The Seat of Moses

 

This Seat of Moses is in the ruins of the synagogue in Chorazin. It is a replica of the original that is stored in Jerusalem’s Israel Museum. This original Chorazin Seat of Moses, discovered in 1926, dates to the 3rd or 4th century A.D., but it is probably similar to what would have been used during Jesus’ time. A rabbi, synagogue elder or distinguished guest would sit in the seat while he explained the Scriptures. It was a place of honor. The term "Moses' Seat" was both literal and symbolic.
The entire 23rd chapter of Matthew relates Jesus’ scathing denunciation of the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of His day. He began by saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.”

The scribes and Pharisees were interpreters and teachers of the law of Moses. Their job was to help people apply the law to their lives in a way relevant to their current society.

The time of Jesus was approximately two thousand years removed from Moses and the law. At the time when the law was given, the children of Israel lived a semi-nomadic life in the desert. After 400 years of slavery, these people were struggling to adapt to their new identity as a free nation. God provided them with laws to help them govern their new nation, interact with one another, and make proper decisions.

Conversely, during Jesus’ time, the children of Israel dwelt in their Promised Land, but they were not a free nation; they were dominated by the powerful Roman Empire. Greek and Roman ideology influenced their lives. Their lifestyle was different from that of their predecessors.

Some of Moses’ laws must have seemed archaic and unnecessary to people living in such a progressive society. Because of culture shift and modernity, people might have had difficulty understanding why it was important for them to observe such ancient laws.

That is where the scribes and Pharisees came in. While common men worked as farmers, carpenters, stonemasons, and merchants, the scribes and Pharisees dedicated their lives to learning the law so they could teach it those busy with other jobs. Using very old laws as their guide, they were to instruct people how to please God with their day-to-day lives and relationships.

The word of God is timeless. God does not change, regardless of society, culture, language, ethnicity, economics, or government. Biblical principles can be applied to any situation because human nature has always been and always will be the same. The Mosaic law was designed to create a society that honored God as King and His laws as correct in every situation. So, while Moses’ law might have seemed ancient and irrelevant to the people of Jesus’ day, it was superior to every other ideology that tried to influence them.

Simply speaking, God’s laws always work. When applied, they create harmonious relationships and a civil, orderly society. God’s government is better than socialism, communism, an autocracy, dictatorship, or monarchy. It is even superior to democracy. It is God’s ideas, not man’s, that are effective at creating a healthy society.

In Exodus 18, we see Moses resolving conflicts between people and teaching them how to apply God’s decrees to their particular situations. When Jesus said, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat,” He was saying that they were authorized to help the people properly apply the Word of God to their lives, as Moses did.

Conflict occurred when the scribes and Pharisees took it upon themselves to exceed simple explanation and application of the law. They taught man-created traditions which had no basis in the written Word of God, either outright or implied. These traditions had been passed down word-of-mouth from generation to generation. The Pharisees held them as equal to the written law of Moses. These oral traditions were additions to the law of Moses, and these additions – as well as hypocrisy – are what Jesus took issue with.

Jesus did not condemn everything the Pharisees did. For example, in Matthew 23:23, He tells the Pharisees that they should continue tithing, but he reprimands them for neglecting “weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith.” The Pharisees were so consumed with appearances and protocol that they missed out on some of the other principles of the Word of God. They missed out on the true meaning of humility and the real essence of worship.

In a familiar example, found in Matthew 15, the scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus, “Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.” Jesus responded, “Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?”

Here we see a clash between the “tradition of the elders” and the “commandment of God.” Several times Jesus berated the scribes and Pharisees for following the “traditions of the elders” and the “traditions of men.” These were self-imposed laws that Jesus did not expect people to adhere to. Jesus told them, “Ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.”

In an appeal to help the Pharisees understand how blind they were, Jesus referenced the prophet Isaiah: “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:8-9; Isaiah 29:13).

And herein is a key principle that we can learn from. Some of us are so good at “doing” that we stop “being.” We can become so concerned with doing things for God that we cease to know God. Or, our relationship with God is not as deep as it could be. It is gratifying to do things, to be busy with kingdom work. But as was the case with Mary and Martha, there is a time and place for work, but worship should be the craving of our heart. Jesus told Martha, “Thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Note that Jesus did not condemn Martha for doing and serving; He simply told her that her priorities were misplaced.

It is possible to put things on ourselves that even Jesus does not require of us. In our achievement-oriented society that values intellect, education, and success, we sometimes transfer that mentality to living for God. We tend to think that the more we do for God, the happier He will be with us.

If we live as if the more we do, the more pleasing we are to God, we are little better than the Pharisees. While God does expect us to be busy with His work, He places greater value on our character development, how we treat people, and inner cleanliness.

A fulfilling relationship is not one motivated by duty or service alone, although those are essential principles in the Word of God that should not be neglected. A fulfilling relationship is one that is motivated by a desire to know God, to draw close to Him, to give ourselves to Him. In the New Covenant that Jesus established, we still have things God requires of us, yet we need to make sure we do not confuse self-imposed traditions or acts of service with quality of relationship. As our relationship with God deepens, we will be naturally motivated to do things for Him. As we grow in the knowledge of His love for us, service will become second nature to us, not a chore or a means to gain His approval.

While Jesus did not necessarily condemn exteriors – unless they had no basis in God’s laws – He wanted the Pharisees to look a little deeper. He wanted them to see past what others could see and past what they themselves normally saw. He wanted them to see themselves as God saw them. He wanted them to know who He really was and He wanted them to know who they really were. He was seeking for them to cultivate honesty and a deeper awareness of true reality.