Matthew 23
23
1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and his disciples: 2“The religious teachers and the Pharisees are responsible as interpreters of the law of Moses,#23:2. Literally, “sit in Moses' seat.” 3so obey them and do everything they tell you. But don't follow what they do, because they don't practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy burdens, and place them on people's shoulders, but they themselves don't lift a finger to help them. 5Everything they do is to make sure they get noticed. They make themselves large prayer boxes#23:5. Or “phylacteries.” These were leather boxes tied to the forehead and arms containing written texts: Exodus 13:1-6 and Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Deuteronomy 11:13-21. to wear and long tassels on their clothes.#23:5. These tassels were to show their devotion to God. See Numbers 15:37-41. 6They love to have the places of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues. 7They love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and for people to call them, ‘Rabbi.’#23:7 This is a Hebrew word meaning “my great one,” and was used as a term of respect for religious teachers.
8Don't let people call you ‘Rabbi.’ Only one is your Master Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9Don't call anyone by the title ‘Father’ here on earth. Only one is your Father, who is in heaven. 10Don't let people call you ‘Teacher.’ Only one is your Teacher, the Messiah. 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12Those who make themselves great will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be made great.
13But what a disaster is coming on you religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You slam shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. You yourselves don't go in, yet you don't let anyone in who is trying to enter. 14#23:14. Verse 14 is not in the most reliable early manuscripts. 15What a disaster is coming on you, religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you travel over land and sea to make a single convert, and when you do, you make him twice a son of Gehenna#23:15. “Gehenna” (see under 5:22). The emphasis here is on the destiny of the wicked. as you are yourselves. 16What a disaster is coming on those of you who say, ‘If you swear by the Temple that doesn't count, but if you swear by the gold of the Temple, then you have to keep your oath.’ What blind guides you are! 17What is greater—the gold, or the Temple that makes the gold holy? 18You say, ‘If you swear on the altar that doesn't count, but if you swear on the sacrifice that's on the altar, then you have to keep your oath.’ 19How foolish and blind you are! What is greater—the sacrifice, or the altar that makes the sacrifice holy? 20If you swear by the altar, you swear by it and by everything that's on it. 21If you swear by the Temple you swear by it and by the one who lives there. 22If you swear by heaven you swear by the throne of God and the one who sits there.
23What a disaster is coming on you religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay a tithe of mint, aniseed, and cumin, but you neglect the vital aspects of the law—doing good, showing mercy, exercising trust. Yes, you should pay your tithe, but don't forget these other things. 24You blind guides—you strain what you drink to keep out a fly but then you swallow a camel!
25What a disaster is coming on you religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside you're full of greed and self-indulgence. 26You blind Pharisees! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, so that the outside will also be clean.
27What a disaster is coming on you religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, looking good on the outside, but on the inside full of skeletons and all kinds of rottenness.#23:27. Literally, “uncleanness.” 28You're just the same. On the outside you look like good people to others, but on the inside you're full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
29What a disaster is coming on you religious teachers and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs as memorials to the prophets, and decorate the tombs of the good, 30and you say, ‘If we had lived in the times of our ancestors we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31But by saying this you testify against yourselves, proving that you belong to those who murdered the prophets! 32So get on with it—finish it all off using your forefathers' methods! 33You snakes, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the judgment of Gehenna?#23:33. “Gehenna” (see under 5:22). Referring to the end-time judgment.
34That's why I'm sending you prophets, wise men, and teachers. Some of them you will kill, some of them you will crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues, hunting them from town to town. 35As a result, you will be held accountable for the blood of all the good people that has been poured out on the land—from the blood of Abel, who did what was right, to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you killed between the Temple and the altar.
36I'm telling you, the consequences of all this will fall on this generation. 37Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! So often I wanted to gather your children as a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings—but you wouldn't let me. 38Now look—your house#23:38. The word house may refer to the Temple. is left abandoned, totally empty. 39I tell you this: you won't see me from now on until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”#23:39. Quoting Psalms 118:26.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
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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