1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, (Mt 23:5; Mr 12:38; Lu 11:43; Lu 20:45)2“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, (De 17:10; Ezr 7:6; Ezr 7:10; Ezr 7:25; Ne 8:4; Joh 9:28)3so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. (Mt 5:20; Mt 15:3; Ro 2:17)4They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear,[1] and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. (Mt 11:28; Lu 11:46; Ac 15:10)5They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, (Ex 13:9; De 6:8; De 11:18; Mt 6:1; Mt 6:16; Mt 9:20; Mt 23:1; Joh 5:44)6and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues (Lu 11:43; Lu 14:7)7and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi[2] by others. (Mt 11:16; Mt 20:3; Mt 23:6; Joh 1:38)8But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.[3] (Lu 22:32; Joh 21:23; Phm 1:16; Jas 3:1)9And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. (Mal 1:6; Mt 6:9; Mt 7:11; 1Co 1:12; 1Co 3:4)10Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. (Mt 1:17)11The greatest among you shall be your servant. (Mt 20:26)12Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. (Pr 29:23; Eze 21:26; Mt 18:4; Lu 14:11; Lu 18:14; Jas 4:6; Jas 4:10; 1Pe 5:5)13“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.[4] (Mt 5:20; Mt 16:19; Mt 21:31; Lu 7:30; Lu 11:52)15Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell[5] as yourselves. (Mt 5:29; Joh 17:12; Ac 2:10; Ac 6:5; Ac 13:43; 2Th 2:3)16“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘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.’ (Mt 5:33; Mt 15:14; Mt 23:17; Mt 23:19; Mt 23:26; Joh 9:39; Ro 2:19; 2Pe 1:9; Re 3:17)17You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? (Ex 30:29)18And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ (Mt 5:23)19You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? (Ex 29:37)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 him who dwells in it. (1Ki 8:13; 2Ch 6:2; Ps 26:8; Ps 132:14)22And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it. (Mt 5:34; Mt 21:25; Re 4:2)23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. (De 14:22; 1Sa 15:22; Ps 33:5; Isa 28:25; Isa 28:27; Jer 5:1; Mic 6:8; Zec 7:9; Lu 11:42; Lu 18:12)24You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel! (Mt 19:24)25“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. (Mt 15:11; Mr 7:4; Lu 11:39; Lu 16:14; Lu 20:47)26You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean. (Mt 23:25)27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. (Nu 19:16; 2Ki 23:16; Lu 11:44; Ac 23:3; Eph 5:3)28So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Mt 23:5; Lu 12:1)29“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, (Lu 11:47)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 sons of those who murdered the prophets. (Ac 7:51)32Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. (Ge 15:16; Da 8:23; 1Th 2:15)33You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? (Mt 3:7; Mt 12:34; Mt 23:15)34Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, (Mt 10:16; Mt 10:17; Mt 10:23; Mt 13:52; Mt 21:35; Mr 13:9; Lu 11:49; Lu 12:11; Lu 21:12; Ac 13:1; Ac 22:19; Ac 26:11; 1Co 12:28)35so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah,[6] whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. (Ge 4:4; Ge 4:8; Ex 40:6; 2Ki 16:14; Eze 40:47; Zec 1:1; Lu 1:9; Heb 11:4; 1Jo 3:12; Re 18:24)36Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. (Mt 10:23; Mt 16:28; Mt 24:34)
Lament over Jerusalem
37“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (De 32:11; Ru 2:12; Ps 147:2; Pr 1:24; Mt 21:35; Lu 13:34; Lu 19:41; Lu 23:28; Joh 5:40)38See, your house is left to you desolate. (Isa 64:11; Jer 12:7; Jer 22:5)39For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” (Ps 118:26; Mt 21:9)
Matthew 23
New International Version
A warning against hypocrisy
1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:2‘The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.3So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practise what they preach.4They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.5‘Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries[1] wide and the tassels on their garments long;6they love the place of honour at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues;7they love to be greeted with respect in the market-places and to be called “Rabbi” by others.8‘But you are not to be called “Rabbi”, for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.9And do not call anyone on earth “father”, for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.10Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah.11The greatest among you will be your servant.12For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Seven woes on 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 yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.[2] (Mr 12:40; Lu 20:47)15‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.16‘Woe to you, blind guides! You say, “If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.”17You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?18You also say, “If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.”19You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?20Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.21And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it.22And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.23‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practised the latter, without neglecting the former.24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.25‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.27‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.28In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.29‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous.30And you say, “If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.”31So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.32Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started!33‘You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?34Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.35And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.36Truly I tell you, all this will come upon this generation.37‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.38Look, your house is left to you desolate.39For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” ’ (Ps 118:26)