On that day Sadducees approached him, saying that there is no resurrection. They put this question to him, 24 saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies without children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up descendants for his brother.’ 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died and, having no descendants, left his wife to his brother. 26 The same happened with the second and the third, through all seven. 27 Finally the woman died. 28 Now at the resurrection, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had been married to her.” 29 Jesus said to them in reply, “You are misled because you do not know the scriptures or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels in heaven. 31 And concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” 33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.
The Sadducees were a conservative Jewish sect that did not believe in resurrection because it was not explicitly revealed in the Pentateuch. This sect, largely comprised of the priestly and aristocratic classes, held that only the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) was authoritative. Consequently, they rejected the oral tradition and beliefs not found within the Torah, including the resurrection of the dead, which was a doctrine embraced by the Pharisees and most of the Jewish population.
The Pharisees, in contrast, were a prominent Jewish sect during the Second Temple period known for their strict adherence to the Torah and their belief in the oral tradition. They considered the oral tradition equally authoritative as the Torah. The Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the body, drawing on later writings (such as Dan. 12:2; Is. 26:19) and oral traditions that provided authoritative guidance on how to live according to God's will and how to understand the scriptures.
The Jews returned from the Babylonian Exile in 538 BCE, and the second Temple was completed in 516 BCE. This period saw significant religious developments, including the rise of the Pharisees and Sadducees as influential sects.
The destruction of the second Temple by the Romans in 70 CE was a pivotal event in Jewish and Christian history. It marked the end of the central place of worship and sacrifice for Jews, leading to a shift from Temple-based worship to synagogue-based worship and study. For early Christians, the destruction of the Temple was seen as a fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecies (e.g., Mark 13:1-2) and interpreted as a sign of the new covenant and the coming of the Kingdom of God. It also accelerated the separation of Christianity from Judaism. With the Temple gone, early Christians, who were initially a Jewish sect, distinguished themselves as a distinct religion.
The Sadducees present a hypothetical scenario to show that the concept of resurrection was ridiculous. In response, Jesus first criticized the Sadducees for their ignorance of the Scriptures and then pointed out their lack of understanding of God's power, particularly His ability to transform human existence after death. Earthly conventions like marriage do not continue in the heavenly realm after the resurrection because the resurrected life is fundamentally different, similar to the life of angels who do not marry. Jesus invoked Scripture and quoted Ex. 3:6 to show that God identified Himself as the God of the patriarchs. Using the present tense “I am” implies that the patriarchs are alive to God, therefore Scripture itself testifies about the resurrection. The Pharisees and the Sadducees were silenced, and the crowd was astonished at his teaching.
Almighty God, through his resurrection Jesus showed that there is the promise of eternal life through the resurrection for those who believe in him. Strengthen our faith in Your word and guide us to live according to Your will, with hope and trust in the life to come. This we pray through the same Christ our Lord. Amen!
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Sources:
- Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
- Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
- Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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