Matt.23.1

Now Jesus turned to address his disciples, along with the crowd that had gathered with them.

Matt.23.1

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:

Matt.23.1

Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples,

Matt.23.1

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,

Matt.23.2

"The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God's Law.

Matt.23.2

"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.

Matt.23.2

saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.

Matt.23.2

"The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the Scriptures.

Matt.23.3

You won't go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don't live it. They don't take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It's all spit-and-polish veneer.

Matt.23.3

So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.

Matt.23.3

Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.

Matt.23.3

So practice and obey whatever they say to you, but don't follow their example. For they don't practice what they teach.

Matt.23.4

"Instead of giving you God's Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn't think of lifting a finger to help.

Matt.23.4

They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.

Matt.23.4

For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

Matt.23.4

They crush you with impossible religious demands and never lift a finger to help ease the burden.

Matt.23.5

Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next.

Matt.23.5

"Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long;

Matt.23.5

But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.

Matt.23.5

"Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear extra long tassels on their robes.

Matt.23.6

They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions,

Matt.23.6

they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues;

Matt.23.6

They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,

Matt.23.6

And how they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the most prominent seats in the synagogue!

Matt.23.7

preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called "Doctor' and "Reverend.'

Matt.23.7

they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi.'

Matt.23.7

greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, "Rabbi, Rabbi.'

Matt.23.7

They enjoy the attention they get on the streets, and they enjoy being called 'Rabbi.'

Matt.23.8

"Don't let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates.

Matt.23.8

"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers.

Matt.23.8

But you, do not be called "Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.

Matt.23.8

Don't ever let anyone call you 'Rabbi,' for you have only one teacher, and all of you are on the same level as brothers and sisters.

Matt.23.9

Don't set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of "Father'; you have only one Father, and he's in heaven.

Matt.23.9

And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.

Matt.23.9

Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.

Matt.23.9

And don't address anyone here on earth as 'Father,' for only God in heaven is your spiritual Father.

Matt.23.10

And don't let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them--Christ.

Matt.23.10

Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.

Matt.23.10

And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.

Matt.23.10

And don't let anyone call you 'Master,' for there is only one master, the Messiah.

Matt.23.11

"Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant.

Matt.23.11

The greatest among you will be your servant.

Matt.23.11

But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.

Matt.23.11

The greatest among you must be a servant.

Matt.23.12

If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Matt.23.12

For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Matt.23.12

And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Matt.23.12

But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

Matt.23.13

"I've had it with you! You're hopeless, you religion scholars, you Pharisees! Frauds! Your lives are roadblocks to God's kingdom. You refuse to enter, and won't let anyone else in either.

Matt.23.13

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.

Matt.23.13

"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

Matt.23.13

"How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you won't let others enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and you won't go in yourselves.

Matt.23.14

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him you make him into a replica of yourselves, double-damned.

Matt.23.14

See Footnote

Matt.23.14

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.

Matt.23.14

See Footnote

Matt.23.15

"You're hopeless! What arrogant stupidity! You say, "If someone makes a promise with his fingers crossed, that's nothing; but if he swears with his hand on the Bible, that's serious.'

Matt.23.15

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

Matt.23.15

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

Matt.23.15

Yes, how terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn him into twice the son of hell as you yourselves are.

Matt.23.16

What ignorance! Does the leather on the Bible carry more weight than the skin on your hands?

Matt.23.16

"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.'

Matt.23.16

"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, "Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'

Matt.23.16

"Blind guides! How terrible it will be for you! For you say that it means nothing to swear 'by God's Temple'--you can break that oath. But then you say that it is binding to swear 'by the gold in the Temple.'

Matt.23.17

And what about this piece of trivia: "If you shake hands on a promise, that's nothing; but if you raise your hand that God is your witness, that's serious'?

Matt.23.17

You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?

Matt.23.17

Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?

Matt.23.17

Blind fools! Which is greater, the gold, or the Temple that makes the gold sacred?

Matt.23.18

What ridiculous hairsplitting! What difference does it make whether you shake hands or raise hands?

Matt.23.18

You also 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.'

Matt.23.18

And, "Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'

Matt.23.18

And you say that to take an oath 'by the altar' can be broken, but to swear 'by the gifts on the altar' is binding!

Matt.23.19

A promise is a promise. What difference does it make if you make your promise inside or outside a house of worship? A promise is a promise. God is present, watching and holding you to account regardless.

Matt.23.19

You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?

Matt.23.19

Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?

Matt.23.19

How blind! For which is greater, the gift on the altar, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?

Matt.23.20

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but on the meat of God's Law, things like fairness and compassion and commitment--the absolute basics!-you carelessly take it or leave it. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required.

Matt.23.20

Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.

Matt.23.20

Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it.

Matt.23.20

When you swear 'by the altar,' you are swearing by it and by everything on it.

Matt.23.21

Do you have any idea how silly you look, writing a life story that's wrong from start to finish, nitpicking over commas and semicolons?

Matt.23.21

And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it.

Matt.23.21

He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.

Matt.23.21

And when you swear 'by the Temple,' you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it.

Matt.23.22

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You burnish the surface of your cups and bowls so they sparkle in the sun, while the insides are maggoty with your greed and gluttony.

Matt.23.22

And he who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.

Matt.23.22

And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

Matt.23.22

And when you swear 'by heaven,' you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne.

Matt.23.23

Stupid Pharisee! Scour the insides, and then the gleaming surface will mean something.

Matt.23.23

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

Matt.23.23

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.

Matt.23.23

"How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you ignore the important things of the law--justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things.

Matt.23.24

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You're like manicured grave plots, grass clipped and the flowers bright, but six feet down it's all rotting bones and worm-eaten flesh.

Matt.23.24

You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

Matt.23.24

Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

Matt.23.24

Blind guides! You strain your water so you won't accidentally swallow a gnat; then you swallow a camel!

Matt.23.25

People look at you and think you're saints, but beneath the skin you're total frauds.

Matt.23.25

"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.

Matt.23.25

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.

Matt.23.25

"How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy--full of greed and self-indulgence!

Matt.23.26

"You're hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You build granite tombs for your prophets and marble monuments for your saints.

Matt.23.26

Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

Matt.23.26

Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Matt.23.26

Blind Pharisees! First wash the inside of the cup, and then the outside will become clean, too.

Matt.23.27

And you say that if you had lived in the days of your ancestors, no blood would have been on your hands.

Matt.23.27

"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 dead men's bones and everything unclean.

Matt.23.27

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.

Matt.23.27

"How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs--beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people's bones and all sorts of impurity.

Matt.23.28

You protest too much! You're cut from the same cloth as those murderers,

Matt.23.28

In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

Matt.23.28

Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Matt.23.28

You try to look like upright people outwardly, but inside your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Matt.23.29

and daily add to the death count.

Matt.23.29

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous.

Matt.23.29

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,

Matt.23.29

"How terrible it will be for you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed and decorate the graves of the godly people your ancestors destroyed.

Matt.23.30

"Snakes! Reptilian sneaks! Do you think you can worm your way out of this? Never have to pay the piper?

Matt.23.30

And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'

Matt.23.30

and say, "If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'

Matt.23.30

Then you say, 'We never would have joined them in killing the prophets.'

Matt.23.31

It's on account of people like you that I send prophets and wise guides and scholars generation after generation--and generation after generation you treat them like dirt, greeting them with lynch mobs, hounding them with abuse.

Matt.23.31

So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Matt.23.31

"Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Matt.23.31

"In saying that, you are accusing yourselves of being the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

Matt.23.32

"You can't squirm out of this: Every drop of righteous blood ever spilled on this earth, beginning with the blood of that good man Abel right down to the blood of Zechariah, Barachiah's son, whom you murdered at his prayers, is on your head.

Matt.23.32

Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!

Matt.23.32

Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt.

Matt.23.32

Go ahead. Finish what they started.

Matt.23.33

All this, I'm telling you, is coming down on you, on your generation.

Matt.23.33

"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?

Matt.23.33

Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell?

Matt.23.33

Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?

Matt.23.34

"Jerusalem! Jerusalem! Murderer of prophets! Killer of the ones who brought you God's news! How often I've ached to embrace your children, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you wouldn't let me.

Matt.23.34

Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.

Matt.23.34

Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city,

Matt.23.34

I will send you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. You will kill some by crucifixion and whip others in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city.

Matt.23.35

And now you're so desolate, nothing but a ghost town.

Matt.23.35

And 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.

Matt.23.35

that 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 Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

Matt.23.35

As a result, you will become guilty of murdering all the godly people from righteous Abel to Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered in the Temple between the altar and the sanctuary.

Matt.23.36

What is there left to say? Only this: I'm out of here soon. The next time you see me you'll say, "Oh, God has blessed him! He's come, bringing God's rule!'"

Matt.23.36

I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.

Matt.23.36

Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Matt.23.36

I assure you, all the accumulated judgment of the centuries will break upon the heads of this very generation.

Matt.23.37

"O 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, but you were not willing.

Matt.23.37

"O 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, but you were not willing.

Matt.23.37

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!

Matt.23.37

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God's messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn't let me.

Matt.23.38

Look, your house is left to you desolate.

Matt.23.38

Look, your house is left to you desolate.

Matt.23.38

See! Your house is left to you desolate;

Matt.23.38

And now look, your house is left to you, empty and desolate.

Matt.23.39

For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

Matt.23.39

For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"

Matt.23.39

for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!"'

Matt.23.39

For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, 'Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord!'"