August 26, 2022
41 And he said unto them, How say they that Christ is David’s son?
43 Till I make thine enemies thy footstool.
44 David therefore calleth him Lord, how is he then his son?
45 Then in the audience of all the people he said unto his disciples,
Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.
2 And the chief priests and scribes sought how they might kill him; for they feared the people.
3 Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.
Verse 47 ‘devour widows’ houses’ – we can almost feel the rage Jesus feels when He talks about the widows. In James 1:27, we read “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” But also this: “Honour widows that are widows indeed.” (1Tim 5:3).
In the time and place where Jesus walked amongst us, women could own nothing. The husband gave to the first born son of the house all that he had accumulated – nothing went to the wife. A woman was dependent upon the love and good nature of the eldest son to be cared for and looked after. But, because humans never change, we understand how in some families that bond is broken. If a widow went to the synagogue to seek help, the priests and scribes supported the historic passing of goods and possessions to the eldest son and did nothing for the widow now bereft of husband and home. No wonder Jesus was outraged.
Words on the Word 