Matthew 23
23
The Denouncing of the Scribes and Pharisees
Mk 12:38–40; Lk 11:37–52; 20:45–47
1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples, 2#Ezr 7:6; 7:25“The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3Therefore, whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do their works. For they speak, but do nothing. 4#Lk 11:46; Ac 15:10They fasten heavy loads that are hard to carry and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with their finger.
5#Dt 6:8; Mt 9:20“They do all their works to be seen by men. They make their Scripture boxes broad and lengthen the tassels on their prayer shawls. 6They love the places of honor at feasts, and the prominent seats in the synagogues, 7#Jn 1:38; 1:49and greetings in the marketplaces, and being called ‘Rabbi’ by men.
8#Jas 3:1; Mt 23:10“But do not be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brothers. 9#Mal 1:6; Mt 7:11And call no man on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. 10Nor be called teachers, for you have one Teacher, the Christ. 11He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12#Lk 14:11; 18:14For he who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
13#Lk 11:52; Mt 23:27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven against men. For you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who are entering to go in. 14#Mk 12:40; Lk 20:47Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You devour widows’ houses and for pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.
15#Ac 13:43; 2:10“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You travel sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
16#Mt 15:14; 23:24“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 obligated.’ 17#Mt 23:19You blind fools! Which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? 18And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing. But if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is obligated.’ 19#Ex 29:37You blind fools! Which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? 20Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. 21#1Ki 8:13; Ps 26:8But he who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. 22#Mt 5:34; Ps 11:4And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.
23#Lk 11:42; Mic 6:8; 1Sa 15:22“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You tithe mint and dill and cumin, but have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done without leaving the others undone. 24#Mt 19:24You blind guides who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25#Mt 15:19–20; Lk 11:39–40“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and greed. 26You blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may also be clean.
27#Lk 11:44; Ac 23:3“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and of all uncleanness. 28#Mt 23:5So you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29#Lk 11:47–48“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build the tombs of the prophets, and adorn the memorials of the righteous, 30and say, ‘If we lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have partaken with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31#Ac 7:51–52Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32#Ge 15:16Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt.
33#Mt 3:7; 12:34“You serpents! You generation of vipers! How can you escape the judgment of hell? 34#Mt 10:16–17; 10:23Therefore I send you prophets, and wise men, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute them from city to city, 35#Ge 4:8; Zec 1:1that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36#Mt 24:34; 10:23Truly I say to you, all these things will come on this generation.
The Lament Over Jerusalem
Lk 13:34–35
37#Ru 2:12; Mt 5:12“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you, how often I would have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not! 38#Jer 22:5Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39#Ps 118:26; Mt 21:9For I tell you, you shall not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’#Ps 118:26.”
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Matthew 23: MEV
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Military Bible Association
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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