This may seem a complicated passage, but it has a straightforward message. Do not follow somebody who does not know where they are going. Jesus accused the Pharisees, who were zealous religious leaders, of being 'blind guides'. He also called them 'blind fools' because they did not understand how to handle truth themselves … and so could not teach truth to others. The issue in question was about swearing. Because so many people tell lies, swearing has become a way of reassuring people that what is said is true.

Dirty eating utensils like cups and bowls are a health hazard. The Pharisees were very particular to wash them in a ceremonial way which enabled everybody to see that the outside was clean. It was like that with the Pharisees themselves, and so Jesus used their religious habits as a parable. He knew the inside of their hearts, and He saw through their holy rituals to the inner corruption that motivated their lives.

'Distance lends enchantment to the view' is an English saying - which means that the further away something is, the better it looks. The defects are hidden, and faint-sight allows the mind to create something beautiful out of ugliness. Jesus accused the Scribes and Pharisees of doing that with the tombs of martyred prophets.

The seven 'woes' of this chapter are not comfortable to read (Matthew 23:1-36). They speak of judgement which will come to religious people who exploit the things of God for their own benefit (Matthew 23:32-33). But Jesus did not make these hard statements because He hated the Pharisees. We know that because, after exposing their hypocrisy, He released a flood of compassion for them … so that His disciples hear. He wanted the trainee apostles to understand His deep love for the rebellious people who had systematically refused to submit to God.