Matthew 23
23
1Then Jesus spake to the multitudes, and to his disciples,
2saying, ‘On the seat of Moses sat down the scribes and the Pharisees;
3all, then, as much as they may say to you to observe, observe and do, but according to their works do not, for they say, and do not;
4for they bind together burdens heavy and grievous to be borne, and lay upon the shoulders of men, but with their finger they will not move them.
5‘And all their works they do to be seen by men, and they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the fringes of their garments,
6they love also the chief couches in the supper, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
7and the salutations in the market-places, and to be called by men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
8‘And ye — ye may not be called Rabbi, for one is your director — the Christ, and all ye are brethren;
9and ye may not call [any] your father on the earth, for one is your Father, who is in the heavens,
10nor may ye be called directors, for one is your director — the Christ.
11And the greater of you shall be your ministrant,
12and whoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled, and whoever shall humble himself shall be exalted.
13‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut up the reign of the heavens before men, for ye do not go in, nor those going in do ye suffer to enter.
14‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye eat up the houses of the widows, and for a pretence make long prayers, because of this ye shall receive more abundant judgment.
15‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye go round the sea and the dry land to make one proselyte, and whenever it may happen — ye make him a son of gehenna twofold more than yourselves.
16‘Woe to you, blind guides, who are saying, Whoever may swear by the sanctuary, it is nothing, but whoever may swear by the gold of the sanctuary — is debtor!
17Fools and blind! for which [is] greater, the gold, or the sanctuary that is sanctifying the gold?
18‘And, whoever may swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever may swear by the gift that is upon it — is debtor!
19Fools and blind! for which [is] greater, the gift, or the altar that is sanctifying the gift?
20‘He therefore who did swear by the altar, doth swear by it, and by all things on it;
21and he who did swear by the sanctuary, doth swear by it, and by Him who is dwelling in it;
22and he who did swear by the heaven, doth swear by the throne of God, and by Him who is sitting upon it.
23‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye give tithe of the mint, and the dill, and the cumin, and did neglect the weightier things of the Law — the judgment, and the kindness, and the faith; these it behoved [you] to do, and those not to neglect.
24‘Blind guides! who are straining out the gnat, and the camel are swallowing.
25‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye make clean the outside of the cup and the plate, and within they are full of rapine and incontinence.
26‘Blind Pharisee! cleanse first the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside of them also may become clean.
27‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye are like to whitewashed sepulchres, which outwardly indeed do appear beautiful, and within are full of bones of dead men, and of all uncleanness;
28so also ye outwardly indeed do appear to men righteous, and within ye are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29‘Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and adorn the tombs of the righteous,
30and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31So that ye testify to yourselves, that ye are sons of them who did murder the prophets;
32and ye — ye fill up the measure of your fathers.
33‘Serpents! brood of vipers! how may ye escape from the judgment of the gehenna?
34‘Because of this, lo, I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, and of them ye will kill and crucify, and of them ye will scourge in your synagogues, and will pursue from city to city;
35that on you may come all the righteous blood being poured out on the earth from the blood of Abel the righteous, unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar:
36verily I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation.
37‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that art killing the prophets, and stoning those sent unto thee, how often did I will to gather thy children together, as a hen doth gather her own chickens under the wings, and ye did not will.
38Lo, left desolate to you is your house;
39for I say to you, ye may not see me henceforth, till ye may say, Blessed [is] he who is coming in the name of the Lord.’
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Matthew 23: YLT98
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
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.