CRITICAL NOTES
Luke 11:37. Besought.—Simply, “asked” (R.V.). To dine.—Rather, “that He would breakfast with him.” The word used means a noon-day meal = our late breakfast or luncheon.
Luke 11:38. Washed.—The washing was a ceremonial act, and cleanliness was not the object of it. The ablutions, which had become most elaborate and frivolous, were not based even upon Levitical law, but upon Pharisaic tradition and the so-called Oral law.
Luke 11:39. Now.—I.e., “as things are.” Make clean, etc.—In Matthew 23:25 a similar figure is used. There is, however, this difference: there the inside of the cup and platter are said to be full of extortion and wickedness—i.e., got by wrongful means and used profligately; here it is to the inward part—the spiritual condition of the men themselves—that reference is made.
Luke 11:40. “Did not He who made the body (that which is without) make the mind and soul also (that which is within)?” What folly to attend to the cleanness of the one and to ignore the foulness of the other!
Luke 11:41. Give alms of such things as ye have.—Rather, “give for alms those things which are within” (R.V.). Christ returns to speak of the literal contents of cup and platter: “Be not anxious about the outward part, but rather attend to its contents, and do but give alms therefrom, and the food and everything else shall be pure to you” (Bloomfield). A deed of unselfishness and goodwill would make a change in the whole inward condition.
Luke 11:42. Tithe mint, etc.—As commanded in Deuteronomy 14:22. No proportion was observed between greater and less commandments—those based on eternal principles and those of a local or temporary character. Judgment and the love of God.—Hebraism for justice and equity (cf. Micah 6:8).
Luke 11:43. The sin of pride is rebuked; the desire to be prominent and to secure reverent salutations from their brethren. The places in the synagogue nearest to the reading-desk, where the elders sat, were specially coveted.
Luke 11:44. Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!—Omit these words; omitted in R.V. Taken probably from the parallel passage in Matthew 23:27. Graves.—Unsuspected pits of corruption. The figure in St. Matthew’s gospel is somewhat different—“whited sepulchres,” outwardly beautiful.
Luke 11:45. One of the lawyers.—This man felt that his official ecclesiastical position should shield him against such reproaches. As a class the lawyers, or scribes, were inclined to Pharisaism.
Luke 11:46. Burdens grievous.—The details of ceremonial obedience were multiplied and became an intolerable yoke (cf. Acts 15:10); and some of those who laid stress upon them were guilty of the inconsistency of neglecting them themselves.
Luke 11:47. Build sepulchres.—I.e., ostentatiously separate themselves from the sins of their ancestors in rejecting the prophets, and yet are guilty of the same wickedness in rejecting John the Baptist and Christ.
Luke 11:48. Ye allow.—I.e., “consent to” (R.V.). In a sense, respect for the dead prophets was in itself an offence against the living. Instead of hearkening to the voice of living representatives of the Divine will, they set up against them the reputation and authority and teaching of those who had long passed away.
Luke 11:49. The wisdom of God.—This is a very peculiar phrase, and has excited considerable controversy. There is no passage in the Old Testament which corresponds verbally with this apparent quotation. There can be no doubt, however, that Christ alludes to 2 Chronicles 24:20-22, and more especially to 2 Chronicles 36:14-21 of the same book. It may be that since there is not formal quotation this peculiar phrase is used: the method of Divine procedure is described rather than the historical examples of it cited. “The wisdom of God” is probably equivalent to “the wise God.” God, in His wisdom, sees fit to follow such and such a course.
Luke 11:51. Abel.—The first martyr in the strife between holiness and unrighteousness whose history is found in the first historical book of the Old Testament. Zacharias.— 2 Chronicles 24:20-21: the last historical book of the Old Testament.
Luke 11:52. The key of knowledge.—Cf. Matthew 13:52; Matthew 16:19. Knowledge, i.e., of God, of which the Scriptures were the key. “The scribes, by arrogating to themselves exclusive authority to interpret the Scriptures, while they did not interpret them truly, either for their own use, or for the good of those whom they instructed, kept the key of knowledge shut up and useless” (Speaker’s Commentary).
Luke 11:53. And as He said these things unto them.—Rather, “and when He was come out from thence” (R.V.). Began to urge Him.—Or, “to press upon Him” (R.V.). “They surrounded Him in a most threatening and irritating manner, in a scene of violence perhaps unique in the life of Jesus” (Farrar).
Luke 11:54. That they might accuse Him.—Omitted in R.V.; but evidently the words are a fair description of the motives of His adversaries, though not part of the text of the Gospel.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Luke 11:37-54
Besetting Sins of Religious Leaders and Teachers.—The Pharisees aimed at setting before the people an example of holiness which it was their duty to imitate; the scribes assumed to themselves the task of instructing them in the law of God. The one showed them what they should do, the other taught them what they should believe. And then, as now, the position of those who were set apart, or who set themselves up as leaders and teachers, was attended with no little spiritual danger. They were apt to become arrogant and self-complacent, and to affect an outward austerity very much at variance with their inward condition of heart and character. All through His earthly ministry the kind of righteousness which Christ taught and exemplified was antagonistic to that of the Pharisees and scribes, and therefore we need not be surprised that on some occasions, as in the present, He came into direct collision with them.
I. The first fault with which He charged the Pharisees was hypocrisy (Luke 11:39-42).—They acted the part of righteous men, without being righteous at heart, and hence they laid stress upon all such practices as appealed to the outward eye, and were indifferent to the spiritual requirements of the law of God. Just as an actor assumes the dress of the character he wishes to portray, and adopts a tone of voice suitable to the part, and appropriate gestures, attitudes, and speeches, so did the Pharisees assume the outward guise of those who were intent upon honouring and serving God. They were zealous in practising all kinds of ceremonial purification, and in payment of tithes, and went, indeed, beyond the requirements of the law of Moses. Yet their fault did not consist in their extreme scrupulousness, but rather in neglect of moral and spiritual obligations. Beneath the pious exterior lay greed, and injustice, and hardness of heart, and self-indulgence. The sin they were guilty of is only too easily possible in Christian society—that of combining a sanctimonious profession of religion with a very lax moral practice.
II. The second fault with which Christ charged the Pharisees was that of vainglorious ambition (Luke 11:43).—They loved the praises of men, and sought to gain and wield power for the gratification of their own pride and vanity. Their motive was an evil one, and vitiated the influence for good which their profession of zeal for the honour of God might have exercised. For when the mask was taken away from their characters it became evident that they were seeking to promote their own self-advancement, and not the interests of true religion. The teaching of Christ, therefore, distinctly warns us that holiness does not consist merely in the performance of certain actions, but in the pure and righteous character of the motives that govern the life. His words on this occasion, too, describe the hurtful influence exercised by all spurious forms of religious life (Luke 11:44). Not only do they fail to promote righteousness, but they are like a poisonous contagion. The corruption is all the more deceptive because it is concealed, and it infects those who come into contact with it.
III. A characteristic fault of the scribes was their laying stress upon the letter of God’s Word rather than upon the spirit of it (Luke 11:45-46).—This is akin to the reproach addressed to the Pharisees, for literalism is closely allied to formalism. They rendered the Scriptures an oppressive burden’ by the minute rules which they deduced from them, and which they imposed upon all those whom they instructed. But for their own part they substituted knowledge for practice. Probably in all ages of the Church’s history those may be found who perpetuate this fault—who set up their own interpretations of Scripture and deductions from it as of co-ordinate authority with the Word of God. And those who are most peremptory in insisting upon acquiescence in their rigid interpretation of Scripture generally enjoy a freedom which they deny to others. Their work seems to be that of imposing burdens, and not of sharing burdens.
IV. Another characteristic fault of the scribes is their rancorous orthodoxy (Luke 11:47-51).—They are in antagonism to living piety, and persecute it. They set up over against those who are the present mouthpieces of God’s Spirit the authority of earlier teachers, whose opponents they would have been if they had lived in their times. And by their resistance to God’s messengers they approve themselves as children of those who in earlier ages killed the prophets. God leaves no generation of men without His witnesses, and those who resist them share the guilt of those who were persecutors in times long past, even though they may sincerely believe that they abhor their actions. Such orthodoxy, which manifests itself in the statement and defence of a creed which is more a matter of the intellect than an inspiring influence upon the life, is a positive hindrance to religion (Luke 11:52). It is like taking away the key of a door and hindering both ourselves and others from entering in.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON Luke 11:37-54
Luke 11:37-38. A Violation of Hospitality.—There can be little doubt that this Pharisee violated the laws of hospitality by inviting Jesus to his house for the purpose of watching Him, and of founding some accusation against Him. Others of the guests had the same hostility towards Him in their minds (Luke 11:45; Luke 11:53). This fact explains the severity of tone manifested by Jesus throughout the scene. Except for grave reasons, He would not have spoken as He did in the house of His entertainer. There are times when higher obligations than the rules of good society must be respected.
Luke 11:39-40. The Pharisees Rebuked.—The Pharisees are rebuked
(1) for being addicted to meaningless rites—for lustrations which had been instituted for the purpose of suggesting moral purity lost their significance when practised for their own sake;
(2) for attending merely to external appearances;
(3) for the folly of imagining that God was such an one as themselves, and would be satisfied with a mere pretence and show of righteousness; and
(4) for the covetousness and greed by which they had enriched themselves, and which made them indifferent to the claims of the poor and unfortunate.
Luke 11:41. “Give alms.”—There is no question here of the intrinsic merit of good works: Jesus is simply contrasting the positive value of a kindly deed with the worthlessness of mere outward observances.
“All things are clean unto you.”—Let them do one single loving, unselfish act—not for the sake of the action itself, nor for any merit inherent in it, but out of pure good-will towards others—and their whole inward condition would be different. Let those things, which had been the materials and instruments of sin and selfishness, become the instruments of love and kindness, and all things, both that which is without and that which is within, would be at once purified for them. In other words, as the cup and the platter, the outside of which they cleansed so scrupulously and sedulously, were defiled by the bad means by which their contents were procured, or the evil uses to which they were put, so they would be purified, not by any formal outward acts, but by that spirit of love which would dictate a right and charitable destination of their contents.—Speaker’s Commentary.
Luke 11:42. Two Marks of Hypocrisy.—
1. To be more exact in and zealous for the observance of ritual and the traditions of men, than in and for the observance of the moral law of God.
2. In matters of morality to be more exact and strict in and for little things, than for things more grave and weighty. There is no commandment of God that we are at liberty to despise: yet we should have more regard to greater than to lesser duties.
Judgment and the Love of God.—The reference is to Micah 6:6-8, where the prophet makes all acceptable religion to consist in “doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God.”
Not to Leave the Other Undone.—The moderation and wisdom of Jesus shine out in these words; He does not at all desire prematurely to break the legal mould in which Jewish righteousness was cast, provided that it was not maintained at the expense of the real contents of the law.—Godet.
The First and The Last.—By all means be most minutely conscientious. But then see to it that ye do not
(1) put the last first, and
(2) put off and put out the first altogether, contenting yourselves with the last and least. See to it, on the contrary, that
(1) ye put the first first, and that then
(2) ye do not put off and put out the last, but bring it in and yet keep it last.—Morison.
Luke 11:44. Whitewashed Tombs.—Jews had a custom of whitewashing sepulchral stones once a year. At the time when our Lord used this metaphor to characterise the scribes and Pharisees, the tombs about Jerusalem had been recently whitewashed, and so were beautified for a season. As He spoke in the open air, the white stones must have been conspicuous on every side. The object of this whitewashing was not to embellish, but to point out the gravestone to the passer-by, that he might not tread on it or touch it. Later casuists pronounced the man unclean who casually stepped on a grave or touched a tombstone. This explains the saying of our Lord in the text. It amounts to a charge against the Pharisees of concealing their true character from the people, and spreading contamination while no one suspected them of evil.—Fraser.
Luke 11:45. “Reproachest us also.”—In what a grievous state is that conscience which, hearing the Word of God, thinks it a reproach against itself; and, in the account of the punishment of the wicked, perceives its own condemnation!—Bede.
Luke 11:46-52. Besetting Sins of Theologians.—The besetting sins of theologians:
1. Harshness and insincerity (Luke 11:46).
2. A rancorous and persecuting spirit (Luke 11:47-51).
3. Arrogance and exclusiveness (Luke 11:52).
Luke 11:46. Knowledge Substituted for Practice.—Very rigid principles combined with very lax conduct. Undue attention to the intellectual side of religion is generally found accompanied by this moral deficiency.
“Touch with one of your fingers.”—This is opposed to taking up the burden upon the shoulders.
Luke 11:47-48. “Ye build the sepulchres.”—Ye build their tombs and adorn their monuments, but ye do not imitate their example; ye disobey their precepts, and slight their warnings, and rebel against their God. who has sent to you His Son, to whom all the prophets bear witness. And thus ye show yourselves the children of those who killed the prophets, and are even worse than your fathers, because ye add hypocrisy to impiety.
Resisting the Prophets.—Ask in Moses’ time, Who are the good people? They will be Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; but not Moses—he should be stoned. Ask in Samuel’s time, Who are the good people? They will be Moses and Joshua; but not Samuel. Ask in the times of Christ, and they will be all the former prophets, with Samuel; but not Christ and His apostles.—Stier.
Luke 11:51. Abel … Zacharias.—The murder of Abel was the first in the strife between unrighteousness and holiness, and as these Jews represent, in their conduct, both in former times and now, the murderer of the first, they must bear the vengeance of the whole in God’s day of wrath. Our Lord mentions the murder of Zacharias, not as being the last, even before His own day, but because it was connected specially with the cry of the dying man: “The Lord look upon it, and require it” (2 Chronicles 24:22).—Alford.
“This generation.”—A great and rapid river, which should, for thirty or forty years together, have its current violently stopped—what a mass of water would it collect in so long a space; and if it should then be let loose, with what fury would it overrun and bear down all before it?—J. Taylor.
Accumulated Guilt.—It belongs to the fearful earnestness of the Divine retributive righteousness that when a generation concurs in heart with the wickedness of an earlier generation, it receives, in the final retribution of the accumulated guilt, as well the punishment for its own as also for the former sins which it had inwardly made its own.—Van Oosterzee.
Luke 11:52. “Key of knowledge.”—Jesus represents knowledge of God and of salvation under the figure of a sanctuary: it was the duty of the scribes to lead the people into it, but they had locked the door and kept possession of the key. This key is the Word of God, the interpretation of which the scribes planned exclusively for themselves.—Godet.
Keeping the Key.—The scribes, by arrogating to themselves exclusive authority to interpret the Scriptures, while they did not interpret them truly, either for their own use, or for the good of those whom they instructed, kept the key of knowledge shut up and useless.