Matthew 23:3

Matthew 23:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
• English Standard Version (ESV)so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.
• New Living Translation (NLT)So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach.

Context of Matthew 23:3

1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. 5“Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long;

Matthew 23:3 word by word

πάντα οὖν ὅσα ἐὰν εἴπωσιν ὑμῖν ποιήσατε καὶ τηρεῖτε. κατὰ δὲ τὰ ἔργα αὐτῶν μὴ ποιεῖτε· λέγουσιν γὰρ καὶ οὐ ποιοῦσιν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• thereforeοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• whatsoeverὅσοςhosos · just as/how muchG3745
• ·ἄνan · ifG302
• they bidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• youσύsu · youG4771
• observeτηρέωtēreō · to keep: observeG5083
• observeτηρέωtēreō · to keep: observeG5083
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• doποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
• butδέde · thenG1161
• notμήmē · notG3361
• afterκατάkata · according toG2596
• theirαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• worksὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• worksἔργονergon · workG2041
• forγάρgar · forG1063
• notοὐou · noG3756

Cross-references for Matthew 23:3

• Matthew 15:2“Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
• Exodus 18:19Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him.
• Deuteronomy 4:5See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it.
• Deuteronomy 5:27Go near and listen to all that the Lord our God says. Then tell us whatever the Lord our God tells you. We will listen and obey.”
• Deuteronomy 17:9Go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.
• 2 Chronicles 30:12Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord.
• Acts 5:29Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!
• Romans 13:1Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
• Matthew 21:30“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
• Psalms 50:16But to the wicked person, God says: “What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips?
• Romans 2:19if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark,
• 2 Timothy 3:5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

Commentaries on Matthew 23:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3All therefore whatsoever - That is, all those things which they read out of the law and prophets, and all things which they teach consistently with them. This must be our Lord's meaning: he could not have desired them to do every thing, without restriction, which the Jewish doctors taught; because himself warns his disciples against their false teaching, and testifies that they had made the word of God of none effect by their traditions. See Matthew 15:6…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3All, therefore, whatsoever … - That is, all that they teach that is consistent with the Law of Moses - all the commands of Moses which they read to you and properly explain. The word “all” could not be taken without such a restriction, for Christ himself accuses them of teaching many things contrary to that law, and of making it void by their traditions, Matthew 15:1-6. They say, and do not - The interpretation which they give to the law is in the main…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3practice and obey: This was not a full confirmation of everything the Pharisees taught (see Matthew 15:1–20; 16:5–12; 23:13–39). It might refer only to teachings that agreed with the law of Moses, or it could be bitter irony or sarcasm. Jesus might also have advised conforming to the Pharisees’ teachings to avoid causing offense (17:24–27).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. All therefore--that is, all which, as sitting in that seat and teaching out of that law. they bid you observe, that observe and do--The word "therefore" is thus, it will be seen, of great importance, as limiting those injunctions which He would have them obey to what they fetched from the law itself. In requiring implicit obedience to such injunctions, He would have them to recognize the authority with which they taught over and above the obligations…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 23:3

• Church
• Ecclesiasticism
• Example
• Hypocrisy
• Inconsistency
• Minister, Christian
• Oppression
• Pharisees
• Satire
• Scribe (S)
• Teachers

In the dictionaries

• Abase
• Bewray
• Devour
• Exalt
• Fill
• Gnat
• Ought
• Partaker
• Pharisees
• Scribes

Commentaries on Matthew 23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings