Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 23:26
[Thou] blind Pharisee, cleanse first that [which is] within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
26. that which is within the cup ] Rather, the inside of the cup. Cp. Mar 7:4.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Cleanse first that which is within the cup and the platter – Let them be filled with the fruits of honest industry, and then the outside and the inside will be really clean. By this allusion to the cup and platter he taught them that it was necessary to cleanse the heart first, that the external conduct might be really pure and holy.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
26. Thou blind Pharisee, cleansefirst that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside ofthem may be clean alsoIn Luke (Lu11:40) it is, “Ye fools, did not He that made that which iswithout make that which is within also?””He to whombelongs the outer life, and of right demands its subjection toHimself, is the inner man less His?” A remarkable example thisof our Lord’s power of drawing the most striking illustrations ofgreat truths from the most familiar objects and incidents in life. Tothese words, recorded by Luke, He adds the following, involving aprinciple of immense value: “But rather give alms of such thingsas ye have, and behold, all things are clean unto you” (Lu11:41). As the greed of these hypocrites was one of the mostprominent features of their character (Lu16:14), our Lord bids them exemplify the opposite character, andthen their outside, ruled by this, would be beautiful in theeye of God, and their meals would be eaten with clean hands, thoughmuch fouled with the business of this everyday world. (See Ec9:7).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Thou blind Pharisee,…. Well might Christ call such an one a blind Pharisee, who was so scrupulously careful to cleanse his cup and platter; and yet made no conscience of filling them with what was gotten in an unjust way, and so defiled himself and them:
cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also: get food and drink in an honest way, remove all extortion and oppression out of thine hands, and luxury and intemperance from thy table; and so shall the outward cleanness of thy cup and dish, be no reproach unto thee, or testimony against thee, of thine hypocrisy. So the great concern of all men should be, inward purity; that their hearts be purified by faith in the blood of Christ, and sprinkled from an evil conscience by the same; that principles of grace and holiness be formed in them by the Spirit of God; and then their outward lives and conversations being influenced thereby, will be honourable and agreeable to their professions. Otherwise, an external reformation, or an outward show of holiness, and bare pretensions to it, without internal grace, will never be of any avail in the sight of God.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(26) That the outside of them may be clean also.The implied premise is that uncleanness in its ethical sense was altogether distinct from the outward uncleanness with which the Pharisees identified it. If the contents of the cup were pure in their source and in their use, they made the outside clean, irrespective of any process of surface purification.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
26. Cup Or drinking vessel. Platter Or dish for meats or sweetmeats. Our Lord compares these men to such utensils, which by a cleanly outside promised cleanly contents, while they contained filthy matter.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“You blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and of the bowl, that the outside of it may become clean also.”
But what they should have done was first ensure that the inside was clean. Then there might be some point in cleansing the outside. For the outside cannot be truly clean until the inside is. Indeed the result of making the inside clean will, in the case of a human being, result in the outside becoming clean as well.
There is possibly in mind here the different views of Hillel and Shammai with regard to cleansing vessels. Hillel stressed the need for the inside to be cleansed. Shammai required both inside and outside to be cleansed.
Note the continual emphasis on their blindness (16, 17, 19, 24, 26). Jesus wants it to be recognised that they are spiritually blind and are merely stumbling along (Mat 15:14; Luk 6:39; Joh 9:39; Joh 12:40), and are therefore not reliable guides. And yet this is the problem. They do not even realise that their own insides are filthy.
In Mat 5:7 the merciful obtain mercy, for they recognise their own sinfulness, but these who are the opposite of being merciful and pure in heart see nothing, not even their own filthiness, and therefore they do not seek mercy (compare the Pharisee and the Public Servant in Luk 18:9-14), nor are they merciful. They are content with what they are.
A friend of mine who used to visit the old went one day to the house of an old lady who was blind. He was shocked at the state of the house, with dirt lying thick all around, cobwebs everywhere and with its general state of uncleanliness, but he was even more saddened when the old lady turned to him and said proudly, ‘you know, this is my house. It may be poor but at least its clean.’ The sad thing was that her efforts to keep it clean had failed because she was blind, and she could not see it as it really was. Nor could she see what needed cleaning. That was the problem of the Scribes and Pharisees. They saw themselves as they imagined themselves to be and not as they really were (and they are not the only ones, but the point in their case was that they laid claim to be different. They claimed credit for being ‘observers of the Law’, and men thus followed their example).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Mat 23:26 . , . . .] i.e . let it be your first care ( , as in Mat 6:33 , Mat 7:5 , and elsewhere), to see that the wine in the cup is no longer procured by extortion and exorbitance.
, . . .] not: “ut tum recte etiam externae partes possint purgari,” Fritzsche, but with the emphasis on : in order that what you aim at may then be effected , viz. the purity of the outside as well, in order that, then, the outside of the cup also may not merely appear to be clean through your washing of it, but may actually become so, by losing that impurity which, in spite of all your cleansing, still adheres to it (which it contracts, as it were, from its contents), simply because it is filled with that which is procured through immoral conduct. The external cleansing is not declared to be unnecessary (de Wette), nor, again, is it intended to be regarded as the true one, which latter can only be brought about after the purifying of the contents has been effected. Bengel fitly observes: “alias enim illa mundities externa non est mundities.” That which is insisted on with is to be attended to in the first place .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
Ver. 26. Cleanse first that which is within ] God loveth truth in the inwards, Psa 51:6 ; “O Jerusalem, wash thy heart,” Jer 4:14 ; (not thy hands only, as Pilate did); this breeds constancy and evenness in all our outward behaviours, Jas 4:8 . Grace and nature both begin at the heart, at the centre, and from thence goes to the circumference. Art and hypocrisy begin with the face and outward lineaments.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mat 23:26 . : change from plural to singular with increased earnestness, and a certain friendliness of tone, as of one who would gladly induce the person addressed to mend his ways. : if , Mat 23:25 , is taken = by, then this verb will mean: see that the wine in the cup be no more the product of robbery and unbridled desire for other people’s property (Weiss and Meyer). On the other view, that the cup is filled with these vices, the meaning will be, get rid of them. , etc., in order that the outside may become clean. The ethical cleanness is conceived of as ensuring the ceremonial. Or, in other words, ethical purity gives all the cleanness you need (“all things are clean unto you,” Luk 11:41 ). Practically this amounts to treating ceremonial cleanness as of little account. Christ’s way of thinking and the Pharisaic were really incompatible.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
that which is within = the inside of.
be = become.
clean also. The “also” must be connected with outside: “that the outside also may become clean”.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Mat 23:26. , cleanse) sc. by removing rapacity by almsgiving. See Luk 11:41.-, …, first, etc.) This may also be applied to the matter of decorum.-, …, in order that, etc.) for otherwise that outward cleanliness is not cleanliness.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
cleanse: Mat 12:33, Isa 55:7, Jer 4:14, Jer 13:27, Eze 18:31, Luk 6:45, 2Co 7:1, Heb 10:22, Jam 4:8
Reciprocal: Exo 29:17 – wash the Num 8:7 – wash their Mat 15:20 – but Mat 23:16 – ye blind Mat 25:3 – foolish Luk 11:40 – fools Luk 20:47 – for Joh 1:24 – were of 1Pe 3:4 – the hidden
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Mat 23:26. Thou blind Pharisee. Blind, failing to see that the great matter should come first.
Cleanse first. Begin with inward purity.
That the outside thereof may become clean also. Outward morality is very important, but it naturally follows purity of heart. The former without the latter is not real morality.