- 1Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
- 2Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat:
- 3All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
- 4For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
- 5But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,
- 6And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
- 7And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
- 8But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
- 9And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
- 10Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
- 11But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
- 12And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
- 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.
- 14Woe 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.
- 15Woe 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.
- 16Woe 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!
- 17Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
- 18And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
- 19Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
- 20Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
- 21And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
- 22And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
- 23Woe 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.
- 24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
- 25Woe 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.
- 26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
- 27Woe 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.
- 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
- 29Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
- 30And 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.
- 31Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
- 32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
- 33Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
- 34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
- 35That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
- 36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
- 37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
- 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
- 39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
KING JAMES VERSION
MATTHEW 23
Read the chapter, follow a linked verse, and continue into related Watchman 33 teaching.
CHAPTER VISUAL
Matthew 23 — Jesus exposes religious hypocrisy, calls for humble service, and laments over a Jerusalem unwilling to gather.
About this illustration
The scene distinguishes conduct and posture rather than ethnicity: leaders and listeners are portrayed as the same people with individual responses. Jesus’ lament over the city shapes the sorrowful light without literalizing the hen metaphor.
Scripture basis: Matthew 23:1–39King James Version · Standardized 1769 text with Strong’s numbering · Public domain outside the United Kingdom
EXPLORE THE MESSAGE
Related Watchman 33 Resources
Archaeological Evidence
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEManuscript
2nd–3rd Century
Papyrus P77: Matthew 23:30–34 in a Greek Witness
P77 unites P.Oxy. 2683 and a later-published joining fragment, P.Oxy. 4405, into an early papyrus leaf preserving Matthew 23:30–39.
Matthew 23:30–39
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEArchitecture
Principally 3rd–6th centuries AD, with earlier occupation beneath and around the synagogue
Chorazin Synagogue and the Inscribed Seat of Moses
Korazim's basalt synagogue, donor inscription, and so-called Seat of Moses document the durable Jewish communal life of a Galilean town named in the Gospels, though the visible building is later.
Matthew 11:20–24 · Luke 10:13–15 · Matthew 23:2–3
ARCHAEOLOGY EVIDENCEBurial
Second–fourth centuries AD, with continued use and commemoration afterward
The Beth She'arim Catacombs and Multilingual Epitaphs
Beth She’arim contains an extensive network of rock-cut catacombs with sarcophagi, wall paintings, symbols, and hundreds of inscriptions in Greek, Aramaic, Hebrew, and Palmyrene. The necropolis became a burial center for Jews from Galilee and distant diaspora communities. The dossier connects the excavated evidence to Genesis 23:19-20 and Matthew 23:29 while keeping the historical claim narrower than the biblical narrative.
Genesis 23:19–20 · Matthew 23:29
Prophecy Events
Sermons
Oh They Perish
In “Oh They Perish,” Pastor Dean Odle reflects on Jesus weeping over Jerusalem and argues that Christians should share Christ’s grief for people who are spiritually lost. Moving through Luke 19, Ecclesiastes 8, and the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16, he stresses judgment, repentance, and the urgency of proclaiming the gospel. Odle criticizes churches that avoid hell, Christ’s exclusivity, biblical authority, and sound doctrine, while calling every believer—not only pastors—to evangelize boldly. Personal testimony, Daniel’s end-time witness, and Paul’s travail for the Galatians support his appeal for compassionate truth-telling, perseverance, and obedience to Jesus Christ.
Salvation and the GospelChristian LivingDoctrine and DiscernmentChurch and Ministry
View sermon The Great Whore
Pastor Dean Odle presents a Protestant and futurist reading of Revelation 17–18, identifying Mystery Babylon with the Roman Catholic system centered in Rome. He examines doctrine, Marian devotion, papal authority, transubstantiation, ecumenism, and contemplative practices, then calls believers to test every teaching by Scripture and look to Jesus Christ as the only mediator between God and humanity.
Mystery BabylonRevelationApostasy and DeceptionRoman Catholicism and the Papacy
View sermon Love of the Father
In “Love of the Father,” Pastor Dean Odle uses 1 John 2:15-17 to ask a searching question: not merely whether God loves us, but whether we love the Father enough to surrender our own will. Beginning with worship and reflections on fatherhood, he contrasts the Father’s faithfulness with the world’s lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life. He argues that Christian identity must be expressed through an ongoing life of obedience, not a profession of faith detached from following Christ.
Doctrine and DiscernmentChristian LivingApostasy and DeceptionSpiritual Warfare
View sermon Showing 1–3 of 6 sermons