The Sermon Continues - Pt 6

[Jesus said] “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:1–4 ESV).

 

Jesus’ clarity in our reading today is obvious. This continuation of the Sermon on the Mount is a core teaching where Jesus warns against practicing righteousness—specifically giving to the needy—for public praise. Clearly Hia desire is that His followers practice charity in all of its forms; but, He teaches that charity should be done in secret, and God the Father, who sees in secret, will reward it. It is a call to genuine righteousness rather than vain behavior. John Calvin writes the following:

 

“For the same reason, all who are desirous of vain-glory are called hypocrites. Profane authors gave the name of ὑποκριταὶ, hypocrites, to those who personated assumed characters in plays and on the stage; and Scripture has applied this term to men who are double in heart and insincere. There are various kinds of hypocrites. Some, though conscious of being very wicked, impudently give themselves out for good men before the world, and endeavor to conceal their vices, of which they have an inward conviction. Others allow themselves to proceed to such a pitch of audacity, that they venture to claim even perfect righteousness before God. Others do good, not from a desire to do what is right, nor on account of the glory of God, but only to obtain for themselves fame and a reputation for holiness. This last mentioned class Christ now describes, and he properly calls them hypocrites: for, having no proper object in view in the performance of good works, they assume a different character, that they may appear to be holy and sincere worshippers of God.”

 

Jesus’ reference to “sound no trumpet” is somewhat unclear to the modern reader. However, it was very clear to the original audience. The drawing I’ve included gives you somewhat of an idea of the common practice of these self-righteous hypocrites as they walked into the synagogues and rolled their coins into the offering bowls. These bowls were often shaped like the horn of a trumpet, thus if you cast them into the collection bowl just right it would make quite a loud sound as metal against metal clanked as it fell to the bottom. Of course, in the quiet of the gathering, all heads would turn at the noise and see the pompous piety of these strutting peacocks who paraded their giving to receive the praise of men. We should be careful in our giving. It should be motivated from a heart of compassion and executed in humility.