The Leaven of the Pharisees

Much of the four gospels consist of Jesus attempting to counter the teachings of the Pharisees—the governing council of Jews whose traditions had in large part replaced God’s commandments. Several of Jesus’ parables targeted the Pharisees, such as the parable of the leaven:

Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees....Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. (Matthew 16:6,12.)

Leaven is a foreign substance that, when added to a much more plentiful substrate, changes the properties of the substrate far beyond what the miniscule quantity of foreign impurity would suggest. Had Jesus been preaching in our day, he probably would have used the analogy of a virus, which takes over the host cell and converts it to its own purposes. Such was Jesus’ view of the doctrine of the Pharisees, which taught wickedness under the pretense of the revelations of God to Moses. The scriptures teach plainly that men’s words are not to be mingled into scripture:

Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you. (Deuteronomy 4:2.)

What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it. (Deuteronomy 12:32.)

Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. (Proverbs 30:6.)

The role of the Pharisees transitioned over time. At first, the Pharisees’ role was to interpret the scripture given to Moses. To back this claim, they referenced an unbroken chain of authorized appointments to office from Moses’ day to present. By degrees, the Rabbis’ focus shifted from preserving the original meaning of Moses to adding to God’s commandments by creating new traditions.¹ In other words, while the early Rabbis assumed the role of interpreting Moses, the latter Rabbis assumed the far greater role of innovating Moses. While the former had at least the pretense of maintaining the word of God to Moses, the latter were free to create ad-hoc commandments detached from any literal connection to God’s word to Moses.² By the advent of the Savior’s mortal ministry, the Pharisees’ modifications had poisoned the religion of the Jews to such a degree that Jesus was identified as an apostate for preaching the law of Moses in its original form. The people rejected Jesus because they judged him against their apostate religion—the result of hundreds of years of innovative nonrevelatory tradition—which they mistakenly understood to be the law of Moses.

Jesus came to fulfill the law of Moses, and he kept it through deliberate and careful effort despite the Pharisees’ constant attempts to get him to break it.³ On the other hand, he went out of his way to break the traditions of the elders, which added to, removed from, or replaced the commandment of God. To the people, who were blind to the difference between God's command and man's tradition, he overtly broke the law. He healed on the Sabbath,⁴ did not wash his hands before eating,⁵ ate with sinners,⁶ and plucked and ate wheat on the Sabbath.⁷

The Savior is our best example of why we need to distinguish between God's word and man's word. He clearly explained the dangers of accepting man’s commandments as if they were God’s commandments.

One danger of accepting men’s commandments as God’s commandments is that the former shift the focus from one’s internal relationship with and attitude towards God and others to external, measurable practices. These practices are much like a hamster wheel, absorbing an infinite quantity of effort without bringing about any difference in the position of the person with God. They are vain practices that conflate effort with progress. Modern Mormons chronically fall into the same mistake, with endless checklists and “key indicators” that can be executed with perfection without ever bringing the performer closer to Christ. Consider, for example, monthly home and visiting teaching. Managerial oversight requires externally measured statistics, which fail to capture what is actually of importance: the immeasurable relationship of the person being ministered to with Christ.

The Pharisees overemphasized the outward commandments and significantly added to them with invented traditions. Their focus on tithing, fasting, and ritualistic rules distracted them from the weightier commandments that mattered much more: judgment, mercy, and faith:

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. (Matthew 23:23-24.)

Modern Mormons have replaced the immeasurable process of reentering the presence of God with many measurable commandments of men, such as the Word of Wisdom, whose modern interpretation would be completely unrecognizable to a contemporary of Joseph Smith (see “Church History” for more information).

Like the Pharisees, Modern Mormons overemphasize observance of outward commandments like tithing and temple worship while forgetting their purpose. They focus on the paying of tithing, not the spending of it. They focus on “doing” ordinances instead of rising up to the invitations they provide. They focus on providing these ordinances for the dead without being able to describe what benefit they themselves have received from them. They operate like cogs in a machine, endlessly writing checks and sitting through sessions without ever coming any closer to God. These distractions matter. There is no such thing as a neutral act. If something does not bring us closer to God, it occupies precious time that could be spent in that pursuit, and thus takes us further away from him. Joseph said, “While our hearts are filled with evil, and we are studying evil, there is no room in our hearts for good, or for studying good.” (Joseph Smith, TPJS 217.)

The over focus on the external not only crowds out God’s commandments, but also provides a false standard for evaluating God’s approval. Outward appearances inflate the Pharisee’s perception of his true standing with God,⁸ providing ample opportunity for misjudging God’s true messengers. Jesus and his disciples were rejected by the Pharisees in part because they drank too much, fasted too little, omitted hand washing, and failed to live the adulterated Sabbath rules. Yet, in their perceived iniquity, they were actually aligned with God while their judges were not.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. (Matthew 23:25-28.)

Would modern Mormons do any better? What if a preacher came drinking alcohol, not paying a “full tithe,” not wearing a white shirt, outside of the hierarchy, not being clean shaven, etc.? Would a modern Mormon believe that this person could possibly be a messenger of God? In much the same way as the Pharisees were exacting in their obedience to outward commandments and traditions, but were unbridled in their inward disobedience to God's commandments, modern Mormons bristle at someone who breaks the traditional mold and will deny them a temple recommend for breaking the commandments of men, but will allow those who are internally addicted to lust, or who are greedy, or judgmental, against which there are no temple recommend questions. We would do well to remember Jesus’ comparison of the Pharisee and Publican. The former checked all the outward boxes. He said he was more righteous than others, that he fasted twice a week and was a full tithe payer.⁸ Yet, it was the humble Publican, a self-described sinner, that Jesus said was the worthier of the two. Ironically, the temple recommend interview not only focuses on outward performances, but also requires one to certify their own worthiness. It is hard to imagine a process that could more diametrically oppose Jesus’ teachings.

A real and present danger of measuring inward righteousness by outward practice of tradition is that it provides incentive to game the system by devoting one’s attention to self-righteousness. Instead of calling individuals to private repentance, leaders are tempted to draw attention to the acts in which they can demonstrate their own progress. As the Pharisees,

...all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments. (Matthew 23:5.)

Phylacteries—boxes worn containing written copies of scripture—and the borders of garments were both tangible symbols prescribed by Moses during prayer. Making broad phylacteries and enlarging the borders of their garments describes a visible over-emphasis of prescribed ritual—counterfeit righteousness. Of course, such self-aggrandizement doesn’t pay much of a dividend from heaven, as God knows their hearts.

And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. (Luke 16:15.)

At the end of the day, it doesn't matter at all how many baptisms we've conducted, how much tithing we are bringing in, how many temples we've built, or how many ordinances we've performed. As a church or as individuals, the only metric that matters is whether we have obtained Zion and been redeemed from the fall and brought into God’s presence.

Jesus taught that the traditions of the elders not only distract men from seeking after and following God’s commandments, but also invariably come to replace and contradict God’s commandments. For instance, when the Pharisees challenged Jesus for not submitting to the man-made commandment of washing his hands, “he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” (Matthew 15:3.) He went on to give an example of the tradition of Corban, which was used by the Pharisees as an excuse to break the commandment of taking care of one’s parents by claiming they would instead donate the money to the church.⁹ Pharisees invariably claim the authority to make such changes. However, in the absence of revelation, no man can contradict God.¹⁰

Jesus taught that any who followed the Pharisees were doomed to their same fate:

For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:20.)

Because their teachings led away from God (despite being understood to be the true form of worship), he taught that the Pharisees:

shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in...Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. (Matthew 23:13,15.)

It is difficult for us to imagine how it could be that the teachings of our leaders could actually make us worse off than having never heard them. It is difficult for us to imagine God being angry with our leaders that are so revered by men. Although most of us would be quick to quip that “we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ...” (2 Nephi 25:26) the question is not one of what we say but rather of what we do. The difference between our words and our intentions can often be found in our actions (or the lack thereof). James taught clearly that omission of action is sin: “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” (James 4:17.)

Joseph Smith knew the importance of living one's professed beliefs. He was very familiar with those contemporaries and ancients who assumed the pretense of religion. In his normal illustrative manner, he taught I love that man better who swears a stream as long as my arm, yet deals justice to his neighbors and mercifully deals his substance to the poor, than the smooth-faced hypocrite. (Joseph Smith, DHC, 5:401).

Often, measurable outward practices are placed at a higher level of importance than internal charity.¹¹

Without works, no man can say that he has faith. Talking of Christ, rejoicing in Christ, preaching of Christ, etc. is all of no worth unless we are acting in Christ to bring to pass those things we are talking about. When it comes to the principles of the gospel, talking the talk without walking the walk is as contemptible to God as it is common to man. In James 1 we read:

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. (James 1:22-24.)

Joseph frequently taught this principle by example. For instance, one day:

...a man came up and said that a poor brother who lived out some distance from town had had his house burned down the night before. Nearly all of the men said they felt sorry for the man. Joseph put his hand in his pocket, took out five dollars and said, ‘I feel sorry for this brother to the amount of five dollars; how much do you all feel sorry?’ (Andrew J. Workman, in “Recollections of the Prophet Joseph Smith,” Juvenile Instructor, Oct. 15, 1892, p. 641.)

God described the priests in Ezekiel’s time as having

...taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof. Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain. (Ezekiel 22:25-27.)

Yet, were they widely recognized as wicked? Did they think of themselves as wicked? Or did they think they were honestly serving God in the way he had told them to, because they were fooled by the false traditions of their fathers? Recall that Jesus said that the men who killed him and his disciples thought they were doing God a service.¹² Ezekiel's priests would probably say that they were teaching the law of tithing, and that it was a blessing for the widows to choose to pay their tithing as taught by the priests, even if it meant they would starve, because the Lord would bless them for it.¹³ And yet, their willful ignorance of the truth does not excuse them from being abominable in God's eyes.

Isaiah 58 contains a lament toward the house of Israel because they practiced the forms of religion yet their hearts were far from God.

Proclaim it aloud without restraint; raise your voice like a trumpet! Declare to my people their transgressions, to the house of Jacob its sins. Yet they importune me daily, eager to learn my ways, like a nation practicing righteousness and not forsaking the precepts of its God. They inquire of me concerning correct ordinances, desiring to draw nearer to God: (Isaiah 58:1-2.)

Despite being sinful in God's eyes, the Israelites still practiced religion as if they were righteous and as if they were hearkening to the precepts of God. Paul described this blindness as having:

...a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. (Romans 10:2-3.)

Such deception is only possible when the people fully believe that their vain forms of worship are in fact from God. They are daily praying to him, eager to learn his ways, yet they are abominable to him. Why? Because they ignore the commandments he gave through his prophet, and instead follow the traditions given of men that have replaced revealed religion. Their vain religion is of no effect, because you cannot receive blessings for following false commandments.

God’s rejection of those who practice abominations despite being very religious and ignorant of what they do is common throughout scripture. Amos criticizes the pious hypocrisy of the people, who worship but seemingly unknowingly are doing it wrong:

Come to Beth-el, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years: And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord God. (Amos 4:4-5.)

These people were making sacrifices daily and paying tithing at regular intervals, yet they were abominable before God because they were practicing their religion in ways that he had not appointed.¹⁴ It is not enough for men to simply keep commandments. They must be God’s commandments.

Isaiah focuses on the Israelites false practice of fasting. The apostate Israelites fasted regularly, yet because the revealed reasons for the fast (caring for the poor) had been forgotten and replaced by a man-made focus on the practice itself, it ceased to bring about the promised blessing of answer to prayer. Thus, the Israelites complained, “Why, when we fast, do you not notice? We afflict our bodies and you remain indifferent!” (Isaiah 58:3.) God spends the balance of the chapter reteaching them that fasting is not about the affliction of being without food and water, but about teaching the faster to be more merciful towards his fellows, “to share your food with the hungry, to bring home the wretchedly poor, and when you see men underclad to clothe them, and not to neglect your own kin?” (Isaiah 58:7.) Only by living the commandment as originally revealed can the participant receive the promised blessing: “Then, should you call, Jehovah will respond; should you cry, he will say, I am here.” (Isaiah 58:9.)

The Israelites' failure to receive the promised blessings of the true fast through living an adulterated version of the commandment illustrates how false traditions damage faith in God. Those who believe the commandments of men falsely attributed to God will find that they do not receive the blessings promised in scripture for obedience to the law. Instead of attributing their unbelief to those who taught them false tradition, they (believing their teachers are of God) disbelieve Christ, causing them to lose faith in the gospel and become atheists. Because of this, Satan can make great progress by convincing men and women that everything goes together in one: either everything church leaders teach is true, or everything they teach is false. Thus, he can overcome the positive witnesses received from living the as yet undefiled true commandments by focusing the person’s attention on the undeniable falsehood of man-made commandments while persisting the illusion that the philosophies of men are from the same source as the scripture with which they are mingled.

One challenge we have in seeing our own behavior in the behavior of wicked people in the scriptures is that the accounts were written by those who saw things as they really are. When Ezekiel writes that the priests “devoured souls” by taking the treasure and precious things, that is surely not the way the priests would have described it. For instance, King Noah's priests give us an account in their own words against which we can compare the account of Abinadi.¹⁵ Similarly, Laman and Lemuel described their counterparts in Jerusalem as good people doing good things.¹⁶

We frequently see leaders in modern Mormonism justifying their actions in ways that indicate they see themselves as serving God, even when they are in the act of breaking his commandments. For example, Elder Oaks explained how he believes God would rather have the church spend hundreds of millions of dollars on multiplying temples rather than helping the poor.¹⁷ As with King Noah and Laman and Lemuel, modern leaders’ descriptions do not necessarily convey things as they really are. Rather, leaders’ words simply describe things as they see them. A better standard for judgment is found in God’s word, particularly as found in the scriptures.

The commandments of men are falsehood. By following them, we by necessity forget God, because we are overwriting his commandments with the commandments of men. We can choose to ignore the scriptural standard and examples of deviation from that standard, but that does not change reality. When our wickedness is finally brought to our attention, it will come as a great surprise. The shock will be as one who thinks they are the epitome of piety, only to discover in an instant their skirts on their face as a harlot in the act.¹⁸ The people do not realize their wickedness, and therefore will not understand God's punishment when it comes upon them.¹⁹

Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it. And though they say, The Lord liveth; surely they swear falsely. O Lord, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return. Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the Lord, nor the judgment of their God. (Jeremiah 5:1-4.)

As Isaiah quoted, “Therefore are my people exiled without knowing why;” (Isaiah 5:13, Gileadi Translation.) They are so busy with the practice of their vain religion that it is outside their realm of possibilities to believe that God might find what they are doing abominable.

Why is it so difficult to see? One problem is they no doubt have positive experiences in their lives that they attribute to following the false traditions of their fathers. Few religions can maintain followers without some semblance of positive experiences. No doubt “faithful” Israelites had many positive experiences they attributed to following the Pharisees. Yet, those who followed Jesus recognized that the signs that accompanied his ministry were superior to those they previously received. Abraham probably could have been satisfied with the fruits of the apostate religion of his father, which was sufficient to occupy the intentions of an entire nation, but instead he read the scriptures and realized that the religion of Noah and Shem had greater blessings than the religion of his father could offer.

Satan’s followers succeed in ensnaring others by mixing truth with falsehood. It is the true portions of their mixture that generate the positive experiences that allow others to be ensnared into believing the false portions. There is nothing wrong with identifying things that are true and produce fruits. The danger lies in incorrectly attributing these fruits to the false traditions mingled with scripture. Positive experiences in an adulterous religion do not preclude greater positive experiences in a true one. The failure to understand this is one reason that so many Israelites, Abraham’s peers, and so many today are ignorant of their situation. Those who are in a religion that consists primarily of commandments of men distance themselves from God with every precept they are taught, every ritual practiced, and every tradition kept because, despite any portion of truth they may be exposed to, the overwhelming false traditions that come with it are sufficient to damn the individual to a far greater extent than any good that comes with the system.

Followers of Pharisees become “twofold more the child of hell” then those who were teaching them, meaning they are worse off for having met them—despite any minority truths imparted in the process—than if they had never met them: “...you prophets in Jerusalem...lead others to sin instead of helping them turn back to me.” (Jeremiah 23:14 CEV.)

The reason their truths are not worth their false traditions is because a pre-requisite to entering into a Pharisaical religion is swearing allegiance to leaders. This is, in effect, to cut oneself off from God’s word through scripture and personal revelation as the source of all truth in favor of the commandments of men. Such an act damns the follower to a Telestial glory.²⁰ Followers of Pharisees seek them for truth instead of seeking God directly. They are blinded to the true meaning of scriptures by the incessant false interpretations from the Pharisees. They fill their lives with vain pretenses that do not draw them closer to God, and crowd²¹ out and contradict the commandments that would draw them closer. As long as they seek Pharisee leaders for truth, they will never wake up from their delusion.

I was available to those who did not inquire of me; I was accessible to those who did not seek me. I said, Here am I; I am here, to a nation that did not invoke my name. I held out my hands all the day to a defiant people, who walk in ways that are not good, following their own imagination—a people who constantly provoke me to my face, sacrificing in parks, making smoke upon bricks, who sit in sepulchres, spend nights in hideouts, who eat swine’s flesh, their bowls full of polluted broth, who think, Keep your distance, don’t come near me; I am holier than you! Such are a smoke to my nostrils, a fire smoldering all day long. (Isaiah 65:1-5.)

Jesus knew how to discern between God’s commandments and man’s commandments. He was intimately acquainted with the content of the scriptures and used his knowledge to detect discrepancies between the Pharisee’s teachings and scripture.²² Joseph Smith taught that this strategy is just as valid in our day as in Jesus’:

If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter. (Joseph Smith, Times & Seasons, April 1, 1844.)

Scriptural comparisons contradict Pharisaical authority claims. Pharisees are renown for quoting scripture out of historical or textual context (otherwise known as proof-texting). However, because their appeals to scripture do not hold up to scrutiny, their principle claim to authority is that of continuous succession. Though early Pharisees no doubt recognized the difference in power and authority between Moses and the elders of Israel that succeeded him, later Pharisees considered themselves equal with Moses, able to not only interpret the revelations received by Moses, but also to give additional council and even commandments that contradicted those given by Moses. In modern Mormonism, this passable authority that makes successors equal to the predecessors is known as “keys.”

Keys do not prevent leaders from leading a church into apostasy. The Pharisees²³ at the time of Jesus had a valid chain of authorized appointments to church office from their founder Moses.²⁴ Yet, they were woefully apostate.

Jesus’ interactions with the Pharisees provide sufficient evidence that keys are insufficient to imply God’s authority. Jesus did not recognize the continuous appointment of leaders in the church as authoritative. Speaking of the Pharisees he said, “Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.” (Matthew 15:13.) He did not recognize the Sanhedrin as planted by Heavenly Father despite their legal appointment. He openly rejected their pronouncements and pointed out their deviations from Moses’ revelations. Jesus showed that the traditions or commandments created by key holders are not the same as God commandments. As Joseph Smith taught, the pronouncements of men have no authority, even if those men and their followers claim authority:

...we never can comprehend the things of God and of heaven but by revelation. We may spiritualize and express opinions to all eternity but that is no authority. (Joseph Smith, WOJS 8 Apr 1843.)

Charles Penrose, counselor to Brigham Young, stated:

God is the author or revealer of true religion. Men may invent and arrange methods of worship, imagine and think out doctrines, and formulate and enforce creeds; but they are of no value as a means of salvation. God must be approached and served in the way which He ordains, or the worship and service will not be accepted. (Charles W. Penrose, “Mormon Doctrine, Plain and Simple”, pp. 9-10.)

Jesus distinguished between God’s commandments and the traditions of the elders and showed that teachings of key holders, if contradictory to God’s word as given through a dispensation head, will lead the followers down to hell.

But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. (Matthew 23:13.)

If keys were sufficient, why would heaven be shut to the rightful key holders? Why would the key holders' teachings prevent their followers from entering into the kingdom of heaven? Can someone who is barred from heaven lead you to heaven? Can one who is not sealed up to eternal life seal you up to eternal life? The leaders of such religions truly are the blind leading the blind:

Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14.)

They are blind because they have replaced his commandments with false tradition. Their followers are blind because they choose to emulate guides expecting outcomes that their guides themselves have never obtained. Of course, informing Pharisees of their error is nearly impossible, as the more faithful they are to their profession, the less willing they are to consider that they may be wrong. This is because they believe they already know everything needed for salvation, and that there is no true knowledge that they do not already possess.²⁵ This allows them to dismiss anyone who contradicts their position as a sinner.

[The healed blind man said:] If this man were not of God, he could do nothing. They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out. (John 9:33-34.)

Pharisees have an inflated view of their own righteousness, and do not realize that they fit the historical pattern of previous apostate groups. They overestimate the authority they possess, and use it as an excuse to ignore “subordinates” who identify contradictions to the scriptures in their teachings.²⁶ The Pharisees speak highly of past prophets while their deeds witness that they, too, would have rejected them, as they presently reject their teachings.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. (Matthew 23:29-32.)

The Pharisees in Jesus’ day admitted they were the children of those who had rejected the prophets. Jesus made the point that they had not deviated from their parents' ways. Modern Mormons hold two mutually exclusive positions: they whiten the sepulchers of both Joseph Smith and their parents while ignoring the fact that their parents rejected him and were responsible for his death.²⁷

Jesus made the point that the Pharisees had not only inherited the traditions of their fathers—which opposed the teachings of the prophets— but also their behavior:

Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. (Matthew 23:33-35.)

They were actively rejecting the present messengers of God (Zecharias was John Baptists' father), just as their fathers had rejected the former prophets.

Modern Mormons not only descend in tradition from their fathers who rejected Joseph Smith's teachings, but when God sends messengers who preach the gospel of Joseph, they cast them out of their churches and communities. Modern Mormons feign honor towards Joseph by recognizing him as the head of this dispensation and claim his calling as the source of their authority,²⁵⁰ all while rejecting his teachings in the same ways as their fathers.

Because God does not honor the authority of the Pharisees, they must cite things other than miracles and appearances of God and angels as evidence of their divine approbation.

Therefore, as Aaron entered into one of their synagogues to preach unto the people, and as he was speaking unto them, behold there arose an Amalekite and began to contend with him, saying: What is that thou hast testified? Hast thou seen an angel? Why do not angels appear unto us? Behold are not this people as good as thy people? Thou also sayest, except we repent we shall perish. How knowest thou the thought and intent of our hearts? How knowest thou that we have cause to repent? How knowest thou that we are not a righteous people? Behold, we have built sanctuaries, and we do assemble ourselves together to worship God. We do believe that God will save all men. (Alma 21:5-6.)

The Amalekite was saying: You couldn't have seen an angel, because we are righteous, and we don't see them, and you are less than us, therefore you couldn't have seen one. We don't need to repent, because we are righteous. Look at the chapels and temples we built!²⁸ Plus, we meet every Sunday to worship God. How could he be displeased with us?

Pharisees think they are chosen by virtue of their pedigree, independent of their own righteousness or lack thereof.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. (Matthew 3:7-10.)

Modern Mormons commit the same error by considering themselves a chosen people despite having failed to attain Zion or several of the easier commandments, such as caring for the poor.

Pharisees do not accept truth from anyone outside their leadership.²⁹ They believe that they already know of all things that are true, and that nothing that they don't already believe can be of worth. They preach that any who believe differently than they do so out of wickedness³⁰ or ignorance of the scriptures, ignoring any scriptures that controvert their position³¹ Pharisees believe that they alone possess the ability to correctly interpret scripture or know the will of God pertaining to doctrine. This is a very dangerous position, because it allows Pharisees to dismiss any scripture that contradicts them as being misinterpreted.³²

Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him? But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed. (John 7:47-49.)

In modern Mormonism, this idea is expressed with the phrase “revelation for the church,” though, ironically, the position of leaders hasn’t been informed by revelation since the death of Joseph Smith.³³ Instead, Pharisees cite traditional precedent—the commandments of men created by their predecessors—as the source of their positions. This reductive process takes the doctrine of the church further and further away from the doctrine of Christ as revealed by the dispensation head much in the same way as successive photocopies are less and less true to the original document. The succession chain features no more of the dispensation head’s revelations than the last leader had, with some portion removed or replaced by innovated tradition in each instance. The further along the process is, the easier it is for a man to exceed the spiritual knowledge of the Pharisees, obtaining greater power in the priesthood and obtaining experiences with God and angels by hearkening to the original revelations of the dispensation head instead of the repetitive and reductive philosophies of men mingled by scripture taught by the Pharisees.³⁴

But my Lord says, Because these people approach me with the mouth and pay me homage with their lips, while their heart remains far from me—their piety toward me consisting of commandments of men learned by rote— therefore it is that I shall again astound these people with wonder upon wonder, rendering void the knowledge of their sages and the intelligence of their wise men insignificant. (Isaiah 29:13-14, Gileadi Translation.)

Isaiah’s quoting the Lord’s use of the word “rote” is not coincidental. Repetition as a teaching technique of false priests is a theme throughout the Book of Isaiah.

For it is but precept upon precept, precept upon precept, measure by measure, measure by measure; a trifle here, a trifle there. Therefore, by incomprehensible speech and a strange tongue must he speak to these people, to whom he said, This is rest; let the weary rest! This is a respite! But they would not listen. So to them the word of Jehovah remained: Precept upon precept, precept upon precept, measure by measure, measure by measure; a trifle here, a trifle there, that, persisting, they might lapse into stumbling and break themselves, become ensnared and be taken captive. Therefore hear the word of Jehovah, you scoffers who preside over these people in Jerusalem... (Isaiah 28:10-14.)

The Pharisees must endlessly repeat the stories and sermons of their predecessor Pharisees, unable to expound the scriptures either for lack of revelation or for fear of exposing the error of their innovative traditions.

The doctrine of the Pharisees is a fluid one. It shifts when leaders respond to social trends, presuming they understand doctrine better than the dispensation head whose authority they claim without any of the associated revelations.³⁵ It is not principle-based and it is not based on God's word. Instead, it can be represented as one simple commandment: whatever the Pharisees say, that do.

The inconsistency of the doctrines of the Pharisees was well known. Paul jabbed at them when he said:

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; (Ephesians 4:14.)

The doctrine of the Pharisees does indeed toss its believers to and fro from one position to the opposite and back again like a flag in the wind. This is why Jesus was able to describe the Pharisees as

...children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept. For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil. The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! (Luke 7:32-33.)

Within the space of just a few years, the Pharisees were able to criticize John for fasting and abstaining from liquor and Jesus for not fasting and drinking. Modern Mormonism is likewise plagued by commandments that flip 180 degrees within short spans of time, the most recent being the church’s position on homosexuality, which has gone from being strictly sinful to being publicly admissible in less than ten years.³⁶

Pharisees will trump up religious reasons to dismiss justified challenges to their doctrine and authority. Although Jesus had committed no charge worthy of death, the Pharisees conspired to kill him for fear that his popularity would cause the Romans to deprive them of their power.³⁷ Unable to prosecute him according to the law of Moses, they broke their own laws in trying Jesus.³⁸ There have been many examples of recent church proceedings that broke God’s instructions for both the grounds for excommunication and the manner of holding a trial for membership.³⁹

Pharisees break God’s commandments through their traditions.⁴⁰ Modern Mormons do the same. The example of tithing has already been discussed. Another example is obedience to the handbook of instructions instead of scripture. Modern Mormons consider the handbook to be the most relevant source of instruction in our day,⁴¹ and filter out personal revelation that does not agree with it.⁴² Today’s handbooks expand broadly beyond scripture and contradict scripture in many instances. The handbook takes precedence despite modern Mormons’ temple covenant to obey “the law of the gospel as contained in the Book of Mormon and the Bible.” There have been 27 versions of church handbooks since 1899.⁴³ The principles taught vary vastly between editions.⁴⁴ Church leaders admit the frequent changes, but erroneously characterize the changes as limited to programs and policy.⁴⁵

Pharisees love positive attention that comes by reason of their office. They love preferential treatment over those who do not hold their office. They love special titles. Jesus says we should not treat one man different than another. We should only show deference to God, who is the only one who can save us. If God's servants are to be different than others, it should be through their abasement and service to others, not through positive preferential treatment.

And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. (Matthew 23:6-12.)

Pharisees are obsessed with money and exacting with debts. Pharisees find the principle that you cannot serve two masters to be a hard one, for they love the money they control by virtue of their office, the power it buys, and the feeling of security it provides.

And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore. And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations....No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. (Luke 16:1-9,13-14.)

In one application of the parable, the church leaders are the steward, the rich man is God. Jesus was saying that all men, including leaders, commit sin and fall short. He was suggesting that they should pardon those who owe money to them, knowing their master will be as exacting on them as they were to others. The Pharisees knew both exactly who he was talking about and what he was implying about their performance.

Modern Mormonism places significant emphasis on the modern version of the law of tithing, which exacts 10% of one’s gross income whether rich or poor. Failure to pay a full 10% of one’s gross income to the church strips a member of temple entrance rights. The application of Jesus’ parable to today would mean that leaders who require perfection of the law of tithing to enter the symbolic presence of the Lord will be held to the same standard of perfection in all things to enter into the actual presence of the Lord.

Pharisees seek to punish any who question their authority, claims, or beliefs.

And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done? The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take him. (John 7:3132.)

In modern Mormonism, this persecution comes through the order of the Strengthening the Members Committee, an organization that searches out members who publicly disagree with church leaders and asks their stake presidents to discipline them.

Although Pharisees claim their persecution is because men are breaking God's commandments, some are—like Jesus—only breaking the tradition of the elders. The Pharisees judge unrighteously, rejecting true messengers using false standards.

They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind. And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes. Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see. Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. (John 9:13-16.)

Individuals who oppose the traditions of men are investigated by the Pharisees, not in order to evaluate whether their position is true, but in order to entrap the individual in charges of apostasy (see, for example John 8:1-6, Matthew 22:15-17, Matthew 19:3, Luke 11:53-54, and Mark 10:2.) In the mind of the Pharisees, there is no possibility that they are out of alignment with God, therefore any dissenter from their tradition is necessarily an apostate.

Even those faithful to the Pharisees would likely see the error in such accusations, therefore Pharisees conspire in secret to avoid negative public reactions to their evil designs. The Pharisees discussed in private councils how they could entrap Jesus, and they interrogated him in the middle of the night.⁴⁶ In modern Mormonism, dissenters from the traditions of the elders are targeted in private leadership meetings. Investigations triggered by the Strengthening the Members Committee are done via private letters or phone calls to stake presidents and bishops. The body of the membership is only notified after disciplinary decisions have been made.

The Pharisees disbelieve miracles by their dissenters.²⁷⁰

for behold there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men; Behold, hearken ye unto my precept; if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; for this day he is not a God of miracles; (2 Nephi 28:5-6.)

They do not accept miracles as witnesses of true messengers.

They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind. And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes....But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight. (John 9:13-14,18.)

While the miracles Jesus performed were sufficient to convince Nicodemus that he was sent by God,⁴⁷ they were insufficient to convince any of his fellows in the Sanhedrin. If the Pharisees witness the miracles with their own eyes, they ascribe the miracle to the devil.

Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David? But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. (Matthew 12:22-24; See also Matthew 9:34.)

Jesus said of the Pharisees: “But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:9.) What does it mean to worship in vain? It means to worship without any of the desired or expected effects. When your religion consists of the commandments of men, God does not recognize it. At best, it will produce none of the desired effects. More likely, your religion offends God and will result in cursings instead of blessings.

Sincerity, piousness, sacrifice and ritual are not hallmarks of the righteous. They are at least as popular among the misguided as they are among the righteous. We should be very concerned about our own status before God. We should revisit the scriptures, particularly the prophecies for our time. We should ask ourselves, “Lord, is it I?”

Whether our doctrine comes from men or comes from Christ matters. It is of especial importance in our day, when we face the fulfillment of the prophecies of what is to come before Christ’s return.

For the time speedily cometh that the Lord God shall cause a great division among the people, and the wicked will he destroy; and he will spare his people, yea, even if it so be that he must destroy the wicked by fire. (2 Nephi 30:10.)

What will this division be? It will be those who listen to God against those who listen to men. Those who listen to men will resist the true messengers God sends to renew the pure gospel of Christ by direct commission from him.

Therefore it shall come to pass that whosoever will not believe in my words, who am Jesus Christ, which the Father shall cause him to bring forth unto the Gentiles, and shall give unto him power that he shall bring them forth unto the Gentiles, (it shall be done even as Moses said) they shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant....Yea, wo be unto the Gentiles except they repent; for it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Father, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots; And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strongholds; And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thy land, and thou shalt have no more soothsayers; Thy graven images I will also cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee, and thou shalt no more worship the works of thy hands; And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee; so will I destroy thy cities. And it shall come to pass that all lyings, and deceivings, and envyings, and strifes, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, shall be done away. For it shall come to pass, saith the Father, that at that day whosoever will not repent and come unto my Beloved Son, them will I cut off from among my people, O house of Israel; And I will execute vengeance and fury upon them, even as upon the heathen, such as they have not heard. (3 Nephi 21:11,14-20.)

Modern Mormons will find themselves without their idols and soothsayers, without their Babylonian goods that provide carnal security. The confidence they have placed in men will be shredded to tatters, leaving them to curse God and wish for death in overwhelming fear for shock at what has come upon them. When this promised destruction occurs, and Jesus will once again lament,

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. (Matthew 23:37-39.)

He will lament because those who do not recognize his voice, preferring the voice of the Pharisees, will not be gathered to places of safety, and will suffer through the destruction of the wicked. Before that day, there will be a bundling of the wicked and a gathering of the righteous:

Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. (Matthew 13:30.)

How are they bundled?

As, therefore, the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of the world; that is, as the servants of God go forth warning the nations, both priests and people, and as they harden their hearts and reject the light of truth, these first being delivered over to the buffetings of Satan, and the law and the testimony being closed up, as it was in the case of the Jews, they are left in darkness, and delivered over unto the day of burning; thus being bound up by their creeds, and their bands being made strong by their priests, are prepared for the fulfilment of the saying of the Savior—‘The Son of Man shall send forth His angels, and gather out of His Kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire, there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.’ We understand that the work of gathering together of the wheat into barns, or garners, is to take place while the tares are being bound over, and preparing for the day of burning; that after the day of burnings, the righteous shall shine forth like the sun, in the Kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. (Joseph Smith, TPJS, p. 69.)

The false traditions of the priests not only condemn them, but they make their bands strong because their ability to connect to God has been cut off. They have been taught to disregard personal revelation that contradicts the Pharisees. They have been taught to superimpose the traditions of the Pharisees onto the scriptures, preventing a literal interpretation of what they say. They have been taught that feelings are revelation, thus clogging the revelatory channel with false signals. They truly are blinded by the traditions of their fathers.

In our day, we can recognize the destruction as a herald that we are in the time prophesied by the Book of Mormon prophets.⁴⁸ We can find in our present situation every quality of the last days they describe:

And behold, their prayers were also in behalf of him that the Lord should suffer to bring these things forth. And no one need say they shall not come, for they surely shall, for the Lord hath spoken it; for out of the earth shall they come, by the hand of the Lord, and none can stay it; and it shall come in a day when it shall be said that miracles are done away; and it shall come even as if one should speak from the dead. And it shall come in a day when the blood of saints shall cry unto the Lord, because of secret combinations and the works of darkness. Yea, it shall come in a day when the power of God shall be denied, and churches become defiled and be lifted up in the pride of their hearts; yea, even in a day when leaders of churches and teachers shall rise in the pride of their hearts, even to the envying of them who belong to their churches. Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be heard of fires, and tempests, and vapors of smoke in foreign lands; And there shall also be heard of wars, rumors of wars, and earthquakes in divers places. Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be great pollutions upon the face of the earth; there shall be murders, and robbing, and lying, and deceivings, and whoredoms, and all manner of abominations; when there shall be many who will say, Do this, or do that, and it mattereth not, for the Lord will uphold such at the last day. But wo unto such, for they are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity. Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be churches built up that shall say: Come unto me, and for your money you shall be forgiven of your sins. O ye wicked and perverse and stiffnecked people, why have ye built up churches unto yourselves to get gain? Why have ye transfigured the holy word of God, that ye might bring damnation upon your souls? Behold, look ye unto the revelations of God; for behold, the time cometh at that day when all these things must be fulfilled. Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you. Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing. And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities; and your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts. For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted. O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies— because of the praise of the world? Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not? Yea, why do ye build up your secret abominations to get gain, and cause that widows should mourn before the Lord, and also orphans to mourn before the Lord, and also the blood of their fathers and their husbands to cry unto the Lord from the ground, for vengeance upon your heads? Behold, the sword of vengeance hangeth over you; and the time soon cometh that he avengeth the blood of the saints upon you, for he will not suffer their cries any longer. (Mormon 8:25-41.)

Prophets have described our day with precise clarity, and yet we ignore their call to repentance. We are surrounded by plain and abundant evidence that we are repeating the sins of the Pharisees, but we ignore it. We do so at the peril of our physical and spiritual wellbeing.

Similar to the claims of modern Mormons, the Jews believe that the rabbis today have authority from an unbroken line of rabbis going back to the establishment of the Pharisees. They have an unbroken line of authorized appointments from the Sanhedrin of Jesus' day until today. They believe that their council has authority from Moses, given to Moses from God. Yet, their teachings contradict Moses on almost every issue. In Hebrew, Matthew 23:23 says something very different from the KJV (which is based on a later Greek text):

The Pharisees and sages sit upon the seat of Moses. Therefore, all that he [Moses] says to you, diligently do, but according to their reforms and their precedents do not do, because they [teach what they call God's word] but they do not do [what Moses said].

The brethren sit in Joseph's seat. They invoke Joseph's authority, but teach innovations and traditions that contradict Joseph's words. Therefore, do according to what Joseph taught, not what they teach.