Matthew 23 NLT ISV Parallel

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◄ Matthew 23 ►

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1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,

1Then Jesus told the crowds and his disciples,

2 “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses.

2"The scribes and the Pharisees administer the authority of Moses,

3 So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach.

3So do whatever they tell you and follow it, but stop doing what they do, because they don't do what they say.

4 They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden.

4They tie up burdens that are heavy and unbearable and lay them on people's shoulders, but they refuse to lift a finger to remove them.

5 “Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear robes with extra long tassels.

5"They do everything to be seen by people. They increase the size of their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.

6 And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues.

6They love to have the places of honor at festivals, the best seats in the synagogues,

7 They love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi.’

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

8 “Don’t let anyone call you ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as brothers and sisters.

8"But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' because you have only one teacher, and all of you are brothers.

9 And don’t address anyone here on earth as ‘Father,’ for only God in heaven is your Father.

9And don't call anyone on earth 'Father,' because you have only one Father, the one in heaven.

10 And don’t let anyone call you ‘Teacher,’ for you have only one teacher, the Messiah.

10Nor are you to be called 'Teachers,' because you have only one teacher, the Messiah!

11 The greatest among you must be a servant.

11The person who is greatest among you must be your servant.

12 But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

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

13 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either.

13"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door to the kingdom from heaven in people's faces. You don't go in yourselves, and you don't allow those who are trying to enter to go in.

14	14"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You devour widows' houses and say long prayers to cover it up. Therefore, you will receive greater condemnation!

15 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell you yourselves are!

15"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to make a single convert, and when this happens you make him twice as fit for hell as you are.

16 “Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’

16"How terrible it will be for you, blind guides! You say, 'Whoever swears an oath by the sanctuary is excused, but whoever swears an oath by the gold of the sanctuary must keep his oath.'

17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred?

17You blind fools! What is more important, the gold or the sanctuary that made the gold holy?

18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding.

18Again you say, 'Whoever swears an oath by the altar is excused, but whoever swears by the gift that is on it must keep his oath.'

19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred?

19You blind men! Which is more important, the gift or the altar that makes the gift holy?

20 When you swear ‘by the altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it.

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

21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it.

21The one who swears an oath by the sanctuary swears by it and by the one who lives there.

22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne.

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

23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.

23"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your mint, dill, and cummin, but have neglected the more important matters of the Law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These are the things you should have practiced, without neglecting the others.

24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!

24You blind guides! You filter out a gnat, yet swallow a camel!

25 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence!

25"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but on the inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

26 You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too.

26You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that its outside may also be clean.

27 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity.

27"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs that look beautiful on the outside but inside are full of dead people's bones and every kind of impurity.

28 Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.

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

29 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed, and you decorate the monuments of the godly people your ancestors destroyed.

29"How terrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous.

30 Then you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would never have joined them in killing the prophets.’

30Then you say, 'If we had been living in the days of our ancestors, we would have had no part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'

31 “But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

31Therefore, you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets.

32 Go ahead and finish what your ancestors started.

32Then finish what your ancestors started!

33 Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?

33You snakes, you children of serpents! How can you escape being condemned to hell?

34 “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city.

34"That is why I am sending you prophets, wise men, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will whip in your synagogues and persecute from town to town.

35 As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar.

35As a result, you will be held accountable for all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of the righteous Abel to the blood of Berechiah's son Zechariah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

36 I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation. Jesus Grieves over Jerusalem

36I tell all of you with certainty, all these things will happen to those living today."

37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me.

37"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones to death those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!

38 And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate.

38Look! Your house is left abandoned!

39 For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD !’ ”

39I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'How blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

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