And the Lord said unto him,
Now do you Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of extortion and wickedness.
All Commentaries on Luke 11:39 Go To Luke 11
Cyril of Alexandria
AD 444
What did the Savior say? He appropriately rebuked them, saying, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but what is in you is full of looting and wickedness.” It would have been easy for the Lord to use other words with the view of instructing the foolish Pharisee, but he has found an opportunity. He connects his teaching with what was before their eyes. Since it was the time for eating and sitting at the table, he takes as a plain comparison the cup and the dish. He shows that those who sincerely serve God must be pure and clean, not only from bodily impurity but from what is hidden within in the mind. Utensils that serve the table must be cleansed from those impurities that are on the outside as well from those that are within. He says that he who made that which is on the outside also made that which is on the inside. This means that he who created the body also made the soul. Since they are both the works of one virtueloving God, their purification must be uniform. Commentary on Luke, Homily
