Mark 12:13–34

God and Caesar

¹³Then ^bthey sent some of the Pharisees ^cand the Herodians ^dto Him to trap Him by what He said. ^ef14When they came, they said to Him, “Teacher, we know You are truthful and defer to no one, for You don’t show partiality ^ghbut teach truthfully the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes ⁱto Caesar or not? ¹⁵Should we pay, or should we not pay?”

But knowing their hypocrisy, ^jHe said to them, “Why are you testing ^kMe? Bring Me a ^•denarius ^lto look at.” ¹⁶So they brought one. “Whose image ^mand inscription ⁿis this?” He asked them.

“Caesar’s,” they said.

¹⁷Then Jesus told them, “Give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ^oAnd they were amazed ^pat Him.

The Sadducees and the Resurrection

¹⁸Some ^qSadducees, ^rwho say there is no resurrection, ^scame to Him and questioned Him: ¹⁹“Teacher, ^tMoses ^uwrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaves his wife behind, and leaves no child, ^vhis brother should take the wife ^wand produce offspring for his brother. ^xy20There were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and dying, left no offspring. ²¹The second also took her, and he died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. ²²So the seven ^zleft no offspring. Last of all, the woman died too. ²³In the resurrection, when they rise, ^awhose wife will she be, since the seven had married her?” ^b

²⁴Jesus told them, “Are you not deceived because you don’t know the Scriptures ^cor the power ^dof God? ^e25For when they rise ^ffrom the dead, ^gthey neither marry nor are given in marriage ^hbut are like angels ⁱin heaven. ²⁶Now concerning the dead being raised—haven’t you read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him: I ^jam the God of Abraham ^kand the God of Isaac ^land the God of Jacob? ^mn27He is not God of the dead but of the living. You are badly deceived.”

The Primary Commands

²⁸One ^oof the scribes ^papproached. When he heard them debating and saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked Him, “Which command is the most important of all?” ^q

²⁹“This is the most important,” ^rJesus answered:

Listen, Israel! The Lord ^sour God, the Lord ^tis One. ^u30Love ^vthe Lord your God ^wwith all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, ^xand with all your strength. ^yza

³¹“The second is: Love your neighbor ^bas yourself. ^cdThere is no other command ^egreater than these.”

³²Then the scribe said to Him, “You are right, Teacher! You have correctly said that He is One, and there is no one ^felse except Him. ^g33And to love ^hHim with all your heart, with all your understanding, ⁱand with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is far more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” ^j

³⁴When Jesus saw that he answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” ^kAnd no one dared ^lto question Him any longer.