Matthew 23
1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples,
Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples:
2 saying, The scribes and the Pharisees have set themselves down in Moses' seat:
“The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.
3 all things therefore, whatever they may tell you, do and keep. But do not after their works, for they say and do not,
So practice and observe everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
4 but bind burdens heavy and hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of men, but will not move them with their finger.
They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5 And all their works they do to be seen of men: for they make broad their phylacteries and enlarge the borders [of their garments],
All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
6 and love the chief place in feasts and the first seats in the synagogues,
They love the places of honor at banquets, the chief seats in the synagogues,
7 and salutations in the market-places, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
the greetings in the marketplaces, and the title of ‘Rabbi’ by which they are addressed.
8 But ye, be not ye called Rabbi; for one is your instructor, and all ye are brethren.
But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.
9 And call not [any one] your father upon the earth; for one is your Father, he who is in the heavens.
And do not call anyone on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
10 Neither be called instructors, for one is your instructor, the Christ.
Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Christ.
11 But the greatest of you shall be your servant.
The greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 And whoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled, and whoever shall humble himself shall be exalted.
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye shut up the kingdom of the heavens before men; for ye do not enter, nor do ye suffer those that are entering to go in.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let in those who wish to enter.
15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye compass the sea and the dry [land] to make one proselyte, and when he is become [such], ye make him twofold more [the] son of hell than yourselves. (Geenna g1067)
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You traverse land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are. (Geenna g1067)
16 Woe to you, blind guides, who say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor.
Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’
17 Fools and blind, for which is greater, the gold, or the temple which sanctifies the gold?
You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes it sacred?
18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it is a debtor.
And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’
19 [Fools and] blind ones, for which is greater, the gift, or the altar which sanctifies the gift?
You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes it sacred?
20 He therefore that swears by the altar swears by it and by all things that are upon it.
So then, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
21 And he that swears by the temple swears by it and by him that dwells in it.
And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the One who dwells in it.
22 And he that swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him that sits upon it.
And he who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the One who sits on it.
23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye pay tithes of mint and anise and cummin, and ye have left aside the weightier matters of the law, judgment and mercy and faith: these ye ought to have done and not have left those aside.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
24 Blind guides, who strain out the gnat, but drink down the camel.
You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but within they are full of rapine and intemperance.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
26 Blind Pharisee, make clean first the inside of the cup and of the dish, that their outside also may become clean.
Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, so that the outside may become clean as well.
27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye are like whited sepulchres, which appear beautiful outwardly, but within are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of impurity.
28 Thus also ye, outwardly ye appear righteous to men, but within are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
In the same way, on the outside you appear to be righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets and adorn the tombs of the just,
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous.
30 and ye 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.
And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
31 So that ye bear witness of yourselves that ye are sons of those who slew the prophets:
So you testify against yourselves that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets.
32 and ye, fill ye up the measure of your fathers.
Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your fathers.
You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape the sentence of hell? (Geenna g1067)
34 Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes; and [some] of them ye will kill and crucify, and [some] of them ye will scourge in your synagogues, and will persecute from city to city;
Because of this, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and others you will flog in your synagogues and persecute in town after town.
35 so that all righteous blood shed upon the earth should come upon you, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
And so upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.
37 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, [the city] that kills the prophets and stones those that are sent unto her, how often would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate;
Look, your house is left to you desolate.
39 for I say unto you, Ye shall in no wise see me henceforth until ye say, Blessed [be] he that comes in the name of [the] Lord.
For I tell you that you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
