Jesus is talking to a group of Jews including some Pharisees (John 8:13) and possibly other Jewish leaders (John 8:22 NET). He had said to them “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. [...]
Answers about Pharisees
Your full question: Why does the Bible (Matt 23:9) say call no man father on earth? Are we wrong to call our biological fathers, father? We are not wrong to call our biological fathers “father”. In Matthew 23:9, Jesus is using exaggerated language to make a point – much like when he said in Mark [...]
This passage can be difficult to understand at first sight, and it is not helped by some rather clunky translations. Let us try and unpack what is going on. Jesus condemns the Pharisees for being like a dish that is clean on the outside but dirty on the inside. That is, when you looked at [...]
The Pharisees were a Jewish political party which began in about 140 BC after the Maccabean revolt. After the destruction of the temple in AD 70, the beliefs of the Pharisees became the basis for Rabbinic Judaism from which comes traditional Judaism today. The Pharisees were notable for their conflicts with the rival party of [...]
Blasphemy is showing disrespect for God. Under the Law of Moses, anyone who blasphemed was to be executed by stoning (Leviticus 24:16). “Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit” is only mentioned in the gospels: Matthew 12:31-32. “Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not [...]
The full question was: Many Christians have told me that the 10 Commandments are utterly absolute to the point that they must be obeyed no matter what the consequences — even if obeying one or more of them leads to unbelievable evil. This does not seem right to me in the light of the Hebrew [...]
The Pharisees and Sadducees were political parties during the New Testament period. The Pharisees main purpose was to preserve and teach traditional Judaism. They insisted on a literal interpretation of the law and in following the traditions of the elders. The Sadducees were the social elite in Israel and rejected the oral law and were [...]
