13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? (Matthew 23:13-33 KJV)
Eight Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees
In these verses, our Lord Jesus Christ pronounces eight woes against the scribes and Pharisees, in contrast to the eight beatitudes (Matthew 5:3). The gospel has its woes as well as its blessings, and gospel curses are the heaviest. These woes are remarkable, not only because of the authority but also because of the meekness and gentleness of him who denounced them. Though he came to bless, his wrath was kindled for just cause. A woe from Christ is a remediless woe.
The repeated indictment is: Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Their hypocrisy was the root of all their other faults. A hypocrite is a stage-player in religion, pretending to be what he is not. Their state was woeful; their religion was vain in life and their ruin great in death.
Each woe has a reason, exposing their hypocrisy and justifying Christ’s judgment. They were enemies to the gospel and the salvation of souls (Matthew 23:13). They shut up the kingdom of heaven against men, discouraging belief in Christ. Though they sat in Moses’s seat and had the key of knowledge, they suppressed prophecy and encouraged ceremonialism instead of pointing people to the Messiah. They refused to enter the kingdom themselves, being too proud to stoop to Christ’s humility and too formal to embrace his simplicity. Worse, they hindered others, using their influence to turn people away, opposing Christ’s reception of sinners and sinners’ reception of Christ. They misrepresented him, confronted his miracles, and excommunicated those who confessed him. Yet salvation is in God’s hands, not man’s.
They used religion as a cover for greed (Matthew 23:14). They devoured widows’ houses, taking advantage of them instead of protecting them. Though they prayed long prayers to appear devout, their prayers were vain repetitions meant to gain reputation while they preyed upon the vulnerable. Their hypocrisy made their condemnation greater, for pretenses of religion aggravate sin.
While they opposed conversions to Christianity, they were zealous in making proselytes to their faction (Matthew 23:15). They traveled far to make converts, not for God’s glory or the good of souls, but for their own benefit. Their proselytes became even more extreme, more bound to ceremonies, and more opposed to Christianity than themselves. The worst persecutors of the apostles were Hellenist Jews, mostly proselytes (Acts 13:45; 14:2-19; 17:5; 18:6). Paul, trained by Pharisees, was extremely hostile to Christians (Acts 26:11), while his teacher, Gamaliel, was more moderate.
Their pursuit of gain led them to corrupt the doctrine of oaths (Matthew 23:16). Christ calls them “blind guides.” They allowed swearing by the temple and the altar but made distinctions that served their interests. They prioritized gold over the temple and gifts over the altar, encouraging offerings for their own financial benefit. But the temple sanctified the gold, and the altar sanctified the gift. Christ, our true altar and temple, sanctifies all our gifts and makes them acceptable (Hebrews 13:10; 1 Peter 2:5). Those who rely on works instead of Christ’s righteousness make the same mistake as the Pharisees, valuing form over substance.
They were meticulous in minor observances but careless in weightier matters (Matthew 23:23-24). They tithed even herbs like mint and cumin but neglected justice, mercy, and faith—the core of true godliness (Micah 6:8). They observed trivial rituals while committing great sins. They strained out a gnat but swallowed a camel, avoiding minor infractions while engaging in major wrongdoing. Their hypocrisy was exposed by their inconsistency.
They focused on outward appearances rather than inward holiness. They were like cups washed on the outside but filthy inside (Matthew 23:25-26), caring more about ceremonial cleanliness than true purity. They were like whitewashed tombs—beautiful outwardly but full of dead men’s bones (Matthew 23:27-28). Their righteousness was a facade; God, who sees the heart, was not deceived.
Despite their opposition to Christ, they followed in the footsteps of their ancestors, persecuting God’s messengers (Matthew 23:31-33). They acknowledged that their ancestors had killed the prophets but did not see that they were committing the same sins. Their confession condemned them; they were not only physical but also spiritual descendants of persecutors (Acts 7:51; Isaiah 1:4). Instead of detesting their forefathers’ sins, they justified them.
Christ gave them up to sin as irredeemable (Matthew 23:32). “Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.” If they insisted on following their fathers’ sins, judgment would come. There is a measure of sin to be filled before judgment falls on individuals, families, and nations (Genesis 15:16; Revelation 14:15-19). Persecuting Christ and his people brings swift ruin (2 Chronicles 36:16; 1 Thessalonians 2:16). Those who persist in rebellion will eventually be left to themselves to continue doing it.
Finally, he pronounces their doom (Matthew 23:33): “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how can you escape the damnation of hell?” Christ, though full of grace, spoke words of terror when necessary. They were as cunning as serpents, with venom under their tongues. They prided themselves on being teachers, but he exposed them as blind guides leading others to destruction. Their hypocrisy sealed their fate. While some are delivered from wrath, their self-righteousness and rejection of Christ made them least likely to escape. Tax collectors and prostitutes, recognizing their sin, were more likely to repent and be saved than those who, despite their pious exterior, were far from God.
Thus, Christ’s woes stand as a solemn warning against hypocrisy, self-righteousness, and opposition to the gospel. Outward religion without inward transformation is worthless, and those who obstruct God’s kingdom will face the heaviest judgment.