¹⁹ Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

²⁰ Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man^(A) has no place to lay his head.”

⁴⁸ Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.^(A)

Seven Woes on the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees

¹³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!^(A) 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.^{(B) [14] [a]}

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

¹⁶ “Woe to you, blind guides!^(E) 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.’^{(F) 17} You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?^{(G) 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?^{(H) 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^(I) in it. ²² And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.^(J)

²³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth^(K) of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.^(L) You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. ²⁴ You blind guides!^(M) 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,^(N) but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.^{(O) 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,^(P) 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^(Q) 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.^{(R) 32} Go ahead, then, and complete^(S) what your ancestors started!^(T)

³³ “You snakes! You brood of vipers!^(U) How will you escape being condemned to hell?^(V)

⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;^(A) and you will be my witnesses^(B) in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,^(C) and to the ends of the earth.”^(D)

Warning Against Idolatry

¹⁴ Do not be yoked together^(A) with unbelievers.^(B) For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?^{(C) 15} What harmony is there between Christ and Belial^[a]?^(D) Or what does a believer^(E) have in common with an unbeliever?^(F)

7 Therefore, since we have these promises,^(A) dear friends,^(B) let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness^(C) out of reverence for God.

Warning and Encouragement

¹⁴ Make every effort to live in peace with everyone^(A) and to be holy;^(B) without holiness no one will see the Lord.^(C)

¹⁶ For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power,^(A) but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.^(B)