¹³ “What a weariness this is,” you say, and you sniff at it,^[a] says the Lord of hosts. You bring what has been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the Lord.^(A)

³⁷ He came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep awake one hour? ³⁸ Keep awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial;^[a] the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”^(A)

⁴ But some were there who said to one another in anger, “Why was the ointment wasted in this way? ⁵ For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her.

Concerning Fasting

¹⁶ “And whenever you fast, do not look somber, like the hypocrites, for they mark their faces to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.

Concerning Prayer

⁵ “And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.^(A)

Concerning Almsgiving

6 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.^(A)

² “So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.^(B)

¹³ And this you do as well: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor at your hand.

⁷ By offering polluted food on my altar. And you say, “How have we polluted it?”^[a] By thinking that the Lord’s table may be despised.^{(A) 8} When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not wrong? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not wrong? Try presenting that to your governor; will he be pleased with you or show you favor? says the Lord of hosts.^(B)

⁵ “Say to all the people of the land and the priests: When you fasted and lamented in the fifth month and in the seventh for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted?^{(A) 6} And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat and drink only for yourselves?