^11:37As he spoke,¹¹⁴ a Pharisee¹¹⁵ invited Jesus¹¹⁶ to have a meal with him, so he went in and took his place at the table.¹¹⁷^11:38The¹¹⁸ Pharisee was astonished when he saw that Jesus¹¹⁹ did not first wash his hands¹²⁰ before the meal. ^11:39But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean¹²¹ the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.¹²²^11:40You fools!¹²³ Didn’t the one who made the outside make the inside as well?¹²⁴^11:41But give from your heart to those in need,¹²⁵ and¹²⁶ then everything will be clean for you.¹²⁷

^11:42“But woe to you Pharisees!¹²⁸ You give a tenth¹²⁹ of your mint,¹³⁰ rue,¹³¹ and every herb, yet you neglect justice¹³² and love for God! But you should have done these things without neglecting the others.¹³³^11:43Woe to you Pharisees! You love the best seats¹³⁴ in the synagogues¹³⁵ and elaborate greetings¹³⁶ in the marketplaces! ^11:44Woe to you!¹³⁷ You are like unmarked graves, and people¹³⁸ walk over them without realizing it!”¹³⁹

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Luke 11:42: ...But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

Footnotes

114 The use of the aorist infinitive here should probably be translated “as he spoke” rather than “while he was speaking” (see ). The Pharisee did not necessarily interrupt Jesus to issue the invitation.
115 See the note on Pharisees in .
116 Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
117 Grk “and reclined at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.
118 Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
119 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
120 The words “his hands” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity. Washing before meals was a cultural practice that was described in the OT, but not prescribed there (Gen 18:4; Judg 19:21). It was apparently related to concern about contracting ceremonial uncleanness (Lev 11:31–38; Demai 2.11–12).
121 The allusion to washing (clean the outside of the cup) shows Jesus knew what they were thinking and deliberately set up a contrast that charged them with hypocrisy and majoring on minors.
122 Or “and evil.”
123 You fools is a rebuke which in the OT refers to someone who is blind to God (Ps 14:1, 53:1; 92:6; Prov 6:12).
124 The question includes a Greek particle, οὐ (ou), that expects a positive reply. God, the maker of both, is concerned for what is both inside and outside.
125 Grk “Give the things inside as alms.” Three different approaches have been taken to the syntax and meaning of this phrase: (1) τὰ ἐνόντα (ta enonta, “the things inside”) is an accusative of respect (“give alms with respect to the things inside”); (2) τὰ ἐνόντα is an adverbial accusative (“give alms inwardly,” i.e., from the heart); (3) the word translated “alms” represents a mistranslation of the original Aramaic term “cleanse,” so the statement urges the hearers to “cleanse the things inside.” According to D. L. Bock (Luke [], 2:) the latter meaning is unlikely because the present verse is independent of Matt 23:26, not parallel to it, and makes good sense as it stands. In Jewish culture giving alms to the poor was a very important religious observance; it was meant to be an act of mercy, kindness, and love (D. L. Bock, Luke [], 2:). The implication from the text is that the Pharisees gave alms, but without any of the spiritual concern which should have motivated those generous actions. Here Jesus commands the Pharisees to give from within themselves to those in need instead of just giving of their possessions. In so doing they would show true inner purity acceptable to God. This is in keeping with the author’s social concerns elsewhere in the Gospel (cf., e.g., 1:52–53, 4:18–19, 6:20–21, 14:13).
126 Grk “and behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this clause has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis ( 1).
127 The expression everything will be clean for you refers to the agreement that should exist between the overt practice of one’s religious duties, such as almsgiving, and the inner condition of one’s heart, including true love for God and the poor; one is not only to wash the outside of the cup and plate, but the inside as well, since as Jesus said, God created the inside too. Religious duties are not to be performed hypocritically, i.e., for the applause and esteem of people, but rather they are to be done out of a deep love for God and a sensitivity to and concern for the needs of others. Then, everything will be clean, both hearts and lives.
128 Grk “Woe to you … because you …” The causal particle ὅτι (hoti) has not been translated here for rhetorical effect (and so to the end of this chapter).
129 Or “you tithe mint.”
130 These small herbs were tithed with great care (, Demai 2:1).
131 Grk “and rue.” καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more. Rue was an evergreen herb used for seasoning.
132 Justice was a major theme of OT ethics (Mic 6:8; Zech 7:8–10).
133 Grk “those”; but this has been translated as “the others” to clarify which are meant.
134 Or “seats of honor.” The term here is plural and is not a reference only to the lead “seat of Moses” in the synagogue, but includes the front seats near the ark.
135 See the note on synagogues in .
136 Grk “and the greetings.” The later Jewish summary of oral tradition, the Talmud, notes elaborate greetings for rabbis. The rebuke here is for pride.
137 Most (A [D] W Θ Ψ f13 𝔐 it) have “experts in the law and Pharisees, hypocrites” after “you,” but this looks like an assimilation to the parallel in Matt 23:25, 27, 29. The shorter reading has earlier attestation from a variety of reliable (𝔓45, 75 א B C L f1 33 1241 2542 lat sa).
138 Grk “men.” This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos), referring to both males and females.
139 In Judaism to come into contact with the dead or what is associated with them, even without knowing it, makes one unclean (Num 19:11–22; Lev 21:1–3; , Demai 2:3). To Pharisees, who would have been so sensitive about contracting ceremonial uncleanness, it would have been quite a stinging rebuke to be told they caused it.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him, so he went in and reclined at table. The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not first wash before dinner. And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? But give as alms those things that are within, and behold, everything is clean for you.

“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table. But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal.

Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.

“Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

“Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and respectful greetings in the marketplaces.

“Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, which people walk over without knowing it.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

As he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him. So he went in and reclined at the table. When the Pharisee saw this, he was amazed that he did not first perform the ritual washing before dinner. But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and evil. Fools! Didn’t he who made the outside make the inside too? But give from what is within to the poor, and then everything is clean for you.

“But woe to you Pharisees! You give a tenth of mint, rue, and every kind of herb, and you bypass justice and love for God. These things you should have done without neglecting the others.

“Woe to you Pharisees! You love the front seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.

“Woe to you! You are like unmarked graves; the people who walk over them don’t know it.”

NLTNew Living Translation

As Jesus was speaking, one of the Pharisees invited him home for a meal. So he went in and took his place at the table. His host was amazed to see that he sat down to eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony required by Jewish custom. Then the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and wickedness! Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside? So clean the inside by giving gifts to the poor, and you will be clean all over.

“What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.

“What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you walk in the marketplaces. Yes, what sorrow awaits you! For you are like hidden graves in a field. People walk over them without knowing the corruption they are stepping on.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And as he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to have a meal with him, and he went in and reclined at table. And the Pharisee, when he saw it, was astonished that he did not first wash before the meal. But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but your inside is full of greediness and wickedness. Fools! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? But give as charitable giving the things that are within, and behold, everything is clean for you.

“But woe to you, Pharisees, because you pay a tenth of mint and rue and every garden herb, and neglect justice and love for God! But it was necessary to do these things without neglecting those things also. Woe to you, Pharisees, because you love the best seat in the synagogues and the greetings in the marketplaces! Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, and the people who walk over them do not know it!

KJV 1900King James Version

And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat. And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner. And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness. Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also? But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you. But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.

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