Pharisees vs. Sadducees — What's the Difference?

The Pharisees (; Hebrew: פְּרוּשִׁים‎ Pərūšīm) were a social movement and a school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, Pharisaic beliefs became the foundational, liturgical, and ritualistic basis for Rabbinic Judaism.

The Sadducees (; Hebrew: צְדוּקִים‎ Ṣĕdûqîm) were a sect or group of Jews who were active in Judea during the Second Temple period, starting from the second century BCE through the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. The Sadducees are often compared to other contemporaneous sects, including the Pharisees and the Essenes. Josephus associates the sect with the upper social and economic echelon of Judean society.

Pharisee A member of an ancient Jewish sect that emphasized strict interpretation and observance of the Mosaic law in both its oral and written form.

A member of a priestly, aristocratic Jewish sect founded in the second century BC that accepted only the written Mosaic law and that ceased to exist after the destruction of the Temple in AD 70.

A hypocritically self-righteous person.