KJV ORIGINAL
Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Close to the original. Clear modern English.
✦ MADE SIMPLE
But their worship doesn't mean anything to me when they're teaching human rules like they're my commandments.
⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE
Empty worship happens when we follow people's made-up rules instead of God's actual heart.
📚 Historical Context
In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is confronting the Pharisees for their hypocritical religious practices, specifically their emphasis on human traditions over God's commandments. These traditions were oral laws passed down by Jewish leaders, which the Pharisees treated as equally authoritative as Scripture, leading to a distortion of true worship. This context highlights the tension between authentic faith and man-made rules in first-century Jewish culture.
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