Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth

 Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words.  When they had come, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth.  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?  Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?"  But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Bring Me a denarius that I may see it."  So they brought it.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  And they marveled at Him.

Then some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him; and they asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies, and leaves is wife behind, and leaves no children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were seven brothers.  The first took a wife; and dying, he left no offspring.  And the second took her, and he died; nor did he leave any offspring.  And the third likewise.  So the seven had her and left no offspring.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be?  For all seven had her as wife."  Jesus answered and said to them, "Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?  For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.  But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.  You are therefore greatly mistaken."

- Mark 12:13-27

Yesterday we read that Jesus and the disciples came again to Jerusalem, the day after He had cleansed the temple.  And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.  And they said to Him, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority to do these things?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?  Answer Me."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men' " -- they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So they answered and said to Jesus, "We do not know."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."  Then He began to speak to them in parables:  "A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower.  And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers.  And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent them another servant, and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated.  And again he sent another; and him they killed; and many others, beating some and killing some.  Therefore still having one son, he also sent him to them last, saying, 'They will respect my son.'  But those vinedressers said among themselves, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'  So they took him and killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do?  He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others.  Have you not even read this Scripture:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.  This was the LORD's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'? "  And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them.  So they left Him and went away.

Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words.  When they had come, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth.  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?  Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?"  But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Bring Me a denarius that I may see it."  So they brought it.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  And they marveled at Him.  The Pharisees and the Herodians were at odds with one another over this issue of paying taxes to the Romans.  The Pharisees did not adapt to Roman rule, while the Herodians were Jewish political supporters of the house of Herod the Great, which ruled for Rome.  Here the question is designed to trap Christ in an "either-or" answer.  If He answered either way to the question about taxation, He could be charged with treason against the Romans or disloyalty to the Jewish people.  But Jesus befuddles their aim on both sides, and shows that a believer can render the state its due while still serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  The coin bears the image of the emperor and is thereby properly paid to him, and at the same time each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  My study bible notes that conflict arises only when the state demands that which is contrary to our first responsibility to God.  God is Lord of all life, including the secular.  Paying taxes and other civil duties are not detrimental to holiness.

Then some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him; and they asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies, and leaves is wife behind, and leaves no children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were seven brothers.  The first took a wife; and dying, he left no offspring.  And the second took her, and he died; nor did he leave any offspring.  And the third likewise.  So the seven had her and left no offspring.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be?  For all seven had her as wife."  Jesus answered and said to them, "Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?  For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.  But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.  You are therefore greatly mistaken."  The Sadducees formed a party in the Sanhedrin representing landowners and other wealthy families in Jerusalem, a type of high aristocratic group.  They would disappear completely after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD.  My study bible tells us that the Sadducees held many high offices in Israel, effectively controlling the temple and the Sanhedrin.  They were different from the Pharisees, in that they were politically prudent, and adapted to the presence of the Romans.  The Sadducees interpreted the law very strictly, and unlike the Pharisees, they rejected belief in angels and in the resurrection from the dead at the end of the age.  Here, they give an absurd scenario to Christ, which, as He says shows that they do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God.  He also quotes from the passage in Exodus, in which Moses heard God's voice out of the burning bush, declaring, "I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" (Exodus 3:4-6, 15).  These titles are given all in the present tense, showing that each one lives to God in God's kingdom.

If we think about the question of the Sadducees regarding marriage, we can see that it reflects a very material minded culture, a mindset which holds as supremely important matters of inheritance -- as would befit an aristocratic party like that of the Sadducees.  In keeping with this understanding, they also regard the Scripture quite literally, neither taking much understanding nor interpretation, contrary to the Pharisees.  Therefore they are unable to extract concepts like the existence of angels or of the resurrection of the dead at the end of the age.  But they were supremely pragmatic.  The Pharisees, on the contrary, had developed a body of traditions around the law, called the tradition of the elders.  Several Pharisees appear in the New Testament as men of great piety and righteousness, such as the great teacher Gamaliel (see Acts 5:34-39, 22:3), and also believers in Christ who would become His followers, such as Nicodemus (John 3:1-21, 7:47-51, 19:39).  St. Paul declares himself to be a Pharisee in Acts 23:6.   The Pharisees tended in some ways to agree with aspects of Jesus' teaching, such as on divorce, but Christ's criticism of them focused on their hypocrisy.  Joseph of Arimathea is also one of great faith, righteousness, and courage, whom we're told was a man of great wealth and also a prominent member of the Council, but the Gospels do not reveal to which party he belonged (Matthew 27:57-61, Mark 15:42-47, John 19:38-42).   It would seem to be important, from the perspective of the Gospels, that we keep in mind, as these men question Jesus, that there are disagreements among the ruling bodies of the Council.  The seeds of Christ will fall also into the hearts of the men who question.  There are those who challenge Him with mixed motives, but yet others who will become His followers in the early Church.  Men like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea would break with the leadership to become openly members of the Church.  According to Church tradition, Joseph of Arimathea would become a missionary in Britain, and Nicodemus an early martyr in the first century.  Christian tradition also holds that the great Rabbi Gamaliel embraced the faith of Christ, and in the Eastern Orthodox Church he is venerated as a saint.  All of this suggests that we should keep in mind that while there are those in the leadership who explicitly and successfully will seek the death of Christ at the hands of the Romans, there are those among these learned men who nevertheless would come to faith in Christ.  John's Gospel specifically states that among the rulers there were many who believed in Christ, but they feared the leaders of the Pharisees and that they would be put out of the synagogue, "for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God" (John 12:42-43).  There's a contrast between a determined righteousness and those who simply remain jealous of their positions, guarding them at all cost.  Above all, Christ teaches that He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 10:42) -- giving us to understand that to cling to what is true becomes an act of reverence for Christ.  If what we know and have been taught is based in truth, we hold to that truth in order to serve Christ.  It matters little what our background is or where we come from.  And among these men, those who rule Israel and especially her religious life, are those who are able to recognize Christ for who He is.  Let us consider the powers that may be at work in our own lives, the pressures that bear down upon us to conform to something we know is not right, not true.  That includes the ruthlessness of the selfish, and those who love the praise of men more than the praise of God.  To hold to what is true is not simple nor easy, and it is the Cross to which Christ goes, teaching us that we each must take up our own cross daily.  In all things, we hold fast to faith, and remember His teaching that we are to be both prudent and honest, "wise as serpents and harmless as doves" (Matthew 10:16).  Let those members of the Council whom we know from the Gospels speak to us and teach us about ourselves, and our need for what is truly righteous.  Let them be examples, so that we know what we might face in our own struggle for faith.  The righteous will always face such challenges, both internal and external.  The Pharisees in today's reading (and apparently, even some of the Herodians) know and recognize this about Jesus, when they say to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth."  Let us seek to be like Him, and the righteous members of the Council whom we know will go on to do likewise.