Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Dream » Instances of » False prophets pretended to receive revelations through
Dreams » False prophets » Not to be regarded in
Hearing » Who not to listen to
Love to God » God tries the sincerity of
Miracles » Not to be regarded
Miracles through evil agents » Not to be regarded
Proof » The lord proving
Prophecy » How tested
Prophets » FALSE » Warnings to
False prophets » The people » Warned not to listen to
False prophets » Made use of by God to prove israel
Punishment » Death penalty » Mosaic law » Death penalty » False prophecy
Spiritual » Tests divine methods used for testing believers » By leading men in a difficult way
Teachers » FALSE » Admonition against
Beware of false prophets; they come to you with the garb of sheep but at heart they are ravenous wolves.
Verse Concepts
Therefore whoever relaxes a single one of these commands, were it even one of the least, and teaches men so, he will be ranked least in the Realm of heaven; but whoever obeys them and teaches them, he will be ranked great in the Realm of heaven.)
Verse Concepts
"The scribes and Pharisees sit on the seat of Moses; so do whatever they tell you, obey them, but do not do as they do. They talk but they do not act. They make up heavy loads and lay them on men's shoulders, but they will not stir a finger to remove them. read more.
Besides, all they do is done to catch the notice of men; they make their phylacteries broad, they wear large tassels, they are fond of the best places at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues; they like to be saluted in the marketplaces and to be called 'rabbi' by men. But you are not to be called 'rabbi,' for One is your teacher, and you are all brothers; you are not to call anyone 'father' on earth, for One is your heavenly Father; nor must you be called 'leaders,' for One is your leader, even the Christ. He who is greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever uplifts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be uplifted. Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you shut the Realm of heaven in men's faces; you neither enter yourselves, nor will you let those enter who are on the point of entering. ??- Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you traverse sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when you succeed you make him a son of Gehenna twice as bad as yourselves. Woe to you, blind guides that you are! you say, 'Swear by the sanctuary, and it means nothing; but swear by the gold of the sanctuary, and the oath is binding.' You are senseless and blind! for which is the greater, the gold or the sanctuary that makes the gold sacred? You say again, 'Swear by the altar, and it means nothing; but swear by the gift upon it, and the oath is binding.' You are blind! for which is the greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? He who swears by the altar swears by it and by all that lies on it; he who swears by the sanctuary swears by it and by Him who inhabits it; he who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it. Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and omit the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faithfulness; these latter you ought to have practised ??without omit ting the former. Blind guides that you are, filtering away the gnat and swallowing the camel! Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are filled with your rapacity and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! first clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside may be clean as well. Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! you are like tombs white-washed; they look comely on the outside, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all manner of impurity. So to men you seem just, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the tombs of the just, and you say 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are sons of those who killed the prophets! And you will fill up the measure that your fathers filled. You serpents! you brood of vipers! how can you escape being sentenced to Gehenna?
Besides, all they do is done to catch the notice of men; they make their phylacteries broad, they wear large tassels, they are fond of the best places at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues; they like to be saluted in the marketplaces and to be called 'rabbi' by men. But you are not to be called 'rabbi,' for One is your teacher, and you are all brothers; you are not to call anyone 'father' on earth, for One is your heavenly Father; nor must you be called 'leaders,' for One is your leader, even the Christ. He who is greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever uplifts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be uplifted. Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you shut the Realm of heaven in men's faces; you neither enter yourselves, nor will you let those enter who are on the point of entering. ??- Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you traverse sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when you succeed you make him a son of Gehenna twice as bad as yourselves. Woe to you, blind guides that you are! you say, 'Swear by the sanctuary, and it means nothing; but swear by the gold of the sanctuary, and the oath is binding.' You are senseless and blind! for which is the greater, the gold or the sanctuary that makes the gold sacred? You say again, 'Swear by the altar, and it means nothing; but swear by the gift upon it, and the oath is binding.' You are blind! for which is the greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? He who swears by the altar swears by it and by all that lies on it; he who swears by the sanctuary swears by it and by Him who inhabits it; he who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it. Woe to you, you impious scribes and Pharisees! you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and omit the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faithfulness; these latter you ought to have practised ??without omit ting the former. Blind guides that you are, filtering away the gnat and swallowing the camel! Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are filled with your rapacity and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! first clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside may be clean as well. Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! you are like tombs white-washed; they look comely on the outside, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all manner of impurity. So to men you seem just, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe to you, you irreligious scribes and Pharisees! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the tombs of the just, and you say 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are sons of those who killed the prophets! And you will fill up the measure that your fathers filled. You serpents! you brood of vipers! how can you escape being sentenced to Gehenna?
"Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? They do not wash their hands when they take their food." He replied, "And why do you transgress the command of God with your traditions? God enjoined, Honour your father and mother, and, He who curses his father or mother is to suffer death. read more.
But you say, whoever tells his father or mother, 'This money might have been at your service but it is dedicated to God,' need not honour his father or mother. So you have repealed the law of God to suit your own tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah made a grand prophecy about you when he said, This people honours me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me: vain is their worship of me, for the doctrines they teach are but human precepts." Then he called the crowd and said to them, "Listen, understand this: it is not what enters a man's mouth that defiles him, what defiles a man is what comes out of his mouth." Then the disciples came up and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees have taken offence at what they hear you say?" He replied, "Any plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind, and if one blind man leads another, both of them will fall into a pit." Peter answered, "Explain this parable to us at anyrate." He said, "And are you totally ignorant? Do you not see how all that enters the mouth passes into the belly and is then thrown out into the drain, while what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart ??and that is what defiles a man. For out of the heart come evil designs, murder, adultery, sexual vice, stealing, false witness, and slander. That is what defiles a man; a man is not defiled by eating with hands unwashed!"
But you say, whoever tells his father or mother, 'This money might have been at your service but it is dedicated to God,' need not honour his father or mother. So you have repealed the law of God to suit your own tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah made a grand prophecy about you when he said, This people honours me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me: vain is their worship of me, for the doctrines they teach are but human precepts." Then he called the crowd and said to them, "Listen, understand this: it is not what enters a man's mouth that defiles him, what defiles a man is what comes out of his mouth." Then the disciples came up and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees have taken offence at what they hear you say?" He replied, "Any plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind, and if one blind man leads another, both of them will fall into a pit." Peter answered, "Explain this parable to us at anyrate." He said, "And are you totally ignorant? Do you not see how all that enters the mouth passes into the belly and is then thrown out into the drain, while what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart ??and that is what defiles a man. For out of the heart come evil designs, murder, adultery, sexual vice, stealing, false witness, and slander. That is what defiles a man; a man is not defiled by eating with hands unwashed!"
The Pharisee was astonished to see that he had not washed before the meal, but the Lord said to him, "You Pharisees do clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but your inner life is filled with rapacity and malice. Foolish men! did not He who made the outside make the inside of things too? read more.
Better cleanse what is within; then nothing will be unclean for you. But woe to you Pharisees! you tithe mint and rue and every vegetable, but justice and the love of God you disregard; these latter you ought to have practised ??without omitting the former. Woe to you Pharisees! you love the front bench in the synagogues and salutations in the marketplaces. Woe to you! you are like unsuspected tombs; men walk over them unawares." One of the jurists said to him, "Teacher, when you say this you are insulting us as well." He said, "And woe to you jurists! you load men with irksome burdens, and you will not put a single finger to their burdens. Woe to you! you build tombs for the prophets whom your own fathers killed: thus you testify and consent to what your fathers did, for they killed and you build. This is why the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some they will kill and some they will persecute'; it was that the blood of all the prophets shed from the foundation of the world might be charged upon this generation, from the blood of Abel down to the blood of Zechariah who was slain between the altar and the House of God ??yes, I tell you, it will all be charged upon this generation. Woe to you jurists! you have taken the key that unlocks the door of knowledge; you have not entered yourselves, and you have stopped those who were entering."
Better cleanse what is within; then nothing will be unclean for you. But woe to you Pharisees! you tithe mint and rue and every vegetable, but justice and the love of God you disregard; these latter you ought to have practised ??without omitting the former. Woe to you Pharisees! you love the front bench in the synagogues and salutations in the marketplaces. Woe to you! you are like unsuspected tombs; men walk over them unawares." One of the jurists said to him, "Teacher, when you say this you are insulting us as well." He said, "And woe to you jurists! you load men with irksome burdens, and you will not put a single finger to their burdens. Woe to you! you build tombs for the prophets whom your own fathers killed: thus you testify and consent to what your fathers did, for they killed and you build. This is why the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some they will kill and some they will persecute'; it was that the blood of all the prophets shed from the foundation of the world might be charged upon this generation, from the blood of Abel down to the blood of Zechariah who was slain between the altar and the House of God ??yes, I tell you, it will all be charged upon this generation. Woe to you jurists! you have taken the key that unlocks the door of knowledge; you have not entered yourselves, and you have stopped those who were entering."
Temptation » A test
It was by faith, when Abraham was put to the test, that he sacrificed Isaac, he was ready to sacrifice his only son, although he had received the promises
Verse Concepts
Blessed is he who endures under trial; for when he has stood the test, he will gain the crown of life which is promised to all who love Him.
Verse Concepts
You will rejoice then, though for the passing moment you may need to suffer various trials; that is only to prove your faith is sterling (far more precious than gold which is perishable and yet is tested by fire), and it redounds to your praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Greet it as pure joy, my brothers, when you come across any sort of trial, sure that the sterling temper of your faith produces endurance;