What is the meaning of Matthew 15:4? For God said - Jesus bases His teaching on God’s own spoken word, underscoring that Scripture carries divine, not merely human, authority (2 Timothy 3:16; Isaiah 40:8). - By prefacing with “God said,” He reminds His listeners that the commands He is about to cite are timeless, standing above any later human tradition (Mark 7:8-9). - The confrontation in Matthew 15 is not about whether the Law is true, but whether people will obey it or twist it. Jesus presses the point that when Scripture speaks, God Himself speaks. Honor your father and mother - Quoted from Exodus 20:12 and Deuteronomy 5:16, the fifth commandment, this call to honor is positive and relational—showing respect, obedience, care, and provision. - The command carries promise: “so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you” (Ephesians 6:2-3), revealing God’s design for family stability and societal health. - Jesus highlights this command because the Pharisees’ “Corban” tradition (Matthew 15:5-6; Mark 7:11-13) had effectively excused grown children from caring for aging parents, nullifying God’s intent. - Honoring parents reflects honoring God; the family is the first arena where covenant faithfulness is practiced (Colossians 3:20). Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death - Drawn from Exodus 21:17 and Leviticus 20:9, this negative command shows how seriously God views despising parental authority. - “Curse” means treating parents with contempt or reviling them. Under Israel’s theocratic law such rebellion undermined the covenant community, warranting the severest penalty. - While the church today does not administer civil penalties, the moral principle endures: contempt for parents is contempt for God’s established order (Proverbs 30:17; Romans 1:30). - By citing this stringent statute, Jesus exposes the hypocrisy of leaders who obsess over ritual yet ignore weightier matters like family responsibility (Matthew 23:23). summary Jesus quotes two complementary commands—one positive, one negative—to show that honoring parents is non-negotiable in God’s eyes. Any tradition that sidelines this duty stands condemned by the very Law it pretends to uphold. True obedience values Scripture above human rules, respects the God-given structure of the family, and expresses love for both God and parents in tangible, sacrificial ways. |
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