Luke 11:40

40 You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?

Luke 11:40 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
English Standard Version (ESV)
40 You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also?
New Living Translation (NLT)
40 Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside?
The Message Bible (MSG)
40 Stupid Pharisees! Didn't the One who made the outside also make the inside?
American Standard Version (ASV)
40 Ye foolish ones, did not he that made the outside make the inside also?
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
40 You fools! Didn't the one who made the outside make the inside too?
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
40 Fools! Didn't He who made the outside make the inside too?
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
40 You foolish people! Didn't the one who made the outside make the inside also?

Luke 11:40 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 11:40

Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without,
&c.] That is, made clean that which is without, or the outside of the cup and platter;

make that which is within also?
does not he make the inside clean likewise? whoever washes a cup or platter, but washes and makes clean the inside, as well as the outside? and so ye who are so very careful to have your cups and platters clean, should be as careful what you put in them, that they are clean also; not only that they are clean according to the law, in a ceremonial sense, but in a moral sense, that they are honestly and lawfully got. The word, (poiew) , rendered "made" and "make", answers to the Hebrew word (hve) , which sometimes signifies to beautify and adorn, and to cleanse, and remove away filth, as by paring nails, and washing the feet; so in ( Deuteronomy 21:12 ) it is said of a captive woman that a man takes into his house for his wife, among other things, (htvew) , "she shall make her nails"; that is, "pare" them, as we render it, and remove the filth from them. Again, in ( 2 Samuel 19:24 ) it is said of Mephibosheth, that from the day king David departed, he had not, (hve) , "made his feet"; that is, as the Targum renders it, (Pjv al) , "he had not washed his feet"; and so other Jewish interpreters understand it, either of his having not washed his feet, much less his whole body F23, or of not having pared his nails {x}; and so the Vulgate Latin renders it, that he came to meet the king "with unwashen feet"; which may serve to illustrate and confirm the sense before given: though interpreters generally understand this of God, as the maker of the soul, as well as of the body; and therefore the purity of the former should be regarded, as well as that of the latter.


FOOTNOTES:

F23 R. David Kimchi and Rabbenu Isaiah in loc. Vid Jarchi in ib.
F24 R. Levi ben Gersom in ib.

Luke 11:40 In-Context

38 But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal.
39 Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.
40 You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?
41 But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.
42 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Luke 12:20; 1 Corinthians 15:36
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