pharisee

noun

1. (historical)A member of an ancient Jewish political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 B.C.E.–70 C.E.). The movement was ultimately the basis for most contemporary forms of Judaism.

   “Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.”

   “I cannot tell. They [Jews]are always doing it. The Pharisees, for instance, say that there are angels, and the Sadducees declare that angels do not exist.”

2. (broadly, derogatory, figuratively)A person who values the letter of the law over its spirit or intention.

   “He was, and is yet most likely, the wearisomest self-righteous Pharisee that ever ransacked a Bible to rake the promises to himself and fling the curses to his neighbours.”

   “The spider fattens himself on flies, and the Pharisee has his reward. Foolish persons are easily entrapped by the loud professions of pretenders, and even the more judicious cannot always escape.”