Cameron Miranda
The scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups in the 1st century, though some scribes were Pharisees. Scribes were knowledgeable about the law and could draft legal documents. Pharisees were members of a party that believed in resurrection and in following legal traditions ascribed to the traditions of the fathers. They were also well-known legal experts. The Pharisees sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from other nations. They tried to follow the 613 commandments of the Mosaic Law, as well as the thousands of new commandments that were created to clarify the original 613 commandments. The scribes and Pharisees were both criticized by Jesus for emphasizing the letter of the law while neglecting its spirit.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Scribes | Had knowledge of the law and could draft legal documents |
| Went beyond interpretation of Scripture and added man-made traditions | |
| Were hypocrites and cared more about appearing good than pleasing God | |
| Pharisees | Believed in resurrection |
| Believed in following legal traditions ascribed to "the traditions of the fathers" | |
| Tried to simplify the law | |
| Sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from other nations | |
| Were legalists | |
| Believed in the Oral Torah | |
| Interpreted the Torah too loosely | |
| Were zealous and meticulously followed a long list of religious rules and regulations |
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What You'll Learn
Scribes and Pharisees were hypocrites
Scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups in the 1st century, although some scribes were Pharisees. Scribes were knowledgeable about the law and could draft legal documents. They added many man-made traditions to God's word, focusing on the letter of the Law while ignoring its spirit.
Pharisees were members of a party that believed in the resurrection and in following legal traditions ascribed to "the traditions of the fathers". They were zealous Jews who believed that meticulously following a long list of religious rules and regulations would please God and allow them to enter heaven. They sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from other nations.
Jesus denounced the scribes and Pharisees as hypocrites, saying that they did not practice what they preached and that they did not follow God with a pure heart. He emphasised the true intent of the Law over the letter of the Law, which the scribes and Pharisees had focused on. Jesus told his listeners to respect the scribes and Pharisees due to their position of authority, but not to emulate them.
In Matthew 23, Jesus pronounced "woes" on the scribes and Pharisees, expressing grief, denunciation, and distress at their actions. The first woe was: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to" (Matthew 23:13). The fourth woe called out the scribes and Pharisees for their focus on diligently paying the tithe while neglecting to care for people and act with justice, mercy, and faithfulness. The fifth woe elaborated on their hypocrisy, stating that they appeared clean on the outside, but were full of greed and self-indulgence on the inside.
The scribes and Pharisees were hypocrites because they emphasised external religious acts without having God-honouring hearts. They were more interested in appearing righteous to others than in truly pleasing God. They added to God's Law, making it a cumbersome and onerous burden for others, and failed to follow it themselves. Their religion was empty, preventing others from following the Messiah.
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They were legalistic
The Pharisees were a group of zealous Jews who were contemporaries of Jesus Christ. They were considered legalists, but this was not because they were overly strict about the law. Instead, their legalism was the result of trying to reduce the law down to something manageable in the lives of the people. They interpreted the Torah too loosely, and their religion was external; their hearts were not transformed.
The Pharisees believed that the way to please God and make it to heaven was by meticulously following a long list of religious rules and regulations. The foundation of the Pharisaical rules was the Torah—the law that God gave through Moses to the Jewish people of the Old Testament. The most famous part of the Torah is the Ten Commandments, but these are just ten of a total of 613 commandments given to the ancient Israelites.
Over time, Jewish leaders began to slowly add to these laws in the Mishnah, an ongoing compilation of sermons and sayings by Jewish rabbis meant to interpret the original Mosaic Law. The Pharisees prided themselves on following not just the letter of the Mosaic Law but even the letter of the Mishnah. They sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from all other nations.
The scribes, too, were more interested in appearing good to men than they were in pleasing God. They became professionals at spelling out the letter of the Law while ignoring its spirit. They added many man-made traditions to what God had said, and the regulations and traditions they added to the Law became considered more important than the Law itself.
Jesus rebuked the scribes and Pharisees for their legalism, emphasizing the true intent of the Law over the letter of the Law. He told his listeners to respect the scribes and Pharisees due to their position of authority but not to emulate them, for they did not practice what they preached.
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They were overly concerned with appearances
In the 1st century, scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups, though presumably some scribes were Pharisees. Scribes had knowledge of the law and could draft legal documents, such as contracts for marriage, divorce, loans, inheritance, mortgages, and the sale of land. Pharisees were members of a party that believed in resurrection and in following legal traditions ascribed not to the Bible but to "the traditions of the fathers."
The scribes and Pharisees were overly concerned with appearances. They were hypocrites, more interested in appearing good to men than they were in pleasing God. They were focused on the letter of the Law and obeyed it with pride, but they missed the weightier things of God. Their religion was external; their hearts were not transformed. Jesus elaborates on their hypocrisy in the fifth woe, telling the religious leaders they appear clean on the outside, but are full of greed and self-indulgence on the inside. They perform religious acts but do not have God-honoring hearts.
The scribes and Pharisees were supposed to know God and help others know Him and follow His ways. Instead, they added to God’s Law, making it a cumbersome and onerous burden. They became professionals at spelling out the letter of the Law while ignoring the spirit behind it. Things became so bad that the regulations and traditions the scribes added to the Law were considered more important than the Law itself.
The Pharisees sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from all of the other nations. They tried to follow the 613 commandments of the Mosaic Law, but also the thousands of new commandments that were created to clarify the original 613 commandments. For example, Jewish scholars created thirty-nine separate categories of what “work” means, and within those thirty-nine categories, there are many sub-categories. To follow the rule of not working on the Sabbath, there are numerous sub-rules to follow, including how many steps one can take and how many letters one can write.
The scribes and Pharisees were more intent on spreading their religion than on maintaining the truth. They nit-picked about which oaths were binding and which were not, ignoring the sacred nature of all oaths and the significance of the temple and God’s holiness. They were zealous in their following of a long list of religious rules and regulations, meticulously abiding by the Torah, the law that God gave through Moses to the Jewish people of the Old Testament.
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They were not truly seeking God
The scribes and Pharisees were not truly seeking God. They were more interested in appearing good to men than they were in pleasing God. They focused on the letter of the Law and obeyed it with pride, but they missed the weightier things of God. Their religion was external; their hearts were not transformed. They were hypocrites at heart. They were more interested in the letter of the law than the true meaning and power behind it. They were legalistic, but their legalism was the result of trying to reduce the law down to something manageable in the lives of the people. They were not too strict, but far too lax in comparison to the fullness of what God required.
The scribes and Pharisees were supposed to know God and help others know Him and follow His ways. Instead, they added to God’s Law, making it a cumbersome and onerous burden. They became professionals at spelling out the letter of the Law while ignoring the spirit behind it. Things became so bad that the regulations and traditions the scribes added to the Law were considered more important than the Law itself. They knew the Law, and they taught it to others, but they did not obey it.
The scribes and Pharisees were zealous Jews who were contemporaries of Jesus Christ. They believed that the way to please God and make it to heaven was by meticulously following a long list of religious rules and regulations. The foundation of the Pharisaical rules was the Torah – the law that God gave through Moses to the Jewish people of the Old Testament. The most famous part of the Torah is the Ten Commandments, but these are just ten of a total of 613 commandments given to the ancient Israelites. Over time, Jewish leaders began to slowly add to these laws in the Mishnah, which was an ongoing compilation of sermons and sayings by Jewish rabbis meant to interpret the original Mosaic Law. The original intent of these additions was to clarify the law, but it ended up adding many layers of complicated regulations.
The scribes and Pharisees were legal experts who challenged Jesus' interpretation of the law. They believed that the way to please God was by following the letter of the law. They were more focused on the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from all of the other nations. They were more interested in spreading their religion than on maintaining the truth. They nit-picked about which oaths were binding and which were not, ignoring the sacred nature of all oaths and the significance of the temple and God’s holiness.
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They were blind guides
In the 1st century, scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups, though some scribes were Pharisees. Scribes were knowledgeable about the law and could draft legal documents. Pharisees were members of a party that believed in the resurrection and in following legal traditions ascribed to "the traditions of the fathers". They were also legal experts.
The Pharisees were legalists, but this was a result of trying to make the law more manageable for people. They were trying to simplify the law, rather than complicate it. They sought to abide by the external laws that distinguished the Jewish people from other nations. They tried to follow the 613 commandments of the Mosaic Law, but also the thousands of new commandments that were created to clarify the original 613. For example, to clarify the commandment to keep the Sabbath holy, the Jewish scholars created 39 separate categories of what constituted "work", with many sub-categories.
Jesus denounced the scribes and Pharisees as "blind guides" and "blind fools" (Matthew 23:16-17). They were nit-picking about which oaths were binding, while ignoring the sacred nature of all oaths and the significance of the temple and God's holiness. They were hypocrites, more interested in appearing good to men than in pleasing God. They focused on the letter of the Law and obeyed it with pride, but they missed the weightier things of God. Their religion was external; their hearts were not transformed. They were more intent on spreading their religion than on maintaining the truth.
Jesus told his listeners to respect the scribes and Pharisees due to their position of authority, but not to emulate them, "for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. Everything they do is done for people to see" (Matthew 23:3–5).
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Frequently asked questions
No, the scribes and Pharisees did not create the law. Scribes were knowledgeable about the law and could draft legal documents. Pharisees were members of a party that believed in the resurrection and in following the Mosaic Law, which was given to the Jewish people by God through Moses.
The Mosaic Law, or Torah, was the law given to the ancient Israelites by God through Moses. It included the famous 10 Commandments, but there were actually 613 commandments in total.
Yes, the scribes and Pharisees added many man-made traditions to the law. They focused on the letter of the Law rather than its spirit, and their interpretations ended up adding many layers of complicated regulations.
Jesus was critical of the scribes and Pharisees. He condemned their hypocrisy, telling them that they appeared righteous on the outside but were "filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity" (Matthew 23:27-28). He also rebuked them for preventing others from following the Messiah with their empty religion.
