Mark 12:38-40 11. OF THE SCRIBES Mark 12:38-40 (Matthew 23; Luke 22:45-47) 38 And in his teaching he said, Beware of the scribes,--Be on your guard against the teaching of the scribes. Be cautious about hearing and following these learned men of the Jews. who desire--This states their uppermost passion--their love and desire of display and honor "to be seen of men." to walk--Around displaying themselves as much as possible "to be seen of men." (Matthew 23:5.) in long robes,--This describes their dress. and to have salutations--Complimentary greetings. Marks of particular respect shown them in public places. in the marketplaces,--Places where they bought and sold--places where multitudes of people were assembled together. 39 and chief seats in the synagogues,--The seats usually occupied by the elders of the synagogues, near the pulpit. They loved and desired places of distinctions. (Matthew 4:23.) and chief places at feasts:--The most honorable positions at the table during public feasts. Jesus forbade his followers to seek such places or titles of distinction. (Matthew 23:7-8.) The command here is an express command to his disciples not to receive such a title of distinction. They were not to covet it; they were not to seek it; they were not to do anything that implied a wish or a willingness that it should be appended to their names. Everything which would tend to make a distinction among them, or destroy their parity; everything which would lead the world to suppose that there were ranks and grades among them as servants, they were to avoid. It is to be observed that the command is that they were not to receive the title, "Be not ye called Rabbi." The Savior did not forbid them giving the title to others, not disciples, when it was customary or not regarded as improper (Acts 26:25); but they were not to receive it. It was to be unknown among them. This title corresponds with the title "Doctor of Divinity," and other degrees as applied to preachers of the gospel; and so far as I can see, the spirit of the Savior's command is violated by the reception of such a title or titles as it would have been by their being called Rabbi. It is a literary distinction. It does not appropriately pertain to office. It makes a distinction among preachers. It tends to engender pride, and a sense of superiority in those who obtain it; and envy and a sense of inferiority in those who do not; and the whole spirit and tendency of it is contrary to the "simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ." 40 they that devour widows' houses,--Here our Savior points out other evil traits of character of the scribes. These scribes devoured the families of widows, or the means of supporting their families. What means they used to accomplish this evil work, we may not fully know. Probably they did it under the pretense of counseling them in the knowledge of law and in the management of their estates. In some way they took advantage of these poor women and robbed them of their means of support. and for a pretence make long prayers;--As a pretext. They used religion, making a mask of it, to gain the confidence of people so they could rob even the most helpless. these shall receive greater condemnation.--As the prayers were made for deception and for no other purpose, and made long in order to more effectually accomplish the evil purpose, they only added to the wickedness which they were designed to conceal. For the double sin of hypocrisy and fraudulent injustice, they should meet a terrible doom. The damnation was greater because the wickedness was greater. So it must ever be with men who use the cloak of religion to serve the devil in.