A Warning Against Hypocrisy^(A)(B)

23 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ² “The teachers of the law^(C) and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. ³ So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. ⁴ They 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.^(D)

⁵ “Everything they do is done for people to see:^(E) They make their phylacteries^[a](F) wide and the tassels on their garments^(G) long; ⁶ they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues;^{(H) 7} they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others.^(I)

⁸ “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. ⁹ And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father,^(J) and he is in heaven. ¹⁰ Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. ¹¹ The greatest among you will be your servant.^{(K) 12} For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.^(L)

Seven Woes on the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees

¹³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!^(M) 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.^{(N) [14] [b]}

¹⁵ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert,^(O) and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell^(P) as you are.

¹⁶ “Woe to you, blind guides!^(Q) 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.’^{(R) 17} You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?^{(S) 18} You 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.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?^{(T) 20} Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells^(U) in it. ²² And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.^(V)

²³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth^(W) of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.^(X) You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. ²⁴ You blind guides!^(Y) 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,^(Z) but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.^{(AA) 26} Blind 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,^(AB) which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 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.

²⁹ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets^(AC) and decorate the graves of the righteous. ³⁰ And 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.’ ³¹ So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.^{(AD) 32} Go ahead, then, and complete^(AE) what your ancestors started!^(AF)

³³ “You snakes! You brood of vipers!^(AG) How will you escape being condemned to hell?^{(AH) 34} Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify;^(AI) others you will flog in your synagogues^(AJ) and pursue from town to town.^{(AK) 35} And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel^(AL) to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah,^(AM) whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.^{(AN) 36} Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.^(AO)

³⁷ “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,^(AP) how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings,^(AQ) and you were not willing. ³⁸ Look, your house is left to you desolate.^{(AR) 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.’^[c]”^(AS)

144,000 Sealed

7 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners^(A) of the earth, holding back the four winds^(B) of the earth to prevent^(C) any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. ² Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal^(D) of the living God.^(E) He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea:^{(F) 3} “Do not harm^(G) the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads^(H) of the servants of our God.” ⁴ Then I heard the number^(I) of those who were sealed: 144,000^(J) from all the tribes of Israel.

The Great Multitude in White Robes

⁹ After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,^(K) standing before the throne^(L) and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes^(M) and were holding palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰ And they cried out in a loud voice:

¹¹ All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders^(P) and the four living creatures.^(Q) They fell down on their faces^(R) before the throne and worshiped God, ¹² saying:

¹³ Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes^(T)—who are they, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴ I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes^(U) and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.^{(V) 15} Therefore,

The Two Witnesses

11 I was given a reed like a measuring rod^(A) and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. ² But exclude the outer court;^(B) do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles.^(C) They will trample on the holy city^(D) for 42 months.^{(E) 3} And I will appoint my two witnesses,^(F) and they will prophesy for 1,260 days,^(G) clothed in sackcloth.”^{(H) 4} They are “the two olive trees”^(I) and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”^{[a](J) 5} If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies.^(K) This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die.^{(L) 6} They have power to shut up the heavens^(M) so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying;^(N) and they have power to turn the waters into blood^(O) and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

⁷ Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast^(P) that comes up from the Abyss^(Q) will attack them,^(R) and overpower and kill them. ⁸ Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city^(S)—which is figuratively called Sodom^(T) and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.^{(U) 9} For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation^(V) will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.^{(W) 10} The inhabitants of the earth^(X) will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts,^(Y) because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

¹¹ But after the three and a half days^(Z) the breath^[b] of life from God entered them,^(AA) and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. ¹² Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.”^(AB) And they went up to heaven in a cloud,^(AC) while their enemies looked on.

¹³ At that very hour there was a severe earthquake^(AD) and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory^(AE) to the God of heaven.^(AF)

¹⁴ The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.^(AG)

The Seventh Trumpet

¹⁵ The seventh angel sounded his trumpet,^(AH) and there were loud voices^(AI) in heaven, which said:

¹⁶ And the twenty-four elders,^(AL) who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces^(AM) and worshiped God, ¹⁷ saying:

¹⁹ Then God’s temple^(AV) in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant.^(AW) And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder,^(AX) an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.^(AY)