Mark 12:17-18

12:17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ¹  And they were utterly amazed at him.

Marriage and the Resurrection

12:18 Sadducees ²  (who say there is no resurrection) ³  also came to him and asked him, ⁴ 

Mark 12:32-34

12:32 The expert in the law said to him, “That is true, Teacher; you are right to say that he is one, and there is no one else besides him. ⁵  12:33 And to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength ⁶  and to love your neighbor as yourself ⁷  is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 12:34 When Jesus saw that he had answered thoughtfully, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Then no one dared any longer to question him.

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¹ sn Jesus’ answer to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s was a both/and, not the questioners’ either/or. So he slipped out of their trap.

² sn The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164-166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171-173], 13.10.6 [13.293-298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16-17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). They also did not believe in resurrection or in angels, an important detail in v. 25. See also Matt 3:7, 16:1-12, 22:23-34; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 4:1, 5:17, 23:6-8.

³ sn This remark is best regarded as a parenthetical note by the author.

⁴ tn Grk “and asked him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

⁵ sn A quotation from Deut 4:35.

⁶ sn A quotation from Deut 6:5.

⁷ sn A quotation from Lev 19:18.