SEV Biblia, Chapter 23:25
¡Ay de vosotros, escribas y fariseos, hipcritas! Porque limpiis lo que est de fuera del vaso o del plato; mas por dentro estn llenos de robo y de incontinencia.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Matthew 23:25
Verse 25. Ye make clean the outside] The Pharisees were exceedingly exact in observing all the washings and purifications prescribed by the law; but paid no attention to that inward purity which was typified by them. A man may appear clean without, who is unclean within; but outward purity will not avail in the sight of God, where inward holiness is wanting. Extortion and excess.] 'arpaghv kai akrasiav, rapine and intemperance; but instead of akrasiav, intemperance, many of the very best MSS., CEFGHKS, and more than a hundred others, the Syriac, Arabic, Ethiopic, Slavonic, with Chrysostorn, Euthym., and Theophylact, have adikiav injustice, which Griesbach has admitted into the text instead of akrasiav. The latter Syriac has both. Several MSS. and versions have akaqarsiav, uncleanness; others have pleonexiav, covetousness; some have ponhriav, wickedness; and two of the ancients have iniquitate, iniquity. Suppose we put them all together, the character of the Pharisee will not be overcharged. They were full of rapine and intemperance, injustice and uncleanness, covetousness, wickedness, and iniquity.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 25. Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites , etc.] Our Lord cannot be thought to bear too hard upon these men, nor does he continue this character of them, and denunciations of woe against them, without a reason: for ye make clean the outside of the cup and platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess . The allusion is to their traditions about washing their cups and pots, and brazen vessels; (see Mark 7:4) which they strictly observed. In their oral law is a whole tract, called Mikvaot, which gives rules about the places where they washed, the things to be washed, and the manner of washing them; about which they were very nice, pretending to much outward cleanness, but had no regard to inward purity. Christs sense is, that they took much pains, and were very careful, that the cup they drank out of, and the platter, or dish they ate out of, should be very clean; when at the same time, the food and drink that were within them, were got by oppression and rapine; by devouring widows houses, by making undue claims upon, and extorting unjust sums from the fatherless, the poor, and the needy; and were abused by them, to luxury and intemperance. In like manner the Jews themselves say of hypocrites f1303 ; They make show of a pure and clean soul, but under it lies hid a leprosy: they are like to vessels full of uncleanness; they are outwardly washed with the water of fraud and craftiness; but whatsoever is within, in the midst or them, is unclean.
The Vulgate Latin version of the text, instead of excess, reads uncleanness, and so does Munsters Hebrew Gospel: many copies read unrighteousness. Excess is thought to be a sin the Pharisees were not guilty of, though they were of extortion, injustice, and uncleanness.
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 γραμματεις 1122 N-VPM και 2532 CONJ φαρισαιοι 5330 N-VPM υποκριται 5273 N-VPM οτι 3754 CONJ καθαριζετε 2511 5719 V-PAI-2P το 3588 T-ASN εξωθεν 1855 ADV του 3588 T-GSN ποτηριου 4221 N-GSN και 2532 CONJ της 3588 T-GSF παροψιδος 3953 N-GSF εσωθεν 2081 ADV δε 1161 CONJ γεμουσιν 1073 5719 V-PAI-3P εξ 1537 PREP αρπαγης 724 N-GSF και 2532 CONJ ακρασιας 192 N-GSF
Vincent's NT Word Studies
25. Platter (paroyidov). para, beside, oyon, meat. A side-dish, with the accompanying sense of something dainty; later, as here, the dish itself as distinguished from its contents.Excess (akrasiav). aj, not, kratov, power. Hence conduct which shows a want of power over one's self: incontinence or intemperance..
Robertson's NT Word Studies
23:25 {From extortion and excess} (ex harpages kai akrasias). A much more serious accusation. These meticulous observers of the external ceremonies did not hesitate at robbery (harpages) and graft (akrasias), lack of control. A modern picture of wickedness in high places both civil and ecclesiastical where the moral elements in life are ruthlessly trodden under foot. Of course, the idea is for both the outside ektos and the inside (entos) of the cup and the platter (fine side dish). But the inside is the more important. Note the change to singular in verse #26 as if Jesus in a friendlier tone pleads with a Pharisee to mend his ways.
