05.40. The True Source of Man's Defilement

40. — The True Source of Man’s Defilement

"And he called to him the multitude again, and said unto them, Hear me all of you, and understand: there is nothing from without the man, that going into him can defile him: but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man. And when he was entered into the house from the multitude, his disciples asked of him the parable. And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Perceive ye not that whatsoever from without goeth into the man, it cannot defile him: because it goeth not into his heart, but into his belly, and goeth out into the draught? This he said, making all meats clean.* And he said, That which proceedeth out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, evil thoughts proceed, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, covetings, wickednesses, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, railing, pride, foolishness: all these evil things proceed from within, and defile the man" (Mark 7:14-23, R.V.).

{*The Revisers replaced the words of the A.V. "purging all meats" by the clause, "This he said,making all meats clean." The critical questions involved in the determination of the correct reading are debatable, and the change made is not accepted by all scholars. But the unforced interpretation of the passage in its context is that the reference by our Lord was not to cleanness in its spiritual significance, as inActs 10:13, but to the physical processes of the human organism, the result of their operations being for purification and not pollution.} The Lord on this occasion unsparingly condemned the traditions of the Jews which, though totally unauthorised by divine authority, were rigorously imposed by the religious chiefs upon the people of the day. But He established truth as well as exposed error. In His doctrine the Great Servant-Prophet of Jehovah was destructive of all evil forms and corrupt tendencies, but was also constructive of what was good and of God, preaching continually the gospel of the kingdom of God. He swept away the delusion of a cleansing from spiritual defilement by material means, and proclaimed the deep-seated cause of man’s moral uncleanness. There was, He taught, an overflowing spring of pollution within, and men were self-deceived by the habit of attending solely to external means of purification. Even if all avenues of contamination from without were closed, man would still possess the inward disposition and desire and impulses to sin which spread corruption through his being. In this manner of teaching we find no pandering to the notions of the times; and herein we see one notable difference between the false teachers and the True. The false prophet prophesies smooth things and deceitful things which conceal the ugly facts of sin and judgment. But the Servant of Jehovah unveiled the whole truth before the eyes of priests and people alike, and this plainness of speech incurred the bitter hatred of that evil generation. "Now ye seek to kill me," said Jesus to the Jews, "a. man that hath told you the truth" (John 8:40). The Saying Addressed to the Crowd

Both in word and deed, the Lord displayed a special loving interest in the welfare of the masses, oppressed as they were by the Pharisees and scribes who shut up the kingdom of heaven against them, neither entering themselves nor suffering the people to enter (Matthew 23:13). It was foretold that a characteristic feature of the ministry of the Messiah would be that the poor should have the gospel preached to them (Luke 4:18;Luke 7:22). The humble in heart often have a poor purse, and Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3). The Lord, then, had been speaking to the teachers of Israel and reproving them for foisting an empty tradition upon the people to the displacement of the law and prophets of God. They were not true men but evil shepherds of the sheep — thieves and robbers indeed (John 10:8-13), since they had taken away from the people the word of God which was their heritage and their salvation. But the Lord was the Good Shepherd of Israel. It was His delight "to stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD." He had come out of heaven to give His people the true bread of life — the word which proceeded out of the mouth of God.

Accordingly, the Lord called the crowds together again and communicated to them the truth on this subject in simple and concise language such as they might "hear and understand." He spoke to the multitudes direct without an intermediary, so that these simple peasants of Galilee were able to drink from the well-spring of truth itself. Everyone was called to give heed to Him, and to seek to lay hold upon His words. Hearken unto me every one of you, He said, and understand: "there is nothing from without the man, that going into him can defile him: but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man." The Lord’s subject in this saying is not the means of cleansing, but the cause of defilement. He does not here speak of the futility of ceremonial purification, and of the use of water to remove immoral stains (Job 9:30-31). Of this He had already spoken to the Pharisees, but He now instructs those uninstructed in the law* with regard to the true source of defilement. Cleansing pre-supposes defilement. How then does man become unclean? Is it by the polluting influences of external things entering his physical organization? The Lord declared that the inner motives from which man’s words and actions spring are the cause of his uncleanness, none being able to bring a clean thing out of an unclean.

{*The Pharisees said, "This multitude which knoweth not the law are accursed" (John 7:49).} The soul was distinct from and superior to man’s body, and what went into a man was for the nourishment and maintenance of his body — the tenement of the soul and spirit. The things which mattered most were those which proceeded from a man. His schemes, his motives, his desires, his character, his moral colour — these made a man a centre of power, radiating influences either for good or for evil. In speaking to the multitude the Lord did not enter into any details of the controversy recently held with their teachers, but placed the truth of the subject before them in a simple, antithetical way after the manner of many of the Proverbs of Solomon so that by this means its wisdom and truth might be retained with comparative ease in their memories.

Moreover, the style of His speech was not after the manner of the scribes but with authority: "there is nothing from without the man which going into him can defile him." He did not, as in His discussion with the scribes, cite scripture to support His statement, but delivered the truth as one who taught of His own inner fulness: "We speak that we know, and bear witness of that we have seen" (John 3:2). The Master knew so well the source of corruption which was "in man" (John 2:25). He saw not as man sees, for He looked not at the outward appearance, but on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). His words, accordingly were words of truth, and, by reason of this testimony from Him, His hearers were left without excuse. As He said, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin, but now they have no cloke for sin" (John 15:22).

Further Instruction in the House A fuller explanation of this teaching was made to the apostles at their own request. They came to Jesus privately in the house, saying that the Pharisees were stumbled at His saying with regard to washing (Matthew 15:12). With all the technical knowledge of scripture which the religious leaders possessed they failed to comprehend the Lord’s utterance. This failure proved their incompetence and indeed their added guiltiness, since they were the appointed custodians and expositors of the oracles of God. The Lord pronounced their coming doom. Every plant, He said, not of His heavenly Father’s planting (cp.Isaiah 61:3) should be rooted up. The axe was laid at the root of the trees. The fig tree should wither away and become a dry tree. They had not profited by Moses, neither would they by the Messiah. They were to be let alone. They were blind leaders of the blind who said, We see, but their sin remained, and both teachers and taught would fall into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14;John 9:41.)

Peter said to the Lord, "Declare unto us the parable"* (Matthew 15:15; cp. Matthew 13:36). It was the same apostle who afterwards at Joppa and Antioch failed to put into practice this teaching of the Lord (Acts 10:14; Galatians 2:12). He was now the spokesman for the rest, all the disciples making inquiry through him, as Mark informs us (Mark 7:17). None of them had grasped the significance of the Lord’s saying, but they differed in spirit from the Pharisees, inasmuch as not knowing they yet desired to know. They came questioning therefore, believing the Lord would make the matter plain to them, and that they would then see a beauty and value in the Master’s teaching which at the moment was not clear to them. Like multitudes since they had much to unlearn before they could learn. Their habits of mind and trend of thought induced by their instructions from childhood in the law of Moses and in the rites and ceremonies of that law blocked the way for the entrance of the Lord’s words into their hearts, giving them the needed light and deliverance.

{*"Parable" is here used in the sense of a popular, sententious saying: compare Luke 4:28 : "Doubtless ye will say unto me this parable, Physician, heal thyself" (R.V.).}

We find the Lord said to the disciples who thus came to Him, seeking further instruction, "Are ye so without understanding also?" There seems some reproach in this question. The Pharisees had not understood; the populace did not understand (Isaiah 6:9;Mark 4:12); but how was it the Lord’s own company did not understand Him? He said to the people, Hearken and understand (Mark 7:14), but the apostles also failed to understand. And the Lord by His question to them implies that it was blameworthy on their part to confess such ignorance. Why was this? The explanation appears to be that in New Testament usage lack of understanding(asynetos)*may arise (1) from a lack of capacity to receive divine truths, and (2) from the non-employment of this capacity by those who possess it. Thus, in the first sense (1) this lack is true of the whole world, Jews and Gentiles alike, for "there is none that understandeth" (Romans 3:11). The same sense is also attributed to the word in the Lord’s parable of the Sower and the seeds: the wayside hearer receives the word of the kingdom, but understandeth it not, and the wicked one catches it away (Matthew 13:19). But the term is used in the second sense of those who were brought into the kingdom, but yet failed to receive its wisdom. For example, the stilling of the night-storm on the Sea of Galilee followed immediately upon the feeding of the five thousand, and vet the disciples failed to reflect upon this marvellous exhibition of the power and goodness of the Son of God in their midst. "They considered [understood] not the miracle of the loaves for their heart was hardened" (Mark 6:52).

{*This is the adjectival form, the noun not occurring in the New Testament. The sense of its usage seems to include moral defect, as well as mental inability.}

Now in the sequence of his narrative the Evangelist proceeds to show that, having failed to un derstand His works of mercy and power, the apostles had also failed to understand His words about purification. There were hindrances, such as infirmities of nature, carnal prepossessions and selfish interests; these clouded the spiritual vision. But the Patient Teacher was ready to repeat His words and to amplify His teaching, so that hearing yet again they might understand. The things of the Lord were hidden from the wise and prudent (the understanding ones of this world, Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21; 1 Corinthians 1:19), and revealed unto babes. Simplicity of heart was the character suited to the kingdom of God. The disciples though they had entered the kingdom were not maintaining the childlikeness of those to whom it was given to know the mysteries of that kingdom. Moreover, all knowledge would be partial until the Spirit came at Pentecost, when the truth would be declared in parables no longer. "These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs [parables]: the hour cometh when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but shall tell you plainly of the Father" (John 16:25; cp. also Matthew 15:15; Matthew 13:36).

God’s Kingdom not Eating and Drinking The Lord stated afresh to the inquiring disciples the law of that kingdom of God which He had come to establish. Its essence was spiritual not carnal. It was founded not on temporal matters such as food and drink, but upon spiritual truths which affected the inner life and relationship of man to God, in whose sight the state of the heart is of greater importance relatively than the state of the body. Apart from the question of artificial restrictions which the Lord had already condemned in their hearing, He would have them know that "whatsoever from without goeth into the man, it cannot defile him." A man would not become morally unclean by the consumption of certain meats, as the Jews held. From the bondage of this tradition, the truth which came by Jesus Christ set them free. This deliverance is an important doctrine for the followers of the Lord to maintain today as ever. The Son has made us free, and we are exhorted to "stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and not to be entangled again with the yoke of bondage" (Galatians 5:1). The ordinances to handle not, nor taste, nor touch, are after the precepts and commandments of men, from which we have been delivered by the Beat h of Christ (Colossians 2:20-23). So far as partaking of food is concerned the Christian is enjoined to discharge this as well as every other physical function in a manner becoming to one whose body is a possession of the Lord, a member of Christ, and a temple of the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 6:13; 1 Corinthians 6:15; 1 Corinthians 6:19). The glory of God should be our ultimate object in the maintenance of physical vitality; "whether ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). On the other hand, the absence of self-control and the abuses of the appetites are positive sins, and the glutton and the drunkard alike are the subjects of the stern reprobation of God (Deuteronomy 21:20;Proverbs 23:21;Php 3:16). W.J.H.

1917 309 The kingdom of God therefore concerns itself with matters above the range of eating and drinking. Its domain, as the apostle Paul says, is characterized by righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost (Romans 14:17). The moral and spiritual traits of the sons of the kingdom abide for ever, but foods of whatever nature perish in the using; "Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats, but God shall bring to nought both it and them" (1 Corinthians 6:13). The Fountain of Uncleanness

We have in the verses which follow (Mark 7:20-23), a second statement of our Lord introduced in the narrative by the words, "And he said," the preceding statement being prefaced by the slightly different phrase, "And he saith unto them" (Mark 7:18). The first deals with the truth that man does not contract spiritual defilement by means of his material food and drink. In the second saying the complementary truth is presented that spiritual defilement is contracted by the evil thoughts, words, and deeds which emanate from the heart within: "That which proceedeth out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, evil thoughts proceed . . . .

Therefore, whatever ethical teachers may say, the heart of man is the seat of his uncleanness. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). This was so from the beginning, for before the flood God declared of man that "every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5; Genesis 8:21). In consequence of his overt acts of wickedness men of that epoch became so perniciously corrupt that the direct judgment of God swept the antediluvian world away.

Always and everywhere scripture testifies to this inward taint. Man is said to be shapen in iniquity, conceived in sin, and estranged from the womb (Psalms 51:5; Psalms 58:5). It is in the heart that man erred from the ways of God (Hebrews 3:10), for the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9-10), being filled with all unrighteousness (Romans 1:29). "Ye are they," the Lord said to the Pharisees, "which justify yourselves in the sight of men; but God knoweth your hearts" (Luke 16:15).

Unquestionably therefore, man’s heart is regarded by God as the source of evil, and because a man’s sinfulness arises primarily from within himself he is held personally responsible to bear his own burden of guilt before the Judge of all the earth.

Mouth, Tongue and Lips

"Proceeding out of" is a simple but expressive term occurring three times in this short section (Mark 7:20-23), and is used in connection with both thoughts and acts. Elsewhere in the New Testament it is frequently used with reference to the spoken utterance, and in a good as well as in an evil sense. Thus, we learn that the scriptures form the spiritual food of man who lives by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4;Luke 4:4). The Lord’s solemn pronouncements of righteous judgments upon human sin are likened to a sharp sword proceeding out of His mouth (Revelation 1:16;Revelation 19:15; Revelation 19:21), But the term is also used with sinister associations, as for instance, when the believer is warned to be careful lest any corrupt communication should proceed out of his mouth (Ephesians 4:29). And in the lurid visions of the Apocalypse John saw the destructive powers of judgment proceeding out of the mouths of the appointed agents in the emblematic forms of fire and smoke and brimstone (Revelation 9:17-18;Revelation 11:5), John further saw unclean spirits proceeding out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, that trinity of evil power which may soon appear (Revelation 16:13). The tongue therefore is regarded in scripture as a mighty instrument which a man may wield for good or ill among his fellows. Speech is the great means for the publication of the thought which arises in the heart and of the dissemination of its purifying or defiling influences among others. The mouth is the medium whereby man may worship God or blaspheme His holy name. So James says, "Therewith bless we God, even the Father, and therewith curse we men who are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be" (James 3:9-10). Hence, he that ruleth his spirit is mightier than he who taketh a city, and "whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles" (Proverbs 16:32;Proverbs 21:23). But who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? The seriousness of this problem James teaches when he says, "The tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly member," and, further, "So is the tongue among our members that it defileth the whole body" (James 3:6; James 3:8). In the sense of this guilty contagiousness, Isaiah confessed that he was a man of unclean lips, and accordingly it was upon his mouth that the coal of cleansing was laid (Isaiah 6:7).

Clearly, it is in agreement with the whole tenor of the word of God, that in the matter of guilty uncleanness, the functions of the mouth in speaking are of greater moral importance than those for eating, for "meat will not commend us to God: neither if we eat [things offered to idols] are we the better: neither, if we eat not are we the worse" (1 Corinthians 8:8), but for "every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account in the day of judgment" (Matthew 12:36). The Issues of Life In reply to the questions put to Him in the house, the Lord declared to his disciples (1) what was the root, and (2) what were the fruits of evil in men. The root was the evil thought of the heart, and the fruits were the specific acts of wickednesses some of which He named. In the evil thought therefore the evil deed is contained in embryo. Jesus said to them, "From within out of the heart of men evil thoughts proceed. . . .;" then He enumerated a list of some of the vile deeds which spring from man’s inner motives, adding, "all these evil things proceed from within, and defile the man."

Evil thoughts. These are the inward reasonings and debates of man’s mind. Within himself he deliberates, he calculates, he plans his schemes of sinful indulgence or wilful rebellion. "Things come into his mind, and he devises an evil device" (Ezekiel 38:10; Micah 2:1-2). Thus, in describing the appalling moral degradation of the human race, the apostle traces it to this inward source: "knowing God they glorified him not as God, neither gave thanks; but became vain in their reasonings [thoughts] and their senseless heart was darkened" (Romans 1:21). Hidden within the heart, it is one of man’s strange delusions that his thoughts are thereby concealed from Omniscience, yet it is written, "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise that they are vain" (1 Corinthians 3:20; Ps. 94:51). The incarnate Son possessed and displayed this omniscience; indeed, according to the word of Simeon to Mary, one of the purposes of His mission was that "the thoughts of many hearts might be revealed" (Luke 2:35).

There are several recorded instances wherein our Lord showed an intimate acquaintance with the secret workings and motives of men’s minds — that is, their inward thoughts and lusts whereby they are drawn away and subdued (James 1:13). Jesus perceived those of:
(1) the disciples when He bade them beware of the leaven of the Pharisees (Matthew 16:7-8;Mark 8:16-17);
(2) the scribes when He forgave the sins of the palsied man (Mark 2:6-8;Luke 5:22);
(3) the scribes when He was in the synagogue where was a man with a withered hand (Luke 6:8);
(4) the disciples when they had been discussing who should be the greatest (Luke 9:45;Mark 9:33). The use of the word "thoughts" (dialogismoi) to express inward cogitations is illustrated in the following passages, in which the same Greek word occurs, though it is not always translated "thoughts." (1) Mary "cast in her mind" what manner of salutation that made by the angel was (Luke 1:29). (2) The people "mused" in their hearts whether John the Baptist was the Messiah or not (Luke 3:15). (3) Jesus said to the disciples when He appeared in their midst, Why do thoughts arise in your hearts? (Luke 24:38). (4) When the chief priests asked Jesus concerning the baptism of John, they "reasoned" with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven: he will say unto us, Why then did ye not believe on him? But if ye shall say, Of men; we fear the people, for all hold Jesus as a prophet (Matthew 21:25-26). (5) The rich man whose crops were plentiful elaborated his plans for future ease after he had "thought within himself" (Luke 12:17). (6) The wicked husbandmen, when they saw the heir of the vineyard, "reasoned" among themselves, saying, This is the heir: let us kill him that the inheritance may be ours (Luke 20:14). (7) Caiaphas advised the council to "consider" how expedient it was that one man should die for the people (John 11:50). In these instances the inward tendencies of the thoughts of men’s hearts are plainly indicated. They are opposed to God, and also to His Son. In this latter respect the Messianic prophecies were fulfilled which said, "All their thoughts are against me for evil"; "their thoughts are thoughts of evil"; "all their imaginations are against me" (Psalms 56:5;Isaiah 59:7;Lamentations 3:61).

Evil deeds. There now follows after the mention of "evil thoughts" a brief catalogue of sins, springing out of the evil heart of man, enumerated by the Lord to His disciples on this occasion. Comparing the first two Gospels, seven evils are named by Matthew (Matthew 15:19) and twelve by Mark. The agreements and differences in the two lists are as follows:-
(1) Six are mentioned by both Evangelists, viz., adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, wickednesses, blasphemy*.

{*Matthew records this sin in the plural, viz.: "blasphemies," translated "railings" in the R.V.}

(2) One by Matthew only, viz., false witness.
(3) Six by Mark only, viz., covetousness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, pride, foolishness.

(1) The six sins recorded by both Matthew and Mark are the grosser forms of man’s evil doings, and, with the exception of blasphemy, which is Godward as well as manward, they relate to the ways in which man does hurt to his neighbour.* In the variety of action here specified man shows his habitual breach of the second table of the law, the provisions of which are mainly manward (Matthew 22:39; Mark 12:31). Love is the fulfilling of the law; it thinketh no evil, and no harm. Love of one’s neighbour therefore secures the observance of the several prohibitions against trespassing upon his rights. The apostle Paul sums up obedience to these particular commandments in this one act. He writes thus to the church at Rome: "For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment it is summed up in this word, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Romans 13:9). This is the "royal law," which if we fulfil, we shall do well (James 2:8).

{*These six sins are in the plural form, the other seven being in the singular. For the case of blasphemy" see previous note.} This commandment is "good" (Romans 7:12), but the will of man is opposed to obeying it. The mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be (Romans 8:7). The inward impulse is to infringe its precepts, and this unruly disposition results in a succession of overt acts of a gravely criminal nature, such as are here specified for condemnation. This disobedient nature is characteristic of all the sons of Adam, who in consequence are in absolute contrast with God’s Righteous One of whom it was prophetically written, "The law of his God is in his heart: none of his steps shall slide" (Psalms 37:31).

(2) False witness. — This form of sin is named by Matthew only, and while it is at all times prevalent among all men, it is specially characteristic of the Jews as a nation. A man or a nation may become false as to witness (1) for God, or (2) in the mutual responsibilities among men. Thus (1) Israel was as a nation selected to become the depositary of the truth of Jehovah’s Godhead and of Jehovah’s law, and to testify to these great truths among other nations who were idolaters. "Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, that I am God" (Isaiah 43:10; Isaiah 43:12; Isaiah 44:8). In this trust however, they notoriously proved themselves false witnesses, for they openly worshipped idols in imitation of neighbouring nations, and dishonoured the law. In the points of Israel’s failure as a witness for the truth, because of their evil heart of unbelief, their Messiah was perfect throughout; and when the righteous government of an evil world is to be undertaken, He is introduced for the purpose, and one of His titles which express His competency is that of the Faithful and True Witness (Revelation 1:5; Revelation 3:14).

Untrue testimony by one man against another (2) is also pernicious. The law of Sinai expressly forbade the Israelite to bear false witness against his neighbour (Exodus 20:16), and it was written that a false witness should not go unpunished (Proverbs 19:5; Proverbs 19:9), but should perish (Proverbs 21:28). He was a menace to the nation, and is figuratively described as "a maul and a sword and a sharp arrow" (Proverbs 25:18), for lying testimony bore down its victim by sheer force, and cut asunder the very vitals, and wounded even from afar.

Moreover, as a nation, Israel was specially guilty of false witness against the Messiah. This sin was foreshadowed by the Spirit of Christ in the prophets: "False witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty" "they laid to my charge things that I knew not" (Psalms 27:12;Psalms 35:11). And so it came about when in the fulness of time the Anointed One presented Himself to the chosen people, not the rabble, but the religious chiefs of the Jews sought to find false witness against Jesus to put Him to death, themselves breaking in this respect the law they were set to administer (Exodus 23:1); as we read, "Now the chief priests and the whole council sought false witness against Jesus that they might put him to death: and they found it not, though many false witnesses came. But afterwards came two and said, This man said, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to build it in three days" (Matthew 26:59-61;Mark 14:56). On this false evidence, the Lord was condemned to death by the Sanhedrin. Taken next to Pilate, the chief priests themselves bore equally lying witness against Jesus before the Roman governor in order to secure His crucifixion (Luke 23:2). This sin against judicial equity lies even now upon the nation, and upon them will yet come the just retribution of God. Under the law it was enacted that if a man "be a false witness and hath testified falsely against his brother, then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to do unto his brother" (Deuteronomy 19:15-19). And if false witness against a man’s neighbour was regarded with such gravity, of how much greater guilt was it to deny the Holy and the Just One? As Jesus was betrayed into the hands of the Gentiles, so Israel is trodden down of the nations until their times be fulfilled.

(3) Sins named by Mark only. These six offences covetousness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, pride, foolishness are intimately associated with the inward workings of man’s heart. If the others previously named may be described as the lusts of the flesh, these are the desires of the mind (Ephesians 2:3); if they illustrated the filthiness of the flesh, these show the filthiness of the spirit (2 Corinthians 7:1). These inward propensities are the dead bones, the uncleanness of the hypocrisy and iniquity within the whited sepulchres, of which the Lord spoke in another place (Matthew 23:27-28).

Covetousness. — This is the selfish greed within a man’s heart which desires to appropriate other things than those God has given him and are therefore his legitimate possession. The Gentiles fell into this snare no less than the Jews (Romans 1:29). The covetous man is called an idolater (Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5), for he sets up another god within himself whom he serves with his whole heart. Hence the apostle John exhorted the followers of Christ, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols" (1 John 5:21)

Deceit. — This word is often translated "guile" in the New Testament, and is expressive of cunning, of craftiness, of plotting to deceive, while it is usually associated with a person’s words. There was no guile found in the mouth of Christ (1 Peter 2:22), nor will guile be in the mouth of the future Jewish remnant who follow the Lamb (Revelation 14:5), of whom Nathanael was a figure (John 1:47). But it was by guile that the Jewish council sought to arrest Jesus and put Him to death (Matthew 26:4; Mark 14:1). Elymas the sorcerer was full of it, for it was part of his nefarious stock-in-trade (Acts 13:10). While it is declared of Jew and Gentile alike that "with their tongues they have used deceit [guile]" (Romans 3:13), the apostle Peter quotes the Psalmist who says, "He that would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile" (Psalms 34:13; 1 Peter 3:10).

Lasciviousness.The indulgence of impure subjects in the imagination promotes the performance of corresponding acts of impurity. An evil eve.The eye is the principal organ whereby impressions from without are received by us. And an "evil eye" would seem to be one habituated to seek out and dwell upon unworthy and noxious objects. The epithet, "evil" is poneros (malignant), and not merely kakos (defiled, corrupt). The same term is applied to Satan as the principal agent in the infliction of harm upon man. He is called the Evil one (Matthew 6:13;Matthew 13:19; 1 John 2:13-14). The eye, therefore, is a main thoroughfare to and from the heart. Through the eye sinful lusts are awakened and put into exercise, so that as the Lord taught on another occasion, "If thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness" (Matthew 6:23). In the Scriptures, the evil eye is frequently regarded as a close companion of covetousness and selfishness and envious jealousy. The sufferings of others are disregarded by the evil eye if personal gain is thereby secured. Jehovah warned the people of Israel against having an evil eye towards a poor brother in need and withholding due succour from him (Deuteronomy 15:7-9;Deuteronomy 28:54-55). Men were counselled to avoid stinginess of spirit and to cultivate the bountiful eye which gives liberally to the needy (Proverbs 22:9). The eye is never satisfied with riches, and the man, pasting to be rich and having an evil eye, is warned that poverty shall come upon him (Proverbs 28:22;Ecclesiastes 4:8).

King Saul is a personal example, for he was filled with jealous hatred against David because the daughters of Israel praised the slayer of Goliath more than they praised himself, and he "eyed David from that day forward (1 Samuel 18:9). A similar spirit of envy against others who appear to have been better favoured than themselves was displayed by the labourers who murmured against their fellow-workers who having been hired only at the eleventh hour received as much as those who entered the vineyard at the beginning of the day. "Is thine eye evil," said the householder to one of the grumblers, "because I am good?" (Matthew 20:15).

Another and somewhat different example of the evil use of the eye is recorded in the history of the crucifixion of our Lord. This is an instance, not so much of envy and jealousy, as of a morbid interest, if not a pleasurable satisfaction in viewing the sufferings of another. We read that while the rulers derided and the soldiers mocked the Saviour on the cross, the "people stood beholding" (Luke 23:35). To the multitude the occasion was as a public show. They had come to Golgotha for a holiday spectacle.

Many eyes saw the Holy Sufferer on the cross, as many will see Him on the clouds of glory. By-and-by they will see Him with guilty fear and trembling, as of old they beheld Him in callous indifference. Then their vulgar gaze gave an added pain to the sensitive spirit of the Christ, as we learn from the plaint of the prophetic Spirit of the Messiah recorded in the Psalm: "All they that see me laugh me to scorn"; "They look and stare upon me" (Psalms 22:7).

Pride.There are several words so translated in the Greek Testament. The one used here(hyperephania)conveys the sense of a spirit of self-exaltation in a man coupled with the disparagement of others. The Pharisees who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others (Luke 18:9) are flagrant examples, but the Gentiles are not free from guilt in this respect any more than the Jews (Romans 1:30). This arrogance displays itself in boastful words and vain-glorious deeds, but its origin is within the heart, as is shown by that sentence from the Magnificat: "He scattered the proud in the imagination of their heart" (Luke 1:51). This particular form of haughtiness is obnoxious to God and amenable to His summary judgment, for both James and Peter write that "God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble" (James 4:6;1 Peter 5:5). The root idea of the word is that of lifting up oneself to show oneself off above one’s fellows, a personal puffing up which brings into the condemnation of the devil (1 Timothy 3:6). The full development of this sin of unmitigated arrogance in man was not seen in the Pharisee, but will be fully displayed in the coming "man of sin," the son of perdition, who "opposeth and exalteth himself" exceedingly against everyone that is called god, or object of veneration: so that he sitteth down in the temple Of God, showing himself that he is God (2 Thessalonians 2:4). That great personage having exalted himself to heaven in the folly of pride, will be brought down to hell in swift abasement by the epiphany of the coming in glory of Him who humbled Himself to death, even the death of the cross (2 Thessalonians 2:8).

Foolishness. — Folly or lack of sense closes the catalogue here given of the foul emanations of man’s evil heart. It does not follow, as some have thought, from its position on the list that foolishness is the most serious sin of all, as if the list was arranged to express degrees of gravity. Neither, on the other hand, is foolishness negligible in importance, so that it maybe passed over without concern.

Foolishness seems to be that gross form of stupidity which excludes God from the regulation of the life. In the words of the Psalmist, "The fool hath said in his heart, No God" (Psalms 14:1). Though the natural heart is the seat of uncontrollable passions which impel the whole man into courses of vile action, the senseless refuse that divine help and guidance which alone can enable them to live lives of purity and obedience. Can there be greater folly than this? Foolishness is placed last in the list, says one writer, because it renders all the others incurable. This foolishness arising from man’s own nature is defiled and defiling, in contrast with that wisdom that comes down from above and is "first pure" (James 3:17). Counsel and instruction are to be had of God for the seeking, but the natural man wilfully disregards them. This is his foolishness. He allows himself to be carried away by the violence of his sinful desires, and ignores the mercy and grace of God which would lift him above himself into the plane of light, life and holiness. Such is his foolishness.

Pure in Heart

"All these things proceed from within and defile the man," were the Lord’s concluding words to the disciples here. How futile therefore was it for the Pharisees to contend for the ceremonial washing of the hands and the person, forgetful of that inward defilement which is moral and from the heart, and cannot be cleansed by the washing of water. The Lord’s teaching with regard to the kingdom of the heavens was opposed to this, for He said, "Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). And the Jews should have known how this essential purification of heart could be effected. Ezekiel had declared that the cleansing of the nation was Jehovah’s work and promise: "And I will sprinkle clean water upon you and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness and from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you" (Ezekiel 36:25-26). The water is a figure of the word of God, as the Lord Himself shows, referring to the effect of His own word upon the disciples who received it by faith. He said, "Already ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you"John 15:3). But the ritualistic practices of the Pharisees in this respect were vain and delusive as the Lord taught, yet in spite of that teaching, and heedless of His warning, some in the early church fell into the snare of relying upon human ordinances for purification. Against such Titus was warned: "Not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn away from the truth. To the pure all things are pure; but to them that are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience is defiled" (Titus 1:14-15). According to the "proverb of the ancients," quoted by David to Saul, "Out of the wicked cometh forth wickedness" (1 Samuel 24:13).

Religious lustrations are highly esteemed among men, but not seldom they are an abomination to God in their vanity and hypocrisy. James writes "Pure religion and undefiled before God and our Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction and to keep himself unspotted from the world" (James 1:27).