I Never Knew You (Part 2)   
Covenant, Intimacy and Divine Recognition: An Hebraic Study of Matthew 7:23

Then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.  (Matt 7:23)

Part One of this short series showed the need for a recovery of a Hebrew understanding of 'knowing' God, of covenant identity and of heavenly recognition. Part Two considers the issue of lawlessness and the Hebrew concept of Torah, and emphasises the need for a return to covenant relationship.

Workers of Lawlessness

When Spiritual Activity Masks Covenant Rebellion

There is a final phrase in Jesus' warning that is often passed over quickly. We focus on the terrifying words: I never knew you. Yet Jesus does not stop there. He identifies the reason: Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. 

At first glance, the phrase seems straightforward. Surely Jesus is referring to people who break God's laws. Yet, once again, the Hebrew background reveals a much deeper and more uncomfortable truth. Jesus is not merely talking about people who occasionally fail to keep commandments. He is exposing a deeper condition; a life lived outside God's covenant order while claiming to represent Him. The issue is not simply law-breaking. The issue is lawlessness as a kingdom identity.

The Greek Word Behind Lawlessness

The Greek word translated lawlessness is, ἀνομία, anomia. It is formed from a; without and nomos; law, order, instruction. Literally, without law. However, this can mislead modern readers. We tend to hear the word ‘law’ and immediately think of legal systems, parliamentary acts, regulations and rules. But when a first-century Jewish audience heard nomos, they did not primarily think of legislation. They thought of Torah; the covenant instruction of God. The question was not, did you break a rule?  The question was did you live within God's intended order?

The question was not, did you break a rule?  The question was did you live within God's intended order?

Torah Was Never Merely a Rulebook

One of the great misunderstandings of Christianity has been the idea that Torah represents cold legalism. Jesus never taught this. In fact, Jesus' strongest criticisms were often directed at those who had turned God's instruction into something mechanical and burdensome. He declared: Do not think that I have come to abolish Torah or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. (Matt 5:17).

The Greek word for fulfil is πληρόω; plēroō, meaning to fill full, to bring to completion, to reveal the intended purpose. Jesus did not come to discard Torah. He came to restore its original purpose. The Torah was never given as a ladder by which humans could climb to God. It was given as the pathway of a people already redeemed. Israel received the Law after Exodus, not before. Grace, hesed, came first, then covenant obedience. The order matters.

The Hebrew Concept of Torah

The Hebrew word תּוֹרָה; torah, comes from the root ירה; yara, meaning: to teach, to instruct, to point in the right direction. Torah is not fundamentally about restriction, it is revelation. It shows humanity how to live within God's created design. The opposite of Torah is not simply breaking a command – but rejecting God's wisdom.

From Eden to Matthew 7

This takes us back to the beginning. The first temptation was not simply about eating forbidden fruit. The serpent's challenge was about rejecting God's authority: Did God actually say...? (Gen 3:1).  The serpent's strategy was subtle. He did not begin by saying, reject God.  He began by suggesting. Perhaps God's instruction cannot really be trusted.

The serpent's strategy was subtle. He did not begin by saying, reject God.  He began by suggesting.

The essence of sin is therefore not merely disobedience, it is independence. Humanity deciding that it can determine good and evil apart from God. The Hebrew word for this rebellion is עָוֹן; avon, often translated iniquity. It carries the idea of distortion, crookedness, twisting something from its intended purpose. Lawlessness is therefore not merely absence of law, but the twisting of God's order.

The Mystery of Lawlessness

Paul uses the same concept in one of the most intriguing passages in the New Testament.  Writing about the coming deception before the return of Christ, he says: For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work (2 Thess 2:7). The Greek Paul uses is τὸ μυστήριον τῆς ἀνομίας, the mystery of lawlessness. Paul's choice of words are worth noting. Lawlessness is not simply rebellion on the streets, it is a mystery. Something operating beneath the surface, something hidden, something spiritual. The same chapter speaks of:

• deception,
• false signs,
• counterfeit authority,
• opposition to God,
• exaltation of self.

Paul is describing a kingdom conflict.

Divine Council Perspective: Competing Kingdoms

From the Divine Council worldview, Scripture presents history as a conflict between kingdoms. Psalm 82 describes God standing among the heavenly beings. Daniel 7 reveals heavenly courts. Revelation reveals the throne room of God. Human history is not merely political, but spiritual. Every kingdom reflects a source of authority. Every culture answers the question, who determines good and evil? The kingdom of God says; The Creator defines reality. The kingdom of rebellion says; We will define reality ourselves. This was the ancient deception. It remains the modern deception.
 

This was the ancient deception. It remains the modern deception.

The Warning of Jesus Was to Religious People

This is perhaps the most frightening aspect of Matthew 7. Jesus was not warning obvious criminals. He was not speaking primarily about pagan idolaters. He was speaking to people who used His name. They prophesied, performed miracles, claimed authority. Yet Jesus called them: workers of lawlessness. Why? Because they used spiritual authority while rejecting the King's authority. They wanted the power of the Kingdom without submission to the King.

The Pharisees: Law Keepers Without Lawfulness

This is why Jesus' confrontation with the Pharisees is so important. At first glance, they appear to be the opposite of lawless. They studied Scripture, tithed, fasted, prayed. Yet Jesus said: These people honours me with their lips, but their heart is far from me (Matt 15:8). The problem was not lack of religious activity; rather, misplaced authority. Jesus continued: In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men (Matt 15:9). There is the essence of anomia - human traditions replacing divine revelation.

When Tradition Overwrites Covenant

The rabbis of Jesus' day were not evil men seeking to destroy God's Word. Many were sincerely seeking to protect holiness. Their mistake was incremental. A command was given.  A safeguard was added. The safeguard itself became a tradition. The tradition became an expectation. The expectation became treated as equal to Scripture. The fence around Torah became more important than Torah itself. Jesus repeatedly challenged this. Not because He opposed obedience, but because He opposed replacing God's voice with human additions.

Isaiah's Warning

The prophet Isaiah saw this pattern centuries earlier: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness (Isa 5:20). This is the ultimate expression of lawlessness. Not simply doing wrong, or calling wrong right. It is about redefining reality. The issue is authority - who gets to define truth?
 

The fence around Torah became more important than Torah itself. Jesus repeatedly challenged this.

Revelation 13: The Final Expression of Lawlessness

This theme reaches its climax in Revelation. The beast demands worship. Why? Because the beast does not merely want obedience, it wants allegiance. It seeks what belongs only to God. Revelation 13 describes humanity receiving the mark of the beast. The contrast is deliberate. The beast marks those who belong to his kingdom. The Lamb knows those who belong to His. One kingdom offers economic participation through submission. The other offers eternal life through faithfulness.

The Mark and the Name

The contrast is fascinating. Revelation says the beast's followers receive: ...a mark on the right hand or the forehead (Rev 13:16). But God's people have: ...his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads (Rev 14:1). This is covenant symbolism. The question is:

• Whose identity do you carry?
• Whose authority defines you?
• Whose kingdom do you belong to?

The Great Question

Matthew 7 is therefore not ultimately asking are you religious? It asks; whose order governs your life? The workers of lawlessness were not people who had no interest in God. They were people who wanted God's power without God's government. They wanted the Kingdom without the King; they wanted blessing without surrender; they wanted authority without obedience.
 

The workers of lawlessness were ... people who wanted God's power without God's government.

Practical Application

1. Examine the foundation: Jesus concludes Matthew 7 with the illustration of two builders. Both hear His words; both build houses; both experience storms. The difference is obedience: Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man (Matt 7:24). The issue is not hearing, but doing.
2. Beware spiritual success without spiritual surrender: Numbers, influence and supernatural experiences are not the final measure. The question remains: Does Jesus know me?
3. Return to covenant relationship: Christianity is not merely agreeing with doctrines.  It is walking with a person. Jesus does not say: I never knew your theology.  He says: I never knew you.
4. Test every authority: Every teaching; every movement; every prophecy; every spiritual experience. They must come under the authority of Scripture.
5. Prepare for the ultimate choice: Revelation reveals a day when every person will answer the question; whose kingdom do you belong to? The answer is not merely spoken. It is demonstrated by worship, allegiance and obedience.

Prayer Points

1. Lord, search my heart and reveal any area where I have replaced Your authority with my own: Search me, O God, and know my heart! (Ps 139:23).
2. Lord, deliver me from religious activity without relationship.
3. Lord, restore in me a love for Your instruction and Your ways.
4. Lord, give me discernment to recognise deception and counterfeit authority.
5. Lord Jesus, let me be among those whom You know, recognise and call Your own.

The Lord knows those who are his (2 Tim 2:19).

The terrifying warning of Matthew 7 is not that Jesus rejects imperfect people. Scripture is full of imperfect people whom God restores. Peter denied Him, David failed Him, Moses lost his temper. The issue is not perfection. 

The issue is belonging. The question echoing from Eden to Revelation remains; Who has the right to define good and evil? The answer determines everything. Because in the end, the greatest blessing in all eternity will not be hearing, You did great things for Me. It will be hearing, I know you. You are Mine.

Nick Thompson