Who were the Pharisees and what did they think about their own righteousness?
The Pharisees were religious fanatics who believed they alone were righteous, wrapping themselves in self-righteous robes. They thought they were the only ones who would ever merit anything from God, trusting their own righteousness rather than grace. They saw themselves as the sole recipients of God's favor.
Les teaches that during Christ's earthly ministry the Pharisees were religious fanatics. He explains that they thought they were the only ones with their self-righteous robes around them who were ever going to merit anything from God. Their defining attitude was self-righteousness. In the same context, Les contrasts them with the Sadducees, who never believed in resurrection from the dead and rejected it as foolishness. This contrast helps explain the background to Paul's argument in Corinth about resurrection.