²³“How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You give to God one-tenth of everything you earn—even your mint, dill, and cumin. ⁿ But you don’t obey the really important teachings of the law—justice, mercy, and being loyal. These are the things you should do, as well as those other things. ²⁴You guide the people, but you are blind! You are like a person who picks a fly out of a drink and then swallows a camel! ⁿ

²⁵“How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You wash the outside of your cups and dishes, but inside they are full of things you got by cheating others and by pleasing only yourselves. ²⁶Pharisees, you are blind! First make the inside of the cup clean, and then the outside of the cup can be truly clean.

²⁷“How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You are like tombs that are painted white. Outside, those tombs look fine, but inside, they are full of the bones of dead people and all kinds of unclean things. ²⁸It is the same with you. People look at you and think you are good, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and evil.

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Footnotes

nmint, dill, and cumin Small plants grown in gardens and used for spices. Only very religious people would be careful enough to give a tenth of these plants.
nYou … camel! Meaning, “You worry about the smallest mistakes but commit the biggest sin.”