Matthew 23:29-36

23:29 “Woe to you, experts in the law ¹  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You ²  build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves ³  of the righteous. 23:30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, ⁴  we would not have participated with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 23:31 By saying this you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 23:32 Fill up then the measure of your ancestors! 23:33 You snakes, you offspring of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? ⁵ 

23:34 “For this reason I ⁶  am sending you prophets and wise men and experts in the law, ⁷  some of whom you will kill and crucify, ⁸  and some you will flog ⁹  in your synagogues ¹⁰  and pursue from town to town, 23:35 so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, ¹¹  whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 23:36 I tell you the truth, ¹²  this generation will be held responsible for all these things! ¹³ 

[23:29]  ¹ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:29]  ² tn Grk “Because you.” Here ὅτι (Joti) has not been translated.

[23:29]  ³ tn Or perhaps “the monuments” (see L&N 7.75-76).

[23:30]  ⁴ tn Grk “fathers” (so also in v. 32).

[23:33]  ⁵ tn Grk “the judgment of Gehenna.”

[23:34]  ⁶ tn Grk “behold I am sending.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[23:34]  ⁷ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:34]  ⁸ sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.

[23:34]  ⁹ tn BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “of flogging as a punishment decreed by the synagogue (Dt 25:2f; s. the Mishna Tractate Sanhedrin-Makkoth, edited w. notes by SKrauss ’33) w. acc. of pers. Mt 10:17; 23:34.”

[23:34]  ¹⁰ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[23:35]  ¹¹ sn Spelling of this name (Βαραχίου, Baraciou) varies among the English versions: “Barachiah” (RSV, NRSV); “Berechiah” (NASB); “Berachiah” (NIV).

[23:36]  ¹² tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[23:36]  ¹³ tn Grk “all these things will come on this generation.”