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Luke chapter 20 after the parable of the talents, is all about how the chief priests and scribes go after Jesus to accuse him in a cloak and dagger way. From this time their intention was to send from their own people, masquerading as righteous people to try catch Jesus out on Roman law as well as the scriptures. They first try to catch Jesus out,so as to accuse him to Ceasar by asking if they should pay taxes to Caesar. Jesus asks whose face is on the coin and they say Caesars. So Jesus says well then pay Caesar your taxes. So then they go away with no accusation against Jesus. However it was clearly their intention to trap Jesus so as to accuse him to the Roman authorities. The farce continues by people who are Sadducees asking Jesus about the resurrection. Next the Sadducees who don't even believe in the resurrection ask Jesus about the resurrection. Clearly their aim is to catch Jesus out on the Mosaic law so as to discredit him to be a false teacher.However Jesus was wise to them and perceived what they were trying to do. They say to Jesus if a mans brother dies, having a wife and without children then his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.
Having stated what Moses law says they continue by stating a hypothetical case of seven brothers. The first took a wife and died without children, then the second brother took her as wife but also died childless. Then the third brother and died childless and in like manner the rest of the seven left no children and died. Last of all the woman died also. So lets look at the argument thus far. They state what Moses law says, they then build a hypothetical case built on the Mosaic law of a brother marrying his dead brothers childless wife. Having built their case thus far they ask Jesus whose wife will this woman be at the resurrection, since there are seven brothers. Remember these are people who don't believe in the resurrection and are Sadducees from among the chief priests who are wanting to trap Jesus and accuse him to the people because of the parable he told against them. They probably hoped to show him as a false teacher and a fraud.
So Jesus answers them saying the sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are counted worthy to attain to that age,ie the future Kingdom and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are they given in marriage. So here is where the whole little trap of the Sadducees fell flat. Jesus continues to use this opportunity to teach on the resurrection. He says those who attain to the Kingdom and are raised from the dead will never die again for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God being sons of the resurrection. Jesus then brings the converstion back to Moses since the Sadducees claim to believe Moses but are in fact pretenders. Jesus proceeds to show them from Moses, that Moses taught resurrection. He is showing the Sadducees that they don't even believe Moses as they claim. Jesus shows them from the passage of the burning Bush when YHWH called Himself the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The reason God calls Himself this Jesus says is to show that He is the God of the living and not of the dead, for all live to Him. Jesus is saying that in fact Moses believed in the resurrection. Here again people from the chief priests who had Sadducees and scribes among them,concede that Jesus has indeed shown the resurrection to be true by his answer. For the Sadducees said to Jesus, teacher you have spoken well. In fact Jesus answered them so well that they didn't dare question Jesus again after that. Their mouths had indeed been shut. However Jesus turns the tables on them and now proceeds to show them to be unbelievers and pretenders by asking the scribes this question.This whole little plot against Jesus is being turned on to them. Jesus asks them, How can they say that the Christ is the son of David? This is indeed a very strange question for Jesus to be asking them. The reason it is strange is because Jesus has been recognised in Israel as the son of David who is the Christ. Now Jesus is asking the scribes how can they say such a thing. It will soon become clear why Jesus asks them this question. Jesus goes on to say how can people say the son of David is the Christ,since David says in Psalm 110 the Lord said to my Lord sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool. So what is Jesus doing here and what is Jesus saying. Jesus knows that David understood both that the Christ would be called the son of David and also that He would be the son of God sitting at the right hand of God subduing Gods enemies. So then there is no contradiction here. But the scribes and sadducees certainly didn't understand that the Christ would be raised from the dead to the right hand of God, because they didn't believe in the resurrection and they certainly didn't believe that Jesus was the Christ, in otherwords the son of David. This is why Jesus says these things to them, because he knows they don't believe in Gods word because if they don't believe in resurrection .How will the Christ then be raised to the right hand of God and rule with Him subduing and putting Gods enemies beneath His feet. It is because of what has just been said that Jesus says to this group of scribes and Sadducees, "If David calls "HIM" ie The Christ, Lord, how can he be his son. All Jesus is doing here is showing the people what unbelievers the scribes and Sadducees are, because if they don't believe in resurrection they cannot believe the scriptures which speak of the Christ being resurrected to the right hand of God and subduing Gods enemies beneath Gods feet. This is why in front of the scribes, Jesus turns to the people and warns them to be beware of the scribes. Jesus is now showing them to be who they really are. These scribes, some of whom were also Sadducees love to walk around in long robes, probably looking ever so noble and being greeted publically in the market place as people of repute. Also they make themselves better than everyone else by having the best seats in the synagogues and also the best seats at feasts. But in fact they are nobody in Gods household because of their unbelief of the scriptures. If they do not believe in the resurrection, then the hope of Israel and the meaning of Jesus whole ministry means nothing if the dead are not raised. These peoples behaviour is so irreligous that they devour widows homes, in otherwords they rob these widows, for since they don't believe Gods word they have no fear, because they don't believe they'll be raised from the dead to give account for what they have done by robbing widows. There is no doubt these people are irreligous pagans because Jesus says of them that they are pretenders, for their long prayers give them the pretence or cover of being religous men. Jesus then ends with saying these men, because of what they do, will receive greater condemnation. In otherwords on the last day when the dead are raised and the wicked are judged these men will be more severely judged than others on that last day. There is terrible trouble waiting for them. |
