Matthew 7.1-6
_1 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you
will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
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This is the one that people (Christian & non-Christian)
like to throw around the most. Usually,
in backwards fashion, the corrupted cultural ideology of “keeping your personal
views private” is used to force a meaning on the passage that was never
intended. Consequently, phrases or
verses are snatched out of their surrounding verses which provide the proper
meaning (context) & then they’re propped up in isolation by a contradictory
cultural meaning. Such is the case with
Mt 7.1 or even just the phrase “Do not judge” which are misinterpreted as “do
not EVER judge ANYONE”. So what does
Jesus actually mean? Let’s look at the
entire passage, keeping in mind the meaning of judging: to determine the
correctness of the matter.
Verse 2 points out that the issue really isn’t judging in general, but rather the “way” you judge which has to do with the “measure” or standard of correctness that you are judging by. Considering Jesus’s example, the man with the plank or board in his eye is condemned for being concerned about the speck of sawdust in his brother’s. His own plank (personal sin) should have been more obvious than his brother’s speck. He was a hypocrite, accepting his own sin because he used a different standard to measure himself & his brother. He didn’t truly care enough about dealing with sin in his own life & had the wrong motives concerning his brother’s sin. But does this mean we shouldn’t be concerned about other people’s sins because we’re all sinners? Read on.
Verse 5 clarifies the wrong way is hypocritical judging stemming from the wrong standard of correctness. If we use God’s standard of measure (the only true one), we can first judge ourselves & deal with our own sin – this corrects our attitude about God, sin, self & others. Then with this humble attitude we can help others in their sin. And do notice, that helping to remove the sin in others' lives is expected (more on this in another section). Furthermore, verse 6 contends that if we are hypocritical & disregard our own sin, then don’t expect our advice on sin (including well-intended Bible verses) to be received with open arms.
Verse 2 points out that the issue really isn’t judging in general, but rather the “way” you judge which has to do with the “measure” or standard of correctness that you are judging by. Considering Jesus’s example, the man with the plank or board in his eye is condemned for being concerned about the speck of sawdust in his brother’s. His own plank (personal sin) should have been more obvious than his brother’s speck. He was a hypocrite, accepting his own sin because he used a different standard to measure himself & his brother. He didn’t truly care enough about dealing with sin in his own life & had the wrong motives concerning his brother’s sin. But does this mean we shouldn’t be concerned about other people’s sins because we’re all sinners? Read on.
Verse 5 clarifies the wrong way is hypocritical judging stemming from the wrong standard of correctness. If we use God’s standard of measure (the only true one), we can first judge ourselves & deal with our own sin – this corrects our attitude about God, sin, self & others. Then with this humble attitude we can help others in their sin. And do notice, that helping to remove the sin in others' lives is expected (more on this in another section). Furthermore, verse 6 contends that if we are hypocritical & disregard our own sin, then don’t expect our advice on sin (including well-intended Bible verses) to be received with open arms.
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