Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Luke 11:46
And he said, Woe unto you also, [ye] lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
46. burdens grievous to be borne ] These burdens of the Oral Law became yearly more and more grievous, till they were enshrined in the boundless pedantry of ceremonialism which fills the Talmud. But even at this period they were an intolerable yoke (Act 15:10), and the lawyers had deserved the Woe pronounced by Isaiah on them “that decree unrighteous decrees, and write grievousness which they have prescribed,” Isa 10:1. “Gradus: digito uno attingere, digitis tangere, digito movere, manu tollere, humero imponere. Hoc cogebant populum; illud ipsi refugiebant.” Bengel.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
See the notes at Mat 23:4.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 46. Ye lade men with burdens] By insisting on the observance of the traditions of the elders, to which it appears, by the way, they paid no great attention themselves. See Clarke on Mt 23:4.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
See Poole on “Mat 23:4“.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
46. burdens grievous,&c.referring not so much to the irksomeness of the legal rites(though they were irksome, Ac15:10), as to the heartless rigor with which they were enforced,and by men of shameless inconsistency.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And he said, woe unto you also, ye lawyers,…. Christ was so far from calling back what he had said or suggested, that he repeats and confirms it, and more particularly names them, and enlarges on their evil practices:
for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers; [See comments on Mt 23:4].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Grievous to be borne (). A late word in LXX and Plutarch ( and ). Here alone in text of Westcott and Hort who reject it in Mt 23:4 where we have “heavy burdens” ( ). In Gal 6:2 we have with a distinction drawn. Here we have (here only in the N.T. and Mt 11:28) for “lade,” as cognate accusative and then (dative after , touch not). It is a fierce indictment of scribes (lawyers) for their pettifogging interpretations of the written law in their oral teaching (later written down as Mishna and then as Gemarah), a terrible load which these lawyers did not pretend to carry themselves, not even “with one of their fingers” to “touch” (, old verb but only here in the N.T.), touch with the view to remove. Mt 23:4 has , to move. A physician would understand the meaning of for feeling gently a sore spot or the pulse.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Also [] . Emphatic. “Even or also unto you lawyers, woe.” Note the article as in the address to the Pharisees (ver. 43) : You, the lawyers. Ye lade. Compare heavy laden, Mt 11:28.
Grievous to be born [] . Only here and Mt 23:4.
Touch [] . Only here in New Testament. A technical term in medicine for feeling gently a sore part of the body, or the pulse. Mt 23:4, has kinhsao, move.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers!” (ho de eipen kai humin tois nomikois ouai) “Then he said, woe be also to you lawyers,” you who resent what I said to the Pharisees and the scribes, Luk 11:39-44.
2) “For ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne,” (hoti phortizete tous anthropous phortia dusbastakta) “Because you all burden men with burdens difficult to carry,” with mere traditional inventions which you try to add to the Law of the Lord, and impose on men as conditions for them to obtain and/or retain salvation, Mark 7; Mark 7, 8; Tit 3:5-6; See also Isa 10:1. These imposed ceremonial burdens were unbearable, Act 15:10.
3) “And ye yourselves touch not the burdens,” (kai autoi ou prospsauete tois phortiois) “And you yourselves do not touch the burdens,” to relieve or show or share any care or compassion to those on whom you impose these burdens, Mar 7:5; Mar 7:13.
4) “With one of your fingers.” (eni ton daktulon humon) “With so much as one of your fingers,” in no way helping to bear weaknesses of those who are weak, Rom 15:1; Gal 6:2; Gal 6:13; Act 15:10. They themselves, as lawyers, did not attempt, in the least to obey the very traditions that they enforced on others. Such is the behavior of an hypocrite, Mar 7:6-9. He has and follows a double standard of morals and ethics.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(46) Ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne.See Note on Mat. 23:4.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
‘And he said, “Woe to you lawyers also! for you load men with burdens grievous to be borne, and you yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.” ’
Jesus now turned His criticism on the Doctors of the Law. They were no better than the Pharisees, for by their wide list of requirements they put burdens on people which were too heavy to bear, and yet they themselves never even reached out with their fingers to relieve the weight of such burdens, while finding ways of dodging them themselves. This included the thought that they piled up the regulations but rarely retracted any, and that they did not take into account the circumstances that would make their demands far more difficult for ordinary people than they were for them. Their own lives were geared to them. The lives of ordinary people were not. Thus He accuses them of being inconsiderate and thoughtless and making unnecessary demands which were far too heavy. But it also probably includes the thought that while they inflict them on others, they found means of avoiding them themselves by casuistry.
Consider a few examples.
The limit of a Sabbath day’s journey was 2,000 cubits (roughly 1,000 yards or metres) from a man’s residence. But if a rope was tied across the end of the street, the end of the street could become his residence and he could then go 1,000 yards beyond that, while if on the Friday evening he left enough food at any given point for two meals that point technically became his residence and he could go 1,000 yards beyond that!
One of the forbidden works on the Sabbath was the tying of knots, whether sailors’ or camel drivers’ knots and knots in ropes. But a woman could tie the knot in her girdle. So if a bucket of water had to be raised from a well a rope could not be knotted to it, but all they had to do was use a woman’s girdle, and it could legitimately be raised with that!
To carry a burden was forbidden, for the codified written law laid down that, “he who carries anything, whether it be in his right hand, or in his left hand, or in his bosom, or on his shoulder is guilty”, but it then added, “but he who carries anything on the back of his hand, with his foot, or with his mouth, or with his elbow, or with his ear, or with his hair, or with his money bag turned upside down, or between his money bag and his shirt, or in the fold of his shirt or in his shoe, or in his sandal is guiltless, because he does not carry it in the usual way of carrying it out.”
Of course we do not do things like that. But our excuses for our sins can be equally fatuous.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Luk 11:46. Ye lade men with burdens See on Mat 23:4. Perhaps the consciences of these lawyers might charge them with some private contempt of the injunctions which they most rigorously imposed upon others, in ceremonial precepts as well as moral; or it may refer to a want of due tenderness for the comfort of men’s lives, which they embittered by such rigour.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Luk 11:46 . See on Mat 23:4 .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
46 And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
Ver. 46. See Mat 23:4 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
46. ] See on Mat 23:4 .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Luk 11:46 . Jesus fearlessly proceeds to say what He thinks of the class. , yes! to you lawyers also woes. Three are specified: heavy burdens (Mat 23:3 ), tombs of the prophets (Mat 23:29-31 ), key of knowledge (Mat 23:14 ). (with two accusatives only in N.T.), ye lade men with unbearable burdens. , ye touch, here only in N.T.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
lade. Compare “heavy laden”, Mat 11:28.
grievous. This refers to the innumerable precepts of the Oral Law, now embodied in the Talmud. Greek. dusbastaktos. Occurs only here and Mat 23:4 in N.T.
touch. Greek. prospsauo = to touch gently. A medical word, used of feeling the pulse or a sore place on the body. Occurs only here.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
46.] See on Mat 23:4.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Luk 11:46. , with one) There is an ascending climax, of which the steps are-to touch with one finger, to touch with the fingers, to move with the fingers, to lift with the hand, to lay on the shoulder [Mat 23:4]. The latter they used to compel the people to: the former they shrank back from themselves.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Woe: Isa 10:1, Mat 23:2-4, Gal 6:13
ye yourselves: Isa 58:6
Reciprocal: Neh 13:25 – cursed Mal 2:8 – ye have caused Mat 22:35 – a lawyer Mat 23:4 – General Luk 10:25 – a certain Rom 2:21 – therefore Gal 6:2 – Bear
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
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With one of your fingers is a figure of speech, for a burden that could be moved with one finger would not be very heavy. It means they were not willing to exert themselves in the least toward practicing the commandments of the law.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
[And ye yourselves touch not (the burdens) with one of your fingers.] That the lawyers (as we have already said) were the doctors of traditions; is a little confirmed by this, that what our Saviour reproacheth them for were merely traditionals: this particularly, that they laded men with such ‘yokes of traditions,’ and yet they themselves would not touch or move them with one of their fingers.
This exposition indeed vulgarly obtains, ‘You lay grievous burdens upon others, which in the meantime you indulge yourselves in, and will not undergo them by any means.’ This interpretation I cannot but admit; but yet must inquire whether there be not something more included it. For whereas ‘he that would prescribe light things to himself, and burdensome to others,’ was commonly accounted and called a wicked cunning fellow; and whereas there is frequent mention of this or that Rabbin, who would lay this or that burden upon himself; which he would acquit others of; it may be a question, whether this exposition, so commonly received, doth indeed speak out the whole sense and meaning of these words.
I apprehend, therefore, our Saviour might not only rebuke the remissness and indulgence they gave themselves, but further their strictness and tenaciousness about their own decrees. They made light of the commandments of God, at their own pleasure; but would never diminish the least tittle of their own. That they might remove or take away any part of the divine law, they employ both hands; but as to their own constitutions, they will not move one finger.
Fuente: Lightfoot Commentary Gospels
Luk 11:46-48. See on Mat 23:4; Mat 23:29-31.
Their tombs (Luk 11:48), is necessarily supplied in English, though not found in the Greek, according to the best authorities.