Lk. 11:37 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him. So He went in and sat down to eat.
Once again, a Pharisee invites Yeshua into his home for dinner. And once again, it is for a different purpose than that of hospitality. They are looking for a chance to charge Him with breaking some law so as to accuse Him.
Lk. 11:38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.
Lk. 11:39 But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.”
A similar situation is found in Matt. 15 where the Shammaite Pharisees are complaining to Yeshua that His disciples did not wash their hands before eating. In answering the same question in Luke, Yeshua goes into a familiar Hillel dissertation concerning the cleaning of the outside of the cup. Yeshua is clearly referring to the first century dispute between the two schools of Hillel and Shammai over when the washing could take place (B:Berachoth 51b). According to Luke, Yeshua upheld the School of Hillel ruling that it was permissible to wash later.
Lk. 11:40 “Foolish ones! Did not He that made the outside make the inside also?”
Lk. 11:41 “But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.”
M:Avoth 5:13 says, “There are four characteristic types among those that give alms: one who desires to give, but not that others should give his eye is evil towards what pertains to others; he that wishes that others should give, but he himself will not give, his eye is evil towards what appertains to him; one that gives, and desires that others should give, he is a saintly man; he who will not give, and is not minded that others should give, is a wicked man.”
Lk. 11:42 “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass on justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.”
The Pharisees demanded that everyone tithe. They were so strict about this that if they were given a sunflower seed they would cut off a tenth part of it before eating it. Notice Yeshua’s rebuke to the Pharisees: (1) hypocrisy of carrying out the laws of purity outwardly, while remaining impure inwardly; (2) hypocrisy on paying tithes on green and dry vegetables, not required by the Law, while neglecting their spiritual and moral obligations of the Law.
Order Zera’im, tractate Ma’aseroth in the Mishnah covers the giving of tithes. Tithes were brought before the establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem in the 10th century B.C.E. They were collected by the Levites around the countryside and by the priests at the Temple in Jerusalem during the Second Temple Period (538 B.C.E. - 70 C.E.). There are some major distinctions between Ma’aser Rishon, the first tithe, and the Ma’aser Sheni, , the second tithe. The first tithe was given to the priests and was given every year. The second tithe was given in years one, two, four, and five of the seven-year cycle. In years three and six, the poor tithe (Ma’aser Ani) was given.
The tithe was a tenth part of one’s income, set aside for a specific purpose. The untithed portion of one’s produce is called tevel, and may not be eaten except incidentally while it is still in the field. The first tithe is given to the Levites who himself could own no land and who in turn must give one-tenth (heave offering) to the priest (Numbers 18:26). The Levite could then use what remained of the tithed as he wished. The second tithe (Lev. 27:30, 31; Deut. 14:22-26) had to be taken to Jerusalem and consumed there. The third or poor tithe could be distributed anywhere (Deut. 14:28, 29; 26:12; Malachi 3:10).
Sources: Numbers 18:26; Lev. 27:30, 31; Deut. 14:22-26; 14:28, 29; 26:12; Malachi 3:10
Lk. 11:43 “Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seats in the synagogues and the greetings in the market places.”
Lk. 11:44 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men walk over them are not aware of them?”
The scribes were reproached for: (1) imposing strict religious laws on the people, while personally avoiding them; (2) building tombs for past prophets, while willing to condemn to death the present men sent from God; (3) preventing others from coming to God by keeping secret their learning, while not using it themselves; and (4) having inordinate pride in dress, salvation, and the order of the synagogue.
The terms “scribes” and “Pharisees” often overlap, but were not entirely synonymous. The Pharisees called themselves scribes, but not all scribes were Pharisees. The Pharisees were the successors of the Hasidim (Pious Ones) of the second century B.C.E. that kept themselves unspotted from the world and had confidence of rewards and punishment in the afterlife (Olam HaBah).. The scribes were scholars and teachers that were professional writers with the responsibility of copying and interpreting the laws.
Lk. 11:45 Then one of the lawyers answering and said to Him, “Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also.”
This rebuke of the lawyers had to do with theological education, while the rebuke of the Pharisees dealt with men who applied the religious laws to their everyday lives.
Lk. 11:46 And He said, “Woe to you, you lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.”
Lk. 11:47 “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.”
Lk. 11:48 “In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.”
Lk. 11:49 “Therefore the wisdom of God also said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute.’”
Lk. 11:50 “That the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation.”
Lk. 11:51 “From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the Temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.”
The death of Abel is recorded in Genesis 4:8. The death of Zechariah is recorded in II Chronicles 24:20-22. The space between the altar and the Temple itself is regarded as the most holy place in the courtyard.
Source: Genesis 4:8; II Chron. 24:20-22
Lk. 11:52 “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”
Lk. 11:53 And as He said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail Him vehemently, and to cross-examine Him about many things.
Lk. 11:54 Lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him.
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