Chapter 40
Jesus Denounces Scribes and Pharisees
Verse 1: Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and said to his disciples, | Matthew 23:1
2 “The Pharisees and the scribes sit in Moses’s seat; | Matthew 23:2
3 They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. | Matthew 23:4
4 All their deeds are done for men to see, for they make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the fringes of their garments. | Matthew 23:5
5 They crave the place of honor at banquets and the places of authority in the synagogues | Matthew 23:6
6 and dignified greetings in the marketplaces and to have people address them as rabbi. | Matthew 23:7
7 But do not allow yourselves to be called rabbi, for you have only one teacher, and you all are brothers and sisters. | Matthew 23:8
8 And do not address anyone your father on earth, for you only have one Father, who is in heaven. | Matthew 23:9
9 Neither are you to be called teachers, for I am your teacher. | Matthew 23:10
10 The greatest among you shall be your servant. | Matthew 23:11
11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. | Matthew 23:12
12 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you shut people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not enter yourselves, nor will you let in those who wish to enter to do so. | Matthew 23:13
13 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for the sake of appearance you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation | Matthew 23:14
14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you traverse the land and sea to make one convert, and then you make them twice as much deserving of hell as yourselves. | Matthew 23:15
15 Woe to you, blind guides who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple is bound by nothing, but whoever shall swear by the gold of the temple is bound by the oath.’ | Matthew 23:16
16 You blind fools! Which is greater, the gold or the temple that makes it sacred? | Matthew 23:17
17 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar it means nothing, but then if anyone shall swear by the gift that is on the altar, they are bound by the oath.’ | Matthew 23:18
18 Blind people! Because which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the offering sacred? | Matthew 23:19
19 Therefore the one who swears by the altar, shall swear by it and by everything that is placed on it, | Matthew 23:20
20 and whosoever shall swear by the temple swears by it and on the one who dwells there, | Matthew 23:21
21 and whoever swears by heaven, swears on the throne of your God and by him who sits on it. | Matthew 23:22
22 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin and have neglected the more important matters of the law: justice and mercy. You should have done these things without neglecting the others. | Matthew 23:23
23 You blind guides! You take great lengths to strain out a gnat and yet you swallow a camel! | Matthew 23:24
24 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you wash clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are filled with extortion, greed and excess. | Matthew 23:25
25 You blind Pharisees! Make first clean the inside of the cup and the plate, so that the outside may also become clean as well. | Matthew 23:26
26 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are littered full of the bones of the dead and every kind of impurity. | Matthew 23:27
27 In the same way, on the outside you appear to be righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. | Matthew 23:28
28 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you make the tombs of the prophets and garnish the monuments of the righteous, | Matthew 23:29
29 and yet you boast, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have participated in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ | Matthew 23:30
30 Therefore you testify against yourselves that you are sons of those who killed the prophets. | Matthew 23:31
31 Go then, fill up the measure of your ancestors! | Matthew 23:32
32 Woe to the pharisees, for they are like a dog sleeping in the manger of oxen, for neither the dog eats nor let the oxen eat. | Gospel of Thomas 102
33 You snakes, you brood of vipers! Do you think you can escape my Father's judgment?” | Matthew 23:33
The Widow’s Offering
34 Jesus walked opposite to the treasury and sat down. He watched the crowd putting money and gifts into the treasury. Many rich people putting in large sums. | Mark 12:41
35 He also saw a certain poor widow putting in two small copper coins. | Luke 21:2
36 Then he called his disciples and told them, “In truth I say to you, this poor widow has put more than all the others combined into the treasury. | Mark 12:43
37 For they all have contributed out of their abundance of wealth, but she out of her poverty and need has put in everything she had to live on.” | Luke 21:4
The Destruction of the Temple Foretold
38 As Jesus was coming out of the temple and was walking away, his disciples came to draw his attention to the buildings of the temple. | Matthew 24:1
39 Then he asked them, “Do you see all these things? In truth I say to you, not one stone will be left here on another; all will return to dust with the fullness of time.” | Matthew 24:2
Signs of the End of the Age
40 When Jesus was sitting upon the Mount of Olives, his disciples came to him privately, asking, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of the end of the age?” | Matthew 24:3
41 Jesus answered them, “Watch out and see to it that no one deceives you. | Matthew 24:4
42 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he or I speak for he’ and they will deceive many and lead them astray. | Mark 13:6
43 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come. | Matthew 24:6
44 For nation shall rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, pestilences and earthquakes in various places. | Matthew 24:7
45 All these are the beginning of the birth pains. | Matthew 24:8