Matthew 23:28Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Justly are the bodies of the righteous said to be temples, because in the body of the righteous the soul has dominion, as God in His temple; or because God Himself dwells in righteous bodies. But the bodies of sinners are called sepulchres of the dead, because the sinner’s soul is dead in his body; for that cannot be deemed to be alive, which does no spiritual or living act.

Sepulchres are whitened with lime without, and decorated with marble painted in gold and various colours, but within are full of dead men’s bones. Thus crooked teachers who teach one thing and do another, affect purity in their dress, and humility in their speech, but within are full of all uncleanness, covetousness, and lust.

Luke states that they resemble hidden graves, and those who tread upon them do not understand the path. These sealed tombs are filled with foul odors within, yet from the surface, they appear as pristine soil and a broad pathway.

As above they are said to be full of extortion and excess, so here they are full of hypocrisy and iniquity, and are likened to dead men’s bones, and all uncleanness.

But before their strict Judge they cannot have the plea of ignorance, for by assuming in the eyes of men every form of sanctity, they witness against themselves that they are not ignorant how to live well.

The comparison between humanity and a vessel becomes evident when Christ states, ‘whereas inwardly they are full of plunder and iniquity.’ The Jewish people would purify themselves, their garments, and their utensils before entering the temple or making sacrifices during the festivals, yet they remained unwashed of sin. However, God neither esteems physical cleanliness nor disparages impurity. Imagine if God abhorred dirt on the body, objects, or vessels. If He detests such flaws in items that naturally accumulate filth through everyday use, how much more does He reject the flaws of the human heart that we have the power to keep pure? Therefore, it is not the physical vessels that require the cleansing of water; it is the heart that necessitates the cleansing of prayer.

You also seem outwardly righteous to others, but within you, in your soul and heart, there is a presence of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Following these events, the Lord departed from the temple, issuing a stern rebuke directed at the Pharisees and the temple priests, who were accountable for the moral decay among the people, accompanied by forewarnings of impending divine judgment. Concluding His earthly mission, He proclaimed that He would persist in His work among them through His messengers; however, the Pharisees would also persecute these individuals, as well as the earlier bearers of the truth. In doing so, they would compound the iniquities of their ancestors, leading to the unveiling of God's judgment against the sins of Jerusalem.

They appeared to be devout on the outside, yet their hearts were filled with numerous sins.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You treat yourselves like your bowls and dishes, focusing solely on external appearances of righteousness while neglecting the sanctification of your souls, which are tainted by deceit and sin. You are comparable to ornate tombs, appearing attractive on the outside, yet within are filled with the remains and all manner of impurity from decayed bodies. According to the Law of Moses (Num. 19:16), interacting with a coffin, a dead body, or human bones was deemed so defiling that merely touching them rendered a person unclean. Thus, the comparison of the Pharisees to decorated tombs must have been particularly degrading for them.

"You resemble whitewashed tombs" (for insights on the construction of tombs, refer to the note on Matthew 8:28). These sepulchres were coated with lime each year on the 15th of Adar, not for aesthetic reasons, but as a precautionary measure for those passing by, ensuring they did not inadvertently come into contact with them; as the law states, touching a grave (Num. 19:16) rendered a person ceremonially unclean. While some adorned their tombs with monuments, likely also for aesthetic appeal, the gleaming exterior belied the true nature within, which was filled with bones and imperfection. Similarly, the Pharisees projected an image of righteousness outwardly, yet in truth, they were hypocrites and disregarded the law.

Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you pretenders, for you resemble whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful from the outside but are filled within with dead bones and all forms of filth. Likewise, outwardly you appear righteous, but internally you are full of deceit and wickedness. According to the Law of Moses, coming into contact with the bones of the dead or a grave resulted in a state of ritual impurity for seven days (Numbers 19:16). To avoid this impurity, the Jews took precautions by annually whitening and painting the exteriors of tombs every year in the month of Adar to ensure the burial sites were more visible. This metaphorical statement from the Lord should be understood similarly to the previous one.