Who Are the Pharisees? - Bible Study

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Who Are the Pharisees?

THE Pharisees are part of a Jewish renewal movement that appears frequently in the NT. In almost every instance, they stand beneath dark clouds of suspicion and controversy. The Gospels depict them as the critical opponents of Jesus, his teaching, and his mission. The Pharisees seem to lurk behind every corner, waiting to trap Jesus and discredit him before the crowds. What is the source of this conflict? Why were the Pharisees so threatened by Jesus and his proclamation of God's kingdom?

From biblical and extrabiblical information it is evident that the Pharisees advocated a religious program quite at odds with the gospel of the New Covenant. Although not Israel's official teachers or leaders, the Pharisees were popular and held great sway with the masses. They were deeply concerned with the cultural and religious crisis of the day: How does one live as a faithful Jew in a land that is ruled and occupied by pagans (Romans)? The Pharisees' answer: Israel must separate itself from all Gentile impurity and defilement, since only in this way will God rescue his people from the clutches of Rome. Even their name— which means the "separated ones" (Heb. perushim)—underscores this national agenda.

At a practical level, the Pharisees' quest for holiness and separation was expressed in a number of ways.

(1) The Pharisees gave considerable attention to ritual purity.

They looked to the Temple and priests of Jerusalem, considering the elaborate purity requirements for priests (Lev 21-22) a fitting model for Jewish purity in the homes of laypeople. All Israelites, the Pharisees reasoned, should maintain this high level of priestlike holiness in their personal lives. Related to this:

(2) The Pharisees tightened their grip on Israel's national symbols.

Circumcision (Lev 12:3), the Sabbath day (Ex 20:8-11), food laws (Lev 11), and tithing (Deut 14:22-29) were all expressions of Israel's unique covenant with God upon which the Pharisees laid great stress. Scrupulous observance of these laws meant that the Pharisees could proudly assert their identity in the midst of their Gentile neighbors. In addition to God's written law (Gen-Deut):

(3) The Pharisees developed an entire body of personal rituals and traditions to stand alongside the books of Moses.

These embodied Pharisaic interpretations of the Law and functioned as supplements to the Law. They included practices like cleansing hands and utensils before preparing or eating food (Mk 7:3-4).

This background sets the clashes between Jesus and the Pharisees in a whole new light. The Pharisees attached themselves to the destiny of Old Covenant Israel, while Jesus was inaugurating the international New Covenant in the Church. The Pharisees tried to insulate Israel from the Gentiles, while Jesus was reaching out to embrace the nations with God's mercy. The Pharisees were religious separatists, while Jesus' proclamation of God's kingdom was open and inclusive.

For these reasons, Jesus offers a harsh critique of the Pharisees (Mt 23). Their tenacious concern for ritual exactness and outward observances distracted them from the most important matters of God's Law: "justice and mercy and faith" (Mt 23:23). The Pharisees' inordinate concern with Jewish nationalism became the idol that blocked their way into the kingdom.

In the Gospels, this smoldering tension ignited as Jesus challenged their views on the Sabbath (Mt 12:114), ritual purity (Mk 7:1-23), table-fellowship (Mt 9:10-13), tithing (Mt 23:23), and divorce (Mt 19:1-9). He charged many of them with hypocrisy (Lk 12:1) and a misplaced confidence in Pharisaic piety (Lk 18:914).

In the end, Jesus' conflicts with the Pharisees had little to do with isolated disagreements over the Torah and everything to do with God's saving plan for Israel and the world.

The arrival of Christ's New Covenant signaled the end of Israel's separation from Gentiles and the beginning of a worldwide family of God. «Back to Mark 2:1.

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