3:7 But when he saw many Pharisees 1 and Sadducees 2 coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
26:26 While 12 they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it, gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat, this is my body.”
26:31 Then Jesus said to them, “This night you will all fall away because of me, for it is written:
‘I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 13
1 sn Pharisees were members 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.
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]). See also Matt 16:1-12; 22:23-34; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 5:17; 23:6-8.
3 sn A quotation from Hos 6:6 (see also Matt 12:7).
5 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
6 sn Judaism had a similar exhortation in 4 Macc 13:14-15.
7 sn See the note on the word hell in 5:22.
7 tn Grk “And whoever.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
9 tn Grk “truly (ἀμήν, amhn) I say to you.”
10 sn This is what past prophets and righteous people had wanted very much to see, yet the fulfillment had come to the disciples. This remark is like 1 Pet 1:10-12 or Heb 1:1-2.
11 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.
12 tn Grk “crying out in the temple [courts] and saying.” The participle λέγοντας (legontas) is somewhat redundant here in contemporary English and has not been translated.
13 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
15 sn A quotation from Zech 13:7.