Matthew 23

The Scribes and Pharisees

1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples: 2“The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3Therefore do and keep whatever they tell you, but do not act according to their works, because they say things and do not do them. 4They tie up heavy burdens, hard to carry, and put them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with a finger. 5They do all their works to be seen by people. They make their phylacteries broad and the fringes of their garments long. 6They love the place of honor at banquets, the best seats in synagogues, 7greetings in the marketplaces, and being called ‘Rabbi’ by people. 8But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ because you have one teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters. 9And do not call anyone on earth your father, because you have one Father, the one in heaven. 10Neither are you to be called instructors, because you have one instructor, the Christ. 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12Whoever exalts themselves will be humbled, and whoever humbles themselves will be exalted.

Woes Against Hypocrisy

13“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. You yourselves do not enter, and you do not allow those entering to go in. 15“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You travel over sea and land to make one convert, and when that person becomes one, you make them twice as much a child of Gehenna as yourselves.

16“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it means nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is bound by the oath.’ 17Fools and blind! Which is greater—the gold, or the temple that made the gold holy? 18And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it means nothing; but whoever swears by the gift on it is bound.’ 19Blind people! Which is greater—the gift, or the altar that makes the gift holy? 20Therefore, the one who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21The one who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22And the one who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one seated on it.

23“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You tithe mint, dill, and cumin but have neglected the weightier matters of the Law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These you should have practiced without neglecting the others. 24Blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

25“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside may also become clean.

27“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside but inside are full of dead people's bones and every kind of uncleanness. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous, 30and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have shared with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31So you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32Then fill up the measure of your ancestors! 33Snakes! Brood of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of Gehenna?

Judgment on Jerusalem

34“Therefore, look—I am sending you prophets, wise people, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, 35so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 36Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation. 37“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you! How often I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling. 38Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”