Luke 11:45-52

Expanded Bible

Jesus Talks to Experts on the Law^(A)

⁴⁵ One of the experts on the law said to Jesus, “Teacher, when you say these things, you are insulting us, too.”

⁴⁶ Jesus answered, “·How terrible for [^LWoe to] you, you experts on the law! You ·make strict rules that are very hard for people to obey [^Lburden people with burdens hard to carry], but you yourselves don’t even ·try to follow those rules [or lift a finger to ease the burden]. ⁴⁷ ·How terrible for [^LWoe to] you, because you build ·tombs [monuments; memorials] for the prophets whom your ancestors killed! ⁴⁸ And now you ·show [are witnesses; testify] that you approve of what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you build ·tombs [monuments; memorials] for them! ⁴⁹ This is why ·in his wisdom God said [^LGod’s Wisdom said; ^Ca personification of wisdom; Prov. 8], ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them. ·They will kill some, and they will treat others cruelly [or Some they will persecute and kill].’ ⁵⁰ So ·you who live now [this generation] will be ·punished for [charged with; held responsible for] the ·deaths of all the prophets who were killed [^Lblood of all the prophets shed] since the ·beginning [foundation; creation] of the world— ⁵¹ from the ·killing [blood] of Abel to the ·killing [blood] of Zechariah, who died between the altar and the ·Temple [sanctuary; ^Lhouse (of God); ^Cin the arrangement of the Hebrew OT, Abel and Zechariah were the first and last people to be murdered; Gen. 4:4–8; 2 Chr. 24:20–21]. Yes, I tell you that ·you who are alive now [this generation] will be ·punished [charged; held responsible] for them all.

⁵² “·How terrible for [^LWoe to] you, you experts on the law. You have taken away the key to ·learning about God [^Lknowledge]. You yourselves ·would not learn [^Ldid not enter], and you ·stopped [hindered; prevented] others from ·learning [^Lentering], too.”