Matthew 23:18-19
And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The Pharisees twisted oaths to create loopholes, but Jesus exposes their twisted logic: they claimed swearing by the altar meant nothing, yet swearing by the gift on the altar was binding. This highlights how they devalued the sacred place God inhabited to prioritize the offerings that benefited them, revealing their focus on material gain over God Himself.
Jesus is in the midst of a fierce confrontation with the religious leaders in Jerusalem, pronouncing a series of "woes" upon them for their hypocrisy. He's just accused them of valuing the gold of the temple over the temple itself, and now he continues this pattern by exposing their twisted logic regarding oaths sworn by the altar and the gifts upon it. This teaching highlights how they created loopholes to avoid accountability, prioritizing human rules over divine principles and the very heart of true worship.
Why would the religious leaders of Jesus' day say swearing by the altar was 'nothing'?
Jesus calls out the scribes and Pharisees for their twisted logic regarding oaths. They taught that swearing by the altar itself was insignificant, but swearing by the gift on the altar made one truly bound.
This created a loophole. If you swore by the altar, they argued, it was just a piece of metal and stone – not a big deal to break. But if you swore by the offering placed upon it, that offering was dedicated to God, making the oath binding.
Jesus exposes this as foolishness. He asks a piercing question: what is greater, the gift, or the altar that makes the gift holy? The altar, because it’s the place where God’s presence is recognized and sacrifices are made to Him, is inherently more significant than the offering itself.
When we swear by something, what gives that oath its weight?
Jesus gets to the heart of the matter: oaths derive their authority from God, not from the objects men choose to swear by. The scribes and Pharisees, in their hypocrisy and greed, had created a system that valued the over the connection.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Matthew 23:18-19 is available in the Sola app.
By devaluing the altar, they were effectively devaluing the place where God’s presence was symbolically located. By elevating the gift, they were focusing on human contribution rather than God's acceptance and presence.
Jesus redirects their focus. He teaches that when we swear by things like the altar or the temple, we are really swearing by God Himself, who inhabits those sacred spaces. Any oath finds its true binding power not in the object sworn by, but in the God who is honored or invoked through it.
How can valuing religious 'rules' lead us away from God?
The scribes and Pharisees were masters of outward piety but lacked genuine devotion. Their twisting of oath-taking laws reveals a deep-seated self-righteousness.
By saying the altar 'is nothing,' they were creating a system where they could technically keep their word while violating its spirit, all to their own advantage. This allowed them to appear righteous while easily escaping accountability for breaking oaths related to the altar.
This focus on the 'gift' over the 'altar' illustrates how self-righteousness can elevate human actions and contributions (the 'gift' we give) above acknowledging God's authority and presence (the 'altar' that makes our offering acceptable). It's a dangerous trap where outward observance replaces inward transformation, leading people to trust in their own adherence to rules rather than in God's grace.
Understand the original words
thysiastērion · Greek Noun
A place of sacrifice designed for the offering of gifts and the atonement of sins, serving as the mediator between the worshiper and God.
dōron · Greek Noun
An offering or sacrifice brought to God, representing the devotee's submission and acknowledgment of God's provision.
omnyō · Greek Verb
To take a solemn vow or invoke God's name to guarantee the truth of a statement or the fulfillment of a promise; it subjects the speaker to divine judgment if the oath is broken.
opheilō · Greek Verb/Participle
To be under a formal obligation or covenantal commitment; it signifies a state of being held responsible for one's vows, particularly before God.
horkos · Greek Noun
The act of swearing a solemn promise, acting as an appeal to God as the ultimate witness and judge of one's sincerity.
This teaching by Jesus directly confronts a specific, nuanced hypocrisy developed within the Jewish religious leadership. It highlights how their focus on technicalities and the 'letter of the law' allowed them to twist oaths, valuing the 'gift' more than the sacred altar or God himself.
c. 20 BC - c. AD 30
Pharisaic Influence and Oral Law Development
During this period, the influence of the Pharisees grew, and their interpretations of the Law (the Oral Law) became increasingly important and detailed. This included complex regulations and discussions about the sanctity of oaths and temple objects.
c. AD 27-30— this verse
Jesus' Public Ministry and Teachings
Jesus travels throughout Galilee and Judea, teaching and confronting the religious leaders. This period includes his Sermon on the Mount and his intense confrontations with the scribes and Pharisees in Jerusalem, as recorded in the Gospels.
AD 30-33
The Passion Week Confrontations
In the final week of His earthly ministry, Jesus delivers a series of 'woes' against the scribes and Pharisees in Jerusalem, directly addressing their hypocrisy and flawed teachings, including their views on oaths.
This passage highlights how people were robbing God, paralleling the Pharisees' manipulation of oaths by devaluing the altar (God's dwelling) in favor of the gift, thus diminishing God's honor.
1 Kings 8:10-11This describes the glory of God filling the temple, emphasizing that the temple and its altar were meant to signify God's presence, making the Pharisees' distinction between the altar and the gift a profound spiritual blindness.
Isaiah 6:3The seraphim cry 'Holy, holy, holy' to God, showing that true reverence belongs to God alone, a stark contrast to the Pharisees who twisted oaths to avoid true commitment, thereby disrespecting God's holiness.
Matthew 5:33-37Jesus directly addresses the misuse of oaths, commanding His followers to let their 'yes' be 'yes' and their 'no' be 'no,' which directly challenges the elaborate and evasive oath-taking practices the Pharisees promoted.
calvinMatthew 23:16-22: "Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!"
- Woe to you, blind guides! who say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but he who shall swear by the gold of the temple is guilty. 17. Fools, and blind! for which is greater, the gold, or the temple which sanctifieth the gold? 18. And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoso…
henryMatthew 23:13-33: "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."
23:13-33 The scribes and Pharisees were enemies to the gospel of Christ, and therefore to the salvation of the souls of men. It is bad to keep away from Christ ourselves, but worse also to keep others from him. Yet it is no new thing for the show and form of godliness to be made a cloak to t…
The Pharisees twisted oaths to create loopholes, but Jesus exposes their twisted logic: they claimed swearing by the altar meant nothing, yet swearing by the gift on the altar was binding. This highlights how they devalued the sacred place God inhabited to prioritize the offerings that benefited them, revealing their focus on material gain over God Himself.
Jesus is in the midst of a fierce confrontation with the religious leaders in Jerusalem, pronouncing a series of "woes" upon them for their hypocrisy. He's just accused them of valuing the gold of the temple over the temple itself, and now he continues this pattern by exposing their twisted logic regarding oaths sworn by the altar and the gifts upon it. This teaching highlights how they created loopholes to avoid accountability, prioritizing human rules over divine principles and the very heart of true worship.
Jesus is in the midst of a fierce confrontation with the religious leaders in Jerusalem, pronouncing a series of "woes" upon them for their hypocrisy. He's just accused them of valuing the gold of the temple over the temple itself, and now he continues this pattern by exposing their twisted logic regarding oaths sworn by the altar and the gifts upon it. This teaching highlights how they created loopholes to avoid accountability, prioritizing human rules over divine principles and the very heart of true worship.
"And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred?" — The Pharisees twisted oaths to create loopholes, but Jesus exposes their twisted logic: they claimed swearing by the altar meant nothing, yet swearing by the gift on the altar was binding. This hig…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
