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Last week we saw Jesus strongly judge hypocrisy & disobedience.

Today we see Jesus complete His harsh judgment of His enemies,         in their last interaction before Jesus is arrested to be judged by them.

Just before Passover (springtime), Jerusalem was prepared for the many pilgrims who would be making their wayfor the Passover celebration (e.g. roads fixed & general cleaning).

Included in that city-wide cleaning were tombstones, cut into the rock formations near the roads just outside the city. Over 800 rock-cut tombs from the time of Jesus have been discovered - owned by the very wealthy.

Jewish tombs are a good distance outside the walls of Jerusalem, across the Kidron and Hinnom valleys - facing the city. Some tombs in the Kidron Valley monuments are very large and ornate cut into the rock, dating to 100-200 BC. The largest number of individual tombs are up above the Kidron Valley, on the Mount of Olives facing Jerusalem.

Regardless of the clean white appearance, the reality is that INSIDE, they contained the smelly, decaying bodies of the dead. This is what Jesus compares the teachers of the law and Pharisees to - whitewashed tombs. People should avoid them like they avoid whitewashed tombs.

Here’s the irony: the religious leaders honor the prophets and other righteous people whom their ancestors persecuted.

And while the scribes & Pharisees claim they would honor those who spoke on behalf of God, the same men are now persecuting Jesus - the One who speaks not only on behalf of God, but IS God (the Son) in skin.

Although these men claim to condemn their ancestors’ treatment of Godly messengers, they are following in the footsteps of their forerunners. And now Jesus tells them that it’s time for them to complete what their ancestors started. 

• Formal equivalent translations (NET, ESV) say, “fill up, then the measure of your ancestors.” 

The cup full of sins has been filling up and they are going to cause it to overflow as they unleash their hatred on Jesus & His followers. Jesus call these deadly enemies snakes & vipers. And in just a few days, Jesus will be the One who is killed by crucifixion. Others would follow, including many of His 1st century disciples. For example, 

• The apostles get flogged under the authority of some of the Sanhedrin (Acts 5:17-42). 
• James the apostle is beheaded by Herod, and Peter is arrested, while many of the unbelieving Jews applauded (Acts 12:1-3).
• Steven is stoned to death (Acts 7:51-8:1). Saul of Tarsus affirms it, later repents, follows Jesus, and becomes better known as Paul - the writer of 13 letters - just over 2/3rds of the New testament (69%).
• Paul is persecuted by unbelieving Jews - being run out of town (cf Acts 9:23–25), thrown in prison on multiple occasions, flogged 5 times, & stoned so badly he was left for dead (2 Cor 11:23-27, Acts 14:19). 

PERSECUTION is coming through these leaders to Jesus & His followers. 

PAYMENT is coming to these leaders & their followers through God Almighty!

Abel was the 1st person to be murdered in the Hebrew Scriptures. If the order of the Hebrew writings was the same in Jesus’ day as in the present Hebrew Scriptures, then Abel (Genesis) to Zechariah (Chronicles) would represent the entire OT collection.

• Abel's murder is recorded in the 1st book of Scripture - Genesis. (cf. Gen 4:8-11)
• Zechariah was a high priest who confronted his sinful people in 2 Chr 24:20-22, saying:

2 Intriguing Similarities

1. Abel was murdered by his own brother. Since then many Jewish ‘brothers’ murdered their own people including Zechariah.
2. Abel & Zechariah were killed because they were RIGHTeous before God, while their enemies were NOT. Abel’s LIFE & Zechariah’s LIPS confronted their enemies with truth.

Here comes Jesus, a Jew among Jews, the greatest example of righteousness to ever walk the planet. Jesus has been confronting them with His LIFE & LIPS. Every righteous prophet from Abel to Zechariah pointed to God’s TRUTH - Who is now STANDING in from of them - Jesus, the Messiah. Yet these men who had condemned their ancestors persecution of righteous prophets are about to complete what their ancestors had begun - killing the RIGHTEOUS ONE. Since these men REJECTED and KILLED the One the Scriptures pointed to, JUDGEMENT would come on this generation, the very generation that Jesus had spoken to and performed miracles among.

Jesus wants to protect the people of Jerusalem, as a hen does her chicks under her wings. But the majority of the religious leaders & their followers were not willing to receive Jesus as their Messiah. Because of this, the ultimate culmination of killing the prophets sent by God is to disgrace the Son rather than honor Him. And your house is left to you desolate (more on that next week). And what’s this about: “You will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”? That already happened earlier in the same writing (Matthew 21:9). Find out next week!

• Now JESUS bids US to come to HIM. Will we?
• Will YOU - like the 1st century disciples of Jesus - sell out & follow Him? OR…
• Will you wait too late, and face the wrath & justice of His judgment?

See you next week as we dive into Matthew 24!

Take some time to discuss these questions with your family, friends, or group.

1. Before we dig deeper, what stood out to you from today’s teaching - challenging, encouraging, or leaving you with questions?
2. Read Matthew 23:27-28. How did the background about whitewashed tombs help you to understand what Jesus intended? Why did Jesus compare the Pharisees to whitewashed tombs in the sermon?
3. In what ways can we avoid the danger of being like whitewashed tombs, as warned by Jesus? What steps can we take to prioritize inner spiritual growth over outward appearances?
4. Read Matthew 23:29-36. What did Jesus know was coming that caused Him to be so swift & focused on judging these men? Take a moment to look back in the Scriptures to see what faced the followers of Jesus years later - apostles flogged (Acts 4:17-42), Steven stoned (Acts 7:51-8:1), James the apostle beheaded (Acts 12:1-3), & Paul faces multiple persecutions (Acts 9:23-25, Acts 14:19, 2 Cor 11:23-27).
5. To whom was “this generation” (v36) referring to & why was Jesus holding them accountable for all the righteous who were murdered by their ancestors? Why are they held more accountable for what they are going to do to Jesus & His disciples compared to what their ancestors had done to other prophets?
6. Read Matthew 23:37-39. How do you know that the ultimate desire of Jesus wasn’t to judge Jerusalem guilty? Ultimately, why ARE they going to be judged guilty?
7. What does God want YOU to do with what we studied today?
8. How can we pray for/care for one another this week? (Pray for one another.)