Matthew 23:4
Matthew 23:4-7 The Message (MSG)
“Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help. Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next. They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called ‘Doctor’ and ‘Reverend.’
Matthew 23:4 King James Version (KJV)
For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
Matthew 23:4 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.
Matthew 23:4 New Century Version (NCV)
They make strict rules and try to force people to obey them, but they are unwilling to help those who struggle under the weight of their rules.
Matthew 23:4 American Standard Version (ASV)
Yea, they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger.
Matthew 23:4 New International Version (NIV)
They 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.
Matthew 23:4 New King James Version (NKJV)
For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
Matthew 23:4 Amplified Bible (AMP)
The scribes and Pharisees tie up heavy loads [that are hard to bear] and place them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not lift a finger [to make them lighter].
Matthew 23:4 New Living Translation (NLT)
They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden.