Biblical Analogy of Political Parties

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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)

32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

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)


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)



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?

Luke 7:29 And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.

Jesus even further compared them in Luke 18:


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.