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 Pharisees have taken Moses' seat.
Matthew 23:3 (show verse)
So do everything they tell you, and observe it all, but do not do as they do, for they talk but do not act.
Matthew 23:4 (show verse)
They tie up heavy loads and have them put on men's shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them.
Matthew 23:5 (show verse)
They do everything they do to have men see it. They wear wide Scripture texts as charms, and they wear large tassels,
Matthew 23:6 (show verse)
and they like the best places at dinners and the front seats in the synagogues,
Matthew 23:7 (show verse)
and to be saluted with respect in public places, and to have men call them 'Rabbi.'
Matthew 23:8 (show verse)
But you must not let people call you 'Rabbi,' for you have only one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Matthew 23:9 (show verse)
And you must not call anyone on earth your father, for you have only one father, your heavenly Father.
Matthew 23:10 (show verse)
And you must not let men call you master, for you have only one master, the Christ.
Matthew 23:11 (show verse)
But he who is greatest among you must be your servant.
Matthew 23:12 (show verse)
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Matthew 23:13 (show verse)
"But alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you lock the doors of the Kingdom of Heaven in men's faces, for you will neither go in yourselves nor let those enter who are trying to do so.
Matthew 23:14 (show verse)
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Matthew 23:15 (show verse)
Alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you scour land and sea to make one convert, and when he is converted you make him twice as fit for the pit as you are.
Matthew 23:16 (show verse)
Alas for you, you blind guides, who say, 'If anyone swears by the sanctuary, it does not matter, but if anyone swears by the gold of the sanctuary, it is binding.'
Matthew 23:17 (show verse)
Blind fools! which is greater, the gold, or the sanctuary that makes the gold sacred?
Matthew 23:18 (show verse)
You say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it does not matter, but if anyone swears by the offering that is on it, it is binding.'
Matthew 23:19 (show verse)
You blind men! Which is greater, the offering, or the altar that makes the offering sacred?
Matthew 23:20 (show verse)
Anyone who swears by the altar is swearing by it and by everything that is on it,
Matthew 23:21 (show verse)
and anyone who swears by the sanctuary is swearing by it and by him who dwells in it;
Matthew 23:22 (show verse)
and anyone who swears by heaven is swearing by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.
Matthew 23:23 (show verse)
"Alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you pay tithes on mint, dill, and cummin, and you have let the weightier matters of the Law go??ustice, mercy, and integrity. But you should have observed these, without overlooking the others.
Matthew 23:24 (show verse)
You blind guides! straining out the gnat, and yet swallowing the camel!
Matthew 23:25 (show verse)
Alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
Matthew 23:26 (show verse)
You blind Pharisee! You must first clean the inside of the cup and the dish, so that the outside may be clean too.
Matthew 23:27 (show verse)
Alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you are like white-washed tombs! They look well on the outside, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead, and all that is unclean.
Matthew 23:28 (show verse)
So you outwardly appear to men to be upright, but within you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Matthew 23:29 (show verse)
"Alas for you, you hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, for you build tombs for the prophets, and decorate the monuments of the upright,
Matthew 23:30 (show verse)
and say, 'If we had been living in the times of our fathers, we would not have joined them in the murder of the prophets.'
Matthew 23:31 (show verse)
So you bear witness against yourselves that you are descended from the murderers of the prophets.
Matthew 23:32 (show verse)
Go on and fill up the measure of your forefathers' guilt.
Matthew 23:33 (show verse)
You serpents! You brood of snakes! How can you escape being sentenced to the pit?
Matthew 23:34 (show verse)
This is why I am going to send you prophets, wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and hunt from one town to another;
Matthew 23:35 (show verse)
it is that on your heads may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth from the blood of Abel the upright to the blood of Zechariah, Barachiah's son, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar!
Matthew 23:36 (show verse)
I tell you, all this will come upon this age!
Matthew 23:37 (show verse)
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! murdering the prophets, and stoning those who are sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children around me, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you refused!
Matthew 23:38 (show verse)
Now I leave you to yourselves.
Matthew 23:39 (show verse)
For I tell you, you will never see me again until you say, 'Blessed be he who comes in the Lord's name!' "