saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood!” But they said, “What is that to us? You take care of it yourself!”

They ¹  were both righteous in the sight of God, following ²  all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. ³ 

Then ¹  you will be blessed, ²  because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid ³  at the resurrection of the righteous.”

But you rejected ¹  the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a man who was a murderer be released to you.

For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous before God, but those who do the law will be declared righteous. ¹ 

(For rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person perhaps someone might possibly dare to die.) ¹ 

Now it is clear no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous one will live by faith. ¹ 

and congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect,

For the eyes of the Lord are ¹  upon the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer. But the Lord’s face is against those who do evil. ² 

Indeed, as long as I am in this tabernacle, ¹  I consider it right to stir you up by way of a reminder,

If you know that he is righteous, you also know ¹  that everyone who practices righteousness has been fathered ²  by him.

so that you may be like ¹  your Father in heaven, since he causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Go and learn what this saying means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice.’ ¹  For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ¹  The one who has ears had better listen! ² 

It will be this way at the end of the age. Angels will come and separate the evil from the righteous

“Woe to you, experts in the law ¹  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You ²  build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves ³  of the righteous.

Then the righteous will answer him, ¹  ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?

And he will go as forerunner before the Lord ¹  in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, ²  to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”

Jesus ¹  also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down ²  on everyone else.

Now when the centurion ¹  saw what had happened, he praised God and said, “Certainly this man was innocent!” ²