Opening Text: "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Mathew 5:20).

We do not have a dictionary definition of hypocrisy in the Bible but we can glean from examples of Yahshua that a hypocrite is someone who puts on a mask and pretends to be something he is not. Hypocrisy is to claim to know and follow certain beliefs but to behave in a way that contradicts those beliefs.

Hypocrisy means saying one thing and doing the opposite of what one requires of others. It means holding a double standard where one expects high standard of conduct from others while remaining indifferent to one's own shortcomings. It means condemning condemning someone else for a behavior or moral failing that commits or excuses in one's own life. Hypocrisy means faking or exaggerating virtues, beliefs, or emotional states that one does not actually possess.

As Pastor Kyle Borg of Winchester Reformed Presbyterian Church said, and I agree, the worship, faith, service, displays, outrage, generosity and language of a hypocrite are all performative. His heart is far from GOD.

The Psalmist said: "His speech was smooth as butter, yet war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords" (Ps. 55:21).

Yahshua said: "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod" (Mk. 8:15).

The Talmud divides Pharisees into seven classes, and satirizes those who display hypocritical tendencies. They are as follows:

1. There is the Shichmi Pharisee who acts like Shechem, who submitted to circumcision from an unworthy motive. See Gen. 34. In the Jerusalem Talmud, the Shichmi Pharisee is explained as one who carries his religious duties upon his shoulder (Ber. 46b).

2. There is the Nikpi Pharisee who knocks his feet together. He walks in such a way as to display exaggerated meekness. The Jerusalem Talmud explains: "The Pharisee who says, 'spare me a moment that I may perform a religious duty."

3. There is the Kizai Pharisee who makes his blood flow against walls. In his anxiety to avoid looking at a woman he dashes his face against a wall. The Jerusalem Talmud refers to him as a "calculating Pharisee," that is, he performs a good deed and then a bad deed, setting one off against the other.

  • There is the Pestle Pharisee who walks with bowed head like a pestle in the mortar.
  • There is the Pharisee who is always exclaiming, "What is my duty that I may perform it?"
  • There is the Pharisee from love of GOD.
  • There is the Pharisee from fear (Sot. 22b).

The common denominator in all these seven classes is hypocrisy.

The text says: "For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when GOD taketh away his soul? (Job. 27:8).

It is recorded by Mathew: "In the meantime, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy" (Lk. 12:1). Yahshua warned his followers against hypocrisy.

Again it is recorded: ""Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees ... How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees" (Matt. 16:6, 11-12).

There is no guarantee that outward behavior, however seemingly commendable, is not the product of pharisaic motivation; only if the inward workings of the heart were known could we tell. Only GOD knows and understands the heart of man.

Concerning hypocrisy, Yahshua said: For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. Therefore whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops" (Lk. 12:2-3). See also Matt. 10:26; Mk. 4:22; Lk. 8:17

The real you may be concealed from the eyes of men, but the Holy One, Blessed be He, who is everywhere sees all, for the text says: "For His eyes are upon the ways of man, and He seeth all his goings. There is no darkness, nor shadow of death, where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves" (Job 34:21-22). See also Job 31:4; Ps. 33:13-14; 90:8; Prov. 5:21; 15:3, 11; 2 Chron. 16:9; Jer. 16:17; 32:19.

The text says: "Am I a GOD at hand, saith the LORD, and not a GOD afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? Saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? Saith the LORD" (Jer. 23:24). See also Amos 9:2-4.

The text also says: "Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do" (Heb. 4:13).

When he contemplated on the awesomeness of GOD, King David said: "O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee" (Ps. 139:1-12).

The sin of hypocrisy is a serious sin. In the Talmud it is stated thus: "Every person in whom is hypocrisy brings wrath upon the world, his prayer remains unheard, is cursed even by the embryos in their mother's womb, and will fall into Gehinnon. A community addicted to hypocrisy is loathsome like an unclean thing, and will be driven into exile" (Sot. 41b et seq.).

Our Messiah, Yahshua had no mean contention with the ways of the Pharisees and Scribes of his time. More or less, they were the face of the religious establishment of his time. Every word of Yahshua to these people counts and matters so much for us who live in these times and pride ourselves that we are children of GOD's covenant. He said as follows:

"The Torah-teachers and the P'rushim (Pharisees)," he said, "sit in the seat of Moshe. So whatever they tell you, take care to do it. But don't do what they do, because they talk but don't act! They tie heavy loads onto people's shoulders but won't lift a finger to help carry them. Everything they do is done to be seen by others; for they make their t'fillin broad and their tzitziyot long" (Matt. 23:2-5, CJB).

"But woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P'rushim (Pharisees)! For you are shutting the Kingdom of Heaven in people's faces, neither entering yourselves nor allowing those who wish to enter to do so. "Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P'rushim (Pharisees)! You go about over land and sea to make one proselyte; and when you succeed, you make him twice as fit for Gei-Hinnom as you are!" (Verses 13-15, CJB).

"Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P'rushim (Pharisees)! You pay your tithes of mint, dill and cumin; but you have neglected the weightier matters of the Torah --- justice, mercy, trust (faith). These are the things you should have attended to --- without neglecting the others! Blind guides! --- straining out a gnat, meanwhile swallowing a camel! Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P'rushim (Pharisees)! You clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. Blind Parush (Pharisee)! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside may be clean too. Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P'rushim (Pharisees)! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but inside are full of dead people's bones and all kinds of rottenness. Likewise, you appear to people from the outside to be good and honest, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and far from Torah" (Verses 23-27, CJB).

Speaking about Israel of his time, the Apostle Paul said: "For I bear them record that they have a zeal of GOD, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of GOD\'s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of GOD. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth" (Rom. 10:2-4). In King James English, the word "end" in the context of Rom. 10:4 simply means "aim" or "goal."

Israel had the Law of righteousness but they served only the letter of the Law and not the spirit behind the law. And so it is said: "But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone. As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed" (Rom. 9:31-33).

The spirit behind the law is what the law sets out to accomplish in man. It is simply to make us conform to the image of Yahshua who was manifested as the express image of GOD full of goodness and truth, loving, merciful, compassionate, gracious, kind, forgiving, humble, meek, gentle, full of faith, obedient, holy and so on.

Yahshua said: "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matt. 11:29-30).

So to be like Yahshua is the goal or aim of the law (Rom. 10:4).

The text says: "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith" (Gal. 3:24). The faith of Yahshua, that is.

The text also says: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love GOD, to them who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:28-29).

Everything about the law of GOD is about Yahshua and to be like him. Thus he said: "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had you believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words? (Jn. 5:45-47). "Moses" here is a metaphor for the law. Because he received the law on behalf of GOD's people, his name is synonymous with the law. Christ (Messiah) is the word (law) of GOD, as it is said: "And he was clothed with vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called the Word of GOD" (Rev. 19:13). See also Jn. 1:1.

Both this writer and every supposed child of the covenant of GOD has a challenge. The challenge is to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. We owe it to ourselves to strive for oneness with GOD and be like Yahshua the Messiah. Since we accept the yoke of the Almighty GOD's Sovereignty over us by belief in all His eternal covenant laws, just as the Pharisees did, we must by every effort strive to keep these life-changing laws in the example of Yahshua and lift ourselves by our bootstraps from the sin of hypocrisy. May our obedience, worship, faith, service, conduct and speech not be masked, but sincere performances from the heart in the true love of GOD and neighbour. This, we must do, knowing, as it is said in the opening text, "That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Mathew 5:20).

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