Thematic Bible
Matthew 23:1 (show verse)
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,
No Themes for this verse.
Matthew 23:2 (show verse)
"The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.
Matthew 23:3 (show verse)
So you must observe and do whatever they tell you. But do not do what they do; for they preach, but do not practice.
Matthew 23:4 (show verse)
They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger.
Matthew 23:5 (show verse)
But they do all their works to be seen by men; for they make their phylacteries broad and the tassels of their garments long.
Matthew 23:6 (show verse)
And they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues,
Matthew 23:7 (show verse)
and greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi.'
Matthew 23:8 (show verse)
But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master, and you are all brethren.
Matthew 23:9 (show verse)
And do not call anyone on earth your 'Father,' for you have one Father, he who is in heaven.
Matthew 23:10 (show verse)
Nor are you to be called 'Teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.
Matthew 23:11 (show verse)
He who is greatest among you shall be your servant.
Matthew 23:12 (show verse)
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Matthew 23:13 (show verse)
"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor do you allow those who would enter to go in.
Matthew 23:14 (show verse)
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Matthew 23:15 (show verse)
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win a single proselyte, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
Matthew 23:16 (show verse)
"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'If any one swears by the temple, it is nothing; but if any one swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.'
Matthew 23:17 (show verse)
You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred?
Matthew 23:18 (show verse)
And you say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift that is on it, he is bound by his oath.'
Matthew 23:19 (show verse)
You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
Matthew 23:20 (show verse)
Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
Matthew 23:21 (show verse)
And he who swears by the temple, swears by it and by him who dwells in it.
Matthew 23:22 (show verse)
And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by him who sits on it.
Matthew 23:23 (show verse)
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the Law, justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
Matthew 23:24 (show verse)
You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
Matthew 23:25 (show verse)
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.
Matthew 23:26 (show verse)
Blind Pharisee! First cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.
Matthew 23:27 (show verse)
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which outwardly appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.
Matthew 23:28 (show verse)
Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Matthew 23:29 (show verse)
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,
Matthew 23:30 (show verse)
And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'
Matthew 23:31 (show verse)
Thus you witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.
Matthew 23:32 (show verse)
Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt.
Matthew 23:33 (show verse)
You serpents! You brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?
Matthew 23:34 (show verse)
Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from town to town,
Matthew 23:35 (show verse)
that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
Matthew 23:36 (show verse)
Truly, I say to you, all this will come upon this generation.
Matthew 23:37 (show verse)
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!
Matthew 23:38 (show verse)
Behold, your house is left to you desolate.
Matthew 23:39 (show verse)
For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"