“At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” (Matthew 12:1–2 (ESV)
We return to our study from the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew 12 continues the theme, begun in chapters 10-11, concerning the Mission of Jesus Christ the King of the Jews. This follows Matthew’s earlier treatment of the Advent of Jesus Christ the King of the Jews (1:1-4:25) and the Authority of Jesus Christ the King of the Jews (5:1-9:38).
Matthew 12 chronicles Jesus’ mission as Lord over the Sabbath (12:1-13), facing opposition from religious leaders (12:14-45), and defining eternal life by spiritual, not physical, ancestry (12:46-50). Today, we begin studying Jesus’ Lordship of the Sabbath.
The word “sabbath” (σάββατον; sabbaton) is the day or rest and worship at the end of the seven-day week cycle. The Sabbath lasts from Friday evening until Saturday evening.
It was during this period of rest and worship that Jesus and His disciples traveled through some cultivated grain fields on the Sabbath. This is Matthew’s first mention of the Sabbath. “Though it is the behavior of the disciples which will come under scrutiny, it is Jesus who heads into the grain fields; and he will take responsibility for the subsequent action of the disciples,” explains commentator John Nolland.
As they traveled through the fields, Jesus’ hungry disciples began to pluck (τίλλω; tillo) or pull out the heads grain to eat. The tone of the text suggests that the disciples are seriously hungry, and not just mischievous (cf. 15:32; 21:18). Both Matthew and Luke explicitly make the eating of the grain would first have been separated from the husks by rubbing. Therefore, the suggestion of labor on the Sabbath.
When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Jesus, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” Apparently, the adversarial religious leaders were following Jesus and observing what He and His disciples did and said. This was probably so they could accuse Him and His followers of sin. For the Pharisees, the disciples’ action was a Sabbath violation.
“Matthew does not say how the Pharisees came to be in that particular grain field, but clearly they were in a position to observe what was done. They complain to Jesus, not the disciples, though it is not said that he was joining in the plucking and eating. But Jesus was the Master; it must be accepted that the disciples were acting with their Master’s approval. In any case it was Jesus who was the concern of the Pharisees. And in this instance, they were not acting on the basis of reliable reports; they were there and saw it for themselves. They were acting on sure knowledge. They said that what the disciples were doing was not lawful to do on a Sabbath,” states biblical scholar Leon Morris.
“Actually, no law prohibited the plucking of grain in order to eat on the Sabbath,” explains Dr. John MacArthur. “Gleaning handfuls of grain from a neighbor’s field to satisfy one’s hunger was explicitly permitted (Deut. 23:25). What was prohibited was labor for the sake of profit. Thus, a farmer could not harvest for profit on the Sabbath, but an individual could glean enough grain to eat.”
How does Jesus respond to the Pharisees accusation of violating the Law of God? How does this apply to believers in Christ today and our actions on the Lord’s Day of worship?
Soli deo Gloria!
His Word Today 