Speaking Truth to Power | New Testament

Seeing we see not;
hearing we hear not

Those in power seldom favor free speech. History and human nature prove this over and over. Even many of us without much power aren't that keen on free speech if it challenges deeply-held beliefs or narrative commitments (which seems the reason for avoiding religion and politics in social situations — though now recently expanded to include freedom and public health mandates).

As we daily witness, free speech has become so offensive to the powers and their believers, they have taken to labelling all speech that challenges their character or narratives as mis- and disinformation — being for them egregious forms of evil speaking that cannot be tolerated no matter how true the “evil speaking” may prove. So let's review some of the “evil speaking” preserved in Holy Writ. To keep this post manageable, we will first sample from the New Testament.

Jesus to scribes and Pharisees:

3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? ...
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.¹

[Count the woes and hypocrites!]
13 ¶ But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? ...
19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? ...
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
34 ¶ Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.²

6 He [Jesus] answered and said unto them [Pharisees and scribes] , Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.³

Jesus to Pharisees and Sadducces:

3 O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign;⁴

Jesus to Pharisees, disciples of Pharisees, Herodians, lawyers:

18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?⁵

37 ¶ And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat.
38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner.
39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness.
40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?
41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.
42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
43 Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets.
44 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.
45 ¶ Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also.
46 And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
47 Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.
48 Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres.
49 Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.
52 Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.⁶

Jesus to the chief priests and elders

31 ... Jesus saith unto them [the chief priests and the elders of the people – v. 23], Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.⁷

John the Baptist to Pharisees and Sadducees

7 ¶ But when [John the Baptist] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:
9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.⁸

John the Baptist to Herod

17 For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John [the Baptist], and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her.
18 For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.⁹

Apostles Peter and John to the rulers, elders, scribes, et al. including Annas (v. 6) the high priest,  and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest,

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,
9 If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;
10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
13 ¶ Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
14 And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.
15 But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,
16 Saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem; and we cannot deny it.
17 But that it spread no further among the people, let us straitly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.
18 And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19 But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.
20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.¹⁰

Stephen to the synagogue of the Libertines, Cyrenians, Alexandrians, them of Cilicia and of Asia, and the people, the elders, the scribes, and the council (6:9, 12) circa 30s AD:

51 ¶ Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
52 Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.
54 ¶ When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.¹¹

Apostle Paul to high priest Ananias:

1 AND Paul, earnestly beholding the council, said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.
2 And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth.
3 Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?
4 And they that stood by said, Revilest thou God's high priest?
5 Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.¹²

For those who think only powers should speak truth to other powers, consider:

JST Jesus to His disciples (black and red bold is JST):

6 And Jesus said unto his disciples, Beholdest thou the scribes,* and the Pharisees, and the Priests, and the Levites? They teach in their synagogues, but do not observe the law, nor the commandments; and all have gone out of the way, and are under sin.
7 Go thou and say unto them, Why teach ye men the law and the commandments, when ye yourselves are the children of corruption?
8 5 Say unto them, Thou hypocrite Ye hypocrites, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye eyes; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
9 Go ye into the world, saying unto all, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come nigh unto you.¹³
[See the disciples response in JST vs. 14-15.¹⁴]

For a broader previous discussion, see https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2016/01/part-two-evil-speaking-discernment.html

Coming soon: samples of speaking truth to power from the Old Testament.

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1. New Testament | Matthew 15:3–9
2. New Testament | Matthew 23:13–36
3. New Testament | Mark 7:6
4. New Testament | Matthew 16:3–4
5. New Testament | Matthew 22:18
6. New Testament | Luke 11:37–52
7. New Testament | Matthew 21:31, 23
8. New Testament | Matthew 3:7–9
9. New Testament | Mark 6:17-18; see also Matthew 14:4)
10. New Testament | Acts 4:8–20
11. New Testament | Acts 7:51–54
12. New Testament | Acts 23:1–5
13. JST New Testament | Matthew 7:6–9 from Lutes, Kenneth and Lyndell. Joseph Smith Translation (p. 2124). Lutes Publishing. Kindle Edition.
14. JST New Testament | Matthew 7:14-15 from Lutes, Kenneth and Lyndell. Joseph Smith Translation (pp. 2124-2125). Lutes Publishing. Kindle Edition
   14 And then said his disciples unto him, They will say unto us, We ourselves are righteous, and need not that any man should teach us. God, we know, heard Moses and some of the prophets; but us he will not hear.
   15 And they will say, We have the law for our salvation, and that is sufficient for us.