Questions and Answers

In the previous five instalments, we wrote about the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes, the elders, and the institution of the Sanhedrin. In this installment, we will be discussing additional influential groups at the time of Jesus, as spoken about in the Bible and also in archeological and historical records, namely the Essenes, the Zealots (and in passing the tax collectors) and the Herodians.

The Essenes are not mentioned directly in the Holy Bible. However, their existence has been well established, and from what we know about them, it is clear that they would have been at odds with Jesus, His teachings and His practices. Contrary to the opinion of some “experts,” Jesus was most definitely NOT a member of the sect of the Essenes.

The Essenes have been described as a “Jewish mystical sect somewhat resembling the Pharisees… They originated about B.C. 100, and disappeared from history after the destruction of Jerusalem” (M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition).

The Smith’s Bible Dictionary says this about the Essenes:

“It seems probable that the name signifies seer, or the silent, the mysterious… There were isolated communities of Essenes, which were regulated by strict rules, analogous to those of the monastic institutions of a later date. All things were held in common, without…

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We discussed in previous instalments the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the scribes and the elders. In this instalment, we will address the Sanhedrin. Depending on the Bible translation, the Sanhedrin is also referred to as the “Council.”

According to Young’s Analytical Concordance under “council,” we read that “Sanhedrin” means “a sitting together.”

The Wikipedia Encyclopaedia elaborates:

“The Sanhedrin (… Greek… synedrion, ‘sitting together,’ hence ‘assembly’ or ‘council’) were assemblies of either twenty-three or seventy-one elders… appointed to sit as a tribunal in every city in the ancient Land of Israel.

“There were two classes of Jewish courts called Sanhedrin, the Great Sanhedrin and the Lesser Sanhedrin. A lesser Sanhedrin of 23 judges was appointed to each city, but there was to be only one Great Sanhedrin of 71 judges, which among other roles acted as the Supreme Court, taking appeals from cases decided by lesser courts. In general usage, ‘The Sanhedrin’ without qualifier normally refers to the Great Sanhedrin, which was composed of the Nasi, who functioned as head or representing president, and was a member of the court; the Av Beit Din or chief of the court, who was second to the nasi; and sixty-nine general members (Mufla)…

“In the Second Temple period, the Great Sanhedrin met in the Temple in Jerusalem, in a building called the Hall of…

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In the fourth part of this series, we will focus on “the Elders” and show their hostility toward Jesus Christ.

There are many references in the Bible to elders both in the Old Testament and the New Testament. In the Old Testament references, the word elder is translated as “old, aged, aged as to days, bearded and grey headed.” The inference seems to be that with age and maturity there is wisdom to be had.

We read in Genesis 50:7: “So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders (old, aged, bearded) of the land of Egypt.”

We read in Numbers 11:16-17: “So the Lord said to Moses: ‘Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you.  Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.’”

Here we read that the…

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In the first two parts of this series, we discussed the Pharisees and the Sadducees.  We saw that both influential groups were opposed to Jesus, but oftentimes for different reasons. They did not agree among themselves on important religious teachings, but were united in their rejection of Jesus.

In this third installment, we will focus on the scribes.

According to Young’s Analytical Concordance of the Bible, there are a total of 114 references to the word “scribe”; 53 in the Old Testament and 61 in the New Testament, i.e., 19 in the book of Matthew, 22 in Mark, 15 in Luke, 1 in John and 4 in the book of Acts.

The first mention of the scribes in the Bible is in 2 Samuel 8:17 where Seraiah was the scribe in King David’s administration which was around 3,000 years ago.

biblestudy.org states the following:

“As in other parts of the world, scribes were considered honored professionals whose modern day equivalent would be judges or lawyers. They were generally the most educated men in the nation and as such became influential. In fact, since writing was practiced only by those with a certain level of intelligence, scribes were often considered wise men (1 Chronicles 27:32). They…

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In the first part of this series, we focused on the Pharisees. This group, although relatively small in numbers, was very influential. We saw that they rejected Jesus Christ and God’s commandments so that they could uphold their own traditions.

Another important influential religious group at the time of Jesus was the Sadducees.

Young’s Analytical Concordance has this to say about the Sadducees: “A sect of the Jews, denying the resurrection and the existence of angels and spirits, who derived their origin from Sadok, a follower of Antigonus of Socho B.C.250, a President of the Sanhedrin.”

A review of the Sadducees will give us some insight into the sort of religious environment that Jesus was born into and with what He had to endure during His ministry.

The website of “difference between” points out the following:

“While the Sadducees believed in the authority of the Torah, they were also more supportive of prevailing rulers… This is because they understood that they could benefit, in a political and economic sense, from maintaining peaceful relations with the ruling government.

“The Sadducees… were exposed to a more secular education than the Pharisees, and even acknowledged Hellenism (Hellenism is the term used to describe the influence of Greek culture on the peoples the Greek and…

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To answer this question, we are going to discuss in this new series the different religious groups who were all part of the Jewish establishment at the time of Jesus.

In this first part, we will focus on the Pharisees.

Young’s Analytical Concordance has this to say about the Pharisees: “From the Hebrew – separate. The largest of the… Jewish sects; noted for their self-conceit and long prayers; [they] fasted often, made broad their phylacteries, held to [their own] traditions…”

Josephus, who was himself a Pharisee, said of them in Antiquities of the Jews: “A cunning sect they were, and so elevated to a pitch of open fighting and doing mischief. At the time of Christ, the Pharisaical ‘fraternity’ was comparatively small.”

In fact, the group numbered about 6,000 members, but it was nevertheless very influential.

Emil Schurer, A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ, states: “Contact with non-Pharisees was avoided wherever possible. All others were unclean.”

Bible History Online explains:

“Even with the changes of government under the Romans and Herodians, the Pharisees maintained their spiritual authority. Although the Sadducean high priests were at the head of the Sanhedrin, the decisive influence upon public affairs was in the hands of the Pharisees.”

Josephus also wrote that “The Pharisees…

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It is a good question and one that we need to take very seriously. As we approach the Passover each year, we go through a period of introspection and any grudges that we hold must be eliminated. But our self-examination must continue, and it is especially a good occasion now as we are approaching the Day of Pentecost this weekend.

What is a grudge? We instinctively know what it is but, put simply, it is a feeling of resentment or ill-will. It is part and parcel of the way that the world behaves and reacts— it seems that if you don’t hold grudges or feel resentment towards others that you are not normal—but the way that the world views things is not our yardstick. It is what God says on this matter that really counts.

Leviticus 19:18 tells us:

“You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.”

We see in this passage that taking vengeance and bearing a grudge are related, and they are contrary to loving our neighbor. Bearing a grudge means to guard and to cherish it. The Pulpit Commentary states that Leviticus…

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Amos 5:13 reads: “Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time, For it is an evil time.”

Does this passage tell God’s Church to cease proclaiming the Truth, as we are living right now in an evil time?

In order to understand this passage properly, we must first of all consider the context and the theme of the entire book of Amos. The book deals with events leading to or occurring at the “day of the Lord”—when God will powerfully and mightily intervene in the affairs of men. The day of the Lord will begin approximately one year before Christ’s return and is oftentimes described as the day of God’s wrath, as God is angry about the sins of man.

Regarding the “day of the Lord,” we read in Amos 5:18-20:

“Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! For what good is the day of the LORD to you? It will be darkness, and not light. It will be as though a man fled from a lion, And a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, Leaned his hand on the wall, And a serpent bit him! Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not…

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We state in our Statement of Beliefs, under “The Church’s Commission”:

“We believe that it is the Church’s commission to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of God to all nations as a witness, to warn all nations, and especially the lost tribes of the house of Israel (mainly in the United States, Great Britain, certain Commonwealth nations and nations in Northwestern Europe) of impending danger, and to feed the flock of Christ—the Church—spiritually and physically.”

Regarding the gospel of the Kingdom of God, we state this in our free booklet, “How to Find the True Church of God”:

“… the gospel includes, among other aspects, a message ABOUT Jesus Christ (Luke 24:44–46); about the grace of God (Acts 20:24); repentance and forgiveness of sins (Luke 24:47); the belief in and obedience to the gospel (Mark 1:15; Romans 10:16; 2 Thessalonians 1:8); our salvation (Ephesians 1:13); peace (Ephesians 6:15); the promise of eternal life (2 Timothy 1:10); rulership of Christ and the saints here on earth (Revelation 20:4, 6; Daniel 2:44; 7:21–22, 27); and a message about the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:11)…

“We read that it is the gospel OF Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 9:12), or Christ’s gospel (2 Corinthians…

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Even though we are very familiar with the concept of lengthy imprisonment, which is being considered as the normal and acceptable way to deal with those who broke the law or who are suspected of having broken it, we might be surprised to learn that this very concept of incarcerating human beings is not biblical at all.

In addition, even though the Bible does speak of quarantine and isolation for those who are suffering from a contagious disease, we will find that this concept is never applied for those who are not sick or who have not manifested any signs of sickness.

Instead, the Bible reveals that God will inflict lengthy imprisonment on wicked spirit beings… but not on humans. And we will discover that in most cases recorded in the Holy Scriptures, imprisonment has been imposed by the wicked rulers of this world on righteous and God-fearing people.

We should take note of the fact that first and foremost, it is the fate of Satan and his demons to be imprisoned or “isolated” so that they cannot deceive mankind anymore.

When Christ returns, He will lead captivity captive (Ephesians 4:8; Psalm 68:18), including Satan and his demons who hold mankind in captivity. They…

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