But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.
After the Sadducees’ defeat, the Pharisees—the other opponents of Jesus—hearing that He silenced them with wordless truth, gather again to consult on how to test Him. This verse shows the hardness of their heart: instead of humbling themselves before the truth, they prepare a new plot. The Pharisees and the Sadducees were different and often opposing groups, yet here they unite with a common aim: to catch Jesus in a contradiction. This testifies that when a person closes himself to the truth, even forces opposed to one another unite against God’s will; in other words, hatred against the truth unites opposing forces. This episode also highlights the invincibility of Jesus’ word: His answer not only exposed the Sadducees, but also stirred up the Pharisees, who feared losing their influence.