14 Now the
Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they
derided Him. 15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God
knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the
sight of God. 16 “The
law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God
has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it. 17 And
it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law
to fail. 18 “Whoever
divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her
who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.
Commentary
V. 14 “Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him.”
Now when the Pharisees heard all of these things that Jesus had just spoken, they derided (i.e. scoffed at, ridiculed) Him. The NKJ reference notes states: “they turned up their nose at Him”, while the Louw-Nida lexicon adds, … “to ridicule in a sneering and contemptuous way—‘to ridicule, to sneer at, to show contempt for.’[1] Thus, the Pharisees who were outwardly the most religious appearing men to all, yet were only so fully corrupted by their own love of mammon that they arrogantly scoffed at the Son of God’s warning to them and us all.
Vs. 15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
The Lord Jesus Christ then upon their deriding Him will not let them by their self-confidently and arrogantly doing so influence or corrupt anyone else. Therefore, Jesus immediately rebukes and exposes them before all, saying to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Two evils then that the Lord Jesus Christ exposes. First is that they justified themselves before men, that is they did not look to God to justify them, no they only looked to themselves, and thus they themselves set the standard by which they justified themselves before men. Second is that in their greed they held mammon, and or their possessing it so highly that it became a mark of their own righteousness or one having a right standing before God. Therefore, the Lord Jesus soundly rebukes them by saying, “For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Thus, the love of mammon, the love of power, the love of wealth and privilege are not Godly pursuits for anyone to pursue, for all these things are only an abomination in the sight of God!
Vs. 16-18 16 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it. 17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail. 18 “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.
Now though these three verses initially may seem disconnected from the previous ones they are intimately connected with them. For in them starting in verse sixteen the Lord Jesus Christ is both warning them and exposing them as spiritual and moral adulterers’ Spiritual adulteress in that they long ago left their love for God for their love of mammon. And moral adulterers’ because for their own pleasure and or convivence they would justify divorcing their own wives and marrying another (consider Malachi 2:13-16; Matt. 19:3-9). Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ now tells them that the law and prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it (vs. 16). That is the One whom they have derided is the One whom God through the law and prophets foretold would come to them and speak His Word to them. Thus, the law and the prophets were only until John the Baptist, for since that time the Kingdom of God is now being preached and everyone is pressing into it! Therefore, having declared that He is the fulfillment of the Law, and as such He is preaching the Kingdom of God (and not Moses and the Law) the Lord
Jesus Christ never disavowed any of the moral judgments of God in the Law. Thus, He warns them and us all, by also saying “And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.” Therefore, not the smallest stroke of a Hebrew letter in the Law of God will fail, all will be upheld by Him. Having then stated as much the Lord Jesus Christ now warns/rebukes them for their misusing the Law of God to justify divorcing their wives and marry another woman, (or another man’s wife) by saying that there are no lawful grounds for divorcing one’s wife except that they commit sexual immorality, that being so, there is then equally no lawful grounds for marrying a divorced woman (vs. 18).
Commentary
V. 14 “Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him.”
Now when the Pharisees heard all of these things that Jesus had just spoken, they derided (i.e. scoffed at, ridiculed) Him. The NKJ reference notes states: “they turned up their nose at Him”, while the Louw-Nida lexicon adds, … “to ridicule in a sneering and contemptuous way—‘to ridicule, to sneer at, to show contempt for.’[1] Thus, the Pharisees who were outwardly the most religious appearing men to all, yet were only so fully corrupted by their own love of mammon that they arrogantly scoffed at the Son of God’s warning to them and us all.
Vs. 15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
The Lord Jesus Christ then upon their deriding Him will not let them by their self-confidently and arrogantly doing so influence or corrupt anyone else. Therefore, Jesus immediately rebukes and exposes them before all, saying to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Two evils then that the Lord Jesus Christ exposes. First is that they justified themselves before men, that is they did not look to God to justify them, no they only looked to themselves, and thus they themselves set the standard by which they justified themselves before men. Second is that in their greed they held mammon, and or their possessing it so highly that it became a mark of their own righteousness or one having a right standing before God. Therefore, the Lord Jesus soundly rebukes them by saying, “For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Thus, the love of mammon, the love of power, the love of wealth and privilege are not Godly pursuits for anyone to pursue, for all these things are only an abomination in the sight of God!
Vs. 16-18 16 “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it. 17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail. 18 “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery.
Now though these three verses initially may seem disconnected from the previous ones they are intimately connected with them. For in them starting in verse sixteen the Lord Jesus Christ is both warning them and exposing them as spiritual and moral adulterers’ Spiritual adulteress in that they long ago left their love for God for their love of mammon. And moral adulterers’ because for their own pleasure and or convivence they would justify divorcing their own wives and marrying another (consider Malachi 2:13-16; Matt. 19:3-9). Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ now tells them that the law and prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it (vs. 16). That is the One whom they have derided is the One whom God through the law and prophets foretold would come to them and speak His Word to them. Thus, the law and the prophets were only until John the Baptist, for since that time the Kingdom of God is now being preached and everyone is pressing into it! Therefore, having declared that He is the fulfillment of the Law, and as such He is preaching the Kingdom of God (and not Moses and the Law) the Lord
Jesus Christ never disavowed any of the moral judgments of God in the Law. Thus, He warns them and us all, by also saying “And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the law to fail.” Therefore, not the smallest stroke of a Hebrew letter in the Law of God will fail, all will be upheld by Him. Having then stated as much the Lord Jesus Christ now warns/rebukes them for their misusing the Law of God to justify divorcing their wives and marry another woman, (or another man’s wife) by saying that there are no lawful grounds for divorcing one’s wife except that they commit sexual immorality, that being so, there is then equally no lawful grounds for marrying a divorced woman (vs. 18).
Scripture Quotations
New King James Version (1982): Thomas Nelson
[1] Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English
lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains
(electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 434). New York: United Bible
Societies.
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