Matthew 6:5

Private Prayer

6:5 “Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues ¹  and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward.

Matthew 6:16

Proper Fasting

6:16 “When ²  you fast, do not look sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unattractive ³  so that people will see them fasting. I tell you the truth, ⁴  they have their reward.

Matthew 5:16

5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.

Matthew 23:5

23:5 They ⁵  do all their deeds to be seen by people, for they make their phylacteries ⁶  wide and their tassels ⁷  long.

Matthew 23:14

23:14 [[EMPTY]] ⁸ 

Matthew 23:28-30

23:28 In the same way, on the outside you look righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

23:29 “Woe to you, experts in the law ⁹  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You ¹⁰  build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves ¹¹  of the righteous. 23:30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, ¹²  we would not have participated with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’

Matthew 23:2

23:2 “The ¹³  experts in the law ¹⁴  and the Pharisees ¹⁵  sit on Moses’ seat.

Matthew 10:16

Persecution of Disciples

10:16 “I ¹⁶  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ¹⁷  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Matthew 10:31

10:31 So do not be afraid; ¹⁸  you are more valuable than many sparrows.

Ezekiel 33:31

33:31 They come to you in crowds, ¹⁹  and they sit in front of you as ²⁰  my people. They hear your words, but do not obey ²¹  them. For they talk lustfully, ²²  and their heart is set on ²³  their own advantage. ²⁴ 

Zechariah 7:5

7:5 “Speak to all the people and priests of the land as follows: ‘When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and seventh ²⁵  months through all these seventy years, did you truly fast for me – for me, indeed?

Zechariah 13:4

13:4 “Therefore, on that day each prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies and will no longer wear the hairy garment ²⁶  of a prophet to deceive the people. ²⁷ 

Luke 16:15

16:15 But ²⁸  Jesus ²⁹  said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in men’s eyes, ³⁰  but God knows your hearts. For what is highly prized ³¹  among men is utterly detestable ³²  in God’s sight.

John 5:44

5:44 How can you believe, if you accept praise ³³  from one another and don’t seek the praise ³⁴  that comes from the only God? ³⁵ 

John 12:43

12:43 For they loved praise ³⁶  from men more than praise ³⁷  from God.

Galatians 6:12

6:12 Those who want to make a good showing in external matters ³⁸  are trying to force you to be circumcised. They do so ³⁹  only to avoid being persecuted ⁴⁰  for the cross of Christ.

[6:5]  ¹ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[6:16]  ² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[6:16]  ³ tn Here the term “disfigure” used in a number of translations was not used because it could convey to the modern reader the notion of mutilation. L&N 79.17 states, “‘to make unsightly, to disfigure, to make ugly.’ ἀφανίζουσιν γὰρ τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν ‘for they make their faces unsightly’ Mt 6:16.”

[6:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[23:5]  ⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:5]  ⁶ sn Phylacteries were small leather cases containing OT scripture verses, worn on the arm and forehead by Jews, especially when praying. The custom was derived from such OT passages as Exod 13:9; 16; Deut 6:8; 11:18.

[23:5]  ⁷ tn The term κράσπεδον (kraspedon) in some contexts could refer to the outer fringe of the garment (possibly in Mark 6:56). This edge could have been plain or decorated. L&N 6.180 states, “In Mt 23:5 κράσπεδον denotes the tassels worn at the four corners of the outer garment (see 6.194).”

[23:14]  ⁸ tc The most important mss (א B D L Z Θ Ë¹ 33 892* pc and several versional witnesses) do not have 23:14 “Woe to you experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You devour widows’ property, and as a show you pray long prayers! Therefore you will receive a more severe punishment.” Part or all of the verse is contained (either after v. 12 or after v. 13) in W 0102 0107 ˹³ Ï and several versions, but it is almost certainly not original. The present translation follows NA²⁷ in omitting the verse number as well, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations. Note also that Mark 12:40 and Luke 20:47 are very similar in wording and are not disputed textually.

[23:29]  ⁹ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:29]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “Because you.” Here ὅτι (Joti) has not been translated.

[23:29]  ¹¹ tn Or perhaps “the monuments” (see L&N 7.75-76).

[23:30]  ¹² tn Grk “fathers” (so also in v. 32).

[23:2]  ¹³ tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[23:2]  ¹⁴ tn Or “The scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:2]  ¹⁵ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[10:16]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “Behold I.” 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).

[10:16]  ¹⁷ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.

[10:31]  ¹⁸ sn Do not be afraid. One should respect and show reverence to God, but need not fear his tender care.

[33:31]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “as people come.” Apparently this is an idiom indicating that they come in crowds. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:264.

[33:31]  ²⁰ tn The word “as” is supplied in the translation.

[33:31]  ²¹ tn Heb “do.”

[33:31]  ²² tn Heb “They do lust with their mouths.”

[33:31]  ²³ tn Heb “goes after.”

[33:31]  ²⁴ tn The present translation understands the term often used for “unjust gain” in a wider sense, following M. Greenberg, who also notes that the LXX uses a term which can describe either sexual or ritual pollution. See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:687.

[7:5]  ²⁵ tn The seventh month apparently refers to the anniversary of the assassination of Gedaliah, governor of Judah (Jer 40:13-14; 41:1), in approximately 581 b.c.

[13:4]  ²⁶ tn The “hairy garment of a prophet” (אַדֶּרֶת שֵׁעָר, ’adderet she’ar) was the rough clothing of Elijah (1 Kgs 19:13), Elisha (1 Kgs 19:19; 2 Kgs 2:14), and even John the Baptist (Matt 3:4). Yet, אַדֶּרֶת alone suggests something of beauty and honor (Josh 7:21). The prophet’s attire may have been simple the image it conveyed was one of great dignity.

[13:4]  ²⁷ tn The words “the people” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation from context (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).

[16:15]  ²⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[16:15]  ²⁹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:15]  ³⁰ tn Grk “before men.” The contrast is between outward appearance (“in people’s eyes”) and inward reality (“God knows your hearts”). Here the Greek term ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used twice in a generic sense, referring to both men and women, but “men” has been retained in the text to provide a strong verbal contrast with “God” in the second half of the verse.

[16:15]  ³¹ tn Or “exalted.” This refers to the pride that often comes with money and position.

[16:15]  ³² tn Or “is an abomination,” “is abhorrent” (L&N 25.187).

[5:44]  ³³ tn Or “honor” (Grk “glory,” in the sense of respect or honor accorded to a person because of their status).

[5:44]  ³⁴ tn Or “honor” (Grk “glory,” in the sense of respect or honor accorded to a person because of their status).

[5:44]  ³⁵ tc Several early and important witnesses (Ì^66,75 B W a b sa) lack θεοῦ (qeou, “God”) here, thus reading “the only one,” while most of the rest of the tradition, including some important mss, has the name ({א A D L Θ Ψ 33 Ï}). Internally, it could be argued that the name of God was not used here, in keeping with the NT practice of suppressing the name of God at times for rhetorical effect, drawing the reader inexorably to the conclusion that the one being spoken of is God himself. On the other hand, never is ὁ μόνος (Jo mono") used absolutely in the NT (i.e., without a noun or substantive with it), and always the subject of the adjunct is God (cf. Matt 24:36; John 17:3; 1 Tim 6:16). What then is to explain the shorter reading? In uncial script, with θεοῦ written as a nomen sacrum, envisioning accidental omission of the name by way of homoioteleuton requires little imagination, largely because of the succession of words ending in -ου: toumonouqMuou. It is thus preferable to retain the word in the text.

[12:43]  ³⁶ tn Grk “the glory.”

[12:43]  ³⁷ tn Grk “the glory.”

[6:12]  ³⁸ tn Grk “in the flesh.” L&N 88.236 translates the phrase “those who force you to be circumcised are those who wish to make a good showing in external matters.”

[6:12]  ³⁹ tn Grk “to be circumcised, only.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started with the words “They do so,” which were supplied to make a complete English sentence.

[6:12]  ⁴⁰ tc ‡ Grk “so that they will not be persecuted.” The indicative after ἵνα μή (Jina mh) is unusual (though not unexampled elsewhere in the NT), making it the harder reading. The evidence is fairly evenly split between the indicative διώκονται (diwkontai; Ì⁴⁶ A C F G K L P 0278 6 81 104 326 629 1175 1505 pm) and the subjunctive διώκωνται (diwkwntai; א B D Ψ 33 365 1739 pm), with a slight preference for the subjunctive. However, since scribes would tend to change the indicative to a subjunctive due to syntactical requirements, the internal evidence is decidedly on the side of the indicative, suggesting that it is original.