sadducee, zadok

[Cribstyl]

Top Web Results for "Sadducee"​

4 results for: Sadducee
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source Sad·du·cee

(sāj'ə-sē', sād'yə-) Pronunciation Key
n. A member of a priestly, aristocratic Jewish sect founded in the second century [SIZE=-1]B.C.[/SIZE] that accepted only the written Mosaic law and that ceased to exist after the destruction of the Temple in [SIZE=-1]A.D.[/SIZE] 70.


[Middle English Saducee, from Old English Sadducēas, Sadducees, from Late Latin Sadducaeī, from Greek Saddoukaioi, from Mishnaic Hebrew ṣədûqî, after ṣādôq, Zadok, high priest in the time of David and Solomon, from ṣādôq, just, righteous, from ṣādaq, to be just; see ṣdq in Semitic roots.]

Sad'du·ce'an (-sē'ən) adj., Sad'du·cee'ism n.
(Download Now or Buy the Book) The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source
Sadducee

O.E., from L.L. Sadducaei (pl.), from Gk. Zaddoukaios, from Heb. tzedoqi, from personal name Tzadhoq "Zadok" (2 Sam. viii:17), the high priest from whom the priesthood of the captivity claimed descent. According to Josephus, the sect denied the resurrection of the dead and the existence of angels and spirits; but later historians regard them as more the political party of the priestly class than a sect per se.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas HarperWordNet - Cite This Source sadducee
nouna member of an ancient Jewish sect around the time of Jesus; opposed to the Pharisees
WordNet® 2.1, © 2005 Princeton University

 

[Cribstyl]

The Sadducees - During the time of Christ and the New Testament era, those who were Sadducees were aristocrats. They tended to be wealthy and held powerful positions, including that of chief priests, the position of high priest, and they held the majority of the 70 seats of the ruling council called the Sanhedrin. They worked very hard to keep the peace by going along with the decisions of Rome (Israel at this time was under Roman control), and in fact they seemed to be more concerned with politics than religion. Because they were accommodating to Rome, and the fact that they were wealthy upper class, they did not relate well to the common man nor did the common man hold them in high opinion. The common man related better to those who belonged to the party of the Pharisees. Though the Sadducees held the majority of seats in the Sanhedrin, history indicates that much of the time they had to go along with the ideas of the Pharisaical minority, again because the Pharisees were popular with the masses.

Religiously, the Sadducees were more conservative in one large area of doctrine than the Pharisees. The Pharisees gave oral tradition equal authority to the written Word of God, while the Sadducees considered only the written Word to be from God. The Sadducees worked very hard to preserve the authority of the written Word of God, especially the Books of Moses (Genesis through Deuteronomy). While they could be commended for this, they definitely were not perfect in their doctrinal views. The following are a brief list of beliefs they held that contradict Scripture:

1. They were extremely self sufficient to the point of denying God's involvement in everyday life.

2. They denied any resurrection of the dead (Matthew 22:23; Mark 12:18-27; Acts 23:8).

3. They denied any afterlife, holding that the soul perished at death, therefore believing there is no penalty or reward after the earthly life.

4. They denied the existence of a spiritual world, i.e. angels and demons (Acts 23:8).

Because the Sadducees were more concerned with politics than religion, they were unconcerned with Jesus until they became afraid He might bring unwanted Roman attention. It was at this point that the Sadducees and Pharisees united to put Christ to death (John 11:48-50; Mark 14:53ff; Mark 15:1ff). Other mentions of the Sadducees are found in Acts 4:1ff, Acts 5:17ff, and the Sadducees are implicated in the death of James by the historian Josephus (Acts 12:1-2).

The Sadducees ceased to exist in A.D. 70. Since this party existed because of their political and priestly ties, when Rome destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in A.D. 70, the Sadducees were also destroyed.