Jesus spent some time teaching and debating (Mark 12) and also told His disciples that the temple would be destroyed (Mark 13:1-2). On one of the days of purification before the Passover offering and the Passover meal, He performed His most dramatic symbolic act. He entered the part of the temple grounds where believers exchanged coins to pay the temple`s annual tax of two drachmas, or bought doves to sacrifice for accidental violations of the law and as cleansing sacrifices after birth. Jesus turned over some of the tables (Mark 11:15-17), prompting „the chief priests and scribes“ („and the captains of the people,“ Luke adds) to have Him executed (Mark 11:18; Luke 19:47; cf. Mark 14:1-2). So what is the difference between scribes and Pharisees? The Jewish people had no official ruling class when they returned from exile, so they turned to religion and turned its commandments into laws and regulations. This means that the work of the scribes also had legal value. According to Mark, Jesus` main opponents in Galilee were scribes, but according to Matthew, they were Pharisees. These seemingly contradictory views are easily reconciled: men familiar with Jewish law and tradition would have carefully examined Jesus, and it is likely that the scribes and Pharisees questioned his behavior and teaching, as shown in the Gospels (e.g., Mark 2:6, 16; 3:22; Matthew 9:11; 12:2). According to one passage, the Pharisees (along with the Herodians, Mark adds) had planned to destroy Jesus (Matthew 12:14; Mark 3:6). However, if the account of this conspiracy is correct, it seems that nothing came of it, since the Pharisees did not play a significant role in the events that led to Jesus` death. Mark and Luke do not assign them a role, while Matthew mentions them only once (Matthew 27:62).

So who were the scribes and Pharisees? Religious teachers of Jewish law at the time of Jesus. Threatened by Jesus` teachings and the possibility of losing their power, they planned to kill him. Most of them felt superior to others because they held high positions in society, but we know that social status means nothing to God and He loves when we are humble. They were the Jewish leaders in Jesus` day. They were religious and educated in the Holy Scriptures and also in the law, which was the list of special rules for Jews. The scribes were like the official scribes of the time, writing legal documents. If you have ever come across a Christian New Testament translation of the Bible, you have surely come across the terms scribes and Pharisees. These were groups of people with whom Jesus Christ and His Apostles came into conflict and accused them of misinterpreting God`s Word. But have you ever wondered what these scribes and Pharisees actually did? Let`s see what their role was in the old Palestinian society. In addition to being used in commercial areas, writers sometimes wrote stories and stories about people`s lives in general.

These documents became very useful to know the first periods and the lives of the people who existed at that time. The profession of scribe existed and even prevailed in almost all civilizations. This profession spread to the four corners of the ancient civilized world and is mentioned in the Old and New Testaments. Scribes were educated sages who mastered written texts and had the ability to write, read, and interpret them. Both groups are mentioned in the New Testament, where they are criticized by Christ and his apostles. Although they are mentioned together, only the Pharisees can be accused of misleading the people. The scribes had to quote each text when interpreting a situation, and they called Jesus Christ, who spoke without quoting any of the sacred texts and introduced new beliefs. This was not accepted by the scribes or Pharisees. According to the Bible, the function of scribes was clerical in nature.

All they had to do was rewrite and record royal orders and manuscripts. In the 1st century, scribes and Pharisees were two very different groups, although some scribes were probably Pharisees. The scribes knew the law and could draft legal documents (marriage contracts, divorces, loans, inheritances, mortgages, land sales, etc.). Each village had at least one scribe. The Pharisees were members of a party that believed in the resurrection and believed in the observance of legal traditions attributed not to the Bible but to the „traditions of the fathers.“ Like the scribes, they were well-known jurists, hence the partial overlap in the affiliation of the two groups. However, later rabbinic traditions indicate that most Pharisees were small landowners and traders, not professional scribes. Think, my friends, how terrible it will be to fall into the hands of the living God! and to be devoured in the burning Hand of his fiery jealousy! to whip your naked souls forever with the whip of his staged indignation! I wish God that this golden word of our Lord, that a corrupt tree cannot produce good fruit, has been better understood and more seriously considered by the teachers of our time. The scribes were drafters of the law, and the Pha∣ raised a strictly religious sect of the Jews, trusting that they were righteous and despised others, many of whom were public teachers of others.