Matthew 23
23
A Warning Against Hypocrisy
1Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees base what they tell you on the teachings of Moses. 3So you must be careful to do everything they say. But don’t do what they do, because they’re all talk and no action. 4They tie up heavy, bulky loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they aren’t willing to lift a finger themselves to help.
5“Everything they do is for others to see. People sometimes wear little boxes on their foreheads and arms that hold Scripture quotes. But they make their boxes big and obvious. People put tassels on the four corners of their clothes to remind them to obey God’s commands. But they make their tassels extra long. 6They love to sit in the places of honor at dinners and have the most important seats in the synagogues. 7They love to be greeted with respect in the markets and to be called ‘Rabbi.’
8“But you shouldn’t be called ‘Rabbi,’ because you have only one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9And don’t give anyone on earth the title ‘father,’ because you have only one Father, who is in heaven. 10And you shouldn’t be called ‘master,’ because you have only one Master, and he’s the Messiah. 11The greatest among you has to be your servant. 12People who lift themselves up will be humbled, but people who humble themselves will be lifted up.
Woe to the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees
13-14“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You don’t enter yourselves, but you won’t let in other people who are trying to enter.
15“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You travel by land and sea to win one person to your way of living, but then you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.
16“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone makes a promise in the name of the temple, it means nothing. But if anyone makes a promise in the name of the gold in the temple, they have to keep that promise.’ 17Blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold holy? 18You also say, ‘If anyone makes a promise in the name of the altar, it means nothing. But if anyone makes a promise in the name of the gift on the altar, they have to keep that promise.’ 19You’re blind! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift holy? 20Any promise that’s made in the name of the altar includes everything that’s on it! 21In the same way, any promise that’s made in the name of the temple includes the one who lives in it, 22and any promise made in the name of heaven includes God’s throne and the one who sits on it.
23“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You give God a tenth of your spices like mint, dill, and cumin. But you’ve neglected the more important things in the law, which are justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have done those things and not neglected the first ones either. 24You blind guides! You strain a gnat out of your food, but then you swallow a whole camel!
25“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but the inside is full of greed and selfishness. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside will also be clean.
27“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You’re like tombs that have been painted white. They look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside they’re full of dead people’s bones and other things that aren’t pure and clean. 28You’re just like that. On the outside you appear to be doing what’s right, but on the inside you’re full of hypocrisy and crime.
29“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the godly. 30And you say, ‘If we’d lived back in those days, we wouldn’t have helped kill the prophets.’ 31But you’re being witnesses against yourselves. You’re admitting that you’re descended from the people who murdered the prophets. 32They killed them, and you finish the job by building their tombs!
33“You nest of poisonous snakes! How will you escape being sentenced to hell? 34I’m sending you prophets, wise people, and teachers. You’ll kill some of them by nailing them to a cross. You’ll whip others in your synagogues and chase them from town to town. 35So you’ll have to pay for all the blood of godly people that has been spilled on the earth. I mean from the blood of godly Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berekiah, who was murdered between the temple and the altar. 36Truly I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for all of it.
37“Jerusalem! Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and throw stones at those who are sent to you. Many times I’ve wanted to gather your people together the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you wouldn’t let me! 38And now it’s too late: Your house is going to be deserted. 39I tell you, you won’t see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”
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Matthew 23
23
Seven Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees
1Then Jesus #For ver. 1, 2, 5-7, see Mark 12:38, 39; Luke 20:45, 46; [Luke 11:43]said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2#[Ezra 7:6, 10, 25; Neh. 8:4] “The scribes and the Pharisees #[Deut. 17:10, 11; John 9:28, 29]sit on Moses’ seat, 3so do and observe whatever they tell you, #[ch. 5:20; 15:3-13] but not the works they do. #Rom. 2:17-23For they preach, but do not practice. 4#Luke 11:46; [ch. 11:28-30; Acts 15:10]They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear,#23:4 Some manuscripts omit hard to bear and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. 5#[See ver. 1 above] They do all their deeds #ch. 6:1, 16; [John 5:44] to be seen by others. For they make #Ex. 13:9; Deut. 6:8; 11:18 their phylacteries broad and #See ch. 9:20their fringes long, 6and they #Luke 14:7, 8 love the place of honor at feasts and #Luke 11:43the best seats in the synagogues 7and #[See ver. 6 above] greetings in #ch. 11:16; 20:3 the marketplaces and being called #See John 1:38rabbi#23:7 Rabbi means my teacher, or my master; also verse 8 by others. 8#James 3:1 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are #Luke 22:32; John 21:23; See Philem. 16all brothers.#23:8 Or brothers and sisters 9#[1 Cor. 1:12; 3:4] And call no man your father on earth, for #ch. 6:9; Mal. 1:6; See ch. 7:11you have one Father, who is in heaven. 10Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, #See ch. 1:17the Christ. 11#ch. 20:26The greatest among you shall be your servant. 12#Luke 14:11; 18:14; [ch. 18:4; Prov. 29:23; Ezek. 21:26; James 4:6, 10; 1 Pet. 5:5, 6]Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
13 “But woe #
Luke 11:52 to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you # [ch. 16:19] shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you # [ch. 5:20; 21:31; Luke 7:30] neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. # 23:13 Some manuscripts add here (or after verse 12) verse 14: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation 15Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single #Acts 2:10; 6:5; 13:43 proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a #[John 17:12; 2 Thess. 2:3] child of #See ch. 5:29hell#23:15 Greek Gehenna; also verse 33 as yourselves.
16 “Woe to # See ch. 15:14 you, # ver. 17, 19, 26; John 9:39-41; Rom. 2:19; 2 Pet. 1:9; Rev. 3:17 blind guides, who say, # [ch. 5:33-35] ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or #Ex. 30:29the temple that has made the gold sacred? 18And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by #ch. 5:23the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ 19You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or #Ex. 29:37the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by #1 Kgs. 8:13; 2 Chr. 6:2; Ps. 26:8; 132:14him who dwells in it. 22And whoever swears by #[ch. 21:25] heaven swears by #See ch. 5:34 the throne of God and by #See Rev. 4:2him who sits upon it.
23 #
Luke 11:42 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For #
Deut. 14:22; [Luke 18:12] you tithe mint and dill and #
Isa. 28:25, 27 cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: #
Ps. 33:5; Jer. 5:1; Mic. 6:8; Zech. 7:9 justice and mercy and faithfulness. # [1 Sam. 15:22] These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 24You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing #ch. 19:24a camel!
25 # For ver. 25-28, [ch. 15:11-20] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For #
Luke 11:39, 40 you clean the outside of #
Mark 7:4 the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of #
Luke 16:14; 20:47 greed and self-indulgence. 26You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of #[See ver. 25 above]the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.
27 #
Luke 11:44 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like # [Acts 23:3] whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and #
Eph. 5:3; [Num. 19:16; 2 Kgs. 23:16] all uncleanness. 28So you also #ver. 5 outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of #Luke 12:1hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 #
Luke 11:47, 48 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31Thus you witness against yourselves that you are #Acts 7:51, 52sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32#Gen. 15:16; Dan. 8:23; 1 Thess. 2:15, 16Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. 33You serpents, #ch. 3:7; 12:34 you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to #ver. 15hell? 34#For ver. 34-36, [Luke 11:49-51] Therefore #ch. 10:16 I send you #See Acts 13:1; 1 Cor. 12:28 prophets and wise men and #ch. 13:52 scribes, #See ch. 21:35 some of whom you will kill and crucify, and #See ch. 21:35 some you will #ch. 10:17; Mark 13:9; Luke 21:12; Acts 22:19; 26:11; [Luke 12:11] flog in your synagogues and #ch. 10:23persecute from town to town, 35so that on you may come all #Rev. 18:24 the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous #Gen. 4:4, 8; Heb. 11:4; 1 John 3:12 Abel to the blood of #[Zech. 1:1] Zechariah the son of Barachiah,#23:35 Some manuscripts omit the son of Barachiah whom you murdered between #See Luke 1:9 the sanctuary and #Ex. 40:6; 2 Kgs. 16:14; Ezek. 40:47the altar. 36Truly, I say to you, #[ch. 10:23; 16:28; 24:34]all these things will come upon this generation.
Lament over Jerusalem
37 # For ver. 37-39, see Luke 13:34, 35; [Luke 19:41-44] “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that # See ch. 21:35 kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have # [Ps. 147:2; Prov. 1:24] gathered #
Luke 23:28 your children together # [Deut. 32:11, 12] as a hen gathers her brood #
Ruth 2:12 under her wings, and #
John 5:40
you were not willing! 38See, #[Isa. 64:11; Jer. 12:7; 22:5]your house is left to you desolate. 39For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, #ch. 21:9; Cited from Ps. 118:26‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
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