Matthew 15:14 Meaning and Explanation
“Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →Jesus calls the leaders blind guides and warns that the blind leading the blind will both fall.
What Does Matthew 15:14 Mean?
Jesus tells the disciples to let the offended leaders alone, then names the problem: they are blind leaders of the blind. The image is stark and almost proverbial. A guide who cannot see, leading others who cannot see, will bring them all into the ditch. The leaders claimed to show the way to God, yet were themselves without true sight, and so their followers were imperiled.
The warning is sober and timeless. Spiritual blindness in those who teach is doubly dangerous, for it draws others down with them. Jesus does not say this in scorn but as a clear-eyed diagnosis and a caution. It matters whom we follow. True guidance comes only from those who see by God's light, and the verse urges us to seek the One who opens the eyes of the blind.
Matthew 15:14 in the Original Language
hodegos (ὁδηγός), 'leader' -- a guide who shows the way, the very role these blind teachers claimed yet could not fill.
Frequently Asked Questions About Matthew 15:14
What does Matthew 15:14 mean?
Jesus calls the leaders blind guides and warns that the blind leading the blind will both fall.