Matthew 23:21 - Exposition

By him that dwelleth therein. In fact, it comes to this: to swear by temple or altar is to swear by God—an oath most solemn, which may not be evaded. "That dwelleth" is in some manuscripts the aorist participle, κατοικη ì σαντι , implying that God once for all took up his abode in the temple, and filled it with his ineffable presence (see Kings Matthew 8:13 ; Psalms 132:14 ). From such passages we learn that God sanctifies things and places to be devoted to his service, and to be accounted by men holy and separated from all common uses. The Authorized Version translates the received text, κατοικοῦντι , which has good authority, the past participle being, perhaps, a correction by some scribe who thought that the day of Judaism was past when Christ spoke.