Curated semantic-search results from the Bible and early Jewish and Christian writings.
These passages are drawn from a current, full-corpus deep search.
Top matching passages
10/10 · exceptional
41 But give as alms the things that are within you, and you will see that everything is clean for you. 42 Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint, rue, and every herb, but you disregard justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former. 43 Woe to you Pharisees! You love the chief seats in the synagogues and the greetings in the marketplaces. 44 Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, which men walk over without even noticing.” 45 One of the experts in the law told Him, “Teacher, when You say these things, You insult us as well.” 46 “Woe to you as well, experts in the law!” He replied. “You weigh men down with heavy burdens, but you yourselves will not lift a finger to lighten their load. 47 Woe to you! You build tombs for the prophets, but it was your fathers who killed them. 48 So you are witnesses consenting to the deeds of your fathers: They killed the prophets, and you build their tombs. 49 Because of this, the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles; some of them they will kill and others they will persecute.’ 50 As a result, this generation will be charged with the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the foundation of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, all of it will be charged to this generation. 52 Woe to you experts in the law!…
9/10 · exceptional
13 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let in those who wish to enter. 14 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against men; for you don’t enter in yourselves, neither do you allow those who are entering in to enter. (WEB) 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You traverse land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are. 16 Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17 You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes it sacred? 18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’ 19 You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes it sacred? 20 So then, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the One who dwells in it. 22 And he who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the One who sits on it. 23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith…
10/10 · exceptional
25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, so that the outside may become clean as well. 27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of impurity. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to be righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. 29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous. 30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your fathers. 33 You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape the sentence of hell? 34 Because of this, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify, and others you will flog in your synagogues and persecute in town after town. 35 And so upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered… 36 …
6/10 · good
29 As the crowds were increasing, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so the Son of Man will be a sign to this generation. 31 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and now One greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will stand at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now One greater than Jonah is here. 33 No one lights a lamp and puts it in a cellar or under a basket. Instead, he sets it on a stand, so those who enter can see the light. 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body is full of darkness. 35 Be careful, then, that the light within you is not darkness. 36 So if your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, you will be radiant, as though a lamp were shining on you.” 37 As Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee invited Him to dine with him; so He went in and reclined at the table. 38 But the Pharisee was surprised to see that Jesus did not first wash before the meal. 39 “Now then,” said the Lord, “you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wi…
7/10 · strong
1 Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 “Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They do not wash their hands before they eat.” 3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ 5 But you say that if anyone says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’ 6 he need not honor his father or mother with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you: 8 ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. 9 They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’” 10 Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 A man is not defiled by what enters his mouth, but by what comes out of it.” 12 Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Are You aware that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
7/10 · strong
1 In the meantime, a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling one another. Jesus began to speak first to His disciples: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known. 3 What you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the housetops. 4 I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!
7/10 · strong
1 Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, 2 and they saw some of His disciples eating with hands that were defiled—that is, unwashed. 3 Now in holding to the tradition of the elders, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat until they wash their hands ceremonially. 4 And on returning from the market, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions for them to observe, including the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and couches for dining. 5 So the Pharisees and scribes questioned Jesus: “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead, they eat with defiled hands.” 6 Jesus answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. 7 They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’ 8 You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men.” 9 He went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your own tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ 11 But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), 12 he is no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother.
7/10 · strong
102 Jesus said, "How awful for the Pharisees who are like a dog sleeping in a feeding trough for cattle, because the dog doesn't eat, and [doesn't let] the cattle eat either." (THO) 103 Jesus said, "Blessed is the one who knows where the bandits are going to enter. [They can] get up to assemble their defenses and be prepared to defend themselves before they arrive." (THO) 104 They said to [Jesus], "Come, let's pray and fast today." Jesus said, "What have I done wrong? Have I failed? "Rather, when the groom leaves the bridal chamber, then people should fast and pray." (THO)
6/10 · good
1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples: 2 “The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So practice and observe everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4 They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. 5 All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. 6 They love the places of honor at banquets, the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 the greetings in the marketplaces, and the title of ‘Rabbi’ by which they are addressed. 8 But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Christ. 11 The greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
6/10 · good
7 But when John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his place of baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?