Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Jesus, Pharisee?

Common Beliefs of Jesus and the Pharisees

Revised April 2000
This document can be found as a pdf here.

The following list consists of doctrinal convictions that characterize the Pharisees and Jesus. Of all the groups in Palestine during the Second Temple Period (e.g., Sadducees, Herodians, Zealots, Essenes/Qumranians), Jesus identified most closely with the Pharisees, and it is possible (even likely) that Jesus himself was a Pharisee.1 References in plain type are to pharisaic doctrine; boldface references are to Jesus' beliefs.

1. Bibliology

a. Relevance of Written Torah2

Mark 12:28 One of the teachers of the law [a Pharisee in Matt 22:35] came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" 29 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, 0 Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." 32 "Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."
Matt 5:19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

b. Validity of Oral Torah3

Ant 13.297 [T]he Pharisees have passed on to the people certain regulations handed down by former generations and not recorded in the Laws of Moses, for which reason they are rejected by the Sadducean group, who hold that only those regulations should be considered valid which were written down (in Scripture), and that those which had been handed down by former generations need not be observed.
Matt 15:2 Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!
Matt 23:2 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3a So you must obey them and do everything they tell you.

2. Theology

a. Foreknowledge of God

m Avot 3:15 All is foreseen [by God], yet freedom of choice is granted....
Matt 24:36 No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

b. Providence of God

Ant 13.172 ...the Pharisees ... say that certain events are the work of I providence l, but not all....
Ant 18.13 [Tlhey postulate that everything is brought about by [providence]....
War 2.162 . . .the Pharisees. . .attribute everything to [providence] and to God;
Matt 5:45b He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Matt 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

c. Miracles of God

Matt 12:38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you."
John 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."
John 9:16 Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided.
Matt 11:20 Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent.
John 10:24 The Jews gathered around him, saying, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." 25 Jesus answered, "I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me,

3. Christology 

  • Davidic line

Matt 22:41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" "The son of David," they replied.

4. Angelology

  • Existence of angels (good and evil)

Acts 23:8 The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.
Matt 12:23 All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?" 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."
Matt 13:41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.
Matt 24:3 1 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

5. Anthropology

a. Freewill of man

War 2.163 they hold that to act rightly or otherwise rests, indeed for the most part with men, but that in each action [providence] co-operates.
Ant 13.172 as to other events, it depends upon ourselves whether they shall take place or not.
Ant 18.13 ...still they do not deprive the human will of the pursuit of what is in man's power, since it was God's good pleasure that there should be a fusion and that the will of man with his virture and vice should be admitted to the council-chamber of [providence].
m Avot 2:16 [R Tarfon] used to say, It is not your obligation to complete the task, nevertheless you are not at liberty to desist therefrom....
Matt 18:3 And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

b. Immortality of the soul

Ant 18.14 They believe that souls have power to survive death....
War 2.163 Every soul, they maintain, is imperishable, but the soul of the good alone passes into another body, while the souls of the wicked suffer eternal punishment.
Matt 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

6. Soteriology (including sanctification)

a. Simple lifestyle

Ant 18.13 The Pharisees simplify their standard of living, making no concession to luxury.
Matt 6:19 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.... 25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about Your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?

b. Fasting

Matt 6:16 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites [= Pharisees] do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full."
Matt 9:14 Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"
Luke 18:11 The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men - robbers, evildoers, adulterers - or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'
Matt 4:2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
Matt 6:17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,
Matt 9:15 Jesus answered, "How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

c. Tithing

Matt 23:23 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, Without neglecting the former.

d. Evangelism

Malt 23:15 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
Matt 28:19a Therefore go and make disciples of all nations....

7. Ecclesiology

a. Peace with secular government

Avot 3:2 R Chanina, the chief of the priests, said, Pray for the welfare of the ruling power, since but for the fear thereof men would engulf one another alive.
Matt 22:21b Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's."
1 Tim 2:1 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

b. Fellowship (separation from unrepentant brothers)4

Matt 9:11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
Matt 18:17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
1 Cor 5:11 . . . you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.

8. Eschatology (also see Christology)

a. Resurrection of the dead

War 2.163 Every soul, they maintain, is imperishable, but the soul of the good alone passes into another body, while the souls of the wicked suffer eternal punishment.
Acts 23:8 The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.
Matt 22:31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not the God of the dead but of the living."

b. Messianic Age

Matt 5:20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matt 23:13 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
Luke 17:20a Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come,
Matt 6:9 "This, then, is how you should pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10a your kingdom come....
Luke 19:11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 12 He said: "A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return."
Mark 14:25 "I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God."

c. Reward and retribution in the afterlife

War 2.163 Every soul, they maintain, is imperishable, but the soul of the good alone passes into another body, while the souls of the wicked suffer eternal punishment.
Ant 18.14 They believe ... that there are rewards and punishments under the earth for those who have led lives of virtue or vice: eternal imprisonment is the lot of evil souls, while the good souls receive an easy passage to a new life.
Matt 13:41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
Matt 25:46 Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.
In addition to having more in common with the Pharisees than with any other group in Second Temple Judaism, Jesus has more contact with them than with any other group.5 The disagreements that arose between Jesus and Pharisees were largely over how people should observe certain laws (e.g., purity, fasting, Sabbath, divorce),6 not if they should observe them.7 The debate was an in-house argument, reflecting a (self-)critical appraisal of the opposition similar to that in other Jewish sources (see n. 7). Moreover, despite the antagonism that appears in the gospels, several in the Pharisaic community were sympathetic to him and supported him.8

Often, Pharisees come to him wanting to know where he stands on a current debate, especially when the great schools of Hillel and Shammai differ. Although there is some speculation that Jesus was a student of Hillel (e.g., Falk 1985:115), he takes an independent position.9 On some matters, he sides with Hillel (e.g., dedicated gifts, Sabbath), but on other matters he sides with Shammai (e.g., vows, divorce; see n. 6).

Bibliography

  • Falk, Harvey, 1985, Jesus the Pharisee: A New Look at the Jewishness of Jesus. New York: Paulist Press.
  • Varner, William,, 1996, "Jesus and the Pharisees: A Jewish Perspective." Personal Freedom Outreach: (July/September).

Endnotes

 (1) Perhaps more telling than common beliefs is the fact that Pharisees, who avoided the potential defilement of contact with those less observant, especially at meals, invited Jesus to eat with them.
Luke 7:36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.
Luke 11:37 When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him: so he went in and reclined at the table.
Luke 14:1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched.
They are then shocked that Jesus would not exercise the same care.
Matt 9:11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
Luke 7:39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner."
Luke 15:2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."
They express a similar consternation at other perceived transgressions of Pharisaic halakah.
  • Plucking grain on the Sabbath
Matt 12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
  • Washing hands before a meal
Matt 15:1 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" ... 11 What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean." 12 Then the disciples came to him and asked, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?"
Luke 11:38 But the Pharisee, noticing that Jesus did not first wash before the meal, was surprised.
Moreover, were Jesus not a Pharisee, they would not have asked his opinion on a debate between the two great Pharisaic schools.
Matt 19:3 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"
They also would probably not have cared to warn him of potential danger (although it might have been a ruse to make him leave the area).
Luke 13:31 At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, "Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you."
(2) Related passages include:
Phil 3:5b in regard to the law, a Pharisee;
(3) Despite a general agreement with oral tradition, Jesus warned against elevating the oral over the written, and his position may have been at odds with a popular assumption about oral torah.
Matt 15:1 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" 3 Jesus replied, "And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
m Sanh 11:3 Disregard of the enactments of the Scribes is more severely dealt with than disregard of the injunctions of the Law. 
(4) This applies to unbelievers and self-professed believers.
Rom 16:17 I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.
2 Cor 6:14a Do not be yoked together with unbelievers.... 15b What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? ... 17a "Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord."
2 Thess 3:6 In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.... 14 If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. 15 Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
Titus 3:10 Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him.
2 John 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take him into your house or welcome him.
(5) In Matthew's gospel, the Pharisees appear alone or with other factions more than any other group.

(6) Falk traces several disputes to the ongoing debate between the schools of Hillel and Shammai (1985:149-154).
  • Purity of hands
Matt 9:11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
Matt 15:1 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" ... 10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen and understand. 11 What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean."
m Ber 8:2 The School of Shammai say, They (first) wash the hands and after that fill the [Kiddush] cup. But the School of Hillel say, They (first) fill the [Kiddushl cup and then wash the hands.
  • Purity of vessel (NB: Jesus sides with Hillel [see Matt 23.1-39 Serm, n. 31]. (I could not confirm that m Kel 2/25 is Hilel's position.)
Matt 23:25 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
m Kel 2:1 Earthenware utensils.., acquire uncleanness.., through [their interior] air space... but they do not contract uncleanness [from anything unclean that touches] their outer sides....
m Kel 25:7 All utensils have a [distinguishing] outer part and inner part [with regard to uncleanness]....
  • Fasting 
Matt 9:14 Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?" 15 Jesus answered, "How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
  • Sabbath
Matt 12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath."
Matt 12: 1 O Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
Tos Shab 17:14 A gentile who brought wailing pipes on the Sabbath for a particular Israelite—one should not make lament with them for that particular Israelite, but it is permitted to do do for some other Israelite.
b Shab 12a . . . mourners [may not] be comforted, nor may the sick be visited on the Sabbath. That is the ruling of Beth Shammai, but Beth Hillel permits it.
  • Dedicated Gifts
Matt 15:3 Jesus replied, 'And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, 'Honor your father and mother' and 'Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.' 5 But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, 'Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is a gift devoted to God,' 6 he is not to 'honor his father' with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
b Shab 127b Beth Shammai maintain: The poor may not be given dem'ai as food... .but Beth Hillel rule: The poor may be given dem 'ai as food.... b Nazir 9a Beth Shammai [say] that there can be no release from [vows made fort sacred purposes.... Beth Hillel.. .declared him free [of obligation, if] his offering was not undertaken in the customary manner.
  •  Divorce (NB: Jesus sides with Shammai.)
Matt 19:3 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?" ...9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."
m Git 9:10 The School of Shammai say: A man may not divorce his wife unless he has found in her someting improper, as it is said, "because he has found some unseemly thing in her." But the School of Hillel says: Even if she spoiled a dish for him, as it is said, "because he has found some unseemly thing in her."
  • Tithing
Matt 23:23 Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
m Ma'as 4:5 R Eliezer says, In the case of dill seed, plant and pods must be tithed; but the Sages say, Both seed and pod are tithed only in the case of dittander and brassica.
b Shabb 130b R Eliezer was [a follower] of Beth Shammai.
b Nid 7b R Eliezer was a disciple of Shammai....
  • Vows (NB: Jesus sides with Shammai.)
Matt 23:16b You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.' ... 18 You also say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.' ...20 Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22 And he who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.
b Ned lOb Beth Shammai maintain: Substitutes of substitutes are binding; while Beth Hillel say: They are permitted [i.e., not binding].
Initially, Beth Shammai may have enjoyed greater authority, which may account for the frequency of conflict with Jesus.
m Para 12:4 [People] used to slip before [such] a window in a public place [by reason of the quantity of water sprinkled there], and trod [in the water], but did not refrain [from entering the Temple], for [the School of Shammai] maintained, The [red heifer] sin-offering water which has fulfilled its purpose does not communicate uncleanness.
m Sukk 3:9 R Akiba said, I was observing R Gamaliel and R Joshua, and all the people were waving their lulavin [as Beth Shammai directed] but they themselves did not wave them except [as Beth Hillel directed].
Eventually, though, the opinion of Beth Hillel prevailed.
b 'Erub 13b For three years thee was a dispute between Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel.... Then a bath kol issued announcing, '[The utterances of I both are the words of the living God, but the halakah is in agreement with the rulings of Beth Hillel.' h Ber 36b . . .the opinion of Beth Shammai when it conflicts with that of Beth Hillel is no Mishnah.
(7) That such disputes were common in-house is evident from other discussions and from unfavorable characterizations of Pharisees elsewhere in rabbinic literature.
m Hag 2:7 The clothes of an unreliable person are deemed as imbued with treading-contact-uncleanness for Pharisees.
m Tohar 4:12 [The Sages have declared the matter clean if there is] a doubt about [contaminating] non-holy [i.e., undedicatedj food. This [issue refers to the] cleanness [observed by the] Pharisees.
m Sotah 3:4 . . .the self-inflicted wounds of the Pharisees—these ruin the world.
b Sota 22b There are seven types of Pharisees: the shikmi Pharisee, the nikpi Pharisee, the kizai Pharisee, the 'pestle' Pharisee, the Pharisee [who constantly exclaims] 'What is my duty that I may perform it?', the Pharisee from love [of God] and the Pharisee from fear. The shikmi Pharisee—he is one who performs the action of Shechem [i.e., who displays his piety publicly (lit, on his shoulder)].
Matt 6:1a Be careful not to doyour 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them.
Matt 23:5 Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long;
The nikpi Pharisee—he is one who knocks his feet together [i.e., walks with exaggerated humility].
Matt 6:16 When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting.
The kizai Pharisee—...he is one who makes his blood flow against walls [i.e., scraping his face to avoid looking at a woman].
Matt 5:28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
The 'pestle' Pharisee—... he is the one whose head] is bowed like [a pestle in] a morter.
Luke 18:13 But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'
The Pharisee [who constantly exclaims] 'What is my duty that I may perform it?' — .. . what he says is, 'What further duty is for me that I may perform it [i.e., as though he had fulfilled every obligation].
Matt 19:20 "All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?"
The Pharisee from love and the Pharisee from fear.... A man should always engage himself in.. .the commandments even though it be not for their own sake [i.e., from pure and disinterested motives], because from [engaging in them] not for their own sake, he will come [to engage in them] for their own sake.
William Varner suggests the "hyperstrict Pharisaic scruples that received the strongest condemnation from Jesus might be those most often espoused by the Shammai school." This may account for the absence of any reference to NT issues (e.g., parental neglect through korban) in later rabbinic literature, which primarily represents the legacy of Hillel.
(8) Relevant examples include (see also n. 1):
  • They invited him to dinner
Luke 7:36 Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.
Luke 11:37 When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table.
Luke 14:1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched.
  • They warned him of danger
Luke 13:31 At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, "Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you."
  • They agreed with his teaching.
Mark 12:28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" ...3a "Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right.... 34a When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."
  • They recognized his divine commission.
John 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."
  • They interceded on his behalf.
John 7:50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 "Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?"
  • They became his disciples (and performed the funerary duly of disciples).
Luke 23:50 Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God.
John 19:38b Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews.... 39a He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night.
Acts 15:5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees....
Acts 23:6 Then Paul.. .called out in the Sanhedrin, "My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee...."
Phil 3:5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 
(9) Jesus' independence is one feature that distinguishes his teaching.
Matt 7:28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.
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