Matthew 23:13

23:13 “But woe to you, experts in the law ¹  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! ²  You keep locking people out of the kingdom of heaven! ³  For you neither enter nor permit those trying to enter to go in.

Matthew 23:23

23:23 “Woe to you, experts in the law ⁴  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth ⁵  of mint, dill, and cumin, ⁶  yet you neglect what is more important in the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You ⁷  should have done these things without neglecting the others.

Matthew 23:27

23:27 “Woe to you, experts in the law ⁸  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs that look beautiful on the outside but inside are full of the bones of the dead and of everything unclean. ⁹ 

[23:13]  ¹ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:13]  ² tn Grk “Woe to you…because you…” The causal particle ὅτι (Joti) has not been translated here for rhetorical effect (and so throughout this chapter).

[23:13]  ³ tn Grk “because you are closing the kingdom of heaven before people.”

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

[23:23]  ⁵ tn Or “you tithe mint.”

[23:23]  ⁶ sn Cumin (alternately spelled cummin) was an aromatic herb native to the Mediterranean region. Its seeds were used for seasoning.

[23:23]  ⁷ tc ‡ Many witnesses (B C K L W Δ 0102 33 565 892 pm) have δέ (de, “but”) after ταῦτα (tauta, “these things”), while many others lack it (א D Γ Θ Ë^1,13 579 700 1241 1424 pm). Since asyndeton was relatively rare in Koine Greek, the conjunction may be an intentional alteration, and is thus omitted from the present translation. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[23:27]  ⁸ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:27]  ⁹ sn This was an idiom for hypocrisy – just as the wall was painted on the outside but something different on the inside, so this person was not what he appeared or pretended to be (for discussion of a similar metaphor, see L&N 88.234; BDAG 1010 s.v. τοῖχος). See Deut 28:22; Ezek 13:10-16; Acts 23:3.