CRITICAL NOTES
Luke 20:41. To them.—I.e., to the scribes. Christ.—Rather, “the Christ” (R.V.). David’s son.—Cf. John 7:42.
Luke 20:42. David himself.— Psalms 110:1. David was popularly supposed to be the author of the psalm. Even if he were not, the point on which Christ lays stress—viz., that in it Divine honours are paid to the Messiah, who was to come of David’s line, would be unaffected. Christ is not discussing the authorship of the psalm and affirming that it was written by David, but drawing the attention of the scribes to a statement in Scripture which was inconsistent with their belief that the Messiah would be a mere man. The Lord, etc.—I.e. “Jehovah said unto my Lord.”
Luke 20:43. Thy footstool.—R.V. “the footstool of thy feet.” The same tautology is in the original; but it is doubtful whether it was worth while to coin an awkward English phrase by such a literal translation.
Luke 20:44. How is He, then, his son?—The solution is given in Romans 1:3-4; Christ was the Son of David according to the flesh, and yet the eternal, pre-existent Son of God.
Luke 20:45. Then in the audience.—Rather, “and in the hearing” (R.V.).
Luke 20:46. Long robes.—Either an official dress or an exaggerated obedience to the law concerning dress (Numbers 15:38-40). Chief rooms.—Rather, “chief seats” (R.V.).
Luke 20:47. Devour widows’ houses.—Cf. 2 Timothy 3:6. For a show.—Rather “for a pretence” (R.V.). Damnation.—Rather, “condemnation” (R.V.).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Luke 20:41-47
A Warning against False Guides.—The attempts to check our Lord’s activity, to betray Him into the expression of an opinion which might have been used against Him, and to cast ridicule upon His teaching, having failed, His adversaries withdrew from the contest. But He was not satisfied with having maintained His ground against them: He now carried the war into His enemies’ quarters.
I. He exposed the incompetency of the scribes and Pharisees as teachers (Luke 20:41-44).—They prided themselves on their skill in expounding and interpreting the Word of God, and He drew their attention to one of the most famous of the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, and asked them to solve the difficulty which, according to their principles of interpretation, it contained. Their dead monotheism had blinded them to the intimations given in Scripture of the Divine dignity of the Messiah, and consequently they could return no answer to the question, “How could David apply the term ‘Lord’ to one who was to be descended from him?” Yet the question was not asked merely in order to show that the Word of God contained passages which they could not explain. It was also calculated to stir them up to profounder reflection upon a truth which they had not fairly faced, and to remove one of their principal grounds of objection to the claims He made. For frequently in the course of His ministry they had protested against His assumption of Divine attributes and prerogatives. Their obstinate silence, however, when confronted with the fact that Divine dignity was ascribed in Scripture to the Messiah, clearly proved that deeply rooted prejudices filled their minds, and that, therefore, they were incapacitated for acting as teachers of spiritual truths.
II. He upbraids them with the moral corruption of their lives (Luke 20:45-47).—He judged it necessary to set the people on their guard against those whose religion was only a cloak for the worst vices, and who took advantage of the reverence which the simple-minded naturally have for all who wear the garb of piety, to deceive and defraud them. Hypocrisy, pride, and covetousness, are the three charges He makes against them. They affect a piety of the most exaggerated type, in order to conceal the real depravity of their characters. They are consumed with a desire to secure the applause of their fellows, instead of being any help or blessing to them. And, worst of all, they plunder the property of those whom they delude with their religious professions. The picture thus drawn reminds us of the ecclesiastical abuses in the worst time of the Middle Ages; but traces, at any rate, of the same vices will still be found. People are still so easily deluded by a profession of piety that it is a wonder that hypocrites are not even more numerous than they are. Popularity and notoriety are still too often sought after by ministers of religion; and silly women are still so inclined to run after those who profess an exaggerated piety that one cannot be surprised at seeing hypocrites and impostors occasionally flourishing at their expense.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON Luke 20:41-47
Luke 20:41-44. Christ’s First and His last Visit to The Temple.—Immeasurable is the contrast between the first and the last visit of our Lord to the Temple. The less may we leave unnoticed that the boy Jesus, who, once, by his questions, threw the teachers in Israel into astonishment, and by His answers often made them suddenly dumb, and the Messiah, who often, on the final day, both with questions and with answers, nobly maintains the field, exhibit really one and the same character. The Divine Sonship then presaged is now distinctly known.—Van Oosterzee.
Deeper Truths Unveiled.—Our Lord’s question does not, by the passage referred to, solve any difficulty, but rather throws out a difficulty which might arrest the attention of a scribe desirous to know the truth, such as would lead him to see there was something far higher and more mysterious about the Messiah than he supposed. Our Lord’s words were a clue by which faith might apprehend the secret nature of the kingdom. To reason they proved nothing; but to faith they opened lofty views of the Divine economy in the gospel, as far surpassing anything which reason could have inferred, or imagination could conceive, as heaven is above earth.—Williams.
The Present and The Future.
I. Surrounded by enemies, victorious over enemies—those whom He has now confuted to be suppressed, if still impenitent, by His almighty power.
II. Enthroned in the hearts of a few disciples, but to be exalted to God’s right hand, and have all authority in heaven and earth.
The Divine Nature of Christ.
I. Revealed to David.
II. Concealed from scribes and Pharisees.
III. Brought to light by Christ Himself.
IV. Accepted by His disciples.
Cf. Revelation 22:16—Christ the offspring of David and yet the root from which David sprang; and John 8:58—the Son of Abraham, and yet before Abraham; also Romans 1:3—born of the race of David, “according to the flesh.”
Mysteries Revealed to Faith and Love.—Scripture contains mysteries which can never be solved by the wise and understanding, but which are revealed to those who love and obey Christ, and to them alone.
I. Imposition practised upon society in general.
II. Usurpation of places of honour in synagogues.
III. Self-seeking ambition in social life.
IV. Making religion and philanthropy a cloak for the grossest frauds.
Luke 20:45. “In the audience of all the people.”—The minds of scribes and Pharisees were hardened against Christ: the hearts of the people were receptive of His word. To them, therefore, He addresses a word of warning against blind devotion to unworthy leaders.
Luke 20:46. “Beware of the scribes.”—Christ dwells upon the external guise of these self-appointed guides and rulers, as an indication of their inward character: “by their fruits ye shall know them.”
Luke 20:47. “Devour widows’ houses.”—I.e., either extort large sums of money from them, under some religious pretext, or take advantage of their position as directors of consciences to enjoy sumptuous feasts in the houses of their victims.
Cf. 2 Timothy 3:6. “Pretenders to holiness practise most upon women, who are less apt than men to see through their hypocrisy, and are easily inclined to love them on the ground of religion” (Chrysostom).