Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Luke 11:38

"And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first bathed himself before dinner." — Luke 11:38 (ASV)

In a way typical of his use of material, Luke puts the major discourse in the setting of a dinner (cf. 14:1–24) that Jesus himself attended. Having accepted table fellowship with a Pharisee, Jesus offended his host by omitting the customary ritual washing prior to eating (cf. Mark 7:1–4). Luke gives us a concise selection of the indictments that Matthew records in Mt 23. These point up some of the most common of the sins that characterize strict religious persons: hypocrisy (vv.39–41), imbalance (v.42), ostentation (v.43), impossible demands (v.46), intolerance (vv.47–51), and exclusiveness (v.52).