SEV Biblia, Chapter 23:16
¡Ay de vosotros, guías ciegos! Que decís: Cualquiera que jurare por el Templo es nada; mas cualquiera que jurare por el oro del Templo, deudor es.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Matthew 23:16
Verse 16. Whosoever shall swear by the gold] The covetous man, says one, still gives preference to the object of his lust; gold has still the first place in his heart. A man is to be suspected when he recommends those good works most from which he receives most advantage. Is bound thereby, i.e. to fulfill his oath.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 16. Woe unto you, you blind guides , etc.] Meaning the same persons, the Scribes and Pharisees, as before, though not named, who pretended to be guides of the blind, ( Romans 2:19) but were them selves blind, and so very unfit to be guides of others; they were as they were born, ignorant of divine things, of God in Christ, of the true Messiah, of the true meaning of the Scriptures, of the spirituality of the law, and of the Gospel of Christ; and the way of salvation by him; and their minds were blinded by the God of this world, and with a greedy, and insatiable covetousness after the things of it, of which Christ here gives an instance: which say, whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing ; meaning either that it was no sin to use such an oath, or it was not binding upon a man: he might choose whether he would abide by what he swore by the temple he would do; and thus they ignorantly, and wickedly encouraged vain swearing and perjury. It was usual with them to swear by the temple: take an instance or two. Says R. Jochanan f1272 , alkyh , by the temple, it is in our hands; but what shall I do?
The gloss upon it is; it is an oath by the temple of God, that it is in our power to reveal the illegitimacy of the families of the land of Israel. Says R. Zechariah ben Hakatzab f1273 , hzh w[mh , by this habitation (meaning the temple), her hand was not removed from my hand from the time the Gentiles entered into Jerusalem, to the time they went out.
Jarchi and Bartenoras note on it is, this is an oath. Again, says R. Simeon ben Gamaliel f1274 , hzh w[mh , by this habitation; I will not rest this night until they (doves) are sold for pence apiece.
The gloss on it is, he swore by the sanctuary. But whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is guilty ; or is bound, or is a debtor, to make good his oath; he cannot be excused, but must be obliged to fulfil it; or if he does not, he is guilty of perjury. This is to be understood not of the gold that covered any part of the temple; nor of the golden vessels in it; but of the gold, or money, or gifts which were offered for the service of the temple: and the sense is, that whosoever swore by Korban, and that this, or that should be as Korban, he should not go back from it; he was obliged to give it. This showed the covetous disposition of these men, who made nothing of oaths that were swore by the temple; but those that were made by the Korban, or the gifts of it, were binding, because their interest was in it; it was for their gain.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 13-33 - The scribes and Pharisees were enemies to the gospel of Christ, an therefore to the salvation of the souls of men. It is bad to keep awa from Christ ourselves, but worse also to keep others from him. Yet it is no new thing for the show and form of godliness to be made a cloa to the greatest enormities. But dissembled piety will be reckone double iniquity. They were very busy to turn souls to be of their party. Not for the glory of God and the good of souls, but that the might have the credit and advantage of making converts. Gain being their godliness, by a thousand devices they made religion give way to their worldly interests. They were very strict and precise in smalle matters of the law, but careless and loose in weightier matters. It is not the scrupling a little sin that Christ here reproves; if it be sin, though but a gnat, it must be strained out; but the doing that and then swallowing a camel, or, committing a greater sin. While the would seem to be godly, they were neither sober nor righteous. We ar really, what we are inwardly. Outward motives may keep the outsid clean, while the inside is filthy; but if the heart and spirit be mad new, there will be newness of life; here we must begin with ourselves The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was like the ornament of a grave, or dressing up a dead body, only for show. The deceitfulness of sinners' hearts appears in that they go down the streams of the sins of their own day, while they fancy that they shoul have opposed the sins of former days. We sometimes think, if we ha lived when Christ was upon earth, that we should not have despised an rejected him, as men then did; yet Christ in his Spirit, in his word in his ministers, is still no better treated. And it is just with God to give those up to their hearts' lusts, who obstinately persist i gratifying them. Christ gives men their true characters.
Greek Textus Receptus
ουαι 3759 INJ υμιν 5213 P-2DP οδηγοι 3595 N-VPM τυφλοι 5185 A-VPM οι 3588 T-NPM λεγοντες 3004 5723 V-PAP-NPM ος 3739 R-NSM αν 302 PRT ομοση 3660 5661 V-AAS-3S εν 1722 PREP τω 3588 T-DSM ναω 3485 N-DSM ουδεν 3762 A-NSN εστιν 2076 5748 V-PXI-3S ος 3739 R-NSM δ 1161 CONJ αν 302 PRT ομοση 3660 5661 V-AAS-3S εν 1722 PREP τω 3588 T-DSM χρυσω 5557 N-DSM του 3588 T-GSM ναου 3485 N-GSM οφειλει 3784 5719 V-PAI-3S
Robertson's NT Word Studies
23:16 {Ye blind guides} (hodgoi tuphloi). Note omission of "Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites" with this third woe. In #15:14 Jesus had already called the Pharisees "blind guides" (leaders). They split hairs about oaths, as Jesus had explained in #5:33-37, between the temple and the gold of the temple. {He is a debtor} (ofeilei). He owes his oath, is bound by his oath. A.V., {is guilty}, is old English, obsolete sense of guilt as fine or payment.
