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The second woe:
v. 14. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer; therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
The Pharisees had little love for manual or mental labor, by which they might earn their living in an honest manner. As their religion was a mere cloak, so their religious observances were used for money-making schemes. Long prayers were their strong suit, such as were actually made, produced for the purpose, of which they informed the people that they possessed unusual merits and power. Women deprived of their natural protectors, widows whose feelings might easily be swayed, gladly paid for the service of long prayers made in their behalf. Such was the flimsy pretext by which the scribes and Pharisees gained property and riches. Isa_5:8. This form of graft was especially damnable because it included the abuse of God's name, and was thus both blasphemy and robbery.