Acts 23:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.

NIV: (The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)

NASB: For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor an angel, nor a spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.

CSB: For the Sadducees say there is no resurrection, and neither angel nor spirit, but the Pharisees affirm them all.

NLT: for the Sadducees say there is no resurrection or angels or spirits, but the Pharisees believe in all of these.

KJV: For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both.

NKJV: For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection—and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both.

Paul is using theological differences between Sadducees and Pharisees to make them forget he insulted their high priest. The Roman tribune brought Paul before the Sanhedrin, hoping the religious council could tell him why a mob of Jews dragged Paul from the temple and beat him (Acts 21:27–34). Paul has a different goal. He wants to tell the religious leaders about Jesus. He's barely begun when the high priest has Paul struck and he responds by calling the priest a whitewashed wall. When Paul finds out who had him struck, he obliquely calls the high priest corrupt…which he is (Acts 23:1–5).

Quickly, Paul realizes everything is going downhill. Yet he also realizes the consequences don't all need to land on him. He declares that he is a Pharisee and that he is on trial for affirming the resurrection of the dead. The Pharisees believe in the resurrection, but the Sadducees don't. They start fighting, and the tribune has no option but to withdraw with Paul in tow (Acts 23:6–7).

The belief that resurrection from the dead is part of the Messianic message came about after the exile to Babylon; there's almost no clear resurrection theology in the Old Testament, but that doesn't mean it isn't true. Jesus explained this to the Sadducees shortly before His crucifixion. God told Moses He "is" the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, not that He "was" their God. He cannot be the God of the dead (Mark 12:26–27).

Acts 23:1–11 records a Roman military tribune's last effort to uncover why a mob attacked Paul. The crowd dragged him out of the temple and beat him mercilessly (Acts 21:27–33). The tribune asks the Sanhedrin for help, but there are too many divisions. The Sanhedrin can't abide Christians. Paul can't fathom their rejection of Jesus. The Sadducees and Pharisees quickly fall into an old fight about the resurrection of the dead. The tribune takes Paul back to the barracks where, that night, Jesus tells Paul he's on his way to Rome.

Acts 23 continues the tribune's attempt to discover why a mob of Jews suddenly turned violent and attacked Paul (Acts 21:27–33). He takes Paul to the Sanhedrin to see if they understand what his crime is. Paul barely begins his story when he is slapped for impudence. He disrespects the high priest and starts a fight between the Pharisees and Sadducees. The next day, a group of forty Jews invite the Sanhedrin to help them murder Paul. Paul's nephew reports the plot to the tribune who gives up and sends Paul to the governor. The governor awaits Paul's accusers for trial.

Jews from near Ephesus accused Paul of bringing a Gentile into the temple and incited a crowd to attack him. The tribune saved Paul but couldn't uncover the reason for the violence; most of the mob didn't know, and Paul was a Roman citizen, so the tribune couldn't beat the truth out of him (Acts 21—22). When the Sanhedrin would rather murder Paul than talk to him, the tribune sends Paul to the governor. The governor holds Paul without charges for so long he invokes his right to a trial before Caesar. The governor agrees, and Paul finally gets to Rome (Acts 24—28).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.