the role of the lukan parables in terms of the purpose of luke's gospel

Josephus, the NT and rabbinic literature, 20 Pharisees believed “the influence of divine
activity on human life, the joint effect of human freedom and fate, and reward and
punishment in the afterlife” 21
on the grounds of eschatology, divine providence and human
responsibility, in which case their point of view was not only quite at odds with traditional
Jewish teachings and attitudes, but also quite different from it. They indeed showed a vastly
interest in tithing, ritual purity, and Sabbath observance, having less interest in civil laws and
ritual regulations for the Temple worship. Pharisees also had distinctive interpretations
concerning these matters and tried to facilitate their observance and substantiate its validity
against challenges by other institutions of society, and even sought to reform groups,
including the priests, Qumran community, and Jesus and his early followers.
At the very least it seems clear that Luke in particular holds a less hostile attitude toward
the Pharisees both in the gospel and in Acts than Mark and Matthew, although Luke’s
description of the Pharisees raises some suspicion that he overemphasizes a positive
22
relationship between the Pharisees and the early followers of Jesus as theological concerns.
20. For more detail, see J.A. Ziesler, “Luke and the Pharisees,” NTS 25 (1979), 146-57; Joseph B. Tyson, “The
Jewish Public in Luke-Acts,” NTS 30 (1984), 574-83; J.T. Sanders, “The Pharisees in Luke-Acts,” 141-88; R.L.
Brawley, Luke-Acts and the Jews: Conflict, Apology, and Conciliation (SBL MS, 33, Atlanta, Georgia: Scholars
Press, 1987), 84-106; John T. Carroll, “Luke’s Portrayal of the Pharisees,” CBQ 50 (1988), 604-21; Anthony J.
Saldarini, Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees in Palestinian Society (Wilmington, DE: Glazier, 1988); idem,
“Pharisees,” ABD, vol. 5, 289-303; E.P. Sanders, Jewish Law from Jesus to the Mishna (London: SCM Press,
1990), 97-254; idem, Judaism: Practice & Belief 63 BCE-66 CE (London: SCM Press, 1992), 380-451; Jacob
Neusner, The Rabbinic Traditions about the Pharisees before 70 (3 vols.; Leiden: Brill, 1971); idem, “The
Rabbinic Traditions about the Pharisees before A.D. 70: The Problem of Oral Transmission,” ed., Jacob Neusner,
in Origins of Judaism: The Pharisees and Other Sects (vol. 2.; New York & London: Garland Publishing, 1990),
155-72; idem, “Mr. Sanders’ Pharisees and Mine,” SJT 44 (1991), 73-95; idem, “The Mishna in Philosophical
Context and Out of Canonical Bounds,” JBL 112 (1993), 291-304; Mark Allan Powell, “The Religious Leaders
in Luke: A Literary-Critical Study,” JBL 109 (1990), 93-110; R.F. O’Toole, “Reflections on Luke’s Treatment of
Jews in Luke-Acts,” Bib 74 (1993), 529-55; Steve Mason, Flavius Josephus on the Pharisees (SPB 39; Leiden:
Brill, 1991); J.D. Kingsbury, “The Pharisees in Luke-Acts,” ed., F. Van Segbroeck, in The Four Gospels 1992:
Restschrift Frans Neirynck (vol. 2, Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1992), 1497-1512; Craig A. Evans,
“Mishna and Messiah ‘In Contest’: Some Comments on Jacob Neusner’s Proposals,” JBL 112 (1993), 267-89;
Robert C. Tannehill, “Should We Love Simon the Pharisee? Hermeneutical Reflections on the Pharisees in
Luke,” CurTM 21 (1994), 424-33; Günter Stemberger, Jewish Contemporaries of Jesus: Pharisees, Sadducees,
Essenes (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995); Joseph Sievers, “Who Were the Pharisees?” in ed., James H.
Charlesworth and Loren L. Johns, Hillel and Jesus (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1997), 137-55; John P. Meier, “The
Quest for the Historical Pharisee: A Review Essay on Roland Deines, Die Pharisäer,” CBQ 61 (1999),713-22;
John P. Meier, A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus; vol. 3, Companions and Competitors (ABRL;
New York: Doubleday, 2001), 289-388; J. Patrick Mullen, Dining with Pharisees (Minnesota: Liturgical Press,
2004), 39-77; Amy-Jill Levine, “Luke’s Pharisees,” in ed., Jacob Neusner and Bruce D. Chilton, In Quest of the
Historical Pharisees (Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press, 2007), 113-30.
21. Saldarini, “Pharisees,” 296.
22. Ziesler, “Luke and the Pharisees,” 146-57: J.T. Sanders, “The Pharisees in Luke-Acts,” 149-54; Saldarini,
“Pharisees,” 296-97; Meier, A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus; vol. 3, Companions and
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