Sadoc the Scribe
Pharisee scribe, nicknamed the "scribe of gold". He is a friend of Judas.[1] He is part of the delegation that, with Samuel the scribe, comes to admonish Jesus at Clear Water because of the presence of Aglae[2] and drives away the apostolic group by assaulting Judas.[3]
A troublesome man, he is involved in affairs that sometimes end tragically. Thus, he becomes an accomplice in the adultery of Samuel of Jericho which he disguises as an accusation of leprosy against Anastasica.
This scribe also acts as a matchmaker in a marriage of convenience between a rich heiress and Anna son of Nahum. Ruined and driven away, the woman will die.[4]
His aggression towards Jesus is relentless: at Giscala, an important rabbinic center, he wounds Jesus with a stone,[5] already inscribing the sign of Jonah.
Leading a delegation of pilgrims, he meets Jesus at the foot of Mount Nebo where a public altercation takes place.[6] Then some time later, he becomes involved in the affair of Sabea the prophetess.[7]
He is thus one of enemies relentlessly opposed to Jesus.[8] He goes so far as to sadistically suggest to Judas to identify the Christ at his arrest by a kiss.[9] It is therefore not surprising that he is at the foot of the cross, rejoicing at the crucifixion.[10]
Character and appearance
An old thin man, with a wart under the eye and a large nose. Nasal and dragging voice. A cunning, robust, and ferocious jackal.[11]
Apostolic journey
A relentless enemy of Jesus. His condemnation is foretold with this sign of Jonah, like that of Simon the Pharisee, Uriel, Caiphas and Anna:
"Do you see this sign? You did it. You have pointed out a further sign. And when you see it incised in the flesh of the Lamb, you will rejoice. Look at it! Can you see it? You will also see it in Heaven, when you appear to give an account of your way of living. Because I will be your Judge, and I will be there with My glorified Body, with the signs of My ministry and of yours, of My love and of your hatred. And you will see it, too, Uzziel, and you, Simon, and Caiaphas and Annas will see it, and many more, on that Last Day, the day of wrath, the dreadful day, and you will then prefer to be in the abyss, because the sign on My injured hand will torture you more than the fire of Hell."[12]
His name
Sadoq (Sedech) means "just". Historical reference: Melchizedek ("king of justice") but especially Sadoq, the priest of David founder of the priestly house of Sadducees (Sadduceans), the only legitimate one from the reign of Solomon.
Where is he mentioned in the work?
GRM 123 GRM 137
GRM 201 GRM 206 GRM 225 GRM 264
GRM 309 GRM 340 GRM 342 GRM 365 GRM 368 GRM 373
GRM 501 GRM 525 GRM 529 GRM 535 GRM 542 GRM 546 GRM 548 GRM 549 GRM 581 GRM 584 GRM 588 GRM 595 GRM 598
GRM 604 GRM 609
Learn more about this character
Works of the Lemann brothers
Msgr. Augustin Lemann, 1836-1909 and Msgr. Joseph Lemann, 1836-1915, converted Jews, in "Value of the assembly that pronounced the death penalty against Jesus-Christ" (1877), mention a certain "Rabbi Zadok": He was about forty years old at the Trial of Jesus, and he died after the Temple fire, in his seventies. The Talmud reports that, forty years before that fire, he never stopped fasting to obtain from God that the Temple would not be delivered to flames. The Talmud then wonders how this rabbi could have known the great misfortune threatening the Temple. And the Talmud is at a loss to answer. In our opinion, Rabbi Zadok could only have known in advance of this formidable event by one of these two voices: either by the prophetic voice of Daniel, who had announced, more than four hundred years ago, that the abomination of desolation would weigh on the Temple of Jerusalem when the Messiah would have been put to death; or by the nearer voice of Jesus Christ himself, who said, forty years before the destruction of the Temple:
"Do you see all these great buildings? Truly, I tell you, there will come days when not one stone here will be left on another that will not be destroyed."