Author's words

Most of us were taught that the parables are simple moral lessons. But what if they are actually radical blueprints for a just society? In this book, I challenge the stories we think we know to uncover the ten dimensions of justice Jesus was truly teaching. Whether you are a theology student, a social advocate, or simply seeking deeper meaning in scripture, this book, Justice and the Parables of Jesus, offers a transformative new perspective.

Endorsement by Jennifer Quigley

Endorsement by Demetrius Williams

Endorsement by James McGrath

Self-promotion time

COLLEAGUE

I enjoyed a pleasant conversation with my colleague, Dr. Robert Wafawanaka—a Hebrew Bible scholar—and presented him with a copy of my new book, Justice and the Parables of Jesus: Interpreting the Gospel Stories through Political Philosophy.

Hailing from Zimbabwe, Dr. Wafawanaka enriches biblical scholarship by drawing upon his African heritage and addressing issues of poverty and human welfare.

 

Vineyard Laborers

In Justice and the Parables of Jesus, Yung Suk Kim uses the Parable of the Vineyard Laborers (Matthew 20:1–16) to explore Distributive Justice. This is perhaps the most famous example of "unfairness" in the New Testament, but Kim argues that we only see it as unfair because we are looking through the wrong economic lens.

Redefining "Fair" through Distributive Justice
In a standard capitalistic or "merit-based" view, justice is proportional: you get paid exactly what your labor is worth. Kim shifts this to a needs-based framework of justice.

-The Problem of Joblessness: Kim points out that the workers standing in the marketplace all day weren't lazy; they were "unemployed" because no one had hired them. In the socio-political context of the time, a day's wage (one denarius) was the bare minimum needed to feed a family for one day.
-The "Daily Bread" Principle: By paying the one-hour workers the same as the twelve-hour workers, the landowner (representing God's rule) ensures that the latecomers' families do not starve.
-Atypical Economics: Kim describes the landowner as "atypical." He isn't driven by profit maximization (which would mean paying as little as possible) but by full employment and subsistence.

The "Evil Eye" of Comparison

Kim highlights the landowner’s response to the complaining workers: "Are you envious because I am generous?" (literally, "Is your eye evil because I am good?").

Kim argues that social comparison is a barrier to justice. When the "first" workers complain, they aren't actually losing anything—they received exactly what they agreed to. Their "suffering" is purely psychological, based on the fact that someone else received grace they didn't "earn." Kim posits that true distributive justice requires us to abandon the "culture of competition" and instead celebrate when the needs of the most vulnerable are met.

Good Samaritan

 In Justice and the Parables of Jesus, Yung Suk Kim reframes the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37) by moving away from the "sentimental" reading of a kind stranger and toward a structural analysis of Racial Justice.

Kim argues that we cannot understand the "Good" Samaritan without first understanding the "Bad" Systems—specifically the Roman and local juridical structures that racialized the Samaritan people.

1. Decoding the "Samaritan" as a Racial Category
In the first century, the divide between Jews and Samaritans was not just religious; it functioned as a form of racialization. Samaritans were seen as "other," "impure," or "mongrelized" by the dominant religious and political structures.

-The Juridical Context: Kim points out that the lawyer’s question ("Who is my neighbor?") was a legal trap designed to exclude people from the circle of care.
-Structural Racism: By making a Samaritan the "hero," Jesus doesn't just tell a story about kindness; he performs a normative intervention. He forces his Jewish audience to accept life and salvation from the very person their "system" deemed racially and spiritually inferior.

2. The Critique of the Priest and the Levite
Traditional readings suggest the Priest and Levite passed by because they feared ritual impurity. Kim’s political-philosophical lens goes further:
-The Complicity of Status: These figures represent the elite social order of the time. Their failure to act is a failure of the system they represent.
-Procedural Justice vs. Racial Justice: They were following the "procedures" of their office, but those procedures blinded them to the human being in the ditch. Kim argues that "justice" often fails when people prioritize the preservation of their own status or institutional rules over the immediate needs of a racialized "other."

3. "Neighborliness" as a Political Act
Kim suggests that for Jesus, "neighbor" is a verb, not a noun.

-Dismantling Hierarchies: By the end of the story, the lawyer cannot even bring himself to say the word "Samaritan," simply calling him "the one who showed mercy."
-The Challenge: Kim posits that racial justice requires us to see the "neighbor" in those our society has systematically excluded. It’s not just about "liking" people of other races; it’s about a political commitment to their well-being that transcends national, racial, or legal boundaries.

Pharisee and Tax Collector

 In Justice and the Parables of Jesus, Yung Suk Kim places the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9–14) under the category of Social Justice.

While many sermons focus on the "internal" sin of pride, Kim focuses on social status and the "culture of competition." He argues that this parable is a critique of how society creates "winners" and "losers" based on religious and social performance.

1. The Critique of Social Performance
Kim suggests that the Pharisee represents the "high-status" individual whose sense of justice is built on upward mobility and comparison.

-The Pharisee’s Prayer: It isn't just a prayer; it’s a status report. By saying, "I am not like other people," he is reinforcing a social hierarchy. His "justice" is exclusionary—it depends on there being someone "below" him (the tax collector) to validate his own "above" status.
-The Problem with Merit: Kim argues that when we define justice as "being better than others," we create a society of competition where the weak are inevitably marginalized.

2. The Tax Collector and "Downward Mobility"
In contrast, Kim highlights the Tax Collector through the lens of humility as a social disruptor.

-The Broken Heart: Drawing on Eastern philosophical concepts (like those in the Dao De Jing), Kim views the "broken heart" of the tax collector not just as a religious feeling, but as a rejection of the social ladder.
-Softness vs. Hardness: Kim compares the Pharisee’s "hardened" heart—solidified by status and self-importance—to the "softness" of the tax collector. In Kim’s political framework, true social justice begins when people stop trying to "climb" over one another and instead embrace a "downward mobility" that seeks solidarity with the lowly.

3. Social Justice as "Impartiality"
The "justification" of the tax collector is a political statement by Jesus. It suggests that God’s rule (the Kingdom) does not recognize the social rankings humans create.

-Dismantling Prestige: Social justice, in this reading, is the act of dismantling systems that reward prestige and punish those at the bottom.
-The Goal: The parable calls for a society where one's value isn't measured by their "tithes" or "fasting" (their social contributions), but by their shared humanity and need for mercy.

Key Difference in Kim's Approach
In traditional readings, the Pharisee is a "villain" because he is arrogant. In Kim’s Social Justice reading, the Pharisee is a "warning" because he is a product of a competitive system. He is what happens when a society values "doing right" more than "being in right relationship" with others.

What Is Justice?

 

For those deeply invested in contemporary justice and the foundational teachings of Jesus, Justice and the Parables of Jesus: Interpreting the Gospel Stories through Political Philosophy is essential reading. This book provides a startlingly fresh analysis by interpreting the parables through the lens of political philosophy. The paperback is available for just $24, making this profound scholarship accessible to everyone.