There is a very intriguing analysis of Luke 7:36-50 in Kenneth Bailey’s Through Peasant Eyes . He points out that Simon the Pharisee must have invited Jesus to his house with the deliberate intent of insulting him, testing him. Simon left out all the basic rites of hospitality, which he could not have done without deliberate malicious intent. He was treating Jesus not as an honored guest but as a much inferior person, and the woman makes up for his failures of hospitality with her actions. In this, the designation of “sinner” is precisely reversed: Who’s the sinner? The one who refuses to welcome Jesus into the home. The Pharisee is the sinner.
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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