Old Testament

New Testament

Matthew 23:21-31 Contemporary English Version Anglicised (CEVUK00)

21. And anyone who swears by the temple also swears by God, who lives there.

22. To swear by heaven is the same as swearing by God's throne and by the one who sits on that throne.

23. You Pharisees and teachers are show-offs, and you're in for trouble! You give God a tenth of the spices from your garden, such as mint, dill, and cumin. Yet you neglect the more important matters of the Law, such as justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These are the important things you should have done, though you should not have left the others undone either.

24. You blind leaders! You strain out a small fly but swallow a camel.

25. You Pharisees and teachers are show-offs, and you're in for trouble! You wash the outside of your cups and dishes, while inside there is nothing but greed and selfishness.

26. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of a cup, and then the outside will also be clean.

27. You Pharisees and teachers are in for trouble! You're nothing but show-offs. You're like tombs that have been whitewashed. On the outside they are beautiful, but inside they are full of bones and filth.

28. That's what you are like. Outside you look good, but inside you are evil and only pretend to be good.

29. You Pharisees and teachers are nothing but show-offs, and you're in for trouble! You build monuments for the prophets and decorate the tombs of good people.

30. And you claim that you would not have taken part with your ancestors in killing the prophets.

31. But you prove that you really are the relatives of the ones who killed the prophets.

Read complete chapter Matthew 23