John 3:1

Conversation with Nicodemus

3:1 Now a certain man, a Pharisee ¹  named Nicodemus, who was a member of the Jewish ruling council, ² 

Acts 5:34

5:34 But a Pharisee ³  whose name was Gamaliel, ⁴  a teacher of the law who was respected by all the people, stood up ⁵  in the council ⁶  and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time.

¹ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

² tn Grk “a ruler of the Jews” (denoting a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

³ sn A Pharisee was a member of one of the most important and influential religious and political parties of Judaism in the time of Jesus. There were more Pharisees than Sadducees (according to Josephus, Ant. 17.2.4 [17.42] there were more than 6,000 Pharisees at about this time). Pharisees differed with Sadducees on certain doctrines and patterns of behavior. The Pharisees were strict and zealous adherents to the laws of the OT and to numerous additional traditions such as angels and bodily resurrection.

⁴ sn Gamaliel was a famous Jewish scholar and teacher mentioned here in v. 34 and in Acts 22:3. He had a grandson of the same name and is referred to as “Gamaliel the Elder” to avoid confusion. He is quoted a number of times in the Mishnah, was given the highest possible title for Jewish teachers, Rabba (cf. John 20:16), and was highly regarded in later rabbinic tradition.

⁵ tn Grk “standing up in the council, ordered.” The participle ἀναστάς (anasta") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

⁶ tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).