The Sermon on the Mount (Part 6 of 0)

The Blessings and the Woes – Part six

In this article, we discuss parallels and contrasts between the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5-7) and the Woes (Mt. 23). The blessings of the Sermon and the cursing of the Woes are like the blessings and the cursing’s given to Israel before they crossed over the Jordan to enter into the promised land.

Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal

“Moses charged the people the same day, saying, These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over Jordan…and these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse…And the Levites shall speak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice, Cursed be he that…And all the people shall answer and say, Amen (repeated 12 times)” (Dt. 27:11-13; 14-26).

The blessings

“And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: and all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

Blessed shalt thou be in the city and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body,
and the fruit of thy ground,
and the fruit of thy cattle,
the increase of thy kine,
and the flocks of thy sheep.
Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in,
and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out…

The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto;
and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee” (Dt. 28:1-8; see also 9-14).

The Cursing’s

“But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:

Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body,
and the fruit of thy land,
the increase of thy kine,
and the flocks of thy sheep.
Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in,
and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me” (Dt. 28:15-20; see also 21-68).

It is difficult to miss the parallels between these blessings and cursings. The blessings come to those who obey God’s commands. The cursings come to those who disobey them. The blessings and cursings both apply in the city and in the field. They both involve fertility. They both affect the coming in and going out of Israel.

The Blessings and the Woes

Similarly, there are parallels and contrasts between the woes that condemn the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees in Mt. 23 and the blessings that await those that hear and do the words of Jesus in ML 5-7. In fact, the Woes of Mt. 23 follow the blessings of the Sermon quite closely.

  1. Do what they say, not what they do — In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus emphasizes that all of the law was to be fulfilled and that to do so requires a righteousness that exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees (5:17-20). He makes the same point in the Woes, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not” (23:2-3).
  2. To be seen of men — In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns, “Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to be seen of them…that they may have glory of men.. .that they may be seen of men.. .that they may be seen of men” (6:1,2,5,16 RV). In the Woes he says, “All (the scribes and Pharisees’) works they do for to be seen of men” (23:5).
  3. Salutations– In the Sermon, Jesus points out that “If ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others?” (Mt. 5:47). In the Woes he says that “(the scribes and Pharisees love) the salutations in the marketplaces” (23:7 RV).
  4. Our Father which art in heaven — The Lord’s prayer begins, “Our Father which art in heaven” (6:9). Consequently, Jesus commands, “Call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven” (23:9).
  5. The Kingdom of Heaven —In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus encourages “the poor in spirit” and “they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake” because they are “blessed,” “theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mt. 5:3,10).
    In contrast, in the Woes he blasts the scribes and Pharisees, “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in” (23:13).
  6. Long Prayer — In the Sermon, Jesus exhorts, “When ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men…And in praying use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking” (6:5,7 RV).
    In the Woes he says, “All their work they do for to be seen of men…(they) love…the chief seats in the synagogues…Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation” (23:5,6,14; verse 14 is probably not in the original text but see Mk. 12:40 and Lk. 20:47).
  7. Sons of God or Sons of Gehenna — The seventh beatitude is “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God” (Mt. 5:9 RV). In contrast, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is become so, ye make him twofold more a son of Gehenna than yourselves” (23:15 RVm).
  8. See God or blind guides — The sixth beatitude is “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (5:8). In contrast, in the Woes Jesus scolds, “Woe unto you, ye blind ..Ye fools and blind…Ye fools and blind…Ye blind guides…Thou blind Pharisee” (23:16,17,19,24,26).
  9. To swear or not to swear — The pure in heart do not forswear themselves; in fact, Jesus exhorts them not to swear at all (5:33-35). He likewise warns the scribes and Pharisees about their illogical rules about swearing (Mt. 23:16-22).
  10. The altar and the gift– In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus exhorts, “If thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift” (5:23-24).
    Jesus also discusses gift and altar in the Woes. “Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say…Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon” (23:16,18-20).
  11. Heaven, the throne of God — In the Sermon and the Woes, Jesus warns against swearing by heaven, because it is God’s throne. “Swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God” (5:34 RV). “And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon” (23:22).
  12. Alms, but no mercy — The fifth beatitude is “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy” (5:7). In his exposition of this beatitude Jesus exhorts, “When thou doest thine alms, do not…as the hypocrites” (6:2-4).
    Similarly, in the Woes Jesus points out that Pharisaic tithing is not true mercy, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone” (23:23).
  13. No hunger or thirst — The fourth beatitude is “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (5:6). When it comes to our hungering and thirsting after natural food and drink, Jesus says: “Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on…Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (6:25,33). We are to be seeking righteousness, not temporal satisfaction.
    In contrast, Jesus says to the scribes and Pharisees, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of (from, RV) extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also” (23:25-26). The scribes and Pharisees do not hunger and thirst because their cup and platter are filled to excess, not with righteousness, but with extortion.
  14. Judge yourself first — In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus explains the second beatitude “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted” (5:4) with reference to judging others before you have judged yourself. “Judge not that ye be not judged…Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out thy brother’s eye” (7:1,5).
    Similarly, in the Woes Jesus condemns the scribes and Pharisees for hypocritically lording judgment over others without first removing their own iniquity, “For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers…Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity” (23:4,27-28).
  15. So persecuted they the prophets– In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus exhorts his disciples, “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (5:12).

In the Woes Jesus says that the scribes and Pharisees will be condemned because they, like their fathers before them, would persecute and kill the prophets that Jesus was sending unto them: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers…Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city…O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee” (23:29-32,34,37).

  1. Your house is left unto you desolate — Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount with the desolation of the fool’s house: “Everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it” (7:26-27).

Likewise, Jesus concludes the Woes with the desolation of Jerusalem’s house: “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (23:38-39).

In Luke’s gospel

Luke, perhaps to make these connections more apparent, records the blessings and the woes side-by-side (see Lk. 6:20-26).

We make the answer now

Will Jesus bless us or curse us? Do we hear and do his words or are we hypocrites? Will our house stand or be left unto us desolate?

We know the end, we know the way,
And some with life he will endow.
Shall we be with him in that day?
We make the answer now. (Hymn 308)