INTRODUCTION
Even after Jesus has fed 4000 men, along with women and children ( 15:32 -39), the Pharisees and Sadducees aren’t satisfied. They want a “sign from heaven” (16:1). The disciples don’t understand either, and Jesus has to remind them of His power to give bread (16:8-11).

THE TEXT
“Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. He answered and said to them, ‘When it is evening you say, “It will be fair weather, for the sky is red”; and in the morning, “It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.” Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times . . . .’” (Matthew 16:1-12).

UNITED RIVALS
Pharisees and Sadducees were not natural allies. They were divided by a number of theological issues, but mainly on the question of resurrection. Pharisees believed in resurrection but Sadducees did not, and the tensions were strong enough that Paul was able to start a riot by siding with the Pharisees in his trial before the Sanhedrin (Acts 23:7-8). Pharisees and Sadducees also differed in their assessment of Rome : Pharisees thought the Roman occupation defiled the holy land, while Sadducees generally cooperated. They unite, however, in opposition to Jesus, “testing” Him as Satan tested Him in the wilderness (16:1; cf. 4:1). Jesus unites His people; He also unites His enemies.

SIGN FROM HEAVEN
The Pharisees and Sadducees demand a “sign from heaven” (v. 1). They are asking for a miraculous confirmation that Jesus is the “son of David” (cf. 15:22 ). Jesus rebukes them on two points. First, they are able to read the weather-signs in “heaven” (vv. 2-3; in Greek, the same word can be translated as “sky” or “heaven”), but are not able to see the obvious signs of the times. Second, he again calls them an “evil and adulterous generation” (cf. 12:54 ) whose search for a sign is actually a search for a new husband. He promises to give them the sign of Jonah (v. 4), and later predicts that the Jews will see the threatening “sign of the Son of Man in heaven” (24:30). He foreshadows the “sign of Jonah” but “leaving them and going away” (v. 4).

LEAVEN
Verses 5-12 are enclosed by references to the disciples. Initially they are worried about their lack of food (v. 5), but by the end they understand that Jesus is talking about the teaching of the Jewish leaders (v. 12). The center of the episode is Jesus’ warning about the Pharisees and Sadducees. Jesus is well aware of their differences, but those differences mean little in the light of their common hostility to Jesus. Teaching is like leaven because it infiltrates and permeates our lives. Because teaching is so powerful, we need to be careful about whom we listen to. The disciples are initially uncomprehending, thinking that Jesus is rebuking them for failing to make adequate preparations for meals. Jesus reminds them that He has provided abundantly, and can do so again. His questions remind the disciples not only of the miraculous meals, but also of the over-abundance of leftovers (vv. 9-10). Jesus not only provides, but provides lavishly. Jesus’ disciples thus should not worry about where their bread is coming from (cf. 6:25 -26).