¹⁶ The beast and the ten horns^(A) you saw will hate the prostitute.^(B) They will bring her to ruin^(C) and leave her naked;^(D) they will eat her flesh^(E) and burn her with fire.^(F)

¹⁷ You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?^{(A) 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?^{(B) 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^(C) in it. ²² And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.^(D)

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

³³ “You snakes! You brood of vipers!^(O) How will you escape being condemned to hell?^{(P) 34} Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify;^(Q) others you will flog in your synagogues^(R) and pursue from town to town.^{(S) 35} And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel^(T) to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah,^(U) whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.^{(V) 36} Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.^(W)

³⁷ “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,^(X) how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings,^(Y) and you were not willing. ³⁸ Look, your house is left to you desolate.^{(Z) 39} For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’^[a]”^(AA)