Biblical Analogy of Political Parties

I'll probably annoy people on both sides a little with this analogy but it seems accurate.

Democrats strike me quite a bit as similar to the Pharisees who helped run the Israelite government, hypocrites who use tons of regulation to burden the people and were condemned for their hypocrisy non-stop by Jesus (e.g. Matthew 23). The Sadducees were similar. Both were groups of government officials including lawyers (Luke 7:30) with the major distinction that the Pharisees were more religious believing in a resurrection, and the Sadducees were more atheistic, denying the supernatural. (Acts 23:8)

Matthew 23:1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat: 3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. 8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. 9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. 10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. 11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. 13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. 16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. 23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? 34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

Republicans on the other hand do have a decidedly business bent and strike me as more similar to the Publicans or tax collectors of Jesus' day, who also did not escape criticism. (Matthew 5:46-47)

Matthew 5:46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? 47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Publican http://www.bible-history.com/sketches/ancient/tax-collector.html

Were there good people on both sides? Yes, Paul for example was an ex-Pharisee while Matthew and Zacchaeus were tax collectors. But the Pharisees were the most evidently evil and received Jesus' non-stop condemnation, whereas the Publicans were typically portrayed as repenting. Jesus even compared the two groups, telling the Pharisees that the publicly despised Publicans and harlots would go into heaven before the Pharisees did. This enraged the Pharisees so much that they wanted to kill Jesus for it but could not because of the Jewish people. (Matthew 21:31-46)

Matthew 21:31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

45 And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. 46 But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet.

The Pharisees mocked Jesus for being a friend of Publicans (Luke 7:34) because Jesus would sit down to eat with them. (Matthew 9:10-11, Mark 2:15-16) The Publicans came to John's baptism with good hearts (Luke 3:12), were baptized (Luke 7:29) and similarly followed after Jesus (Luke 15:1).

Luke 3:12 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do? 13 And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you.

Luke 7:29 And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.

Jesus even further compared them in Luke 18:

Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

So in conclusion, am I actually trying to give Republicans a pass here? No, I actually acknowledge they have faults. In fact I even worry that I'm at risk of disliking Democrats so much I will make the mistake of Matthew 5:46-47. I have faults, you have faults, every human being that has ever lived has had faults with the exception of Jesus. We all need to repent, myself included.

But to use a Biblical analogy, I do think Republicans are more sincere and seek to do the right thing whereas there is no hope for the Democratic Party. Whereas many of the Publicans sought God the Pharisees were the primary persecutors of Christianity and righteousness. My goal is to highlight the dishonest hypocrisy of Democrats just as Jesus did of the Pharisees, and point out which side is better just as Jesus pointed out Publicans were better than Pharisees. One thing you learn from history, the more things change the more they stay the same.