Matthew 23:34 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Matthew 23:34

Comments

‘Behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes’ – Christ is speaking as God. This is not an exact quotation from any single Old Testament passage, but the meaning relates to Jeremiah 7:25-26 and 25:4. Is he speaking of the past, or the future, or both? Luke has the words ‘Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute’ (Luke 11:49). The reference to apostles shows that this certainly includes his own day, but the naming of martyrs of the past in what follows proves that more than these are in mind. The judgment that is about to fall on the nation of Israel, or rather the remaining tribes that are left of the nation, has been delayed, but now takes into account all of the evils that have been committed over the years. The patience of God with this rebellious people is about to be exhausted. Jerusalem will be destroyed, and the nation will be sent again into an enduring exile.This is a warning to the Jews. Israel’s failure to accepts her Messiah was clearly prophesied by Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1). Certainly, persecution of the church will continue during the gospel age, but it is the Jews that are in mind here, and Christ is prophesying the end of their period of special favour as a nation. This is why Christ mourns for Jerusalem in the words that follow. Israel is about to murder its Messiah, and after that it will persecute Christ’s apostles. The Lord warned them, ‘They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service’ (John 16:2). The book of Acts records how the apostle Paul was indeed hounded from city to city by the Judaizers who followed him to subvert all his work. He had to operate continually in this hostile environment, and yet the gospel advanced in spite of all. Other persecutions took place in which Saul himself was involved, which are not described in detail (Acts 8:1). The Jews will repudiate the one who their whole history had taught them to expect and recognise, and who came with signs they should have understood. They will reject the message of the gospel which brought the clearest light from heaven, and they will show they prefer the darkness in which they can practice their hypocrisy. They will bring to a climax the wickedness of their nation, and therefore God will avenge all his faithful martyrs, forgetting none. From the very first martyr mentioned in Scripture, Abel, to the very last, Zacharias, (2 Chronicles 24:20-21) – 2 Chronicles was placed as the last book of the Jewish canon – none will be forgotten. A similar act of God’s vengeance will take place at the end of time. When God judges the world (metaphorically seen as Babylon) it is said that ‘in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth’ (Revelation 18:24).

Application

Although human beings count on getting away with their sins and assume that because judgment does not follow immediately, that God is indifferent, or has forgotten what they have done and will never punish them, they are greatly mistaken. He keeps account with every individual and with every nation; he forgets nothing. If God delays his judgment of us, we should draw an entirely different conclusion. We should say, ‘I dare not tax the patience of God any further. He has already given me far more opportunities to repent than I deserve, and the very fact that I am still here is a testimony to his grace. He could have judged me at any moment. I will humble myself before him and call on him for mercy. I will ask him to help me turn from my evil ways. Perhaps he will still be gracious towards me.’

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Matthew 23:34 Commentary and Bible Study