Matthew 23
American Standard Version
23 Then spake Jesus to the multitudes and to his disciples, 2 saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat: 3 all things therefore whatsoever they bid you, these do and observe: but do not ye after their works; for they say, and do not. 4 Yea, they bind heavy burdens [a]and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger. 5 But all their works they do to be seen of men: for they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6 and love the chief place at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called of men, Rabbi. 8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your teacher, and all ye are brethren. 9 And call no man your father on the earth: for one is your Father, [b]even he who is in heaven. 10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your master, even the Christ. 11 But he that is [c]greatest among you shall be your [d]servant. 12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled; and whosoever shall humble himself shall be exalted.
13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven [e]against men: for ye enter not in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering in to enter.[f]
15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is become so, ye make him twofold more a son of [g]hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, that say, Whosoever shall swear by the [h]temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the [i]temple, he is [j]a debtor. 17 Ye fools and blind: for which is greater, the gold, or the [k]temple that hath sanctified the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, he is [l]a debtor. 19 Ye blind: for which is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 He therefore that sweareth by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And he that sweareth by the [m]temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that sweareth by the heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and [n]anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, and mercy, and faith: but these ye ought to have done, and not to have left the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, that strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel!
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye cleanse the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full from extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside thereof may become clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inwardly are full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but inwardly ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and garnish the tombs of the righteous, 30 and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye offspring of vipers, how shall ye escape the judgment of [o]hell? 34 Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: some of them shall ye kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city: 35 that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of Abel the righteous unto the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38 Behold, your house is left unto you [p]desolate. 39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Footnotes
- Matthew 23:4 Many ancient authorities omit and grievous to be borne.
- Matthew 23:9 Greek the heavenly.
- Matthew 23:11 Greek greater.
- Matthew 23:11 Or, minister
- Matthew 23:13 Greek before.
- Matthew 23:13 Some authorities insert here, or after verse 12, verse 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, even while for a pretence ye make long prayers: therefore ye shall receive great condemnation. See Mk. 12:40; Lk. 20:47.
- Matthew 23:15 Greek Gehenna.
- Matthew 23:16 Or, sanctuary: as in verse 35.
- Matthew 23:16 Or, sanctuary: as in verse 35.
- Matthew 23:16 Or, bound by his oath
- Matthew 23:17 Or, sanctuary: as in verse 35.
- Matthew 23:18 Or, bound by his oath
- Matthew 23:21 Or, sanctuary: as in verse 35.
- Matthew 23:23 Or, dill
- Matthew 23:33 Greek Gehenna.
- Matthew 23:38 Some ancient authorities omit desolate.
Matthew 23
New American Standard Bible 1995
Pharisaism Exposed
23 (A)Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “(B)The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 (C)They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. 5 But they do all their deeds (D)to be noticed by men; for they (E)broaden their [a]phylacteries and lengthen (F)the tassels of their garments. 6 They (G)love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called (H)Rabbi by men. 8 But (I)do not be called (J)Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for (K)One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 Do not be called [b]leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 (L)But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 (M)Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Eight Woes
13 “(N)But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, (O)because you shut off the kingdom of heaven [c]from [d]people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14 [[e]Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because (P)you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one [f](Q)proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of [g](R)hell as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, (S)blind guides, who say, ‘(T)Whoever swears by the [h]temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the [i]temple is obligated.’ 17 You fools and blind men! (U)Which is [j]more important, the gold or the [k]temple that sanctified the gold? 18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the [l]offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 You blind men, (V)which is [m]more important, the [n]offering, or the altar that sanctifies the [o]offering? 20 Therefore, [p]whoever swears by the altar, swears both by [q]the altar and by everything on it. 21 And [r]whoever swears by the [s]temple, swears both by [t]the temple and by Him who (W)dwells within it. 22 And [u]whoever swears by heaven, (X)swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
23 “(Y)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and [v]cummin, 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 (Z)blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For (AA)you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full [w]of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee, first (AB)clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.
27 “(AC)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 men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “(AD)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and 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 (AE)are [x]sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 You serpents, (AF)you brood of vipers, how [y]will you escape the [z]sentence of [aa](AG)hell?
34 “(AH)Therefore, behold, (AI)I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will (AJ)scourge in your synagogues, and (AK)persecute from city to city, 35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous (AL)Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the (AM)son of Berechiah, whom (AN)you murdered between the [ab]temple and the altar. 36 Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon (AO)this generation.
Lament over Jerusalem
37 “(AP)Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who (AQ)kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, (AR)the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. 38 Behold, (AS)your house is being left to you desolate! 39 For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘(AT)Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Footnotes
- Matthew 23:5 I.e. small cases containing Scripture texts worn on the left arm and forehead for religious purposes
- Matthew 23:10 Or teachers
- Matthew 23:13 Lit in front of
- Matthew 23:13 Gr anthropoi
- Matthew 23:14 This v not found in early mss
- Matthew 23:15 Or convert
- Matthew 23:15 Gr Gehenna
- Matthew 23:16 Or sanctuary
- Matthew 23:16 Or sanctuary
- Matthew 23:17 Lit greater
- Matthew 23:17 Or sanctuary
- Matthew 23:18 Or gift
- Matthew 23:19 Lit greater
- Matthew 23:19 Or gift
- Matthew 23:19 Or gift
- Matthew 23:20 Lit he who
- Matthew 23:20 Lit it
- Matthew 23:21 Lit he who
- Matthew 23:21 Or sanctuary
- Matthew 23:21 Lit it
- Matthew 23:22 Lit he who
- Matthew 23:23 Similar to caraway seeds
- Matthew 23:25 Or as a result of
- Matthew 23:31 Or descendants
- Matthew 23:33 Lit would
- Matthew 23:33 Or judgment
- Matthew 23:33 Gr Gehenna
- Matthew 23:35 Or sanctuary
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New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
