A PHARISEE! What strange feelings arise within us as we repeat the title―Pharisee! Not pleasant ones either―for nobody now-a-days regards the bearer of it with esteem, but in the times of our Lord the Pharisee was held in the highest religious honor by the people of Israel.
Our picture of him, lifting up his hands in prayer at the corner of a street in the midst of the crowd of people, helps us to form a clear idea of what this truly wonderful being was like― for wonderful he really was, at least, judging from the standpoint of the ideas of the western part of the world.
Imagine the gay street of a busy city at about the hour of evening prayer, which would be three o’clock in the days of which we speak. The people are in full throng, when a gentleman of dignified mien, attired in flowing garments fringed with blue, crosses the road. Before he reaches the other side of the narrow street the hour of prayer arrives; at once he draws the corner of his garment over his head in such a way as to have the blue fringe hanging over his eyes, lifts up his hands towards the synagogue, and, utterly unconcerned as to the presence of the people, repeats his prayers.
The working men near him are profound in their respect. One lowers his tools from off his shoulder and regards with greatest reverence the holy man, while another stops with the load upon his shoulder to do him homage. Two gaily dressed young women observe him through their thin veils with mingled feelings of admiration and amusement; for, though they know it is the correct thing to look upon the holy man with awe, yet, worldly and fashionable as they are, they do not quite accredit these devotions performed in public, the children are half frightened, half wonder-struck. A traveled Greek passing by beholds him with curiosity, for he has heard of the people of Judea, and the name of Him whom they worship, but never in his own heathen land has he seen any man so utterly proud, so vainly-satisfied as this gentleman, the Pharisee.
Now let us examine him a little more carefully. Look at the little square box on his forehead; see also another upon his left arm. They are both bound to their place by a long strip of leather. What can they be? Hardly ornaments! What, then? They are phylacteries, or frontlets. Inside these strange little boxes, of about an inch square, are written certain passages of scripture. I have one now before me, such as the Pharisee of our Lord’s times wore. Do you say, “What an odd thing to wear?” Well, in the East, charms are worn, which, it is supposed, prevent evil influences from hurting the person who bears the amulet or charm―and, indeed, religious charms are worn by people in our own land with the same foolish, nay, wicked, notion. Charms are the fruit either of devil-worship or of superstition.
Do you think God meant that His people should wear these frontlets? This is a disputed point; but it would seem by the plain words of the texts that God intended a spiritual thing, and that as the spiritual meaning of His word failed in Israel, they adopted the letter only, and that placed on their heads and not written in their hearts. But more about this by and by.
When God brought Israel out of idolatrous Egypt, He said that what He had done should be “for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial (or frontlets) between thine eyes” (Ex. 13:9, 169And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt. (Exodus 13:9)
16And it shall be for a token upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt. (Exodus 13:16)); and again He bade His people, “Lay up these My words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes.” (Deut. 11:18; 6:818Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. (Deuteronomy 11:18)
8And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. (Deuteronomy 6:8).) It is easy enough to take a Bible-text and put it before us, and yet all the while to have our hearts far, far from God; and the Lord Jesus said of these Pharisees, with their phylacteries, “Do not ye after their works:... all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries” (Matt. 23:3, 53All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. (Matthew 23:3)
5But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, (Matthew 23:5)), for no doubt they had larger boxes on their heads and arms, in which the texts were kept, than other Jews, and they wore there almost at all times, while the other Jews used them only at the time of prayer.
Our Pharisee is lifting up his hands. This is the attitude of supplication, as we read in 1 Timothy 2:88I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. (1 Timothy 2:8), and in many passages of the Old Testament, one of the earliest being Moses spreading out his hands towards heaven, when supplicating God at Pharaoh’s request. (Ex. 9:2929And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad my hands unto the Lord; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the Lord's. (Exodus 9:29).) In various Psalms the lifting up of the hands is spoken of; for example, see Psa. 134:22Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. (Psalm 134:2). It is a figurative expression for prayer, just as St. Paul says, “I bow my knees.”
Prayer should be observed at fixed seasons as well as be made to God constantly; but when parade is made of prayer, it is self, not God, we are thinking about, and the body only takes the attitude of prayer―no real prayer goes up to God. So when the blessed Lord saw the pretensions of these poor, proud men, He solemnly reminded them of God’s words by Isaiah, “This people honoureth Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.” (Mark 7:66He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoreth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. (Mark 7:6).) Having in view such a scene as that we have portrayed, the Lord said, “When thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men... But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret.” (Matt. 6:5, 65And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. (Matthew 6:5‑6).) Let us seek for real speaking to God in prayer about what we really want―praying, and saying our prayers, are so very different!
A rabbi taught that as it was impossible, because of the necessary duties of life, and sleep, to meditate in God’s law day and night, for the fulfillment of that text it was sufficient to wear the tephillin, or phylactery! This is not unlike the idea of the Chinese, who turn their prayers round and round by a windmill, and imagine that the more times the prayers roll round the more useful to them they will be. Alas! there is a good deal of windmill praying even in Christian countries! We mean saying prayers, and thinking such repetitions will do people good. But all who in their hearts believe God Himself hears prayer, speak to Him when they pray, and this faith in the living God does away with formalism. How closely allied are the vanities of praying to make a parade of oneself, as did the hypocrites, and of using vain repetitions, as did the heathen of whom Jesus spoke. The hardest heart we read of in the New Testament was that of the Pharisee.
What means the fringe or blue ribbon that hangs from his outer garment, the corners of which he has drawn over his eyes? When God had led Israel into the wilderness, He bade Moses tell them to put fringes upon the borders of their garments, and to put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue, and they were to look upon it, and remember the commandments of the Lord. (Num. 15:38, 3938Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: 39And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: (Numbers 15:38‑39).) It was in no sense a display for others to see, but a reminder to the wearer of the words of God to himself. But the Pharisee displayed his blue fringe, and hung it over his eyes while at his prayers, so that he might see the things around him through that color! He enlarged the borders of his garments for all eyes to behold, quite forgetful that the blue fringe was for a testimony for himself!
We must leave till another occasion the account of their origin, and various other interesting things about the Pharisees.