Chap 23-25 minor edits

41-MAT.usfm

@@ -1816,7 +1816,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 
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 \v 6 They want other people to honor them. For example, at dinners they sit in the seats where the most important people sit. In the synagogues they want to sit in the same kind of places.
-\v 7 They love for people to greet them with great honor in the markets, and for people to call them 'Teacher.'
+\v 7 They love for people to greet them with great honor in the markets and for people to call them 'Teacher.'
 
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 \v 8 But you, my disciples, should not allow people to call you 'Teacher,' as they do other Jewish teachers. I am the only one who is really your teacher. This means that you are all equal to each other, like brothers and sisters.
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 \v 11 Instead, if a person wants God to consider them as someone who is very important, they must serve others as servants do.
-\v 12 God will humble those who try to make themselves important. Those who humble themselves, God will make them truly important.
+\v 12 God will humble those who try to make themselves important. God will make truly important those who humble themselves.
 
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-\v 13-14 "You teachers of the law and you Pharisees, you are hypocrites! How terribly God will punish you because you refuse to come under the rule of heaven and also keep others out. You yourselves do not want to go in, and you keep others from entering, too.
+\v 13-14 "You teachers of the law and you Pharisees, you are hypocrites! How terribly God will punish you because you refuse to come under the rule of heaven and you also keep others out. You yourselves do not want to go in and you also keep others from entering.
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 \v 15 "You are hypocrites, you teachers of the law and you Pharisees! How terribly God will punish you! You work hard to get even one person to believe what you teach. You even travel across seas and lands to distant places in order to do that. And as a result, when one person believes what you teach, you make that person deserve to go to hell much more than you yourselves do.
 
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 \v 16 "You Jewish leaders, how terribly God will punish you! You are like blind people who try to lead others. You say, 'If someone asks the temple to confirm that he will do something as if the temple were a person, then if he does not do what he promised, it means nothing. But if he asks the gold in the temple to confirm that he will do something, then he must do it.'
-\v 17 You are fools, and you are like people who are blind! The gold that is in the temple is important, but the temple is even more important, because it is the temple that makes the gold to be only for God.
+\v 17 You are fools, and you are like people who are blind! The gold that is in the temple is important but the temple is even more important, because it is the temple that makes the gold to be only for God.
 
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 \v 18 Also you say, 'If someone asks the altar to confirm that he will do something as if the altar were a person, then if he does not do what he promised, it means nothing. But if he asks the gift that he has placed on the altar to confirm that he will do something, then he must do it.'
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-\v 23 "You teachers of the law and you Pharisees, how terribly God will punish you! You are hypocrites because, even though you give to God a tenth of the herbs you produce, such as mint, dill, and cummin, you do not obey God's laws that are more important. For example, you do not act justly toward others, you do not act mercifully toward people, and you take things away from others using force. It is good to give a tenth of your herbs to God, but you should also obey these other more important laws.
+\v 23 "You teachers of the law and you Pharisees, how terribly God will punish you! You are hypocrites because, even though you give to God a tenth of the herbs you produce such as mint, dill, and cumin, you do not obey God's laws that are more important. For example, you do not act justly toward others, you do not act mercifully toward others, and you take things away from others using force. It is good to give a tenth of your herbs to God, but you should also obey these other more important laws.
 \v 24 You leaders are like blind people who are trying to lead others. You are careful not to offend God by swallowing even the smallest insect when you drink water, but you act as badly as if you were swallowing a camel!
 
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 \v 25 "You hypocrites, you teachers of the law and you Pharisees, how terribly God will punish you! You make yourselves appear like good people to others. You try to make people think you are righteous, but in fact you sin against them by your greed and by your taking what belongs to others to delight your own pleasures. You are like dishes that are clean on the outside but are still dirty on the inside.
-\v 26 You blind Pharisees! First you must stop doing evil things like stealing from others. Then you will be able to do what is righteous and will be like a dish that is clean both outside and inside.
+\v 26 You blind Pharisees! First you must stop doing evil things like stealing from others. Then you will be able to do what is righteous and you will be like a dish that is clean both outside and inside.
 
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 \v 34 Take note that this is why I will send prophets, wise men, and teachers. You will kill some of them by nailing them to crosses, and you will kill some in other ways. You will whip some of them in the places where you worship, and you will chase them from city to city.
-\v 35 So God will consider that you and your ancestors are guilty for killing all the righteous people who ever lived on earth, including Adam's son Abel, who was a righteous man, and Zechariah, the son of Barachiah, whom your ancestors killed in the holy place between the temple and the altar. You also killed all the prophets who lived between the times that those two men lived.
+\v 35 So God will consider that you and your ancestors are guilty for killing all the righteous people who ever lived on earth, including Adam's son Abel, who was a righteous man, and Zechariah, the son of Berekiah, whom your ancestors killed in the holy place between the temple and the altar. You also killed all the prophets who lived between the times that those two men lived.
 \v 36 Think about this: You people who have observed my ministry, it is you whom God will punish for killing all those prophets!
 
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-\v 37 "O people of Jerusalem, you who killed the prophets who lived long ago, and you who killed with stones others whom God had sent to you, but there were many times that I wanted to gather you together to protect you, like a hen gathers her young chicks under her wings. But you did not want me to do that.
+\v 37 "O people of Jerusalem, you who killed the prophets who lived long ago and killed with stones others whom God had sent to you, there were many times that I wanted to gather you together to protect you like a hen gathers her young chicks under her wings. But you did not want me to do that.
 \v 38 So listen to this: Your city will become an uninhabited place.
 \v 39 Keep this in mind: You will see me again only when I return, when you say about me, 'God is truly pleased with this man who comes with God's authority.'"
 
@@ -1887,7 +1887,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 \c 24
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 \v 1 Jesus left the temple courtyard. As he was walking along, his disciples came to him and began talking about how beautiful the temple buildings were.
-\v 2 He said to them, "I tell you the truth about these buildings that you are seeing: an army will completely destroy them. They will throw down every stone in these buildings. Not one stone will remain on top of another stone."
+\v 2 He said to them, "I tell you the truth about these buildings that you are seeing: An army will completely destroy them. They will throw down every stone in these buildings. Not one stone will remain on top of another stone."
 
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@@ -1909,7 +1909,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 
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 \v 12 Because more and more people will disobey God's laws, many believers will no longer love each other.
-\v 13 But all those who keep on believing to the end of their lives, God will save them.
+\v 13 But God will save all those who keep on believing to the end of their lives.
 \v 14 Furthermore, believers will preach the good news about how God is ruling in every part of the world, in order to announce it to all the nations. Then the end of the world will come.
 
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@@ -1933,8 +1933,8 @@ because you understand what I say.
 
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 \v 26 So if someone says to you, 'Look, the Christ is in the wilderness!' do not go there. Likewise, if someone says to you, 'Look, he is in a secret room!' do not believe that person,
-\v 27 because just like lightning flashes from the east to the west and people see it, in the same way, when the Son of Man returns again, everyone will see.
-\v 28 It will be clear to everyone just as when you see vultures gathering, you know that an animal carcass is there.
+\v 27 because just like lightning flashes from the east to the west and people see it, in the same way, when the Son of Man returns again, everyone will see it.
+\v 28 It will be clear to everyone, just as when you see vultures gathering you know that an animal carcass is there.
 
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@@ -1951,7 +1951,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 
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 \v 34 Keep this in mind: Some of the people of this generation will still be alive when these things happen. 
-\v 35 You can be certain that these things that I have told you about will happen. The earth and sky will disappear one day, but what I say will always be true.
+\v 35 You can be certain that these things I have told you about will happen. The earth and sky will disappear one day, but what I say will always be true.
 
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@@ -1961,7 +1961,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 \v 37-39 It will be like what happened when Noah lived. Until the flood came, the people did not know that anything bad would happen to them. They were eating and drinking as usual. Men were getting married, and parents were giving their daughters to men to marry them. They were doing all this until the day that Noah and his family entered the big boat. And then the flood came and drowned all those who were not in the boat. Similarly, the unbelieving people will not know when the Son of Man will return.
 
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-\v 40 When that happens not all people will be taken up to heaven. For example, two people will be in the fields. One of them will be taken up to heaven and the other person will be left here to be punished.
+\v 40 When that happens, not all people will be taken up to heaven. For example, two people will be in the fields. One of them will be taken up to heaven and the other person will be left here to be punished.
 \v 41 Similarly, two women will be grinding grain with a handmill. One of them will be taken up to heaven and the other will be left.
 \v 42 So, because you do not know what day your Lord will return to the earth, you need to be ready all the time.
 
@@ -1985,7 +1985,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 \c 25
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 \v 1 "God's rule from heaven will be like what happened to ten unmarried girls who got ready to go to a wedding feast. They were to take their lamps and go wait for the bridegroom to come.
-\v 2 Now five of these girls were foolish, and five were wise.
+\v 2 Now five of these girls were foolish and five were wise.
 \v 3 The foolish girls took their lamps, but they did not take any extra olive oil for them.
 \v 4 But the wise girls took oil in their flasks as well as in their lamps.
 
@@ -2001,12 +2001,12 @@ because you understand what I say.
 \v 9 The wise girls replied, 'No, because there might not be enough oil for our lamps and yours. Go to the sellers and buy some for yourselves!'
 
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-\v 10 But while the foolish girls were on their way to buy oil, the bridegroom arrived. Then the wise girls, who were ready, went with him into the wedding hall, where the bride was waiting. Then the door was closed.
+\v 10 But while the foolish girls were on their way to buy oil, the bridegroom arrived. Then the wise girls, who were ready, went with him into the wedding hall where the bride was waiting. Then the door was closed.
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 \v 11 Later, the rest of the girls came to the wedding hall, and they called to the bridegroom, 'Sir, open the door for us!'
 \v 12 But he said to them, 'The truth is that I do not know you, so I will not open the door for you!'"
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-\v 13 Then Jesus continued by saying, "So, in order that this does not happen to you, stay prepared because you do not know when it will be."
+\v 13 Then Jesus continued by saying, "So, in order that this does not happen to you, stay prepared because you do not know when it will be.
 
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@@ -2015,7 +2015,7 @@ because you understand what I say.
 \v 16 The servant who had received five bags of gold went immediately and used that money to gain five more bags.
 
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-\v 17 Similarly, the servant who had received two bags of gold gained two bags more.
+\v 17 Similarly, the servant who had received two bags of gold gained two more bags.
 \v 18 But the servant who had received one bag of gold went and dug a hole in the ground, and he hid it there to keep it safe.
 
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