Jesus Lays Into The Jewish Leaders

1. An onlooker of the annular solar eclipse
witnesses the celestial event on May 20, 2012
.Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

2. Matthe
w 23
Woe
unto
you
hypocrit

3. Matthew 23:1, His Audience?
• Matthew 23:1 Then Jesus spoke to the
multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying, "The
scribes and the Pharisees have seated
themselves in the chair of Moses;
• The scribes and the Pharisees would have been
standing there
• The chair of Moses is not a figure of speech, but it
meant to 'have the teaching position of Moses'.
Moses' seat is the name of “the chair” in the
synagogue. The seat from which the teacher sat
and delivered his teaching.

4. The Chair Of Moses

5. Moses' Seat

6. Moses' Seat
This photo is of a replica of the Chair (or
Seat) of Moses [Chorazin synagogue]. The original is
displayed in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

7. Matthew 23:3, Listen But Don’t Do
• Matthew 23:3 therefore all that they tell you, do
and observe, but do not do according to their
deeds; for they say things and do not do them.
• Even though they “have seated themselves in the
chair of Moses” respect the office of teacher
• But “do not do according to their deeds”
• Listen to the Scripture, but don’t do as them
• We get “Do as I say, not as I do” from here

8. Matthew 23:4, Their Heavy Burdens
• Matthew 23:4 "They tie up heavy burdens and lay
them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are
unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.
• Luke 11:46 But He said, "Woe to you lawyers as well!
For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear,
while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens
with one of your fingers.
• Matthew 11:29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn
from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU
WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
• Galatians 6:2 Bear one another's burdens, and thereby
fulfill the law of Christ.

9. Matthew 23:5
• Matthew 23:5 “…for they broaden their
phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their
garments.

10. Matt
23:5

11. Matthew 23:6-12
• Matthew 23:8 "But do not be called Rabbi; for One is
your Teacher, and you are all brothers
• <4461> ῥαββί rhabbi
• Meaning: my master, my teacher…
• <1320> διδάσκαλος didaskalos
• Meaning: an instructor…
• 1 Timothy 2:7 For this I was appointed a preacher and
an apostle…as a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and
truth.
• 2 Timothy 1:11 for which I was appointed a preacher
and an apostle and a teacher.

12. Matthew 23:8
Do Not Be Called Teacher
• Acts 13:1..there were at Antioch, in the church
that was there, prophets and teachers…
• 1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has appointed in the
church, first apostles, second prophets, third
teachers…
• Ephesians 4:11…He gave some as… evangelists,
and some as pastors and teachers…
• Hebrews 5:12…by this time you ought to be
teachers…
• So what does “Do Not Be Called Teacher” mean?

13. Matthew 23:8, The Ground Is Level At
The Foot Of The Cross
• Matthew 23:8 "But do not be called Rabbi; for One is
your Teacher, and you are all brothers.
• I think the “you are all brothers” makes the point.
• 1 Timothy 5:1 Do not sharply rebuke an older man, but
rather appeal to him as a father, to the younger men as
brothers,
• 1 Peter 3:7…live with your wives …as a fellow heir of
the grace of life…
• Romans 8:17 …heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs
with Christ…
• Ephesians 3:6 …fellow heirs and fellow members of the
body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ…

14. Matthew 23:9, Do Not Call Anyone
Father
• Matthew 23:9 "Do not call anyone on earth your
father; for One is your Father, He who is in
heaven.
• Matthew 15:4 "For God said, 'HONOR YOUR
FATHER AND MOTHER…
• Mark 11:10…our father David; Hosanna …
• Only Bible references are concerning biological
fathers or the “Father” in heaven, of Jesus
• Jesus is saying don’t use the title, position, or
office, for anyone except for the “One… your
Father, He who is in heaven.” Misusing God’s
name was a capital crime

15. Matthew 23:13-14, 7 Woes, Or 8?
• NAS NAU Matthew 23:14 "Woe to you, scribes
and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour
widows' houses, and for a pretense you make
long prayers; therefore you will receive greater
condemnation .
• NAS NAU Italicize verse 14
• CSB Puts it in [ ]’s

16. Matthew 23:13-14, 7 Woes, Or 8?
• NAU Mat 23:13…woe…because you shut…
• 14 "Woe to you…because you devour…
• 15 "Woe to you, …because you travel …
• 16 "Woe … swears..
• ESV Mat 23:13…woe… you shut…
• 14 [no devour]
• 15 Woe … you travel…
• 16 "Woe to you… swears
• The YLT CSB KJV NKJ NAS NAU BYZ have “devour”
• The NET ESV NIV BGT do not have “devour”

17. If Matthew 23:14 Is Original?
Then, Prayers Of Unbelievers
• NAU Matthew 23:14 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites, because you devour widows' houses, and for a
pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive
greater condemnation .
• Proverbs 28:9 He who turns away his ear from listening to
the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.
• Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His
face from you so that He does not hear.
• John 9:31 "We know that God does not hear sinners; but if
anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him.
• Isaiah 1:15 "When you spread out your hands in prayer, I
will hide my eyes from you. Yes, even though you multiply
prayers, I will not listen . . . Wash yourselves, make
yourselves clean."

18. Matthew 23:15, To Make A Proselyte
• Matthew 23:15 "Woe to you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel
around on sea and land to make one
proselyte; and when he becomes one, you
make him twice as much a son of hell as
yourselves.
• A convert from paganism into Judaism

19. Matthew 23:23, Tithing, Tithes, Tithe
• Matthew 23:23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, 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.
• Luke 11:42 "But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of
mint and rue …
• Luke 18:12 'I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.‘
• Hebrews 7:7+9 …Abraham…received tithes, paid tithes,
• These are the only NT, NASU, uses of tithing, tithes, tithe
• Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what
does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love
kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?

20. Matthew 23:24, Strain Out A Gnat
• Explorations in Antiquity Center: Vine and the
Branches
• Dr. Reagan
• Dr. Fleming

21. Matthew 23:24, strain out a gnat and
swallow a camel!
• Explorations in Antiquity Center: Vine and the Branches
• Dr. Reagan: So, the vineyard workers hold onto the ropes
and stomp with their bare feet which are hopefully clean?
• Dr. Fleming: Hopefully! They stomp inside the vat. The
reason they took off their sandals is because the juice
would be a little bit sour with the pits being scraped open.
The grape juice then dribbles down into a collection vat.
• What is very interesting to me in the imagery in the Bible of
the stomping vat is the image of judgment — the grapes of
wrath. You hear a cadence on two occasions while you are
stomping on the grapes as if an enemy army is marching.
So, picture that and remember Jesus' phrase, "trodden
under the foot of the Gentiles." The bowls of judgment are
from crushed grapes.

22. Matthew 23:24, strain out a gnat and
swallow a camel!
• In contrast, the collection vat is a symbol of joy,
because the grapes come out at the end of the
summer just when your water cisterns are drying up.
Instead, the Lord gives you the fruit of the vine. So, for
Jews that overflowing cup of wine means, "My cup
overflows with joy."
• Dr. Reagan: When you take the grape juice and put it in
the collection vat, you have to strain it?
• Dr. Fleming: Yes, you must use a linen cloth. Remember
Jesus saying that some religious people strain a gnat
and swallow a camel? There are all sorts of flies, gnats
and ants at the end of summer, so you must strain
them out of the juice. There were even some Pharisees
during the time of

23. Matthew 23:24, strain out a gnat and
swallow a camel!
• Jesus who wouldn't trust that the wine was properly
strained. When they'd come over for dinner before the
fruit of the vine was poured into their cup, they'd bring
out a linen cloth and put it over the cup and strain it
themselves again so as not to accidently eat anything
the Levitical Law considered unclean. A gnat is unclean,
just as a camel is unclean. We've all met people who
were worried about a gnat, but they swallow camels
every day over things like peace and justice issues.
• Do you see the comparisons Jesus was making?

24. Matthew 23:25 Psalm 51:7 Leviticus
10:10, Unclean And The Clean
• Matthew 23:25 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of
the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-
indulgence.
• Leviticus 10:10 and so as to make a distinction
between the holy and the profane, and between the
unclean and the clean,
• 1st customer: . . . I'll have tea. 2nd customer: . . .
Me, too. And be sure the glass is clean! (The waiter
exits, and then returns after a while.)
• Waiter: . . . Two teas. Which one asked for the clean
glass?

25. Matthew 23:33, Serpents
• Matthew 23:33 "You serpents, you brood of vipers,
how will you escape the sentence of hell?
• Matthew 23:15…twice as much a son of hell as
yourselves.
• Genesis 3:14-15 The LORD God said to the serpent… I
will put enmity Between you and the woman, And
between your seed and her seed…
• John 8:44 "You are of your father the devil, and you
want to do the desires of your father. He was a
murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in
the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever
he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he
is a liar and the father of lies.

26. Matthew 23:34, Seized, Mistreated,
And Killed His Slaves
• Matthew 23:34 "Therefore, behold, I am sending you
prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you
will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge
in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,
• Matthew 22:6 and the rest seized his slaves and
mistreated them and killed them.
• Matthew 21:35 "And the vine-growers took his slaves
and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third…
37 "But afterward he sent his son to them… 38 "But
when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among
themselves, 'This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and
seize his inheritance.‘… 39 "And they …killed him.
• God Is Sovereign, He Brings Good Out Of Evil, even the
death of His saints

27. Matthew 23:34, God Is Sovereign, He
Brings Good Out Of Evil, Chinese story
• An old man lived with his son in a fort. One day the son lost
his horse. The neighbors rushed into the house to express
their sympathy, but the old man said: "How do you know
that this is bad luck?" A few days later, the horse came
back with a number of wild horses. So the neighbors
flocked indoors to congratulate him, but the old man said:
"How do you know this is good luck?" Now that he had so
many horses to ride, the son one day rode away on one of
the wild horses. He fell off, breaking his leg. Again the
neighbors knocked at the door to say: "Alas! Alas!" but the
old man said: "Tut! Tut! How do you know this is bad
luck?" Sure enough, before many weeks had passed, there
was a great war in the Middle Flowery Kingdom, but
because the old man's son was crippled, he did not have to
go off to fight. Chinese story

28. Matthew 23:37, Dull Hearts, And Ears,
And I Would Heal Them
• Matthew 23:37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the
prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How
often I wanted to gather your children together, the
way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you
were unwilling.
• Matthew 13:15 FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS
BECOME DULL, WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY
HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES,
OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, HEAR
WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR
HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.

29. Matthew 23:37, They Were Unwilling
• Matthew 22:3 "And he sent out his slaves to call those who
had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were
unwilling to come.
• Think, love relationship;
• John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave
the right to become children of God, even to those who
believe in His name,
• Matthew 23:37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the
prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I
wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen
gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were
unwilling.
• Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

30. Matthew 23:37, God Wants Everyone
Saved But Most Are Unwilling
• 2 Peter 3:9 …not wishing for any to perish but for all to
come to repentance.
• John 3:16 "For God so loved the world…
• 1 Timothy 2:3-4 …God our Savior, who desires all men
to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
• John 12:32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will
draw all men to Myself.“
• John 1:9 There was the true Light which, coming into
the world, enlightens every man.
• Isaiah 53:6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each
of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has
caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.

31. Matthew 23:37
The Unwilling Don’t Seek For God
• Romans 3:11…THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD;
• DLK, There is none who seek Him on there own initiative, but
(Good News)….
• John 12:32… “if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to
Myself.”
• Hebrews 11:6 …he who comes to God must believe that He is and
that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
• Acts 17:26-27 …every nation of mankind …that they would seek
God
• Proverbs 8:17 "I love those who love me; And those who diligently
seek me will find me.
• John 1:9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world,
enlightens every man.
• Isaiah 53:6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has
turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us
all To fall on Him. [the LORD caused it, so He gets ALL the credit]

32. Matthew 23:39 Hosea 6:1-2
• Matthew 23:39 "For I say to you, from now on you will
not see Me until you say, 'BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES
IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'"
• Hosea 6:1 "Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has
torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He
will bandage us. 2 "He will revive us after two days; He
will raise us up on the third day, That we may live
before Him.
• Isaiah 34:5 For My sword is satiated in heaven, Behold
it shall descend for judgment upon Edom And upon the
people whom I have devoted to destruction. 6 …For
the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah And a great
slaughter in the land of Edom….8 For the LORD has a
day of vengeance, A year of recompense for the cause
of Zion.

33. Bozrah
• Isaiah 63:1 Who is this who comes from Edom, With
garments of glowing colors from Bozrah, This One who
is majestic in His apparel, Marching in the greatness of
His strength? "It is I who speak in righteousness,
mighty to save.“ 2 Why is Your apparel red, And Your
garments like the one who treads in the wine press? 3
"I have trodden the wine trough alone, And from the
peoples there was no man with Me. I also trod them in
My anger And trampled them in My wrath; And their
lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, And I stained all
My raiment. 4 "For the day of vengeance was in My
heart, And My year of redemption has come.

34. Redneck Recliners, I feel like an idiot; I’ve been using
mine wrong for all these years!

35. THE END

36. God Loves The World
• John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
shall not perish, but have eternal life.
• Acts 17:26-27…that they would seek God, if perhaps
they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is
not far from each one of us;
• John 1:9 There was the true Light which, coming into
the world, enlightens every man.
• John 12:32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will
draw all men to Myself.“
• 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is …not wishing for any to perish
but for all to come to repentance.