Saturday, 26 September 2026
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, Matthew 23:1
Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).
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“Then, the ‘Jesus’, He spoke to the crowds and to ‘disciples, His’.” (CG)
The previous verse ended Chapter 22, saying that no one was able to answer Jesus and no one dared ask Him any more questions. Chapter 23 begins with, “Then, the ‘Jesus’, He spoke to the crowds and to ‘disciples, His’.”
Because the leaders are not mentioned in Matthew’s words, it is assumed by some that Jesus only spoke to the multitudes and the disciples, the leaders having gone away. That is an unnecessary conclusion. Jesus addresses the crowds and the disciples, regardless of the presence of the leaders.
During the coming talk, He will specifically say things like, “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” Whether they are actually there or not isn’t the point of Matthew’s words in verse 1. Jesus has warnings for the people specifically, including His disciples.
Some of the wording is similar to Luke 11. However, there, it says –
“And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. So He went in and sat down to eat.” Luke 11:37
There is no reason to suppose Jesus didn’t repeat the same general thoughts at other times. Being in one location with a group of Pharisees means He would speak to them about matters they were associated with. The same would be true in another area with another group of Pharisees. Therefore, Jesus repeating Himself is to be expected.
Chapter 23 is the last time it specifically refers to Him speaking to the crowds. As such, this is taken as a closing chapter to His public ministry. He will continue to speak to the disciples and utter parables. If any of those were in public, it is not specifically stated as such.
Life application: Jesus is going to really lay into the religious leaders of Israel in this chapter. He will make distinctions for the people to know what they should do in regard to their authority. Nothing He says is subversive, but because His words are true, and the truth often is painful to hear, what He says will not be well received by them.
To this day, Israel’s religious leaders speak against Jesus and His teachings. He is the object of true hate on their part. The reason for this is that they continue to teach the same type of things He condemned two thousand years ago.
Rather than holding to the word of God and honoring Him appropriately, their lives, teachings, and actions demonstrate they have no love or heart for Him. Their words about Him are lip service, just as you will find in any liberal church today. In such churches, they speak words about God, the Lord, and Jesus as if they care about Him, but then they ignore the word He upheld as sacred.
But how are the people who sit in those churches going to know or care unless they are willing to believe the Bible is God’s word and check it out for themselves? This is a problem with our thinking. We go to church expecting to be taught the truth about God, but if it isn’t, we don’t know it isn’t.
The way to avoid this is to read the Bible. And more, pray to God about His word. If it truly is His word, ask Him to reveal it to you. You will get out of the word what you put into it. And He will reveal it to you as much as you are willing to petition Him to do so.
God gave us the Bible because He wants it read and understood. Otherwise, He wouldn’t have bothered. Seek the Lord through His word and through prayer. In this you will do well, and you will have an established line to His throne. You will also certainly be rewarded for your life of pursuing Him.
Lord God, we truly want to be pleasing to You. Help us to faithfully follow where You lead. And we know that Your word is a guide on that path. So help us to be diligent in reading it and allowing it to guide our steps all the days of our lives. Amen.