“The Weightier Matters” Matthew 23:23-24

Matthew 23:23-24 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!”

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good

Did Some Good 1) The Jews were required to tithe. “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. And you shall eat before the LORD your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always” (Deuteronomy 14:22-23).

Did Some Good 2) Yet they were negligent. “The fourth woe related to the pharisaic practice of meticulously tithing all their possessions. They went so far as to carry the practice down to the smallest spices from plants: mint, dill, and cummin. While meticulously following the Law in this area (Lev. 27:30), they failed to manifest the justice, mercy, and faithfulness demanded by the Law. They were majoring on minors, straining out a gnat, while minoring on majors, swallowing a camel. Being so busy with small details, they never dealt with the important matters. Jesus was not saying tithing was unimportant; He was saying they were completely neglecting the one area at the expense of the other. They should have been doing both. Since they were not, they were blind guides” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary).

Did Some Good 3) Similar example. “So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams” (1 Samuel 15:22).

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good Weightier Matters Justice

Justice 1) Word defined: “right, justice” (Thayer, p. 362). “by metonymy, the standard of judgment, just dealing” (Vine, pp. 224 & 225).

Justice 2) They had been anything but just. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation” (Matthew 23:14).

Justice 3) Like those in the days of Amos. “Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, Because they sell the righteous for silver, And the poor for a pair of sandals” (Amos 2:6). “For I know your manifold transgressions And your mighty sins: Afflicting the just and taking bribes; Diverting the poor from justice at the gate” (Amos 5:12).

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good Weightier Matters Justice Mercy

Mercy 1) Word defined: “mercy; kindness or good will toward the miserable and afflicted, joined with a desire to relieve them; of men toward men” (Thayer, p. 203). “Mercy, compassion, active pity” (Complete Word Study Dictionaries – N.T.).

Mercy 2) Their lack of mercy. “For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers” (Matthew 23:4). “Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, 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, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar” (Matthew 23:34-35).

Mercy 3) Like their forefathers. “Hear the word of the LORD, You children of Israel, For the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land: “There is no truth or mercy Or knowledge of God in the land” (Hosea 4:1). “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hoses 6:6).

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good Weightier Matters Justice Mercy Faith

Faith 1) Word defined: “fidelity, faithfulness, i.e. “the character of one who can be relied on” (Thayer, p. 514). “Good faith, faithfulness, sincerity” (Complete Word Study Dictionaries – N.T.).

Faith 2) They were not faithful. “Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do” (Matthew 23:3). “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in” (Matthew 23:13).

Faith 3) Like Israel of old. “Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances And have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” Says the LORD of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?” (Malachi 3:7).

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good Weightier Matters Justice Mercy Faith Lessons For Us

Lessons For Us 1) Observe the small things but give careful consideration to weightier matters. 2) God can see the heart of hypocrisy. 3) How we treat others will determine our eternal destiny. 4) Clean up the heart and righteous living will follow. 5) Spiritual blindness is the results of a failure to follow the instruction of the Lord and will cause one to lose his soul.

“The Weightier Matters” Did Some Good Weightier Matters Justice Mercy Faith Lessons For Us