Chapter 4: The Tale of Two Men

Jesus tells a parable about two men: a Pharisee and a tax collector. The parable would have been a familiar one to the Jewish audience; however, the story ends with a striking twist: the tax collector goes home with God’s favour, not the Pharisee. The problem of the Pharisee is not his prayer or his gratitude, but the posture of both these things. His prayer isn’t necessarily directed to God as much as it's directed in comparison to others. Jesus tells this parable to those who are confident in their own righteousness, and the parable invites us to consider - to whom/to what do we trust?