New American Standard Bible 1995

Holman Christian Standard Bible

1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples,

1Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples:

2saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses;

2"The scribes and the Pharisees are seated in the chair of Moses.

3therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them.

3Therefore do whatever they tell you, and observe it. But don't do what they do, because they don't practice what they teach.

4"They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.

4They tie up heavy loads that are hard to carry and put them on people's shoulders, but they themselves aren't willing to lift a finger to move them.

5"But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.

5They do everything to be observed by others: They enlarge their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.

6"They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues,

6They love the place of honor at banquets, the front seats in the synagogues,

7and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.

7greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called 'Rabbi by people.

8"But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.

8"But as for you, do not be called 'Rabbi,' because you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.

9"Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.

9Do not call anyone on earth your father, because you have one Father, who is in heaven.

10"Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ.

10And do not be called masters either, because you have one Master, the Messiah.

11"But the greatest among you shall be your servant.

11The greatest among you will be your servant.

12"Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

12Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

13"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

13"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You lock up the kingdom of heaven from people. For you don't go in, and you don't allow those entering to go in.

14"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.

14"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You devour widows' houses and make long prayers just for show. This is why you will receive a harsher punishment.

15"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

15"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to make one proselyte, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as fit for hell as you are!

16"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.'

16"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, Whoever takes an oath by the sanctuary, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by his oath.'

17"You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?

17Blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that sanctified the gold?

18"And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.'

18Also, Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.'

19"You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?

19Blind people! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?

20"Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it.

20Therefore, the one who takes an oath by the altar takes an oath by it and by everything on it.

21"And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it.

21The one who takes an oath by the sanctuary takes an oath by it 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 upon it.

22And the one who takes an oath by heaven takes an oath by God's throne and by Him who sits on it.

23"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

23"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You pay a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy, and faith. These things should have been done without neglecting the others.

24"You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

24Blind guides! You strain out a gnat, yet gulp down a camel!

25"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.

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!

26"You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.

26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so the outside of it may also become clean.

27"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.

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 men's bones and every impurity.

28"So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

28In the same way, on the outside you seem righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,

29"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous,

30and say, 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'

30and you say, If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we wouldn't have taken part with them in shedding the prophets' blood.'

31"So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

31You, therefore, testify against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

32"Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.

32Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' sins!

33"You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?

33"Snakes! Brood of vipers! How can you escape being condemned to hell?

34"Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,

34This is why I am sending you prophets, sages, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues and hound from town to town.

35so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

35So all the righteous blood shed on the earth will be charged to you, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

36"Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

36I assure you: All these things will come on this generation!

37"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.

37"Jerusalem, Jerusalem! She who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, yet you were not willing!

38"Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!

38See, your house is left to you desolate.

39"For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, 'BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'"

39For I tell you, you will never see Me again until you say, He who comes in the name of the Lord is the blessed One'!"

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org

Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.