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13 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either.[a]

15 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell[b] you yourselves are!

16 “Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding. 19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 When you swear ‘by the altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it. 21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it. 22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne.

23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens,[c] but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. 24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel![d]

25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! 26 You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish,[e] and then the outside will become clean, too.

27 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. 28 Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed, and you decorate the monuments of the godly people your ancestors destroyed. 30 Then you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would never have joined them in killing the prophets.’

31 “But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Go ahead and finish what your ancestors started. 33 Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?

34 “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city. 35 As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation.

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Footnotes

  1. 23:13 Some manuscripts add verse 14, What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, you will be severely punished. Compare Mark 12:40 and Luke 20:47.
  2. 23:15 Greek of Gehenna; also in 23:33.
  3. 23:23 Greek tithe the mint, the dill, and the cumin.
  4. 23:24 See Lev 11:4, 23, where gnats and camels are both forbidden as food.
  5. 23:26 Some manuscripts do not include and the dish.

13  But de woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you shut kleiō the ho kingdom basileia of ho heaven ouranos in men’ s anthrōpos faces emprosthen. · ho For gar you hymeis neither ou enter eiserchomai yourselves nor oude allow aphiēmi those ho who would enter eiserchomai to go eiserchomai in .

15  Woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you travel periagō over · ho sea thalassa and kai · ho land xēros to gain poieō a single heis convert prosēlytos; and kai when hotan he becomes ginomai one, you make poieō him autos twice as much diplous a son hyios of hell geenna as diplous yourselves hymeis.

16  Woe ouai to you hymeis, blind typhlos guides hodēgos who ho say legō, ‘ If someone hos an swears omnyō by en the ho temple naos it means eimi nothing oudeis; but de if someone hos swears omnyō by en the ho gold chrysos of the ho temple naos, he is bound opheilō by his oath.’ 17 You fools mōros and kai blind typhlos men ! For gar which tis is eimi greater megas, the ho gold chrysos or ē the ho temple naos that ho makes the ho gold chrysos sacred hagiazō? 18 And kai you say, ‘ If someone hos an swears omnyō by en the ho altar thusiastērion it means eimi nothing oudeis; but de if someone hos swears omnyō by en the ho gift dōron that ho is on epanō it autos, he is bound opheilō by his oath.’ 19 How blind typhlos you are! For gar which tis is greater megas, the ho gift dōron or ē the ho altar thusiastērion that ho makes the ho gift dōron sacred hagiazō? 20 So oun the ho one who swears omnyō by en the ho altar thusiastērion, swears omnyō not only by en it autos but kai by en everything pas · ho on epanō it autos. 21 And kai the ho one who swears omnyō by en the ho temple naos, swears omnyō not only by en it autos but kai by en the ho one who dwells katoikeō there autos. 22 And kai the ho one who swears omnyō by en · ho heaven ouranos, swears omnyō not only by en the ho throne thronos of ho God theos but kai by en the ho one who sits kathēmai on epanō it autos.

23  Woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you tithe apodekatoō · ho mint hēdyosmon and kai · ho dill anēthon and kai · ho cumin kyminon, and kai have neglected aphiēmi the ho weightier barys matters of the ho law nomos: · ho justice krisis and kai · ho mercy eleos and kai · ho faithfulness pistis. These houtos · de you ought dei to have done poieō without neglecting aphiēmi the former kakeinos. 24 You blind typhlos guides hodēgos! · ho You strain diylizō out the ho gnat kōnōps but de gulp down katapinō the ho camel kamēlos!

25  Woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you clean katharizō off the ho outside exōthen of the ho cup potērion and kai the ho plate paropsis while de inside esōthen they are full gemō of ek greed harpagē and kai self-indulgence akrasia. 26 You blind typhlos Pharisee Pharisaios! First prōton clean katharizō the ho inside entos of the ho cup potērion, so hina that its autos outside ektos may become ginomai clean katharos too kai. · ho

27  Woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you are like paromoiazō whitewashed koniaō tombs taphos that hostis look phainō beautiful hōraios on the outside exōthen but de on the inside esōthen are full gemō of dead men’ s nekros bones osteon and kai all pas kinds of filth akatharsia. 28 So houtōs you hymeis also kai outwardly exōthen appear phainō to ho others anthrōpos as righteous dikaios but de within esōthen you are eimi full mestos of hypocrisy hypokrisis and kai lawlessness anomia.

29  Woe ouai to you hymeis, scribes grammateus and kai Pharisees Pharisaios, hypocrites hypokritēs, because hoti you build oikodomeō the ho tombs taphos of the ho prophets prophētēs and kai decorate kosmeō the ho graves mnēmeion of the ho righteous dikaios, 30 and kai you say legō, ‘ If ei we had lived eimi in en the ho days hēmera of ho our hēmeis fathers patēr, we would an not ou have eimi taken part with koinōnos them autos in en shedding the ho blood haima of the ho prophets prophētēs.’ 31 By hōste saying this you testify martyreō against yourselves heautou that hoti you are eimi descendants hyios of those ho who murdered phoneuō the ho prophets prophētēs. 32 Fill plēroō up then kai the ho measure metron of ho your hymeis fathers’ patēr guilt. 33 You snakes ophis! You brood gennēma of vipers echidna! How pōs will you escape pheugō from apo · ho being condemned krisis to · ho hell geenna? 34 Therefore dia houtos I egō am sending apostellō you hymeis prophets prophētēs and kai wise sophos men and kai scribes grammateus, some of ek whom autos you will kill apokteinō and kai crucify stauroō, and kai some ek of whom autos you will flog mastigoō in en · ho your hymeis synagogues synagōgē and kai pursue diōkō from apo town polis to eis town polis, 35 so hopōs that upon epi you hymeis will come erchomai all pas the righteous dikaios blood haima shed ekchunnomai on epi · ho earth , from apo the ho blood haima of righteous dikaios Abel Habel · ho to heōs the ho blood haima of Zechariah Zacharias son hyios of Barachiah Barachias, whom hos you murdered phoneuō between metaxy the ho sanctuary naos and kai the ho altar thusiastērion. 36 I tell legō you hymeis the truth amēn, all pas these things houtos will come hēkō upon epi · ho this houtos generation genea.

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