by Rabbi Mordecai Griffin

“But you are not to be called rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.” Matthew 23:8 TLV

A common objection, typically presented by those among the Hebrew Roots movement, is that Yeshua forbade His followers from using the title “Rabbi”. The scriptural source for this concept is Matthew 23:8 cited above. However, in truth this is just a pretext for the real underlying issue which is antisemitism. How can one be sure that this is the case? Well, because verses nine and ten are never mentioned, which subsequently forbid calling anyone “Father” or “Teacher”. As the Messiah continues: “And call no man on earth your father; for One is your Father, who is in heaven. Nor are you to be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Messiah.” Those who object to one being called “Rabbi” have no objection to being called Father or Teacher. Therefore, it is clear that the issue is with the specific title “Rabbi”, which carries with it the implication of one who is a Jew teaching Judaism. Thus, it is not difficult to deduce that the objection is to both Jews and Judaism. This also reveals that the goal of this objection is not a sincere desire to obey the teachings of the Messiah, otherwise the entire alleged prohibition would be presented. It is important to understand this crucial point. The root of this objection is antisemitism. It is a heart issue that must be addressed within the believer, otherwise the following clear, logical, and accurate explanation of the passage will fall upon deaf ears.

Those who present this objection presume that Yeshua was being literal in the sense that He was banning His followers from using specific titles. Was the Messiah prohibiting the use of titles? The answer is obviously no.  This is not a condemnation of all spiritual authority, or all titles, of any kind. When it comes to interpreting scripture, context is essential. Taking a verse out of context is the most common way in which false theological positions (such as our present topic) are developed. Let’s take a rational look of the overall context of the passage.  

“Then Yeshua spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying, ‘The Torah scholars and Pharisees sit on the seat of Moses.  So, whatever they tell you, do and observe. But don’t do what they do; for what they say, they do not do.  They tie up heavy loads, hard to carry, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves aren’t willing to lift a finger to move them.  All their works they do to be noticed by men. They make their tefillin wide and their tzitziyot long. They love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called rabbi by men. But you are not to be called rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man on earth your father; for One is your Father, who is in heaven. Nor are you to be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Messiah. But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.’”

Matthew 23:1-12 TLV

When read in context, it becomes quite apparent that the “moral” lesson here is – humility in leadership. To focus on the absurd idea that the Messiah is prohibiting a specific title is to miss the entire point of the message. It is also evident that the Messiah is not denouncing the Pharisees, the Rabbis, Judaism or Jews. To the contrary, He affirms their legitimate position (granted them in the Torah) by clearly stating that they “sit on the seat of Moses”. Yeshua was rebuking them for their hypocrisy not their instruction. He was taking them to task for their apparent desire for honor and hunger for their love of admiration. The final verse makes the entire point crystal clear, “Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted”. Yeshua demands humility among the leaders of His sect.

To suggest that the issue is with literal titles is to open a pandoras box of problems with everyday language. If we are not to use “Rabbi” (which means master or teacher) then might that prohibit us from using other titles that communicate a similar meaning? First, to be consistent, we would have to ban the use of “Father” or “Teacher”. In the spirit of the matter, we would necessarily have to ban any and all synonyms related to these titles such as “Dad”, “Pappa”, “Abba”, “Instructor”, “Educator” or “Professor”. One would then have to consider common terms we use such as “Husband” which is derived from the Nordic husbondi meaning “Master of the House”. Remember we are forbidden from using the term Master.  Indeed a “Master” electrician, craftsman or musician would have to seek a new title that was not a synonym for master. Taking this legalistic and literal approach would naturally cause us to reconsider the use of common appellations such as “Mr.” and “Mrs.” Both of which literally mean master! Perhaps we should consider the use of “Sir” which is directly related to Sire and literally means “My Lord”! This holds true for the use of ma’am or madam which is the feminine form of master quite literally. Both of these are terms of royalty. Should we be calling everyday people our lords and masters? What about the use of the word “King” itself? Don’t we have but one King? What about those who go to hear a “teaching” from a “teacher”. Clearly that too is a violation! How shall we describe one who presents a “teaching”? The point made here is painfully obvious. It is, frankly, silly to believe that the Messiah was being literal. It would make His lesson in this passage utterly juvenile and impractical. No one would follow it, as has been demonstrated.

Yeshua did not want His followers to be driven by pride of position or the arrogance of power. He wanted us to remain humble as we serve each other in love. We are not to seek or proclaim a title, for the sake of personal honor. This was and is the point of the Messiah’s words. ~ Rabbi Mordecai Griffin