The Lord of Rest – rejected (Matt 12:1-8)
After Jesus presented himself as the Messiah, John the Baptist had doubt and Israel rejected Jesus. We see the continued rejection of Jesus as the Messiah in chapter 12. The conflict between Jesus and the scribes and Pharisees were escalating. Jesus, through v1-8, once again points out how the scribes and Pharisees missed the point in what they were picking on.
Sabbath
The evolution of the concept of Sabbath through the Bible:
Instituted by God to mark the completion of His Creation work (Gen 2:2-3).
Introduced to Israel, before the 10 commandments were issued (Exo 16:23).
Instituted as one of the 10 commandments (Exo 20:8-11).
A sign of the covenant between God and Israel, that He is their God (Exo 31:13-19).
A remembrance to Israel, that God brought them out of Egpyt’s bondage and delivered them into rest (Deut 5:12-15).
By the time of Jesus, Israel had morphed Sabbath observance to one that went beyond what God required of them. Sabbath was the epitome of religion in Israel. It was used by the scribes and Pharisees to display their self-defined standards of religiosity, and to entrench their status and authority in society.
Mercy in law – plucking the ears of corn (Matt 12:1)
There was mercy within the law, as seen in Deut 23:25, where provision was made to allow one to pluck the corn from among the periphery of his neighbour’s corn field, should he be hungry.
“Not lawful” is not lawful in the sight of the Pharisees (Matt 12:2)
The Pharisees were well versed in OT teachings and their pious lifestyle exemplified it.
In this passage, they picked up correctly on the requirements of Deut 5:12-15. The problem was they added regulations to it that the passage didn’t require. They had redefined law to one that suited their system of righteousness, not one that was given by God and that represents His desire.
Jesus’ 3-part rebuttal
1. David ate showbread (v3-4)
In 1 Sam 21:1-6, out of necessity, David and his men ate the showbread that was meant to be consumed only by the priests, as stipulated in the Law (Lev 24:5-9). Despite that, God didn’t punish David. This shows that God didn’t mean for the ceremonies of the Law to supercede the genuine needs of man.
2. Priests “profane” the Sabbath (v5-6)
The priests in the temple carried out ceremonial duties on the Sabbath - burnt offerings every Sabbath (Num 28:9-10), baking of cakes for the Sabbath (Lev 24:5-9). Were the Pharisees’ system of law correct, generations of priests would have committed offence through defiling Sabbath.
3. Mercy, not sacrifice (v7)
Jesus quotes Hos 6:6-7, to reinforce that God desires mercy first, not sacrifice. He desires that man live the spirit of the law, than to merely follow the letter of the law, and go through the motions of ceremonial sacrifices and offerings, without a true heart of love and worship.
The Son of Man (Matt 12:8)
In the passage of Dan 7:13-14 the term, “Son of Man”, is used to refer to The Messiah to come. When Jesus calls Himself by this term, He is declaring His Messianic identity.
When Jesus claims the title, “The Lord of the Sabbath”, He is claiming to be God, as God is the one who instituted Sabbath and, therefore, has authority over it.
In this exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees, the proper response due of them was one of submission to The Person who holds authority over Sabbath and, therefore, knows the spirit required in Sabbath observance. Instead, in their pride, they were defiant against The Deity in their presence.
Listening to Jesus
In quoting the 3 passages (1Samuel 21, Numbers 28, Hosea 6), Jesus shows that the Pharisees had ignored clear representations of Sabbath and Law observances, as God would have desired.
They were masters of scripture without understanding it. They spoke to The Lord of the Sabbath but weren’t truly listening to Him.
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Jesus made it very clear that God wants His people to worship Him with a pure and right heart, rather than going through the motions of ceremonies with a heart that’s cold and devoid of love – the spirit of the law, rather than merely the letter of the law.
Some questions for us to ponder:
- Are we listening to our Lord Jesus?
- How do we come before the Lord?
- Are we proud that we stick to the highest standards that we set?
- Do we mindlessly follow laws and offer sacrifice without thought?
- Or, do we humble ourselves to do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God? (Micah 6:8)
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