Journey Through The Bible
      Old Testament Reading: Zechariah 1-2
      New Testament Reading: Matthew 22

When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him: “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” (Matthew 22:34-36).

Three Jewish factions confronted Jesus and plotted how to trap Him by what He said (v15). First, the Pharisees, who opposed the Roman occupation of Palestine, teamed up with the Herodians, who supported Herod Antipas and Roman policies. They asked Jesus, is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? (v17).What a perfectly designed trap! If Jesus said to pay taxes, He will alienate the Pharisees, as well as many of the Jews who followed Him. If He said to not pay taxes, He will alienate the Herodians, and He would be in legal trouble with Rome. It seemed like a no-win situation for Jesus.

Matthew writes, Perceiving their malicious intent, Jesus said, “Why are you testing me, hypocrites? (v18). Their question boomeranged. Asking for a coin, Jesus replied Give, then, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s (v21). Caesar’s image was on the coin, and God’s image is on man (Gen 1:26-27). Jesus exposed their failure to give tribute to God.

Seeing that the Pharisees and Herodians failed to trap Him, the Sadducees entered the picture and tried their attack. They only believed in the first 5 books of the Old Testament written by Moses and did not believe in the resurrection. But despite this, they presented Jesus with a hypothetical illustration concerning marriage and the resurrection (v23-28).

Jesus answered them, “You are mistaken, because you don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God (v29). Which inferred that they did not even know God. Jesus continued to show that God’s Word was superior to the Jewish leaders’ human reasoning.

The Pharisees probably enjoyed the embarrassment of their enemies, the Sadducees. One of their members showed respect for the Lord and His answer and asked a question of his own. We have every reason to believe that he asked in sincerity and with a humble attitude.

Throughout the Mosaic Law, God gave hundreds of commands, and the rabbis debated which were the most important. Jesus’ response left the crowd speechless. He pointed to the commandment to love God wholly (Duet. 6:5) and the command to love others selflessly (Lev. 19:18).

Jesus reminds us that the great and foremost commandment to love God is applied in the second. Love your neighbor as yourself. We can gauge our commitment to God by evaluating the quality of our love for others. Jesus characterized true love. He obeyed the Father’s will from His heart and laid down His rights in order to save us.