers where the bones were kept.

The photo below illustrates how beautiful the structure was on the outside after fresh whitewash was applied.

Mausoleums are highly visible against the green foliage.

Matthew 23:27-28  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. 28  Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 

A robe worn by Pharisees and scribes would look like the one pictured above.

You see that the material is high quality and the borders are beautifully done with contrasting trim.

The phylacteries are the four, small leather pouches that contain scripture inside as we noted before.

Thus, a whitewashed sepulchre painted a vivid picture of Pharisees wearing beautiful robes to give themselves an appearance of external righteousness. 

This photo shows the interior of an old, decaying mausoleum. 

Bone fragments and debris from the decaying structure line the inside of the tomb.

Though a sepulchre may look beautiful with fresh whitewash on a sunny day, the inside is ugly and decaying.

The inside is not a pretty sight just as our wicked hearts are not a pretty sight when God looks on us.

This is why we need a Savior, Jesus Christ, who brings spiritual life, and gives us a new heart and spirit when we exercise repentant faith in Him.

What does our heart look like without Christ and the Spirit's regenerating work?

Matthew 15:18-20  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 19  For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 20  These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man. 

Jesus Christ, the Creator and Sustainer of all life, the One who governs all things by the word of His power, had this to say about our heart.

Our heart (Mind, emotion, will and soul) is the source of corrupt evil thoughts.

Our heart is evil and depraved and we are powerless to change it.

This is why the world is filled with murder, wars, sexual perversion, theft, lying, and blasphemers against Holy God.

Jeremiah 17:9-10  The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 10  I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. 

Jeremiah tells us our heart is deceitful and desperately wicked.

Wicked men try to cover up the true condition of their evil hearts, but God sees it and knows what is in man.

He searches the human heart and He will judge us according to the fruit of our lives.

A sinner will receive condemnation for all his or her sins and transgressions for God knows each one and they are recorded in His infallible book in heaven.

God will judge each sinner according to the heavenly record of their evil deeds (See Revelation 20:12).

In like manner, God records the work done by each believer in Christ and He knows those who rightly fear Him and remember His holy name (See Malachi 3:16). 

Psalm 139:1-4  To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. 2  Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. 3  Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. 4  For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. 

God knows our hearts and God manifest in the flesh, Jesus Christ knows our hearts.

God knows our thoughts and the words we are going to speak before we utter a syllable.

Our Lord looked on the hearts of Pharisees and scribes and saw deep depravity within covered by the garb of religion on the outside.

The apostle Paul was guided by the Spirit of God to tell us about those who are religious hypocrites, like the Pharisees and scribes.

Paul said that these kind of men were filled with pride and love for self.

They were lovers of pleasures and the praise of men but they did not love God.

2 Timothy 3:5  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 

Pharisees and scribes put on a mask of religion by going to the right places, saying the right things, and doing all things like praying or tithing or fasting, so that others would think highly of them.

They wore beautiful robes that gave them the appearance of being religious and righteous men but they denied the power of the gospel.

Thus, we are warned to turn away and avoid such people. 

What does this "Woe" teach us about ourselves and our relationship with God through faith in Christ?

We must note that Jesus did not extend an invitation to repent and be cleansed from sin to those who are religious hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees.

They loved the praise of men more than praise from God.

They thought their external performance of religious things like tithing, fasting or praying made them right with God.

They heard the gospel from John the Baptist and from the lips of Jesus but they turned away, confident that they could earn God's favor by their religiosity.

First, we must always be willing to examine our heart and motives to see if pride has reared its ugly head.

We must guard against thinking that there is something we can do to earn or keep our salvation, for the redemption of our soul is entirely the work of God, from beginning to end.

Second, we must remember the heart of God is to save those who repent of their sins and call upon Him for salvation (See Romans 10:10-13).

Isaiah tells us the heart of God is to save all sinners from eternal condemnation, but He will not force someone to call upon Him.

We must hear and heed the gospel call and God will save us.

Isaiah 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. 

Only one thing will God accept from us: a heart broken by our sin and a contrite spirit.

Here is the promise of God. He will come and dwell with those whose hearts have been crushed by life's troubles and the consequences of sin.

He will come to rescue the repentant sinner who cries to Him for salvation.

He will revive the heart of those who are contrite before Him.

He will revive the Spirit of those who are humbled by sin.

He will impart spiritual life and give the repentant sinner a new heart and new spirit just as Ezekiel prophesied of (See Ezekiel 11:19-20; 36:25-27).

Last, we must remember how offensive religious hypocrites are to God.

Our enemy will try to pervert our service for God and we must seek to have a humble heart and contrite spirit before God at all times.

Humility is the antidote for pride. Contrition is the antidote for self righteous attitudes.

Let us therefore confess our sins each day to our Lord, that we might be forgiven and cleansed as He promises to do (See 1 John 1:5 to 2:2).

I pray for our Lord to help us see where our motives are impure, where our love for Him has grown cold or where we have become spiritually calloused. 

If His Spirit brings conviction to us about these things, let us swiftly confess and forsake our sins and receive fresh cleansing from our gracious God.

Bob