Matthew 23
23
1Then spake Jesus to the multitudes and to his disciples, 2saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat: 3all things therefore whatsoever they bid you, these do and observe: but do not ye after their works; for they say, and do not. 4Yea, they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger. 5But all their works they do to be seen of men: for they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6and love the chief place at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7and the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called of men, Rabbi. 8But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your teacher, and all ye are brethren. 9And call no man your father on the earth: for one is your Father, even he who is in heaven. 10Neither be ye called masters: for one is your master, even the Christ. 11But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled; and whosoever shall humble himself shall be exalted.
13But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye enter not in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering in to enter. 14#23:14 Some authorities insert here, or after v. 12, v. 14 Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you devour widows’ houses, even while for a pretence ye make long prayes: therefore ye shall receive greater condemnation. See Mrk 12:40; Luk 20:47.
15Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is become so, ye make him twofold more a son of hell than yourselves.
16Woe unto you, ye blind guides, that say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor. 17Ye fools and blind: for which is greater, the gold, or the temple that hath sanctified the gold? 18And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, he is a debtor. 19Ye blind: for which is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20He therefore that sweareth by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21And he that sweareth by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22And he that sweareth by the heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these ye ought to have done, and not to have left the other undone. 24Ye blind guides, that strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel!
25Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye cleanse the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full from extortion and excess. 26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside thereof may become clean also.
27Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inwardly are full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but inwardly ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and garnish the tombs of the righteous, 30and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets. 32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33Ye serpents, ye offspring of vipers, how shall ye escape the judgment of hell? 34Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: some of them shall ye kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city: 35that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of Abel the righteous unto the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar. 36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
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Matthew 23: ASV
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Matthew 23
23
Pharisaism Exposed
1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2saying: “The scribes and Pharisees have seated themselves in Moses’ chair [of authority as teachers of the Law]; 3so practice and observe everything they tell you, but do not do as they do; for they preach [things], but do not practice them. 4The scribes and Pharisees tie up #I.e. detailed instructions of rabbinic interpretations of the Law.heavy loads [that are hard to bear] and place them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not lift a finger [to make them lighter]. 5They do all their deeds to be seen by men; for they make their #Small cases containing Scripture passages, worn on the left arm and the forehead.phylacteries (tefillin) wide [to make them more conspicuous] and make their #Tassels (tzitzit) were worn on the garments of all Jewish males, according to the Law.tassels long. 6They love the place of distinction and honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues [those on the platform near the scrolls of the Law, facing the congregation], 7and to be greeted [with respect] in the market places and public forums, and to have people call them Rabbi. 8But do not be called Rabbi (Teacher); for One is your Teacher, and you are all [equally] brothers. 9Do not call anyone on earth [who guides you spiritually] your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10Do not let yourselves be called leaders or teachers; for One is your Leader (Teacher), the Christ. 11But the greatest among you will be your servant. 12Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be raised to honor.
Eight Woes
13 “But woe (judgment is coming) to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven in front of people; for you do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow those who are [in the process of] entering to do so. 14#Early mss do not contain v 14.[Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you swallow up widows’ houses, and to cover it up you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.]
15 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel over sea and land to make a single proselyte (convert to Judaism), and when he becomes a convert, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears [an oath] by the sanctuary of the temple, that is nothing (non-binding); but whoever swears [an oath] by the gold of the temple is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].’ 17You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the sanctuary of the temple that sanctified the gold? 18And [you scribes and Pharisees say], ‘Whoever swears [an oath] by the altar, that is nothing (non-binding), but whoever swears [an oath] by the offering on it, he is obligated [as a debtor to fulfill his vow and keep his promise].’ 19You [spiritually] blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? 20Therefore, whoever swears [an oath] by the altar, swears both by it and by everything [offered] on it. 21And whoever swears [an oath] by the sanctuary of the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells within it. 22And whoever swears [an oath] by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
23 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you give a tenth (tithe) of your mint and dill and cumin [focusing on minor matters], and have neglected the weightier [more important moral and spiritual] provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the [primary] things you ought to have done without neglecting the others. 24You [spiritually] blind guides, who strain out a gnat [consuming yourselves with miniscule matters] and swallow a camel [ignoring and violating God’s precepts]!
25 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and robbery and self-indulgence (unrestrained greed). 26You [spiritually] blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the plate [examine and change your inner self to conform to God’s precepts], so that the outside [your public life and deeds] may be clean also.
27 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28So you, also, outwardly seem to be just and upright to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “Woe to you, [self-righteous] scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets and decorate and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32Fill up, then, the [allotted] measure of the guilt of your fathers’ sins. 33You #The serpent is the creature used by Satan to introduce evil into the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:1ff). Here Jesus continues the imagery of Satan as the serpent working through the religious leaders to continue the propagation of evil through deception, false teaching, and man-made laws and traditions which are given priority over God’s law.serpents, you spawn of vipers, how can you escape the penalty of hell?
34 “Therefore, take notice, I am sending you prophets and wise men [interpreters, teachers] and scribes [men educated in the Mosaic Law and the writings of the prophets]; some of them you will kill and even crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues, and pursue and persecute from city to city, 35so that on you will come the guilt of all the blood of the righteous shed on earth, from the blood of righteous #I.e. the first and last martyrs recorded in the Hebrew text.Abel to the blood of Zechariah [the priest], the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36I assure you and most solemnly say to you, [the judgment for] all these things [these vile and murderous deeds] will come on this generation.
Lament over Jerusalem
37 “ # The nation of Israel personified. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who murders the prophets and stones [to death] those [messengers] who are sent to her [by God]! How often I wanted to gather your children together [around Me], as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. 38Listen carefully: your house is being left to you desolate [completely abandoned by God and destitute of His protection]! 39For I say to you, you will not see Me again [ministering to you publicly] until you say, ‘Blessed [to be celebrated with praise] is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”
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