The Pharisees seeking a sign from heaven

Jesus returned to the Jewish region (Dalmanutha is the region in northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee). There, He once again found Himself in a debate with the Pharisees. (1) According to parallel passage in Matthew, the Pharisees teamed up with the Sadducees to challenge Jesus. The Pharisees adhered strictly to the Law and were politically anti-Roman, while the Sadducees were aristocratic Jews who were politically pro-Roman. Despite their differences, they united to make Jesus their common foe. (2) They demanded a sign from heaven with the intend to test Jesus. While Jesus had performed numerous signs (miracles) to reveal His Messiahship, these skeptics deemed them as “signs from hell (Satan),” rather than “signs from heaven.” We, too, cannot understand the meaning of the Bible, no matter how much we read, unless our hearts are opened by faith. Let’s pray for our hearts to be opened.

Jesus’ response

Jesus is deeply saddened. The details of Jesus’ response are written in Matthew’s parallel passage (ref. Matt. 12:39, 15:39-16:4). (1) Jesus had already performed signs to prove that He was the Messiah. (2) However, since the Jews rejected Jesus’ Messiahship, signs were no longer given to them thereafter. (3) The only exception is the “sign of Jonah.” This is the sign of “resurrection” and there are three of them: the resurrection of Lazarus after being dead for four days, Jesus’ own resurrection on the third day after His death, and the resurrection of the two witnesses mentioned in Revelation 11 (these two witnesses will be used as witnesses for the Jewish people during the Great Tribulation). Even after the Jews rejected His Messiahship, Jesus continued to perform numerous miracles, but they were intended to train His twelve disciples. Even now, those who have faith will begin to see God’s hands at work.