Then Paul, knowing that some
of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin,
“My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial
because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” When he
said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the
assembly was divided. (The Sadducees say that there
is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the
Pharisees believe all these things.) Acts 23:6-8
This verse
answers that question. Pharisees
believed the law and all things supernatural and unseen. Sadducees believed the law but not in
resurrection, angels or spirits. We
presume they believed in God. These two
very divided factions did agree on one thing, that Jesus and Paul were dangerous
people that needed to be stopped.