Mat 11, Mat 23 | ESV | STEP | When Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples , he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities .

1 When Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.

2 ^aNow when John heard ^bin prison about the deeds of ^cthe Christ, he sent word by ^dhis disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you ^ethe one who is to come, or shall we ^flook for another?” 4 And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 ^gthe blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers ^{▼▼Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases; see Leviticus 13} are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and ⁱthe poor have good news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who ^jis not offended by me.”

7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out ^kinto the wilderness to see? ^lA reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man ^{▼▼Or Why then did you go out? To see a man . . .} dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 9 What then did you go out to see? ⁿA prophet? ^{▼▼Some manuscripts Why then did you go out? To see a prophet?} Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is he of whom it is written,

^p“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 ^qFrom the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, ^{▼▼Or has been coming violently} and the violent take it by force. 13 ^sFor all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to accept it, he is ^tElijah who is to come. 15 ^uHe who has ears to hear, ^{▼▼Some manuscripts omit to hear} let him hear.

16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates,

17 “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
18 For John came ^wneither eating ^xnor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came ^yeating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, ^za friend of ^aatax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.” ^{▼▼Some manuscripts children (compare Luke 7:35)}

Woe to Unrepentant Cities

20 ^acThen he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. 21 ^ad“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in ^aeTyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 ^afBut I tell you, it will be more bearable on ^agthe day of judgment for ^ahTyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, ^aiCapernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to ^ajHades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 ^akBut I tell you that ^alit will be more tolerable on ^amthe day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”

Come to Me, and I Will Give You Rest

25 ^anAt that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, ^aoLord of heaven and earth, that ^apyou have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and ^aqrevealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your ^argracious will. ^{▼▼Or for so it pleased you well} 27 ^atAll things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son ^auexcept the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone ^avto whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 ^awCome to ^axme, all who labor and are ^ayheavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and ^azlearn from me, for I am ^bagentle and lowly in heart, and ^bbyou will find rest for your souls. 30 For ^bcmy yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Matthew 23

Seven Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees

1 Then Jesus ^bdsaid to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 ^be“The scribes and the Pharisees ^bfsit on Moses’ seat, 3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, ^bgbut not the works they do. ^bhFor they preach, but do not practice. 4 ^biThey tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, ^{▼▼Some manuscripts omit hard to bear} and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. 5 ^bkThey do all their deeds ^blto be seen by others. For they make ^bmtheir phylacteries broad and ^bntheir fringes long, 6 and they ^bolove the place of honor at feasts and ^bpthe best seats in the synagogues 7 and ^bqgreetings in ^brthe marketplaces and being called ^bsrabbi ^{▼▼ Rabbi means my teacher, or my master; also verse 8} by others. 8 ^buBut you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are ^bvall brothers. ^{▼▼Or brothers and sisters} 9 ^bxAnd call no man your father on earth, for ^byyou have one Father, who is in heaven. 10 Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, ^bzthe Christ. 11 ^caThe greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 ^cbWhoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

13 “But woe ^ccto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you ^cdshut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you ^ceneither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. ^{▼▼Some manuscripts add here (or after verse 12) verse 14: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation} 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single ^cgproselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a ^chchild of ^cihell ^{▼▼Greek Gehenna; also verse 33} as yourselves.

16 “Woe to ^ckyou, ^clblind guides, who say, ^cm‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17 You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or ^cnthe temple that has made the gold sacred? 18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by ^cothe gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ 19 You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or ^cpthe altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by ^cqhim who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by ^crheaven swears by ^csthe throne of God and by ^cthim who sits upon it.

23 ^cu“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ^cvyou tithe mint and dill and ^cwcumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: ^cxjustice and mercy and faithfulness. ^cyThese you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing ^cza camel!

25 ^da“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ^dbyou clean the outside of ^dcthe cup and the plate, but inside they are full of ^ddgreed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of ^dethe cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

27 ^df“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like ^dgwhitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and ^dhall uncleanness. 28 So you also ^dioutwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of ^djhypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 ^dk“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30 saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 Thus you witness against yourselves that you are ^dlsons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 ^dmFill up, then, the measure of your fathers. 33 You serpents, ^dnyou brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to ^dohell? 34 ^dpTherefore ^dqI send you ^drprophets and wise men and ^dsscribes, ^dtsome of whom you will kill and crucify, and ^dusome you will ^dvflog in your synagogues and ^dwpersecute from town to town, 35 so that on you may come all ^dxthe righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous ^dyAbel to the blood of ^dzZechariah the son of Barachiah, ^{▼▼Some manuscripts omit the son of Barachiah} whom you murdered between ^ebthe sanctuary and ^ecthe altar. 36 Truly, I say to you, ^edall these things will come upon this generation.

Lament over Jerusalem

37 ^ee“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that ^efkills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have ^eggathered ^ehyour children together ^eias a hen gathers her brood ^ejunder her wings, and ^ekyou were not willing! 38 See, ^elyour house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ^em‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”