In Matthew 23:23 Jesus places justice, mercy, tithing, and faith (πίστις) all within the category of the law (νόμος). Of these four I am specifically asking why Jesus included πίστις as a matter of the νόμος? This seems contradictory.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
Although the Greek text says "law" the Hebrew word that Jesus would have used here no doubt was Torah, which covers both law and teaching. To quote the Jewish Encyclopedia article:
The Torah receives its title from its contents, the name itself connoting "doctrine." The Hellenistic Jews, however, translated it by νόμος = "law", whence came the term "law-book"; this gave rise to the erroneous impression that the Jewish religion is purely nomistic, so that it is still frequently designated as the religion of law. In reality, however, the Torah contains teachings as well as laws, even the latter being given in ethical form and contained in historical narratives of an ethical character.
In Jesus' days the rabbis were engaged in debates about how the biblical laws were to be applied. Tithing was not a simple matter. As the My Jewish Learning website explains: "The rabbis developed an elaborate system of tithing produce, mostly to provide livelihood for priests and Levites." There is, in fact, no specific commandment to tithe mint and rue, so this statement by Jesus is a jibe at those who make sure to tithe relatively worthless crops, while ignoring the more important teachings such as loving God with all one's heart (Deuteronomy 6:5) and one's neighbor as oneself. (Leviticus 19:18) Jesus follows this with the even more stinging rebuke:
Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel!
Thus the answer to the OP is that Jesus was referring to the Law in the sense of overall Jewish religious instruction, in which "justice and mercy and faith" were indeed the weightier matters compared to Pharisaic discussions about the complexities of proper tithing.
Regarding the Greek for 'faith' used in Matthew 23:23, I noted this comment in the Study Bible below, which puts the matter in a different light.
"faith, or, faithfulness, as in Rom. 3.3" The Companion Bible, page 1362, Zondervan, reprinted Bullinger 1974
If, in those two scripture verses, 'faith' is understood to be 'faithfulness' then what Jesus said to the scribes and Pharisees was exposing them as being unfaithful with regard to the Law. They meticulously showed faith in the requirements of the Law as to tithing, but were unfaithful as to its requirements regarding judgment and mercy.
This idea also fits in well with Romans 3:3 which is then understood as the unbelief of some not making the faithfulness of God invalid. Their unbelief was unfaithfulness. God's faithfulness was untouched by their lack of faith. Otherwise, if the translation is taken to be, "Shall their unbelief make the faith of God invalid?" then the idea is that God has faith in the same way as humans have faith; giving rise to the unthinkable notion that God might possibly lapse into lack of faith.
This would mean, then, the Jesus was not saying faith was a matter of the Law, but that faithfulness to the Law required consistency in carrying out all of the Law, not majoring on details like tithing on herbs while giving scant regard to the Law's requirement regarding justice and mercy.
The law requires:
Exodus 20:2-3 KJV
2 I [am] the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 KJV
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God [is] one LORD: 5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
These commandments require us to put God first in our lives. Doing that inherently requires faith, for the same reason brought to light in Hebrews 11:6:
But without faith [it is] impossible to please [him]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
We cannot make the Lord our supreme God without believing He exists, by faith.
Furthermore, making God supreme requires trust and reliance on Him, which are aspects of faith. Jesus says:
Matthew 6:24 KJV
No man 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.
God cannot be our supreme God if we are serving money (as the Pharisees were! - Matthew 23:14; cf Luke 16:14), or treating getting what we need to survive as our first priority. God's law requires that His service be our first priority! But, as animals with a survival instinct, we cannot put God first in our lives unless we also believe Jesus's promises that
Matthew 6:33 KJV
[S]eek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
and
Matthew 7:7-8, 11b KJV
7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. ... 11 [H]ow much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
The 'weightier matters' to which Jesus refers are 1. law 2. mercy 3. judgment and 4. faith. You are presuming that 'law' is a heading under which 2 to 4 reside. I believe that you are incorrect to do so.
του νομου την κρισιν και τον ελεον και την πιστιν [TR]
the law the judgment and the mercy and the faith [literal]
By concentrating on formal rituals and outward observance, the Pharisees totally neglected law, judgment, mercy and faith, all four.
Faith is not defined by law. Faith is nothing to do with law. Paul teaches that :
And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them. [Galatians 3:12]
Law does not require faith. Law requires works. The man that does the commandments of law shall live in those commandments.
But the man of faith is 'dead to the law by the body of Christ', as saith the apostle.
"Law" as used in the NT is often (not always) is an abbreviation for "Law and prophets" meaning what we now call the OT. Such is definitely the case in Matt 23:23. For other examples, see John 10:34, 12:34, 15:25, 1 Cor 14:21.
Understood this way, "Justice Mercy and faithfulness" is a frequent them of the Law and prophets (Ie, OT). For example, we often see these three elements of "Justice Mercy and faithfulness" -
The Lord came not to abolish Law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17), which means to drive it to the perfection, Himself featuring as the Perfecter of the Law. But the same perfecting in Pauline language is termed also "abolition" the "end" of the Law (Romans 10:4).
But the contradiction between Paul and the Lord is only apparent and terminological, while essentially they both speak of the same ontological occurrence. It is the same, to use this analogy, if at a table the feasters are feasting with a grape juice (cf. Law) in expectation of wine (cf. the Advent of the Lord), now, drinking the grape juice is necessary for the feast to go on with a hope that the grape juice will be surpassed by wine, which hope hinges upon continuous tasting of the grape juice that gives a pre-smack of the wine. When the wine comes, one can say both "Wine has fulfilled the grape-juice drinking" (the Lord Jesus Christ), or "Wine has abolished the grape-juice drinking" (the Apostle Paul), which has the very same semantics!
Now, "faith" is the part of the fulfilled/abolished Law, for now not the precepts of Law should be followed but faith working through the grace of love (Galatians 5:6), which is the realm of the mentioned fulfilled/abolished Law.
Jesus was referring to Mic. 6:8.
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? (KJV)
At Matt. 23:23 faith is accomplished by and through trust and fidelity. It is the meaning at Strong's Gr. 4102 , definition 2, of keeping the faith, and trusting in YHWH. The first commandment, Ex. 20:3,
`Thou hast no other Gods before Me. (YLT)
The scribes and Pharisees were twisting the words of God, the laws by adding to and inventing new commandments to lay upon the people (Matt. 15:3-9). They were therefore not believing and trusting to keep God's word, but stepping around Him and placing themselves above Him. Who were they honoring, God or themselves? Where was their faith placed, in God or in themselves?
Faith is conviction or knowledge of the truth of someone or something. You cannot have faith in God without knowing His word. No one can have trust in another without learning of Him. So, as the scribes and Pharisees were not abiding by His word, they were not walking with Him, then they were not doing what would bring faith to completion. It is expressed as love in Luke's gospel.
`But wo to you, the Pharisees, because ye tithe the mint, and the rue, and every herb, and ye pass by the judgment, and the love of God; these things it behoveth to do, and those not to be neglecting. (Luke 11:42, YLT)
Because the love of God is a doing thing by keeping His commandments because of our belief and faith in Him. If we do not do the things He has commanded then how can we or anyone say they have faith in Him. Luke 6:46, and John 14:15
And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? (KJV)
If ye love me, keep my commandments. (KJV)
The scribes and Pharisees did not trust in God's word, and were not walking with Him. They were not keeping the faith.
Either way, how is it more reasonable to read justice, mercy or faith as 'matters of the law' than to suggest more simply that that wasn't the best translation, and 'law' might at least well, and likely better, have been rendered 'lore'?
– Robbie Goodwin Nov 20 '23 at 20:56