Woes and Warnings

¹³ “But woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven right in front of people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor do you permit those who are trying to enter to do so.^{[a] 15} Woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel the sea and the land to make one convert, and then when he is converted, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

¹⁶ “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obligated.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! After all, which is greater: the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obligated.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! After all, which is greater: the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? ²⁰ So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ Also, whoever swears by the temple, swears by it and by him who dwells in it. ²² And whoever swears by heaven, swears by God’s throne and by him who sits on it.

²³ “Woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give ten percent of your mint, dill, and cumin, but you have neglected the more important matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith. You should have done these things and not failed to do the other things. ²⁴ Blind guides, you strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

²⁵ “Woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of a cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. ²⁶ Blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and dish so that the outside may become clean too.

²⁷ “Woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs that appear beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of dead people’s bones and every kind of uncleanness. ²⁸ In the same way, on the outside you seem righteous to people, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

²⁹ “Woe to you, experts in the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, ³⁰ and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ ³¹ By saying this you testify against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. ³² Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. ³³ You serpents, you offspring of vipers, how will you escape being condemned to hell?

³⁴ “Look, this is why I am sending you prophets, wise men, and experts in the law. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town. ³⁵ As a result, you will be held responsible for all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. ³⁶ Amen I tell you: All these things will come upon this generation.