Matthew chapter 21 continued
21:18-22. See also Mark 11:12-14, 20-26. The fig tree fruit generally appears in February, followed by leaves,
which are not formed until late spring. So there should normally have been some fruit on the tree. The fig tree was
often used as a symbol of the nation of Israel (cf. Hos.9:10;Joel 1:7) and when Jesus literally came upon a barren
fig tree, He used the incident to fully illustrate Israel's desperate condition. The curse let no fruit grow... for ever
results in the almost immediate withering of the entire tree. While trees are nonmoral, they, like all of nature, are
subject to the word of Christ. The disciples... marveled at how this could happen so fast.
21:23-27. On Jesus' third day of successive visits to the temple His authority is challenged by the ever-threatened
chief priests, including the high priest, who was also president of the Sanhedrin, and elders, who were laymen or
scribes and also served as members of the Jewish high court. In their own view, they are attempting to protect their
laws and traditions against one who appeared to be a usurper who reinterpreted the law, rejected tradition,and
overthrew the money changers. They ask by what authority He had done these controversial things. Knowing that
they would never recognize any authority but their own, He refuses to answer them. Instead, He asks them about
the authority of the baptism of John, which they had never officially recognized. To acknowledge that it was from
heaven would be to condemn themselves for not receiving it, and to claim it was of men (human origin) would upset
the people. Their reply We cannot tell is cowardly and brings His clever response: Neither tell I you by what
authority I do these things.
21:24-32. The parable of the two sons (v v. 28-32) follows as an expose of the hypocrisy of the religious leaders, as
a vindication of John's ministry, and as a vindication of the true work of God in general. The first son initially said I
will not (v. 29), representing the immoral disobedience of the publicans and harlots who later repented under John's
and Jesus' preaching. The second son promised to go but did not follow through with obedience. Jesus asked,
"Which did the will of his father?" By answering, the first, the religious leaders condemned themselves. This very
effective teaching method is commonly used in the Bible as a judicial parable, whereby the answerer condemns
himself by the obviously implied response.
21:33-39. In the parable of the wicked husbandman, the householder represents God the Father, and the vineyard
is Israel, a symbol of the theocracy that was familiar to the Jewish leaders (cf. Ps. 80:8-16; Is. 5:1-7). The
husbandmen were the priests and religious leaders, and the far country is heaven. The anticipated fruit represents
spiritual evidence of true conversion, which was to be the end result of the work of the husbandmen. The servants
sent by the owner represent the Old Testament prophets who came to correct religious abuses in the nation and
were also rejected by their contemporaries (though venerated by subsequent generations). Last of all indicates that
Jesus was God's final emissary to Israel. None has ever appeared since Him, and none ever will until the Jews
recognize Christ as their final Prophet and Messiah. The desire to kill the rightful heir of the Father had already
been expressed by the Jewish leaders (cf. John 11:47-53). Jesus clearly foretells His coming rejection and death
with the statement they...slew him.
21:40-43. Verse 40 represents the condemning question of the judicial parable, What will he do unto those
husbandmen? Their reply again unwittingly condemns their own attitude of rejection toward Jesus. The other
husbandmen are the Gentiles (v. 43). Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22,23 exactly from the Greek Septuagint version of
the Old Testament, relating His present rejection to His ultimate triumph (cf. Acts 4:11; 1 Pet. 2:6, 7, where the
stone which the builders rejected is also quoted in relation to Christ). The Sanhedrinists represent the builders of
Israel's religion, who rejected the real cornerstone of God, Jesus, the true Cornerstone of the foundation of the
church.
21:44-46. The warning The kingdom of God shall be taken from you (v. 43) was fulfilled at Pentecost when the
kingdom was mediatorily transferred to the church. Yet, within this warning of judgment, Jesus offers mercy to these
falling on this stone, meaning, falling upon Him in repentance and faith. But His falling upon man in judgment will
grind him to powder.
Matthew Chapter 22
22:23-29. The Sadducees make the next attempt to discredit Jesus and are even more severely humiliated. As the
liberal party within first-century Judaism, they rejected belief in the supernatural, especially angels and the
resurrection of the dead. (See Paul's encounter in Acts 23:8-10.) Moses said is a reference to Deuteronomy 25:5,
where the practice of levirate marriage called for an unmarried brother to take his brother's widow to be his own wife
(cf. Gen. 38:8). The absurd hypothetical case that follows represents another theological dilemma, this time
attempting to discredit the legitimacy of the resurrection, which the Sadducees rejected. This extreme example must
have been thought by them to be the ultimate proof of the foolishness of the doctrine of resurrection. All seven
brothers had been married to her, Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? Jesus
replies, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures. Jesus had contempt for the Sadducees because they made light of
the Bible and the power of God (ie., His resurrection power, cf. Phil. 3:10). This is His strongest recorded rebuke of
this Jewish party.
22:30. Jesus then explained that in the resurrection men do not marry but are asexual as the angels. The infantile
illustration of the Sadducees shows that they had no confidence in the power of the glorious resurrection to a new
life. They thought that a resurrection would be the same kind of life as on earth. Jesus teaches neither that glorified
men became angels, nor that all earthly family relationships are lost in heaven. All resurrected believers will be in a
state of perfect glorification and fellowship.
22:31-34. Jesus further attacks the Sadducees' major belief in no resurrection at all, by quoting Exodus 3:6,a
statement from the only part of the Old Testament that the Sadducees unquestioningly accepted ( the Pentateuch).
He related the eternal "I AM" of God to the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob) to demonstrate that they were of the
living, or immortal (a fact unlikely to be denied by the Sadducees in a public dispute). God is not the God of the
dead does not mean that He has no relationship to those who have departed; it means that the departed are not
really dead, and are thus still responsible to the living God (cf. Heb. 10:31). Thus the crowd is astonished and the
Sadducees are put .... to silence.
22:35-40. A lawyer, an expert expounder of the Old Testament Law and equivalent to a doctor of theology today,
asks Him, which is the great commandment in the law? The phrase tempting him implies that he is trying to draw
Jesus into an argument regarding the Pharisees' extensive interpretations of over six hundred laws. Instead, Christ
summarizes the two tables of the law: (1) responsibility to God; and (2) responsibility to man by paraphrasing
Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, love the Lord thy God and love thy neighbor as thyself. The phrase with all
thy heart, indicates the total being of a man in Hebrew thought and is part of the "Shema," the Jewish confession of
faith consisting of Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; and Numbers 15:37-41. As the greatest commandment, it was of
supreme importance and priority. No Pharisee could fault such an answer.
22:41-46. Jesus then counterquestions the Pharisees: What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? By asking them
who is the Messiah, He gave them a clear opportunity to acknowledge Him. The question is similar to that asked of
the disciples earlier in 16:15, where they gave the correct answer. The Pharisees' response, the son of David, was
the common teaching of the scribes who accepted the Davidic lineage of the Messiah (cf. Mark 12:35). Jesus then
calls their attention to Psalm 110, which they already recognized as messianic. This psalm, whose Davidic
authorship Jesus affirms, was given in spirit, that is, inspiration of the Holy Spirit; in it David refers to the Messiah as
his Lord. Jesus totally stumps the Pharisees, who wanted to believe in human Messiah, but not a divine Messiah. So
no one was able to answer him, that is to say, defeat Him by question or debate, and therefore, no one dared ask
Him any more questions.
Matthew Chapter 23
23:1, 2. Jesus' last condemnation of the Pharisees fills chapter 23 entirely. This now represents his final and official
rejection of them at the temple, their own stronghold of influence and security. (See parallel passages in Mark
12:38-40 and Luke 20:45-47.) Sit in Moses' seat (Gr. kathedra, "seat of authority"): This represents the synagogue
chair, which symbolizes the origin and authority of their teaching.
23:3-6. They make broad their phylacteries: A phylactery was an amulet consisting of a strip of parchment,
inscribed with certain portions of the Pentateuch, which was rolled and placed in a small metal cylinder inside a
square leather case. The cases were attached by the Jews with straps to their foreheads and to the back of their
right hands, following a strictly literal interpretation of Deuteronomy 6:8, 9. They were normally worn only during
prayer, but the Pharisees appear to have worn them always and to have made them especially conspicuous. The
borders of their garments were the fringes worn in obedience to Numbers 15:38, 39. Uppermost rooms might be
better said "chief places."
23:7-12. Rabbi is form of a Hebrew word (lit., "my great one" or "my teacher"). Christ' disciples are to call no man
your father meaning in a spiritual sense. Masters (v. 10) is literally "guides," "leaders," or "teachers." Servant
means "minister" or "attendant."
23:13-15. Ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men is another way of saying, "You put stumbling blocks in the
way of the sinner coming to repentance and conversion." Devour widow's houses means extort money from the
helpless and bring them into debt and bondage, while making an outward show of religion. The greater damnation,
that is, a more severe sentence. Proselyte: The Pharisees often sought proselytes for the sake of their own gain,
under the guise of religion.
23:16-22. These verses illustrate the Pharisees' false teaching in regard to oaths. Temple (Gr. naos, "sanctuary"):
Our Lord teaches that all oaths are equally binding, and no man can expect to escape their consequences before
God by making distinctions such as these.
23:23. Pay tithe of: A tithe or tenth of all produce was, by the Mosaic Law, to be given for the use of the priests and
Levites (Lev. 27:30). Several species of mint grow in Palestine. Anise (Gr. anethon) is better rendered "dill." It grew
both wild and cultivated, its fruits being used for medicine. The seeds of cummin, which resemble caraway, were
used as spice in seasoning. In such little matters the Pharisees were most careful to keep the law, yet they had
completely overlooked its more important precepts.
23:24-26. Strain at a gnat, better "strain out a gnat": The Jews strained (Gr. diulizo) wine before drinking it so as to
avoid touching or swallowing anything unclean. But within they are full of extortion and excess: The of should be
read "from." The Pharisees living was obtained by extorting wrongfully from others.
23:27-33. Whited sepulchers: Since contact with a dead body rendered a person unclean according to the Mosaic
Law, graves were customarily painted white to make them conspicuous and give the opportunity of avoiding contact
with them. The children of them which killed means literally "those who murdered." Generation denotes "offspring."
The damnation of hell might be translated "being judged worthy of Gehenna."
23:34-39. That upon you may come: The generation to which these words are addressed represents the climax of
the whole sinful history of the nation, beginning with the murder of Abel by his brother Cain (see Gen. 4; Heb. 11:4)
and going on to the murder of Zechariah son of Barachias. In 2 Chronicles 24:20, 21 we find the account of the
murder of Zechariah son of Jehoiada "in the court of the house of the Lord." Since the books of Chronicles closed
the Hebrew order of the Old Testament canon, if this is the incident here referred to, the mention of Abel and
Zechariah may be intended to cover the whole Old Testament revelation. This passage is also recorded in Luke
11:49-51 and was evidently understood by His listeners. Jesus' statement that they would not see me henceforth
foreshadows His death, resurrection, and ascension.
Matthew Chapter 24
24:1-4. This section forms Jesus' last major discourse and His most prophetic and apocalyptic message of the
coming of the end of the world (or present age). While the message includes a prediction of the imminent fall of
Jerusalem, it also goes far beyond to point us to the distant future during which the "times of the Gentiles" will
continue until the end of the Great Tribulation. Jesus then left the city, crossed the Kidron Valley, and went east of
Jerusalem to the mount of Olives from which he could look down on the temple courtyard. Here His disciples asked
Him three questions: (1) when shall these things be? (the destruction of the temple); (2) what shall be the sign of
thy coming? (Gr. parousia, technical term for the coming of the King); (3) and of the end of the world? (Gr. aoin,
"the age"). Therefore, the entire discourse must be looked upon as answering all three of these questions.
24:5-14. Many shall come refers to the parade of false messiahs who have now spanned the centuries of church
history and have led many astray into false religious cults. Wars and rumors of wars refers to peace being taken
from earth and the constant wars that have continually marked the "age of the Gentiles." Famines, and pestilences:
These events mark only the beginning of sorrows (Gr. odin), "birth pangs." This is followed by martyrdom and the
rise of false prophets and the abounding of iniquity. The "gospel of the kingdom" refers to the missionary expansion
of the church in all the world. The gospel shall be preached in all the world (Gr. oikoumene), the inhabited world,
and unto all nations (Gr. ethnos), "Gentile nations," as contrasted with the Jews. Then shall the end come would
then refer to the end of the church age.
24:15. Ye must be taken generically, since the disciples would not live to see this take place. The abomination of
desolation refers to Daniel 9:27, 11:31; 12:11; where Antiochus Epiphanes' profanation of the Jewish temple
worship would foreshadow a similar and more severe act by the eschatological Antichrist. Whereas Antiochus
offered a pig on the sacred altar of the temple, the Antichrist will present himself (2 Thess. 2:4). The action of
desecration by Antiochus, which Daniel had predicted, will now be repeated in the future by the Antichrist as the
signal of the beginning of the Great Tribulation and the breaking of the covenant "in the midst of the week" (Dan.
9:27), that is, the Seventieth Week of Daniel's prophecy, whose length is 42 months (Rev. 11:2), 1,260 days (Rev.
12:6), or "time, and times, and half a time" (Dan. 7:25; Rev.12:14).