Mark 12:27Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

A certain heretical sect of the Jews called Sadducees denied the resurrection, and said that there was neither angel nor spirit. These then coming to Jesus, craftily proposed to Him a certain tale, in order to shew that no resurrection should take place, or had taken place; and therefore there is added, And they asked him, saying, Master. And in this tale they lay down that seven men had married one woman, in order to make men draw back from belief in the resurrection.

But in a mystical sense: what can this woman, leaving no seed of seven brothers, and last of all dying, mean except the Jewish synagogue, deserted by the seven-fold Spirit, which filled those seven patriarchs, who did not leave to her the seed of Abraham, that is, Jesus Christ? For although a Son was born to them, nevertheless He was given to us Gentiles. This woman was dead to Christ, nor shall she be joined in the resurrection to any patriarch of the seven; for by the number seven is meant the whole company of the faithful. Thus it is said contrariwise by Isaiah, Seven women shall take hold of one man; (Is. 4:1) that is, the seven Churches, which the Lord loves, reproves, and chastises, adore Him with one faith. Wherefore it goes on: And Jesus answering, said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, not knowing the Scripture, neither the power of God?

And fitly do they frame such a fable in order to prove the madness of those who assert the resurrection of the body. Such a thing however might really have happened at some time or other among them.

When the Pharisees were rendered speechless by this response, the group of Sadducees within the same Sanhedrin, delighted by their embarrassment, swiftly put forth a question regarding the teaching of resurrection, which they had dismissed due to the absurd outcomes they had perceived. Just as the Lord had condemned the Pharisees, He addressed the Sadducees by uprooting the very foundation of their argument. They referenced a case involving a woman who had married seven brothers according to human law. Christ demonstrated to the Sadducees that their misunderstanding arose from two key failures: they (1) lacked comprehension of the Scriptures, and (2) misunderstood God's omnipotence.

The collaboration between the Sadducees and the Pharisees in this instance is not clearly indicated in the Gospel narratives. They may have observed how Jesus brought the Pharisees to shame and, taking delight in this, desired for Him to join them in mocking the Pharisees' belief in the resurrection of the dead. This belief held that with the arrival of the Messiah, all Israelites would rise and inhabit the promised land. At the very least, Jesus’ response satisfied the scribes (Luke 39), while the defeat of the Sadducees by His reply buoyed the Pharisees (Matthew 34).

Your assertion that the resurrection of the dead is absent in the writings of Moses is incorrect. Have you not read about God’s revelation to Moses? Are you unaware of how He identified Himself? He stated to Moses, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ (Mark 12:26). This declaration was made at a time when Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had departed from this world, having died in earthly terms. Therefore, if God declares Himself as their God, it indicates that they are alive in His presence, for He cannot be the God of those who do not exist. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living (Matt. 22:32).

Concerning the resurrection itself, the belief that Moses does not address it is fundamentally mistaken. He refers to God as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, implying that God cannot be associated with those who have ceased to exist. Hence, the patriarchs, despite their physical death, are clearly alive in the afterlife and anticipating their resurrection. Thus, in God's view, all the deceased remain alive, making their resurrection a simple act for Him. This response was so profoundly insightful that even some of the scribes found it compelling and openly expressed their admiration, saying, "Teacher, you have spoken well!"

Mark's narrative of how the Lord confronted the Sadducees regarding the resurrection closely resembles Matthew's portrayal. This similarity emphasizes the depth of the Sadducees' misunderstandings about profound, divinely revealed truths. The phrase "By these things ye are led astray" carries a sharper tone than in Matthew's account, highlighting the superficiality and folly of their grasp on sacred doctrine. It raises the question: Is it through this trivial and misguided reasoning that you falter in your misguided notions of wisdom?