But in vain do they worship me
In the Hebrew text it is, "their fear towards me": which is
rightly expressed here by "worship"; for the fear of God often
intends the whole worship of God, both external and internal:
here it only signifies external worship, which these men only
attended to. They prayed in the synagogues, read, and, in their
way, expounded the books of Moses, and the prophets, to the
people, diligently observed the rituals of the ceremonial law,
brought their offerings and sacrifices to the temple, and
neglected nothing appertaining to the outward service of it; and
yet it was all "in vain", and to no purpose; since the heart was
wanting, no grace there, they acted from wrong principles, and
with wrong views; their worship was merely outward, formal, and
customary; and besides, they added doctrines and traditions of
their own inventing and devising. The phrase, "in vain", is not
in the text in Isaiah: some have thought that it was not
originally in Matthew, but inserted by some other hand, to make
the sense more complete. Grotius thinks there was a various
reading, which is followed by the Septuagint, and the evangelist;
and that instead of (yhtw)
, "and is", it was (whtw)
, the same with (whtl) ,
"in vain": but there is no need to suppose either of these:
Christ, who made this citation, either added it himself for the
clearer illustration of the passage, and as being entirely
agreeable to the sense of it, and which it required, for the true
understanding of it; or he might have in his view another passage
of the same prophet, speaking of the same people, and upon the
same subject, ( Isaiah 1:11 Isaiah 1:13 ) and from
thence take the phrase, and, for explanation sake, join it to the
passage here. It follows,
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men;
that is, teaching the people to observe the traditions of the
elders, the decrees and determinations of the doctors, as if they
were doctrines delivered by God himself; or, instead of the
doctrines contained in the Bible, which lay neglected by them,
they obtruded on them the orders, and injunctions of men. In the
text in Isaiah, are only these words, "taught by the precept of
men": and which relate to their fear and worship of God; and
which is here interpreted of their teachers teaching them it, and
that explained of the commandments of men; as if, instead of
(hdmlm) , "taught", it had
been read, (Mydmlm) ,
"teaching". The Jews have no reason to quarrel with this
construction and sense, since their Targum paraphrases it thus;
"and their fear before me is, (Nyplm Nyrbg tdyqptk) , according to the commandment of
men that teach": and a noted commentator F3 of
their's has this remark on the text, "their fear towards me is"
not with a perfect heart, but "by the commandment (Mtwa Mydmlmh Myvnah) , of the men
that teach them".