Jesus confronted the hypocrisy of the religious leaders and warned them that their outward appearances meant nothing if their hearts remained corrupt. Jesus likened them to polished cups whose insides were filthy, and to whitewashed tombs that contained nothing but death. God doesn’t care about outward manifestations of our religion. He cares about what is in our hearts and that we live out our faith truthfully. They were in the tradition of their ancestors who persecuted and killed God’s prophets, from the righteous Abel of Genesis to Zechariah son of Berekiah. God hates hypocrisy and judges it surely and severely.

Jesus longed to gather his people to himself, just as a hen gathers her own chicks to herself. Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem expresses a deep, motherly-type love for God’s people. But they were unwilling to be gathered. They refused to come back to God and be saved. Jesus’ lament reveals both a deep compassion for his people and tragedy of unrepentance. But one day, they would see him again and declare “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
Application: Father, give me a heart that listens to your word and lives according to your word. Gather your people to you, Lord!
One Word: Be gathered into Jesus’ waiting arms