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Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question:
Mark 12:18 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB There came to him Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection. They asked him, saying,
  • KJV Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying,
  • BSB Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and questioned Him:
  • NKJV Then some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him; and they asked Him, saying:
  • NASB Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) *came to Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying,

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The Sadducees, who deny the resurrection, come to question Jesus.

Overview

The Sadducees rejected belief in bodily resurrection and accepted chiefly the books of Moses. Their approach sets up a question designed to ridicule the very idea of resurrection. The encounter gives Jesus occasion to affirm and defend the resurrection from Scripture.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Matt 22:23–33On that day Sadducees (those who say that there is no resurrection) came to him. They asked him,
  • Acts 4:1–2As they spoke to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came to them,
  • Acts 23:6–9But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Men and brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. Concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!”
  • 2 Tim 2:18men who have erred concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past, and overthrowing the faith of some.
  • Luke 20:27–40Some of the Sadducees came to him, those who deny that there is a resurrection.
  • 1 Cor 15:13–18But if there is no resurrection of the dead, neither has Christ been raised.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Mark videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Mark 12:18YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MarkMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'

How Mark 12:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.