Context: Jesus, baptized by John and tempted in the wilderness, begins His ministry in the countryside around the Sea of Galilee. One sabbath, as Jesus and His disciples pass through a field, the disciples pluck some grain to eat. The Pharisees ask Jesus why His disciples break the Jewish law by working on the sabbath. Jesus reminds them that David, being hungry, took bread from the altar for himself and his companions (1 Samuel 21:16); this act also was a transgression of the Jewish law. Christ then corrects the Pharisees' understanding of the purpose of the sabbath: