Section 16:1–4
The Jewish leaders tested Jesus
The Pharisees and Sadducees were two groups of Jewish leaders who were often opposed to each other. Here, they joined together to test Jesus. They tested him by asking him to do a certain kind of miracle that would prove that God had sent him. This kind of miracle was called a “sign.”
Jesus rebuked them for asking for a sign. He said that the only sign that they would see would be like what happened to Jonah. Jonah was in a big fish for three days. Then God caused the fish to vomit Jonah onto land alive. Similarly, Jesus would be in the grave for three days. Then God would cause him to be alive again. This would prove that God had sent him.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
The leaders ask for a miracle
-or-
The Demand for a Sign
There is a parallel passage for this section in Mark 8:11–13. There is a parallel passage for 16:2–3 in Luke 12:54–56.
Paragraph 16:1–4
In this paragraph, the Pharisees and Sadducees tested Jesus. They tested him by asking him for a sign to prove that he was from God.
16:1a
Then: This is the beginning of a new story. The Greek introduces this story with a word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Then. Most English versions do not translate this word. In your translation, use a natural way to begin a new story. For example:
There were
-or-
Then
the Pharisees and Sadducees came: This clause means that “some” Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus. It does not mean that all of them came. Only some came representing both groups.
In some languages, it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:
Some Pharisees and Sadducees…came (Good News Translation)
Pharisees: The word Pharisees last occurred in 15:12b. You should translate it here as you did there.
Sadducees: Use the same term here as you used in 3:7a.
came: The Greek text does not indicate where the Pharisees and Sadducees came from. It also does not indicate where Jesus was when they came to him. In your translation, do not try to make these things explicit.
16:1b
and tested Jesus: In this context, the word tested means “tried to trick/trap” so that he would fail. The Pharisees and Sadducees wanted Jesus to fail to show that he was from heaven. If (or when) he failed, they could declare that he was not from God. Their purpose was to discredit Jesus so that people would not listen to him.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
wanting to trick him (New Century Version)
-or-
wanted to trap him (Good News Translation)
by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven: Here the word sign refers to a special miracle that shows a particular truth. The Pharisees and Sadducees asked Jesus to do a miracle to show that he truly came from heaven/God. They did this because they did not believe that he could actually prove that he came from God.
Here are some other ways to translate this clause:
by asking him to show them a miraculous sign from heaven (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
they asked him to show them a miracle from God (New Century Version)
-or-
they asked him to do a miracle to show/prove that God ⌊had sent him⌋
from heaven: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as heaven can mean either:
(a) sky – the space above the earth where birds fly, or
(b) heaven – the place where God lives.
If you can, use a word that means both sky and heaven. If you must make a choice, choose (b) heaven. Here, the Pharisees and Sadducees wanted to see something that showed that Jesus came from “heaven/God.”
In some languages, it may be necessary to make the Pharisees’ and Sadducees’ request more explicit. For example:
from God (New Century Version)
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