Matthew 23
23
1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds, and to his disciples,
2 saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees have sat down in the chair of Moses.
3 Therefore, all things whatsoever that they shall say to you, observe and do. Yet truly, do not choose to act according to their works. For they say, but they do not do.
4 For they bind up heavy and unbearable burdens, and they impose them on men's shoulders. But they are not willing to move them with even a finger of their own.
5 Truly, they do all their works so that they may be seen by men. For they enlarge their phylacteries and glorify their hems.
6 And they love the first places at feasts, and the first chairs in the synagogues,
7 and greetings in the marketplace, and to be called Master by men.
8 But you must not be called Master. For One is your Master, and you are all brothers.
9 And do not choose to call anyone on earth your father. For One is your Father, who is in heaven.
10 Neither should you be called teachers. For One is your Teacher, the Christ.
11 Whoever is greater among you shall be your minister.
12 But whoever has exalted himself, shall be humbled. And whoever has humbled himself, shall be exalted.
13 So then: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you close the kingdom of heaven before men. For you yourselves do not enter, and those who are entering, you would not permit to enter.
14 Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you consume the houses of widows, praying long prayers. Because of this, you shall receive the greater judgment.
15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you travel around by sea and by land, in order to make one convert. And when he has been converted, you make him twice the son of Hell that you are yourselves.
16 Woe to you, blind guides, who say: 'Whoever will have sworn by the temple, it is nothing. But whoever will have sworn by the gold of the temple is obligated.'
17 You are foolish and blind! For which is greater: the gold, or the temple that sanctifies the gold?
18 And you say: 'Whoever will have sworn by the altar, it is nothing. But whoever will have sworn by the gift that is on the altar is obligated.'
19 How blind you are! For which is greater: the gift, or the altar that sanctifies the gift?
20 Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears by it, and by all that is on it.
21 And whoever will have sworn by the temple, swears by it, and by him who dwells in it.
22 And whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him who sits upon it.
23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you collect tithes on mint and dill and cumin, but you have abandoned the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, while not omitting the others.
24 You blind guides, straining out a gnat, while swallowing a camel!
25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you clean what is outside the cup and the dish, but on the inside you are full of avarice and impurity.
26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the dish, and then what is outside becomes clean.
27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed sepulchers, which outwardly appear brilliant to men, yet truly, inside, they are filled with the bones of the dead and with all filth.
28 So also, you certainly appear to men outwardly to be just. But inwardly you are filled with hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites, who build the sepulchers of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the just.
30 And then you say, 'If we had been there in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined with them in the blood of the prophets.'
31 And so you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons of those who killed the prophets.
32 Complete, then, the measure of your fathers.
33 You serpents, you brood of vipers! How will you escape from the judgment of Hell?
34 For this reason, behold, I send to you prophets and wisemen, and scribes. And some of these you will put to death and crucify; and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city,
35 so that upon you may fall all the blood of the just, which has been shed upon the earth, from the blood of Abel the just, even to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you killed between the temple and the altar.
36 Amen I say to you, all these things shall fall upon this generation.
37 Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone those who have been sent to you. How often I have wanted to gather your children together, in the way that a hen gathers her young under her wings. But you were not willing!
38 Behold, your house shall be abandoned to you, having been deserted.
39 For I say to you, you shall not see me again, until you say: 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' "
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Matthew 23
23
Jesus Warns against the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees
(Mk 12.38–39; Lk 11.43, 46; 20.45–46)
1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples. 2“The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees are the authorized interpreters of Moses' Law. 3So you must obey and follow everything they tell you to do; do not, however, imitate their actions, because they don't practise what they preach. 4They tie on to people's backs loads that are heavy and hard to carry, yet they aren't willing even to lift a finger to help them carry those loads. 5#Mt 6.1; Num 15.38; Deut 6.8They do everything so that people will see them. Look at the straps with scripture verses on them which they wear on their foreheads and arms, and notice how large they are! Notice also how long are the tassels on their cloaks!#23.5 tassels on their cloaks: These tassels were worn as a sign of devotion to God (see Num 15.37–41). 6They love the best places at feasts and the reserved seats in the synagogues; 7they love to be greeted with respect in the market places and to be called ‘Teacher’. 8You must not be called ‘Teacher’, because you are all members of one family and have only one Teacher. 9And you must not call anyone here on earth ‘Father’, because you have only the one Father in heaven. 10Nor should you be called ‘Leader’, because your one and only leader is the Messiah. 11#Mt 20.26–27; Mk 9.35; 10.43–44; Lk 22.26The greatest one among you must be your servant. 12#Lk 14.11; 18.14Whoever makes himself great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be made great.
Jesus Condemns their Hypocrisy
(Mk 12.40; Lk 11.39–42, 44, 52; 20.47)
13 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You lock the door to the Kingdom of heaven in people's faces, and you yourselves don't go in, nor do you allow in those who are trying to enter! # 23.13 Some manuscripts add verse 14: How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You take advantage of widows and rob them of their homes, and then make a show of saying long prayers! Because of this your punishment will be all the worse! (see Mk 12.40).
15 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You sail the seas and cross whole countries to win one convert; and when you succeed, you make him twice as deserving of going to hell as you yourselves are!
16 “How terrible for you, blind guides! You teach, ‘If someone swears by the Temple, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gold in the Temple, he is bound.’ 17Blind fools! Which is more important, the gold or the Temple which makes the gold holy? 18You also teach, ‘If someone swears by the altar, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gift on the altar, he is bound.’ 19How blind you are! Which is the more important, the gift or the altar which makes the gift holy? 20So then, when a person swears by the altar, he is swearing by it and by all the gifts on it; 21and when he swears by the Temple, he is swearing by it and by God, who lives there; 22#Is 66.1; Mt 5.34and when someone swears by heaven, he is swearing by God's throne and by him who sits on it.
23 #
Lev 27.30
“How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You give to God a tenth even of the seasoning herbs, such as mint, dill, and cumin, but you neglect to obey the really important teachings of the Law, such as justice and mercy and honesty. These you should practise, without neglecting the others. 24Blind guides! You strain a fly out of your drink, but swallow a camel!
25 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You clean the outside of your cup and plate, while the inside is full of what you have obtained by violence and selfishness. 26Blind Pharisee! Clean what is inside the cup first, and then the outside will be clean too!
27 #
Acts 23.3
“How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins.
Jesus Predicts their Punishment
(Lk 11.47–51)
29 “How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You make fine tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of those who lived good lives; 30and you claim that if you had lived during the time of your ancestors, you would not have done what they did and killed the prophets. 31So you actually admit that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets! 32Go on, then, and finish what your ancestors started! 33#Mt 3.7; 12.34; Lk 3.7You snakes and children of snakes! How do you expect to escape from being condemned to hell? 34And so I tell you that I will send you prophets and wise men and teachers; you will kill some of them, crucify others, and whip others in the synagogues and chase them from town to town. 35#Gen 4.8; 2 Chr 24.20–21As a result, the punishment for the murder of all innocent people will fall on you, from the murder of innocent Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar. 36I tell you indeed: the punishment for all these murders will fall on the people of this day!
Jesus' Love for Jerusalem
(Lk 13.34–35)
37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times have I wanted to put my arms round all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me! 38#Jer 22.5And so your Temple will be abandoned and empty. 39#Ps 118.26From now on, I tell you, you will never see me again until you say, ‘God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.