Jesus the dinner guest offers two pieces of advice that strike modern readers as countercultural. But does Jesus teach deep theological values, or is he selling social wisdom? I suggest that we approach this passage from Luke with deep humility, not as a confirmation of our supposedly progressive priors but as a call to levels of discipleship we have not yet taken seriously. We should allow Jesus’ words to challenge us in uncomfortable ways.
According to Jesus’ first teaching, dinner guests should seek out the least prominent seats. That way, they can avoid the disgrace that would accompany a seating demotion, while enhancing their prospects of honor should their hosts elevate them. Far better to move up than be sent down. Second, hosts should invite not their close friends and desired social peers but people who cannot return the favor: “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.” The first piece of advice applies to potential social benefits in this world, but the second looks toward the world to come. Those at the bottom of our social hierarchies have nothing tangible to give, but God will reward the radical host “at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Luke sets the scene: Jesus is guest to a prominent Pharisee, and the meal occurs on the sabbath. The gospels treat the Pharisees as stock characters, people interested in their own status rather than faithful Jews dedicated to lives of integrity. It’s similar to the ways contemporary politicians describe their opponents: cue the menacing music and shadowy settings. We should bear in mind that we know little about actual Pharisees in Jesus’ time. Luke does offer a more nuanced portrait of the Pharisees than do the other gospels. But even Luke can’t resist painting the Pharisees as “lovers of money” (16:14). Christian readers must be ever mindful of our own tendencies to use the Pharisees as examples of Judaism’s supposed deficits—and of the deep harm this has caused.
