Chronological
Seven Woes
23 Then Yeshua spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying, “The Torah scholars and Pharisees sit on the seat of Moses. 3 So whatever they tell you, do and observe. But don’t do what they do; for what they say, they do not do. 4 They tie up heavy loads, hard to carry,[a] and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves aren’t willing to lift a finger to move them. 5 All their works they do to be noticed by men. They make their tefillin wide and their tzitziyot long. [b] 6 They love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called rabbi by men.
8 “But you are not to be called rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And call no man on earth your father; for One is your Father, who is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Messiah. 11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
13 “But woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not enter yourselves, nor do you let those enter who are trying to go in. (14 )[c]
15 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel over land and sea to make one convert. And when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of Gehenna as yourself.
16 “Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘Whoever swears by the Temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the Temple, he is obligated.’ 17 O fools and blind ones! Which is greater, the gold or the Temple that made the gold holy? [d] 18 And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 O blind ones! Which is greater, the offering or the altar that makes the offering holy? [e] 20 Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the Temple, swears both by the Temple and by Him who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.
23 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You tithe[f] mint and dill and cumin, yet you have neglected the weightier matters of Torah—justice and mercy and faithfulness. It is necessary to do these things without neglecting the others. 24 O blind guides, straining out a gnat while swallowing a camel!
25 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and uncontrolled desire. 26 O blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, so that the outside may become clean as well.
27 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, you appear righteous to men on the outside, but are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “Woe to you, Torah scholars and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the tzaddikim. 30 And you say, ‘If we’d been alive in the days of our forefathers, we wouldn’t have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers! 33 O snakes, you brood of vipers! How will you escape the condemnation of Gehenna?
34 “Because of this, behold, I’m sending you prophets and wise men and Torah scholars. Some of them you will kill and execute at the stake, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city. 35 And so, upon you shall come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah,[g] whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar. [h] 36 Amen, I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.”
Holy Temple to Be Destroyed
37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate! [i] 39 For I tell you, you will never see Me again until you say, ‘Baruch ha-ba b’shem Adonai. Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”[j]
20 On one of the days while Yeshua was teaching the people in the Temple and proclaiming the Good News, the ruling kohanim and the Torah scholars, together with the elders, confronted Him. 2 And they spoke, saying to Him, “Tell us by what authority are You doing these things? Or who is the one who gave You this authority?”
3 But answering, Yeshua said to them, “I also will ask you a question, and you tell Me: 4 the immersion of John—was it from heaven or from men?”
5 They reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’ 6 But if we say, ‘From men,’ then all the people will stone us, because they are convinced that John is a prophet.” 7 So they answered that they didn’t know where it came from.
8 And Yeshua said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
9 Then He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard,[a] leased it to tenant farmers, and went on a journey for a long time. 10 And at the season, he sent a servant to the tenants so that they would give him part of the vineyard’s fruit. But the tenants beat him up and sent him away empty-handed. 11 So he proceeded to send another servant. They beat him too and treated him shamefully, and they sent him away empty-handed. 12 And he proceeded to send a third one. They wounded this one too, and they threw him out.
13 “Now the master of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love. Probably they will show him respect.’ 14 But when the tenants saw him, they discussed the matter among themselves, saying, ‘This is the heir! Let’s kill him so the inheritance will be ours.’ 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the master of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”
But when they heard this, they said, “May it never happen!”
17 Then Yeshua looked right at them and said, “Then what is this that has been written,
‘The stone which the builders rejected,
this has become the chief cornerstone’?[b]
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be shattered; but the one upon whom it falls, it will crush him.”[c]
19 The Torah scholars and the ruling kohanim tried to grab Him that very hour, because they realized that He spoke this parable against them—but they feared the people.
Silencing the Opposition
20 Now they watched Him and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order to trap Him in His words so they could hand Him over to the power and authority of the governor. 21 And they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You tell it straight and You teach it straight. You show no partiality, but teach the way of God according to the truth. 22 Is it permitted for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
23 But carefully considering their treachery, Yeshua said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius.[d] Whose image and inscription does it have?”
And they said, “Caesar’s.”
25 Then He said to them, “Well then, give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 26 And they could not trap Him in His words in the presence of the people. Astonished by His answer, they kept silent.
27 Then some of the Sadducees (who deny there is a resurrection) came and questioned Yeshua. 28 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that ‘if a man’s brother dies’ having a wife ‘but no children, then his brother should take the widow and father children for his brother.’ [e] 29 Now there were seven brothers, and the first took a wife and died childless; 30 and the second 31 and the third took her, but in this same way, each of the seven brothers died and left no children. 32 Finally the woman died too. 33 So in the resurrection, whose wife is she? For all seven had married her.
34 Yeshua said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. 35 But those considered worthy to reach the olam ha-ba and the resurrection of the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. 36 For they can no longer die, because they are like angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But at the burning bush even Moses revealed that the dead are raised, when he calls Adonai ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ [f] 38 Now He is God not of the dead but of the living, for to Him they all are living.”
39 Some of the Torah scholars replied, “Teacher, You have said it well.” 40 For they no longer dared to question Him about anything.
41 Then Yeshua said to them, “How can they say that the Messiah is Ben-David? 42 For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,
‘Adonai said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
43 until I make Your enemies a footstool
for Your feet.”’[g]
44 David then calls Him ‘Lord’; so how is He his son?”
45 Then with all the people listening, Yeshua said to the disciples, 46 “Beware of the Torah scholars, who like to walk around in long robes. They love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and places of honor at feasts. 47 They devour widows’ houses and make long prayers as a show. These men will receive greater condemnation!”
Teaching in the Temple
21 Then Yeshua looked up and saw the rich dropping their gifts into the treasury box. 2 He also saw a poor widow dropping in two small copper coins. [h] 3 And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all the rest. 4 For all these put in their gifts from their surplus. But she, out of her poverty, put in all she had to live on.”
5 And while some were talking about the Temple, how it was decorated with beautiful stones and offerings, Yeshua said, 6 “As for these things you are looking at, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another. Every one will be torn down!”
7 And they questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, so when will these things happen? What will be the sign that these things are about to take place?”
8 And He said, “Watch out that you are not led astray! For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He’ and ‘The time is near!’ Do not follow them. 9 And when you hear of wars and chaos, do not be terrorized. For these things need to happen first, but the end will not come at once.”
10 Then He continued telling them, “Nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes along with famines and epidemics in various places, and there will be terrors along with great signs from heaven. 12 But before all these things, they will grab you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues and prisons, and leading you away to kings and governors on account of My name. 13 This will lead you to be a witness. 14 So make up your minds not to prepare ahead of time to defend yourselves— 15 for I Myself will give you speech and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute. 16 But you will be handed over even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends—and they will put some of you to death. 17 And you will be hated by all because of My name. 18 Yet not a hair of your head will be lost. 19 By your endurance, you will gain your souls.
20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. 21 Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those inside the city must get out, and those in the countryside must not enter her. 22 For these are the days of punishment, to fulfill all that has been written.[i]
23 “Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath on this people. 24 They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led away captive into all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.[j]
25 “There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars. And upon the earth nations will be confused by the roaring of the sea and its waves. [k] 26 People will lose heart from fear and anticipation of what is overtaking the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. [l] 27 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. [m] 28 Now when these things begin to happen, stand straight and lift up your heads, because your salvation is near!”
29 Then Yeshua told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 As soon as they sprout their leaves, you see it and you know at once that summer is near. 31 So also, when you see these all these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Amen, I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things happen. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.[n]
34 “But watch out so your hearts are not weighed down by carousing, strong drink, and the worries of life. Do not let that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come rushing upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things about to happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 So during the days Yeshua was teaching in the Temple, but in the nights He went out and stayed on the Mount of Olives. [o] 38 And all the people would come early in the morning to hear Him in the Temple.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.