Question on Matthew 23:24 "You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."?

Question

What does "You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel" mean?

Who said this and who were they talking to?

Answer 1

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Jesus said this to the Pharisees. The Pharisees had a practice of straining their wine through a cloth sieve so as to avoid swallowing a gnat and becoming ceremonially unclean. (Lev. 11:21-24) So they complied meticulously with the tiniest of the Law's requirements, but completely ignored the drastically more important requirements of exercising "justice and mercy and faithfulness." (Matt. 23:23) By their doing so, they essentially gulped down the camel (the weight of about 70 million gnats). [As a sidepoint, camels were also unclean under the Mosaic Law covenant. (Lev. 11:4)] Jesus thus used hyperbole to point out their hypocrisy.

Answer 2

Jesus addressing the Pharisees Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat-The proper rendering-as in the older English translations, and perhaps our own as it came from the translators' hands-evidently is, "strain out." It was the custom, says Trench, of the stricter Jews to strain their wine, vinegar, and other potables through linen or gauze, lest unawares they should drink down some little unclean insect therein and thus transgress (Le 11:20, 23, 41, 42)-just as the Buddhists do now in Ceylon and Hindustan-and to this custom of theirs our Lord here refers.

and swallow a camel-the largest animal the Jews knew, as the "gnat" was the smallest; both were by the law unclean.

Source(s): Jamieson - Faucett- Brown Commentary

Answer 3

Jesus said this in His discourse to the Pharisees..He called them blind guides because they couldn't make it to heaven themselves, never mind tell others how to get there..

Straining at a gnat but swallowing a camel was meant to illustrate their hypocrisy at how they dealt with the law..Poo pooing people over little things, while ignoring their own HUGE mistakes they themselves made as teachers of the law...They followed the letter of the law but ignored the heart of the law..Mercy..

Answer 4

Said by Jesus after calling the scribes and Pharisees hypocrites. for tithing in the church, but not showing justice, mercy and faithfulness in their lives and to others.

As for the gnats, Rabbis strained the wine to remove small unclean insects, that could contaminate it. Camels, being the largest animal in the region, and are also ceremoniously unclean. So Christ was telling them they are faking it, while feeling superior to others.

Answer 5

Jesus was speaking to the Jewish religious leaders of the time.

They 'strained out the gnat' in that the insisted on extreme literal interpretations of the Law, and also added man-made traditions to the Law. For example, their additions to the Sabbath would have filled two volumes.

They 'swallowed a camel' in that they missed the weightier message of the Law - to love God and to love one's neighbor (who is the image of God) as yourself. They were caught up in details but missed the big picture. They were supposed to guide the people but ended up repressing them.

Answer 6

Blind guides represents the leaders of the church who are not leading their people to heaven. Strain out a gnat represents the small amount of money the leaders of the church will give to the poor and hungry. When they do give - they strain to give. Swallow a camel represents the massive amount of money the church leaders bring in. By the way - this is a very funny comment Jesus made. Strain out a gnat. The church leaders are constipated:-) God bless you and praise Jesus.