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The Messiah Confrontation: Pharisees versus Sadducees and the Death of Jesus
2023 Top Ten Book from the Academy of Parish Clergy
The Messiah Confrontation casts new and fascinating light on why Jesus was killed.
Grounded in meticulous research on the messianism debates in the Bible and during the Second Temple period, biblical scholar Israel Knohl argues that Jesus’s trial was in reality a dramatic clash between two Jewish groups holding opposing ideologies of messianism and anti-messianism, with both ideologies running through the Bible. The Pharisees (forefathers of the rabbinic sages) and most of the Jewish people had a conception of a Messiah similar to like the prophets and most psalmists, they expected the arrival of a godlike Messiah. However, the judges who sentenced Jesus to death were Sadducees, who were fighting with the Pharisees largely because they repudiated the Messiah idea. Thus, the trial of Jesus was not a clash between Jewish and what would become Christian doctrines but a confrontation between two internal Jewish positions—expecting a Messiah or rejecting the Messiah idea—in which Jesus and the Pharisees were actually on the same side.
Knohl contends that had the assigned judges been Pharisees rather than Sadducees, Jesus would not have been convicted and crucified. The Pharisees’ disagreement with Jesus was solely over whether Jesus was the Messiah—but historically, for Jews, arguing about who was or wasn’t the Messiah was not uncommon.
The Messiah Confrontation has far-reaching consequences for the relationship between Christians and Jews.
The Messiah Confrontation casts new and fascinating light on why Jesus was killed.
Grounded in meticulous research on the messianism debates in the Bible and during the Second Temple period, biblical scholar Israel Knohl argues that Jesus’s trial was in reality a dramatic clash between two Jewish groups holding opposing ideologies of messianism and anti-messianism, with both ideologies running through the Bible. The Pharisees (forefathers of the rabbinic sages) and most of the Jewish people had a conception of a Messiah similar to like the prophets and most psalmists, they expected the arrival of a godlike Messiah. However, the judges who sentenced Jesus to death were Sadducees, who were fighting with the Pharisees largely because they repudiated the Messiah idea. Thus, the trial of Jesus was not a clash between Jewish and what would become Christian doctrines but a confrontation between two internal Jewish positions—expecting a Messiah or rejecting the Messiah idea—in which Jesus and the Pharisees were actually on the same side.
Knohl contends that had the assigned judges been Pharisees rather than Sadducees, Jesus would not have been convicted and crucified. The Pharisees’ disagreement with Jesus was solely over whether Jesus was the Messiah—but historically, for Jews, arguing about who was or wasn’t the Messiah was not uncommon.
The Messiah Confrontation has far-reaching consequences for the relationship between Christians and Jews.
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224 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2022
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October 3, 2022
Over time Christianity emerged from early Judaism to form a relatively separate religious tradition. As it did so, it became commonplace to forget the Jewish origins of the Christian faith. That has been to the detriment of Christianity as it has often lost touch with its roots, and it has harmed Judaism due to persecution and oppression. It also has resulted in misinterpreting and misunderstanding our Jewish origins. We may talk about the distinction between Pharisees and Sadducees, but other than questions about the resurrection what else might we miss?
When I first saw a notice for Israel Knohl's The Messiah Confrontation I knew I wanted to read it. While many Jews find conversations about Jesus difficult --- due to the history of Christian persecution of Jews in the name of Jesus --- it is extremely helpful to view Jesus through Jewish eyes. Amy Jill Levine has done a wonderful job enlightening us in this regard, but she is not alone. This book is a great expression of that response. Now, in many ways, Jesus isn't the central focus of the book. Rather, Israel Knohl's first priority is exploring the origins and differences between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. However, Jesus serves as an endpoint, as everything in the book points to understanding Jesus' trial (not the crucifixion itself as that was a Roman practice and at the time capital punishment was largely in the hands of the Roman occupiers).
One of the central themes of this book is the origin and development of messianic ideas within Judaism. Knohl, who is the Yehezkel Kaufmann Professor of Biblical Studies emeritus at the Hebrew University -- Jerusalem, points out that the birth of messianism is found in the destruction of the first Temple in the 6th Century BCE. Though born at that moment, it has earlier roots in differing views of the monarchy (especially the Davidic monarchy) and hopes on the part of some but not all for the restoration of the Davidic monarchy. Two streams, which ultimately lead us to the Pharisees and Sadducees, emerge. One envisions the restoration of the Davidic monarchy and takes its cues from Isaiah. The other stream centers on the Temple and priesthood, draws from the Torah, and leads in time to the Sadducees, which are both anti-messianic and rooted in the primacy of the priesthood. The origins of the two tracts seem to have different origin points. Whereas Isaiah tends to be promonarchic and is related to the kingdom of Judah, we see something different in the prophet Hosea who spoke to the situation in the northern kingdom of Israel, and who took a much more hostile view of the monarchy. The same is true of Deuteronomy, which Knohl believes originates in the north and focuses more on priesthood than a monarch, especially a Davidic one.
Knohl connects messianic visions with Isaiah and the Davidic monarchy (chapter 1) and an anti-monarchic perspective with Hosea (chapter 2). While the Northern Kingdom disappeared, with time that perspective also made its way to the southern kingdom. His discussion of Hosea is especially illuminating as I had never thought about how that book might provide the foundations for an anti-messianic trajectory leading to the Sadducees.
Knohl weaves these two trajectories through the book, so in chapter 3 we turn back to messianism. If the origins lie with Isaiah, a reconfiguration of them emerges with Jeremiah, who extends Isaiah's vision. Jeremiah envisions the emergence of the "righteous Branch," even as he publicly rebukes the last of the Davidic monarchs. With the exile comes a new sensibility about who is anointed, and thus with Second Isaiah we see the anointing move from the Davidic kings to Cyrus, who is in many ways the hoped-for messiah. That understanding is further developed in chapter 4, which explores developments in a renewed Jewish presence in Israel, still under Persian control, but with permission to rebuild a Temple. He notes that the Persians permitted the restoration of the Jewish religion but not monarchy or anything that smacks of monarchy. With this messianic hopes are subsumed under a Temple/priesthood sensibility. This was also the era in which the Torah gains a central role, especially with the leadership of Ezra the Scribe, who belonged to a second wave of migrants from Babylon to Israel. Ezra was not a political leader but a teacher of the Law, and it is with his leadership that a Torah-centered faith takes shape (you can see where this might lead to the Sadducees). He continues the discussion of the growing distrust and loss of expectation of a restored monarchy at this point. He notes that we see this distrust present in Deuteronomy, as well as the other four books, which had been compiled in Babylon and combined with Deuteronomy. (chapter 6). This vision distinguishes between human and divine. What we see here is a vision that is reflected in some of the Psalms that highlight monarchy and one that does not (Torah). The latter insists that God transcends the bodily, and the other allows more room for a connection.
Since the Resurrection is a central distinguishing mark between the two parties explored here, Knohl moves from the conversation about messianism to that of resurrection. Interestingly, resurrection is found only in Daniel, and Daniel has nothing to say about the restoration of a Davidic monarchy (messiah). To gain an understanding of that emergence, he explores the moves from Ezra (5th century BCE) to the time of Antiochus IV (2nd Century BCE). This was a period of great turmoil as Israel fell under the control first of Alexander and then the various successor states. Interestingly, while Daniel introduces us to the resurrection, something the Pharisees embrace, it tends toward espousing an anti-messianic perspective, something the Sadducees embrace. However, there are elements of a messianic perspective minus the restoration of the Davidic line. Central here though is the introduction of a reward for faithfulness. If Chapter 7 focuses on Daniel and the Resurrection, when we turn to Chapter 8, we read of the "Sadducees' Denial of the Doctrine of Reward." Knohl reminds us that the Sadducees "were an elite group of priests" born to aristocratic families. The key to this overall discussion, it is from this group that the High Priests emerge. (p. 101). In this chapter, we learn more about the Sadducees, a group that left no writings and disappeared with the destruction of the Second Temple. Here in chapter 8, Knohl takes note of the sayings of Antigonus of Sokho, who was a disciple of the High Priest Simon the Just (2nd century BCE). Antigonus insisted that observance of the Commandments should not be linked to a reward from God. It is this rejection of a reward for observing the Commandments that comes to define the Sadducees. This is connected with their rejection of messianic expectations.
While the Pharisees and Sadducees are the central figures (along with Jesus) in this study, Knohl also takes note of the Qumran community and its "accounts of an exalted and suffering messiah" (chapter 9). While there was a vision of a military messiah -- Davidic king -- here we learn that it's not the only vision. While the Pharisees expected a Davidic monarch/messiah, the Qumran community/Essennes explored the idea of the suffering servant as messiah, a vision that has connections with the vision presented by Jesus. This is an especially intriguing chapter for understanding Jesus and the way some Jews might embrace his vision. From Qumran, we move in chapter 10 to the expectations of the Pharisees of an imminent Messiah, but their vision was different from the Essenes as they envisioned the coming of a Davidic Messiah who would liberate the land. They were the most popular faction in Jewish life as they were seen as the ones who would guide the people in how to live holy lives in anticipation of the coming blessings of God. It is this Davidic expectation that led to their critique of the Hasmonean dynasty after they embraced kingship (the Hasmoneans were a priestly family). The key here is that they, unlike the Sadducees, did expect a messiah and thus were more receptive to Jesus' vision.
After all of these twists and turns, helping us understand the development of messianic ideas, we come to Jesus and his own vision of what a messiah might be. Knohl leans largely on Mark with references to Matthew and Luke. He notes how Jesus saw himself as a suffering messiah and how that was received as there is a gap in expectation, though Jesus' view has its roots in Jewish understandings. This leads in chapter 12 to the trial of Jesus, which Knohl makes clear is an affair involving only Sadducees, who were protective of the Temple, had a partnership with the Roman authorities, and did not embrace the idea of a Messiah. Thus, for several reasons they were unreceptive to Jesus. The point here is that had the Pharisees been in charge of the trial, Jesus would have been set free. The author's hope is that this book, having established this possibility, might provide a foundation for better Christian-Jewish relations, one that allows for a conversation about Jesus.
Ultimately the point here is that the trial of Jesus is not a Jewish-Christian debate. Rather it's an inter-Jewish debate over whether or not a messiah might be expected and if Jesus fits the expectation. The fact is, that is a possibility. Thus, we have in this book another helpful guide to the roots of Jesus' own sense of calling and purpose, allowing us to embrace the Jewish roots of the Christian faith. It also might help further rehabilitate the Pharisees in the eyes of Christians. All in all this is a most intriguing book that I hope will be read by many!
When I first saw a notice for Israel Knohl's The Messiah Confrontation I knew I wanted to read it. While many Jews find conversations about Jesus difficult --- due to the history of Christian persecution of Jews in the name of Jesus --- it is extremely helpful to view Jesus through Jewish eyes. Amy Jill Levine has done a wonderful job enlightening us in this regard, but she is not alone. This book is a great expression of that response. Now, in many ways, Jesus isn't the central focus of the book. Rather, Israel Knohl's first priority is exploring the origins and differences between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. However, Jesus serves as an endpoint, as everything in the book points to understanding Jesus' trial (not the crucifixion itself as that was a Roman practice and at the time capital punishment was largely in the hands of the Roman occupiers).
One of the central themes of this book is the origin and development of messianic ideas within Judaism. Knohl, who is the Yehezkel Kaufmann Professor of Biblical Studies emeritus at the Hebrew University -- Jerusalem, points out that the birth of messianism is found in the destruction of the first Temple in the 6th Century BCE. Though born at that moment, it has earlier roots in differing views of the monarchy (especially the Davidic monarchy) and hopes on the part of some but not all for the restoration of the Davidic monarchy. Two streams, which ultimately lead us to the Pharisees and Sadducees, emerge. One envisions the restoration of the Davidic monarchy and takes its cues from Isaiah. The other stream centers on the Temple and priesthood, draws from the Torah, and leads in time to the Sadducees, which are both anti-messianic and rooted in the primacy of the priesthood. The origins of the two tracts seem to have different origin points. Whereas Isaiah tends to be promonarchic and is related to the kingdom of Judah, we see something different in the prophet Hosea who spoke to the situation in the northern kingdom of Israel, and who took a much more hostile view of the monarchy. The same is true of Deuteronomy, which Knohl believes originates in the north and focuses more on priesthood than a monarch, especially a Davidic one.
Knohl connects messianic visions with Isaiah and the Davidic monarchy (chapter 1) and an anti-monarchic perspective with Hosea (chapter 2). While the Northern Kingdom disappeared, with time that perspective also made its way to the southern kingdom. His discussion of Hosea is especially illuminating as I had never thought about how that book might provide the foundations for an anti-messianic trajectory leading to the Sadducees.
Knohl weaves these two trajectories through the book, so in chapter 3 we turn back to messianism. If the origins lie with Isaiah, a reconfiguration of them emerges with Jeremiah, who extends Isaiah's vision. Jeremiah envisions the emergence of the "righteous Branch," even as he publicly rebukes the last of the Davidic monarchs. With the exile comes a new sensibility about who is anointed, and thus with Second Isaiah we see the anointing move from the Davidic kings to Cyrus, who is in many ways the hoped-for messiah. That understanding is further developed in chapter 4, which explores developments in a renewed Jewish presence in Israel, still under Persian control, but with permission to rebuild a Temple. He notes that the Persians permitted the restoration of the Jewish religion but not monarchy or anything that smacks of monarchy. With this messianic hopes are subsumed under a Temple/priesthood sensibility. This was also the era in which the Torah gains a central role, especially with the leadership of Ezra the Scribe, who belonged to a second wave of migrants from Babylon to Israel. Ezra was not a political leader but a teacher of the Law, and it is with his leadership that a Torah-centered faith takes shape (you can see where this might lead to the Sadducees). He continues the discussion of the growing distrust and loss of expectation of a restored monarchy at this point. He notes that we see this distrust present in Deuteronomy, as well as the other four books, which had been compiled in Babylon and combined with Deuteronomy. (chapter 6). This vision distinguishes between human and divine. What we see here is a vision that is reflected in some of the Psalms that highlight monarchy and one that does not (Torah). The latter insists that God transcends the bodily, and the other allows more room for a connection.
Since the Resurrection is a central distinguishing mark between the two parties explored here, Knohl moves from the conversation about messianism to that of resurrection. Interestingly, resurrection is found only in Daniel, and Daniel has nothing to say about the restoration of a Davidic monarchy (messiah). To gain an understanding of that emergence, he explores the moves from Ezra (5th century BCE) to the time of Antiochus IV (2nd Century BCE). This was a period of great turmoil as Israel fell under the control first of Alexander and then the various successor states. Interestingly, while Daniel introduces us to the resurrection, something the Pharisees embrace, it tends toward espousing an anti-messianic perspective, something the Sadducees embrace. However, there are elements of a messianic perspective minus the restoration of the Davidic line. Central here though is the introduction of a reward for faithfulness. If Chapter 7 focuses on Daniel and the Resurrection, when we turn to Chapter 8, we read of the "Sadducees' Denial of the Doctrine of Reward." Knohl reminds us that the Sadducees "were an elite group of priests" born to aristocratic families. The key to this overall discussion, it is from this group that the High Priests emerge. (p. 101). In this chapter, we learn more about the Sadducees, a group that left no writings and disappeared with the destruction of the Second Temple. Here in chapter 8, Knohl takes note of the sayings of Antigonus of Sokho, who was a disciple of the High Priest Simon the Just (2nd century BCE). Antigonus insisted that observance of the Commandments should not be linked to a reward from God. It is this rejection of a reward for observing the Commandments that comes to define the Sadducees. This is connected with their rejection of messianic expectations.
While the Pharisees and Sadducees are the central figures (along with Jesus) in this study, Knohl also takes note of the Qumran community and its "accounts of an exalted and suffering messiah" (chapter 9). While there was a vision of a military messiah -- Davidic king -- here we learn that it's not the only vision. While the Pharisees expected a Davidic monarch/messiah, the Qumran community/Essennes explored the idea of the suffering servant as messiah, a vision that has connections with the vision presented by Jesus. This is an especially intriguing chapter for understanding Jesus and the way some Jews might embrace his vision. From Qumran, we move in chapter 10 to the expectations of the Pharisees of an imminent Messiah, but their vision was different from the Essenes as they envisioned the coming of a Davidic Messiah who would liberate the land. They were the most popular faction in Jewish life as they were seen as the ones who would guide the people in how to live holy lives in anticipation of the coming blessings of God. It is this Davidic expectation that led to their critique of the Hasmonean dynasty after they embraced kingship (the Hasmoneans were a priestly family). The key here is that they, unlike the Sadducees, did expect a messiah and thus were more receptive to Jesus' vision.
After all of these twists and turns, helping us understand the development of messianic ideas, we come to Jesus and his own vision of what a messiah might be. Knohl leans largely on Mark with references to Matthew and Luke. He notes how Jesus saw himself as a suffering messiah and how that was received as there is a gap in expectation, though Jesus' view has its roots in Jewish understandings. This leads in chapter 12 to the trial of Jesus, which Knohl makes clear is an affair involving only Sadducees, who were protective of the Temple, had a partnership with the Roman authorities, and did not embrace the idea of a Messiah. Thus, for several reasons they were unreceptive to Jesus. The point here is that had the Pharisees been in charge of the trial, Jesus would have been set free. The author's hope is that this book, having established this possibility, might provide a foundation for better Christian-Jewish relations, one that allows for a conversation about Jesus.
Ultimately the point here is that the trial of Jesus is not a Jewish-Christian debate. Rather it's an inter-Jewish debate over whether or not a messiah might be expected and if Jesus fits the expectation. The fact is, that is a possibility. Thus, we have in this book another helpful guide to the roots of Jesus' own sense of calling and purpose, allowing us to embrace the Jewish roots of the Christian faith. It also might help further rehabilitate the Pharisees in the eyes of Christians. All in all this is a most intriguing book that I hope will be read by many!
February 9, 2023
Messiah: the noun is connected to the Hebrew verb that means to anoint a person or object with oil. However, the connotations of the term have changed over time. In the early sections of the Bible, it usually referred to a man who was anointed with oil by another person before taking the position of priest or king. However, by Second Temple times, some Jewish groups believed a savior would be anointed by God to help the Jewish people overthrow their Roman oppressors, restoring the independent kingdom of Judah. A subsection of those believed that the person would be a descendant from the line of King David. However, others rejected the idea of a human rescuer, claiming that God alone would be the one to save Israel. Two groups – the Pharisees and the Jewish followers of Jesus – believed in the messianic idea while a group known as the Sadducees rejected it. The Sadducees, who were members of the priestly class, saw a clear and firm difference between humans and the Divine, and the messianic idea muddled the two. These interpretations are just some of the fascinating discussions offered in Israel Knohl’s “The Messiah Confrontation: Pharisees versus Sadducees and the Death of Jesus” (The Jewish Publication Society), which not only looks at these differing ideas, but the one that ultimately cost Jesus his life.
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
September 29, 2025
Knohl gives the most convincing account of the historical Jesus I have read so far and does a great service to the church as well as other communities of faith. His critical and broad approach which delves into the different theologies contained in the hebrew bible as well as extra biblical books of the second temple period paint a enlightening picture of the beliefs of ancient judaism's school's of thought from the prophets themselves to the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, other qumran communities and Jesus himself. By the end of the book it is extremely clear that the tension between Jesus and religious leaders did not include the Pharisees who actually agreed with Jesus' own theology unlike later accounts especially in the gospel of John painted. Ultimately not only is it deeply anti-Semitic to say that the "jews" killed Jesus it is simply incorrect, a small group of Jewish elites (the Sadducees) in the dead of night unjustly handed over one of their own to be excuted by the roman authorities. Jesus' own theology was congruent and influenced by the Pharisaic messianic expectations as well as including the views of the qumranic ideas of the suffering messiah. All this to say that this book is informative, enjoyable and straightforward, well argued and presented.
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