18 And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the [a]offering that is on it is obligated.’ 19 You blind men, (A)which is [b]more important, the [c]offering or the altar that sanctifies the [d]offering? 20 Therefore, the one who swears by the altar, swears both by [e]the altar and by everything on it. 21 And the one who swears by the [f]temple, swears both by [g]the temple and by Him who (B)dwells in it. 22 And the one who swears by [h]heaven, (C)swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

23 (D)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and [i]cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 You (E)blind guides, who [j]strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For (F)you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full [k]of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee, first (G)clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the [l]outside of it may also become clean.

27 (H)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 (I)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30 and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves, that you (J)are [m]sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 [n]Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 You snakes, (K)you [o]offspring of vipers, how [p]will you escape the [q]sentence of [r](L)hell?

34 (M)Therefore, behold, (N)I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will (O)flog in your synagogues, and (P)persecute from city to city,

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 23:18 Or gift
  2. Matthew 23:19 Lit greater
  3. Matthew 23:19 Or gift
  4. Matthew 23:19 Or gift
  5. Matthew 23:20 Lit it
  6. Matthew 23:21 Or sanctuary
  7. Matthew 23:21 Lit it
  8. Matthew 23:22 I.e., an indirect reference to God
  9. Matthew 23:23 Similar to caraway seeds
  10. Matthew 23:24 Or filter out
  11. Matthew 23:25 Or as a result of
  12. Matthew 23:26 If the inside was ritually unclean, the entire vessel was unclean whether the outside was cleaned or not (cf. Num 19:15)
  13. Matthew 23:31 Or descendants
  14. Matthew 23:32 I.e., finish what they started
  15. Matthew 23:33 Or brood
  16. Matthew 23:33 Lit are you to escape
  17. Matthew 23:33 Or judgment
  18. Matthew 23:33 Gr Gehenna

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?(A) 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(B) in it. 22 And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.(C)

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth(D) of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness.(E) You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides!(F) 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,(G) but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.(H) 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,(I) 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(J) 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.(K) 32 Go ahead, then, and complete(L) what your ancestors started!(M)

33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers!(N) How will you escape being condemned to hell?(O) 34 Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify;(P) others you will flog in your synagogues(Q) and pursue from town to town.(R)

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