Matthew 22:23 — ExegesisTAB

The verse opens with the temporal prepositional phrase en ekeinē tē hēmera {Ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ | En ekeínē tê hēméra}, which sets the scene by anchoring this episode to a specific day within the larger sequence of confrontations. The aorist verb prosēlthon {προσῆλθον | prosêlthon} functions as the main finite verb, with the subject Saddoukaioi {Σαδδουκαῖοι | Saddoukaîoi} placed after the indirect object autō {αὐτῷ | autô}, creating a mild focus on the one to whom they come (Jesus) before identifying the group. The participle legontes {λέγοντες | légontes} is a present active participle in the nominative masculine plural, syntactically adverbial, explaining the manner or accompanying action of their approach: they come while asserting their doctrinal stance. That stance is expressed in the infinitival clause mē einai anastasin {μὴ εἶναι ἀνάστασιν | mē eînai anástasin}, where the negative particle mē with the infinitive einai creates an object clause, “that there is no resurrection,” summarizing their belief. The coordinating conjunction kai {καὶ | kaí} links this with a second aorist verb epērōtēsan {ἐπηρώτησαν | epērṓtēsan}, so the sequence is: they came, they were saying, and they questioned, moving from arrival to theological challenge. The repeated reference to Jesus with autō and auton {αὐτῷ / αὐτὸν | autô / autón} ties both actions (coming near and questioning) directly to Him, highlighting the personal nature of the opposition. In translation, the participle legontes is rendered as a finite clause (“saying that there is no resurrection” / “who say there is no resurrection”) to make the doctrinal content explicit, and the second aorist verb epērōtēsan is expressed as “they questioned” or “they began to question,” capturing the interrogative confrontation conveyed by the Greek.