Matthew 23:26, commentary and pictures

Cleansing must begin inside first, and no outward religious appearance or strict attention to external details can make a person righteous while the inner life remains corrupt. What must be cleansed within is extortion and excess, hypocrisy and iniquity, fraud and selfishness and pride and envy and love of the world and of money and worldly honor. When the heart is set right and actuated by right principles, the outward life becomes right and pure in words and acts and dress, revealing justice and mercy and the love of God. Mere religious belief and profession, knowing the truth and holding sound doctrines, cannot save unless truth reaches the heart, sanctifies the soul, and governs daily obedience. That inward cleansing comes only by entire change and thorough conversion through Jesus, by being born again with mind and heart yielded in obedience under the Holy Spirit. To practice sin under a cloak of godliness is hypocrisy that is especially guilty and brings severe judgment, with less hope for the concealer than for the open sinner.

Setting and Rebuke

The saying was uttered in the temple on the final day of teaching, in direct exposure of scribes and Pharisees and of rulers and elders whose outward authority and apparent piety did not match their lives. Its purpose was to warn and condemn those leaders and at the same time to instruct the people, so that religious observance would not be mistaken for inward obedience. True cleansing begins within, and outward cleanness follows only from that inner work.

The name blind Pharisee declares spiritual blindness, an inability to discern the relative importance of what must be understood. That blindness was shown by scrupulous care for the outside of the cup while the inside remained unclean, by outward religious strictness without a heart set right. To cleanse first what is within is to set the heart right, to be actuated by right principles, and to reveal justice and mercy and the love of God in practical love for others.

The rebuke lays bare the state of religion at that time, when moral power was fast disappearing and genuine religion had been corrupted into formality and legalism with rigid exactions. Inward piety had become largely pretense, the necessity of purity of heart was lost sight of, and outward forms and ceremonies multiplied into a round of superstitions and externals made essential. Cleansing of hands and cups and utensils was counted of more consequence than purification of the soul, maxims and traditions cherished from age to age received new inventions with credulity in each succeeding age, and the Bible was misapplied and shaped to suit human ideas and imaginations while wickedness triumphed and the way was closed for the presentation of righteousness and truth.

It was spoken with sharp, searching denunciation and with burning earnestness and words of terrible severity against the abominations seen in the church and in the world. Christ refused to allow the people to be deceived by false claims to righteousness and sanctity, exposing inward uncleanness beneath outward show. His indignation was directed against gross sins which were an abomination to God, not against those who personally abused Him, showing that love and mercy toward God can coexist with righteous indignation against aggravating sin. Those rebukes were given without an irritated temper. The charge that the priests and scribes were hypocrites could be repeated by His accusers, yet it would not count as a criminal charge before the Romans.

Inside First Meaning

Cleansing must begin inside first so that the outside may also become clean, and outward religious appearance, strictness and attention to external details cannot make a person righteous while the inner life remains corrupt. The Pharisee is called blind because outward cleaning is attempted while within is full of extortion and excess, outwardly appearing righteous to men while within full of hypocrisy and iniquity. The inside must be cleansed first and then the life can become clean as well, for Christianity must take root in the heart and correct its evil in order to govern the life. What is within that must be cleansed is extortion and excess, hypocrisy and iniquity and fraud. It is selfishness and pride and envy and love of the world, and selfishness and love of money and worldly honor possessing the heart and leading to rejection of truth and counsel and mercy.

To cleanse first what is within means to set things right in the heart, to be actuated by right principles, and to reveal justice and mercy and the love of God and practical love for others. Neglect of the great and sacred work, an overbearing and imperious spirit, lack of principle, unjust dealing, and tampering with conscience prove the inside is unclean. Making imaginary distinctions in guilt, lightly passing over serious wrongs while severely condemning lesser wrongs, and making a man an offender for a word prove the inside is unclean. When the heart is made right the outward life becomes right and pure, with words and dress and acts all pure, bearing fruit to the glory of God in victory over besetments and passions. True inward cleansing is shown in a life that denies self, bears fruit, and does right works.

Religious belief and profession cannot save when inner impurities remain, for truth must reach the heart and be practiced in obedience. Subscribing to theological tenets and professing faith does not make a person a Christian unless the truth is believed and loved and brought into practical life, so that sanctification brings power and grace that make a person sincere, kind, patient, forbearing, and heavenly minded. Knowing the truth or merely accepting it outwardly or being able to explain faith is not enough, and holding sound doctrines cannot save unless those doctrines shape the life and daily actions. Cleansing begins within by bringing truth into the soul so its pure principles sanctify it, make the mind like-minded with God, battle every inherent tendency to evil, and make man a partaker of the divine nature to elevate, soften, refine and beautify the whole character. The heart is purified through obedience to the truth planted there to govern the life, for pure words without practice save neither teacher nor listener.

God sees what is within and judges with righteous judgment, so outward appearance may look clean while the inward life stays corrupt and defiled. There are whitewashed sepulchers with sin covered over and concealed, yet all impurity and moral deformity before Him, without holiness and mercy and truth and purity and love as abiding principles. Instead of rich grapes they bear thorns, and outward religious standing does not make the heart clean when authority is held outwardly while wickedness remains within.

How Cleansing Comes

Inward cleansing must come first by an entire change and thorough conversion of the heart through Jesus and His sufficient grace, for without a cleansed fountain the streams cannot be pure. Profession with only a supposed hope and without true foundation cannot reach heaven, and a careless, trifling, prayerless life is not Christianity because true godliness requires the heart cleansed first. That cleansing is being born again, with mind and heart yielded in perfect obedience to God under the Holy Spirit, made contrite and humbled rather than lifted up in vanity, bringing every power of mind and soul and body into obedience to Christ. Reforming outward conduct while sin is still cherished and indulged in the heart is not enough, since cleansing must begin inside the heart and then work outward.

God's word is to be meditated on and practiced so that it shapes the whole person and the way he acts, in contrast to religious observance that replaces inward obedience with outward display. Subscribing to theological tenets and professing faith in the truth does not make a person a Christian, and pure doctrines alone cannot save unless they shape how a person lives. Truth must be brought into practical life by being believed and loved, so that sanctification brings power and grace that make a person sincere, kind, patient, forbearing, and heavenly minded, and without this inward change profession is a curse to its possessor and to the world through his influence. The righteousness required is conformity of heart and life to the revealed will of God, which sinful men attain only by faith in God and vital connection with Him. Then godliness elevates the thoughts and ennobles the life, the external forms of religion accord with internal purity, and the ceremonies of sacred service cease to be meaningless rites.

The heart is purified through obedience to the truth planted there, so Christianity must take root in the heart and correct its evil in order to govern the life. When Christ changes what is within, righteousness is expressed outwardly, so inner and outer reform follow together. When the heart is made right the outward life becomes right, with words, dress, and acts all pure, bearing fruit to the glory of God in victory over besetments and passions.

Hypocrisy and Judgment

Practicing sin under a cloak of godliness is hypocrisy of especial guilt that brings severe judgment and retribution, for outward religious appearance cannot make clean when heart and life remain defiled and corrupt. An open sinner has more hope than the hypocrite who conceals wrongdoing behind profession of faith, and the hypocritical professor who appears religious but bears no fruit stands in a less favorable position for perfection of Christian character than one who has spent life in sin yet in penitence accepts truth when opened, comes to God with a sense of sinfulness, and is accepted by Him. All vain pretense is hated and heavily denounced, while the penitent are treated with tenderness even when they have been chief among sinners, and neglect to improve light and opportunities leaves men and women in darkness.

Care over minor duties, even duties required by God, and outward religious strictness cannot replace an obedient life and service from the heart, for the inside must be cleansed first and then outward conduct can also be clean. The rebuke falls on spiritually blind leaders who attend to minor matters but neglect justice and mercy and love and right principles, who are scrupulous about the outside while the inside of the cup is unclean. It is proved by neglect of the great and sacred work, an overbearing and imperious spirit, lack of principle, unjust dealing, tampering with conscience, making imaginary distinctions in guilt, lightly passing over serious wrongs while severely condemning lesser wrongs and making a man an offender for a word, in contrast to being actuated by right principles and revealing justice and mercy and the love of God and practical love for brethren.

The denunciations of scribes and Pharisees and the warnings against following blind religious leaders were recorded for future generations as an admonition against human authority ruling the conscience, a practice that has cursed the church in every age. They expose the danger of religious leaders who claim authority while resisting truth and directing others away from it, whose assumption of authority over conscience reaches beyond that generation as an example of affliction to the church.

The messages to the Pharisees were appeals and warnings that had no effect upon their hearts because they kept an exacting and intolerant spirit, rejected reproof, and set the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their eyes. The same judgments and woes denounced upon them will fall upon all who continue to walk in that same path unless they repent, including priests and rulers who persist in impenitence and oppose truth and righteousness. Those in positions of responsibility and trust who misrepresent righteousness by such a course do a like work with the Pharisees and will be denounced as surely as the Pharisees were denounced, for religious standing does not excuse a corrupt character, and people in sacred positions whose conduct needs deep reform must show mercy, tenderness, forbearance, and love.

Neglecting light received and turning from a holy calling brings a worse position than that of the Jews on whom woe was pronounced. The warning applies to a church becoming worldly, joining in darkness, and making common cause with unbelievers, thereby provoking displeasure and losing sight of what brings peace. It is also a warning that God's judgments against sin must not be set aside by stressing mercy while overlooking sin and self-deception.

Application to Believers

A careless, trifling, prayerless life is not Christianity, for true godliness requires the heart to be cleansed first before the outward life can become right. Inward cleansing must come first by an entire change and thorough conversion of the heart through Jesus and His sufficient grace. Without a cleansed fountain the streams cannot be pure, and profession with only a supposed hope without true foundation cannot reach heaven. When the heart is made right the outward life becomes right, with words and dress and acts all pure, bearing fruit to the glory of God in victory over besetments and passions.

The verse condemns those who claim to represent Christ while their lives deny Him. It applies to those who profess to have light far in advance of others and feel secure in professing truth while their works do not correspond with their profession and their hearts feel no sanctifying influence. Their actions corrupt the soul, dishonor truth, and bring reproach upon it. Cleansing must begin within, with the soul cleansed of selfishness and pride and envy and love of the world and purified for His own abode, shown in a life that denies self and bears fruit and does His works. All vain pretense is hated and hypocrisy is heavily denounced, while the penitent are treated with tenderness even when they have been chief among sinners. An open sinner has more hope than a pretender who appears religious but bears no fruit, for neglect to improve light and opportunities leaves men and women in darkness, so that those who have spent life in sin but in penitence accept truth when opened to them and come to God with a sense of sinfulness are accepted by Him and stand in a more favorable position for the perfection of Christian character than those who have had great light and failed to improve it.

The verse warns against Pharisaism in which outwardly religious conduct and outward religious order cannot make a person or the work pure while the heart remains proud and controlling and corrupt and resistant to divine instruction. The inner life must be cleansed first, and then outward conduct can be clean as well. A heart ruled by Christ's spirit, rather than self and human plans, keeps sacred things pure. Rigid, self-important control in modern Pharisaism can hinder rather than advance the work and restrict the spread of truth.

As Christ with burning earnestness and words of terrible severity denounced the abominations He saw in the church and in the world, He refused to allow the people to be deceived by false claims to righteousness and sanctity by exposing inward uncleanness beneath outward show. His workers must do the same, standing where no binding influence holds them speechless. They must refuse to verify statements they know are not true, and refuse to listen to false statements and wrong sentiments without protest or correction. Christian missionaries and physicians in particular must refuse to be cowered into silence or to harmonize with wrong plans, but protest and correct false statements and wrong sentiments when they hear them.

The Pharisees grew angry when their authority was questioned and opposed those proclaiming God's warning, and popular ministers who reject the message are compared to them. Knowing the truth or professing it will not save anyone, and mere nominal assent improves no heart. Ministry and churches must be cleansed from moral defilement with greater spirituality to discern evil and crowd it out, for God sees what is within and judges with righteous judgment. Outward appearance may look clean while the inward life stays corrupt, like whitewashed sepulchers with sin covered over and concealed, without holiness and mercy and truth and purity and love as abiding principles and bearing thorns instead of rich grapes.