Matthew 22-23

English Standard Version

The Parable of the Wedding Feast

22 And again Jesus ^(A)spoke to them in parables, saying, ^2 (B)“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave ^(C)a wedding feast for his son, ³ and ^(D)sent his servants^[a] to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. ^4 (E)Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my ^(F)dinner, ^(G)my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ ⁵ But ^(H)they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, ⁶ while the rest seized his servants, ^(I)treated them shamefully, and ^(J)killed them. ⁷ The king was angry, and he sent his troops and ^(K)destroyed those murderers and burned their city. ⁸ Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not ^(L)worthy. ⁹ Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ ¹⁰ And those servants went out into the roads and ^(M)gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹ “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there ^(N)a man who had no wedding garment. ¹² And he said to him, ^(O)‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. ¹³ Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and ^(P)cast him into the outer darkness. In that place ^(Q)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ¹⁴ For many are ^(R)called, but few are ^(S)chosen.”

Paying Taxes to Caesar

^15 (T)Then the Pharisees went and plotted how ^(U)to entangle him in his words. ¹⁶ And they sent ^(V)their disciples to him, along with ^(W)the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, ^(X)we know that you are true and teach ^(Y)the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for ^(Z)you are not swayed by appearances.^{[b] 17} Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay ^(AA)taxes to ^(AB)Caesar, or not?” ¹⁸ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why ^(AC)put me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius.^{[c] 20} And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” ²¹ They said, “Caesar's.” Then he said to them, ^(AD)“Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” ²² When they heard it, they marveled. And they ^(AE)left him and went away.

Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

²³ The same day ^(AF)Sadducees came to him, ^(AG)who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question, ²⁴ saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ^(AH)‘If a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.’ ²⁵ Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother. ²⁶ So too the second and third, down to the seventh. ²⁷ After them all, the woman died. ²⁸ In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her.”

²⁹ But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, ^(AI)because you know neither the Scriptures nor ^(AJ)the power of God. ³⁰ For in the resurrection they neither ^(AK)marry nor ^(AL)are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. ³¹ And as for the resurrection of the dead, ^(AM)have you not read what was said to you by God: ^32 (AN)‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” ³³ And when the crowd heard it, ^(AO)they were astonished at his teaching.

The Great Commandment

^34 (AP)But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced ^(AQ)the Sadducees, they gathered together. ^35 (AR)And one of them, ^(AS)a lawyer, asked him a question ^(AT)to test him. ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ And he said to him, ^(AU)“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹ And ^(AV)a second is like it: ^(AW)You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ^40 (AX)On these two commandments depend ^(AY)all the Law and the Prophets.”

Whose Son Is the Christ?

^41 (AZ)Now while the Pharisees ^(BA)were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, ⁴² saying, “What do you think about ^(BB)the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, ^(BC)“The son of David.” ⁴³ He said to them, “How is it then that David, ^(BD)in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,

⁴⁵ If then David calls him Lord, ^(BF)how is he his son?” ^46 (BG)And no one was able to answer him a word, ^(BH)nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

Seven Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees

23 Then Jesus ^(BI)said to the crowds and to his disciples, ^2 (BJ)“The scribes and the Pharisees ^(BK)sit on Moses' seat, ³ so do and observe whatever they tell you, ^(BL)but not the works they do. ^(BM)For they preach, but do not practice. ^4 (BN)They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear,^[d] and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. ^5 (BO)They do all their deeds ^(BP)to be seen by others. For they make ^(BQ)their phylacteries broad and ^(BR)their fringes long, ⁶ and they ^(BS)love the place of honor at feasts and ^(BT)the best seats in the synagogues ⁷ and ^(BU)greetings in ^(BV)the marketplaces and being called ^(BW)rabbi^[e] by others. ^8 (BX)But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are ^(BY)all brothers.^{[f] 9 (BZ)}And call no man your father on earth, for ^(CA)you have one Father, who is in heaven. ¹⁰ Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, ^(CB)the Christ. ^11 (CC)The greatest among you shall be your servant. ^12 (CD)Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

¹³ “But woe ^(CE)to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you ^(CF)shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you ^(CG)neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.^{[g] 15} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single ^(CH)proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a ^(CI)child of ^(CJ)hell^[h] as yourselves.

¹⁶ “Woe to ^(CK)you, ^(CL)blind guides, who say, ^(CM)‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or ^(CN)the temple that has made the gold sacred? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by ^(CO)the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or ^(CP)the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰ So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by ^(CQ)him who dwells in it. ²² And whoever swears by ^(CR)heaven swears by ^(CS)the throne of God and by ^(CT)him who sits upon it.

^23 (CU)“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ^(CV)you tithe mint and dill and ^(CW)cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: ^(CX)justice and mercy and faithfulness. ^(CY)These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. ²⁴ You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing ^(CZ)a camel!

^25 (DA)“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ^(DB)you clean the outside of ^(DC)the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of ^(DD)greed and self-indulgence. ²⁶ You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of ^(DE)the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

^27 (DF)“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like ^(DG)whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and ^(DH)all uncleanness. ²⁸ So you also ^(DI)outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of ^(DJ)hypocrisy and lawlessness.

^29 (DK)“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, ³⁰ saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ ³¹ Thus you witness against yourselves that you are ^(DL)sons of those who murdered the prophets. ^32 (DM)Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. ³³ You serpents, ^(DN)you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to ^(DO)hell? ^34 (DP)Therefore ^(DQ)I send you ^(DR)prophets and wise men and ^(DS)scribes, ^(DT)some of whom you will kill and crucify, and ^(DU)some you will ^(DV)flog in your synagogues and ^(DW)persecute from town to town, ³⁵ so that on you may come all ^(DX)the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous ^(DY)Abel to the blood of ^(DZ)Zechariah the son of Barachiah,^[i] whom you murdered between ^(EA)the sanctuary and ^(EB)the altar. ³⁶ Truly, I say to you, ^(EC)all these things will come upon this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

^37 (ED)“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that ^(EE)kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have ^(EF)gathered ^(EG)your children together ^(EH)as a hen gathers her brood ^(EI)under her wings, and ^(EJ)you were not willing! ³⁸ See, ^(EK)your house is left to you desolate. ³⁹ For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ^(EL)‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”