Matthew 23:16–39

¹⁶Woe to you, blind guides, who say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor. ¹⁷Fools and blind, for which is greater, the gold, or the temple which sanctifies the gold? ¹⁸And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it is a debtor. ¹⁹Fools and blind ones, for which is greater, the gift, or the altar which sanctifies the gift? ²⁰He therefore that swears by the altar swears by it and by all things that are upon it. ²¹And he that swears by the temple swears by it and by him that dwells in it. ²²And he that swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him that sits upon it. ²³Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye pay tithes of mint and anise and cummin, and ye have left aside the weightier matters of the law, judgment and mercy and faith: these ye ought to have done and not have left those aside. ²⁴Blind guides, who strain out the gnat, but drink down the camel. ²⁵Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but within they are full of rapine and intemperance. ²⁶Blind Pharisee, make clean first the inside of the cup and of the dish, that their outside also may become clean. ²⁷Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye are like whited sepulchres, which appear beautiful outwardly, but within are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. ²⁸Thus also ye, outwardly ye appear righteous to men, but within are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. ²⁹Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets and adorn the tombs of the just, ³⁰and ye say, If we had been in the days of our fathers we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. ³¹So that ye bear witness of yourselves that ye are sons of those who slew the prophets: ³²and ye, fill ye up the measure of your fathers. ³³Serpents, offspring of vipers, how should ye escape the judgment of hell?

³⁴Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes; and some of them ye will kill and crucify, and some of them ye will scourge in your synagogues, and will persecute from city to city; ³⁵so that all righteous blood shed upon the earth should come upon you, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. ³⁶Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. ³⁷Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those that are sent unto her, how often would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! ³⁸Behold, your house is left unto you desolate; ³⁹for I say unto you, Ye shall in no wise see me henceforth until ye say, Blessed be he that comes in the name of the Lord.