Luke 18:9-14; The Pharisee Next Door

"9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

I. Introduction--vv. 9-10

Two things seem to be true about this passage and the way people read it. First, it is probably the clearest, most unambiguous passage in Luke's Gospel affirming the theme of reversal of fortunes or the blessedness of the outsiders and the rejection of the insiders. And second, I have never met anyone who identifies him/herself with the Pharisee in this pasage. The longer I thought about these two observations, however, the more dissatisfied I became. The statements seemed almost contradictory to me. After all, if everyone is rooting for a 'reversal of fortunes,' who really is the one that is going to get 'thrown down from the throne'? We all cheer on the 'little guy' in Luke's Gospel, but no one admits to being the 'big guy' that will be judged.

So, who are these 'big guys,' i.e., the ones who will be brought low, who are sent back to their homes in an unjustified state? They seem only to be characters of caricature and not be real live human beings. Or they seem to be distant "oppressors" whom we really can't name. But because America goes ga-ga over rich people, we wonder if there really are any people who we could imagine having their fortunes reversed. It may very well be that the contrast between Pharisee and Publican in this story serves a useful pedagogical purpose--to inculcate virtues of humility and humble-mindedness--but I just wish I knew who these Pharisees were--today. The purpose of these two essays of exposition is to say that the Pharisees are, to use words of Paul, "near you, in your mouth, and in your heart" (cf. Rom. 10:8).

These expositions will be verse-by-verse descriptions of each of the two major players in the parable. My goal is to try to bring them alive for us. I am afraid, however, that when I do so, we might find that the Pharisee sound frightfully like most of the people we know, and even ourselves. Proceed, if you dare.

II. The Pharisee--vv. 11-12

Luke has already provided us the interpretive frame in which he wants us to understand the story. He wants us to be unsympathetic to the Pharisee, to see him as a person absorbed in his own righteousness, a person despising "the rest" of the people (i.e., everyone not in his tight circle). But let's leave Luke's interpretation aside for a minute and look directly at the people before us. We don't have much to go on, but it is enough to tell us something.

The first thing that strikes me about the description of the Pharisee are the numerous references to "I" or "self" in two verses. He stands off by himself; he thanks God that he isn't like others; he details his religious obligations. Is this bad? Listen to the way people talk; the "I's" often have it. He also makes sure to emphasize distinctions between himself and others. Ritual was very important to ancient Judaism, and ritual implies a world of purity (which you embrace) and impurity (which you avoid). Thus, I think the distinction between "me and others," which is at the heart of v. 11, is not only a natural human tendency but is one that we encourage our young people to make and is close to the essence of many religions.

I recall saying to my own children years ago that we go to Church on Sunday morning, even though many other people do not. Distinctions are at the heart of human living. Finally, he tells us about his commitments. He fasts twice a week and tithes everything. He is a "super" Pharisee, because the basic religious tenets were to fast once a week and to give 10% of what you grew. The Bible doesn't provide for the case of whether you have to tithe (i.e., give to the priest) 10% of the produce you buy, but the super-literate religious scholars decided that you ultimately didn't have to do so. But our Pharisee here tithes those other purchases, too. He tithes whatever he obtains.

And he is proud of all these things. He is proud of his separation from others and proud of his extreme dedication to his craft (in this case, religion). But, the only thing that seems to be amiss is that along with the pride comes a species of judgmentalism and smug self-satisfaction that is kind of hard to bear. He doesn't just say that he avoids murder, adultery and unrighteous people (most of us would probably want to avoid these, too), but he has to put in a dig against the nearby tax collector--"and also this here tax collector" (my colloquial translation of the last words of v. 11).

The next essay talks about how I see "us" in the Pharisee.

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