Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started!
You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.

Here Jesus is preaching the wrath of God against the Pharisees and God’s judgment. For those who like to fantasize about Jesus only being a person of world peace, a pacifist, and accepting of everyone and every religion, this passage is a direct contradiction to that position.

Jesus called out false teachers (like the Pharisees) and told them they were going to go to hell if they continued down the evil path they had chosen in life.

He also prophesies here that he will send out prophets, sages, and teachers, and they will brutalize them and kill them. Jesus sent his disciples out, and in his name his disciples sent out others. Today, churches send out followers of Jesus to disciple, preach the gospel, and bring good news. And evil men, like the Pharisees, persecute them. Jesus was describing at once a future event related to those he sent out, his disciples, and this pattern of true followers of Jesus being persecuted by false teachers and evil men.

Jesus came to earth to pay the price for the sin of the world. His purpose was loving, just, and humble. The Pharisees were proud, power-hungry rulers who oppressed their people with endless rules and regulations to make them feel inferior. They would push the people to crucify him. He would die to save the Pharisees and the people.

Jesus condemned the Pharisees from a heart after God’s own heart. He was God. And we can call out evil and injustice from a heart after God’s heart too, by understanding who God is through the Bible and prayer, and acting in accordance with his instructions. Our actions must be consistent with those in his word, and prompted by his Holy Spirit.

Lord, thank you for your truth, which never changes, and your Word which guides me. Help me to be loving and bold in upholding your truth to a dying world.