¹² I fast^(A) twice a week and give a tenth^(B) of all I get.’

⁴² “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth^(A) of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God.^(B) You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.^(C)

²³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth^(A) of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.^(B) You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. ²⁴ You blind guides!^(C) You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

Jesus Questioned About Fasting^(A)

¹⁴ Then John’s^(B) disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often,^(C) but your disciples do not fast?”

¹⁰ So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’”^(A)

⁸ For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things,^(A) holding promise for both the present life^(B) and the life to come.^(C)

⁷ You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:

Giving to the Needy

6 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them.^(A) If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

⁸ “Will a mere mortal rob^(A) God? Yet you rob me.

“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’

“In tithes^(B) and offerings.