In Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, lest you be judged." What do you think this means?

Answer 1

Exactly what it says - don't judge others, or you open yourself up to judgement. We are supposed to support and help each other, to keep each other accountable, not to judge each other.

Look at the context in which it was said - it was toward the end of the Sermon on the Mount, in a society where people were consistently under the judgement of the Pharisaical law. During the 400 years between Malachi and Matthew, God had been silent with the Jewish people (had not sent a prophet) and they became a very legalistic society. Religious piety, in the form of following orthodox laws that were not in the Mosaic code (the laws sent down through Moses), was the be-all and end-all of goodness for their society. Anyone who couldn't live up to them was judged as "not worthy" of God's blessings.

However, these people didn't see that while they were living up to the "letter" of the law, they had completely lost sight of the meaning behind the law. They tithed on everything from their money to their spice leaves, and they prayed loudly and publicly. However, they did this so that everyone would see them, not in order to worship God. They had large boxes tied to their foreheads and arms with scripture inside to show how holy they were, but they didn't live according to the words in those boxes.

They chose to judge others according to their made-up regulations, but didn't realize that their judgemental attitude opened them up to judgement from God for the hardness of their hearts.

Edit - this doesn't mean that we are not to judge actions as right or wrong...it means that we are not to judge people as righteous or unrighteous. There are absolutes, there is right and wrong, and we are to live by what is right. However, a person's heart is God's to judge - not ours.

Answer 2

i think alot of the explanation lies in the verses 2-6, with special emphasis on verse 2. Some may equate this with Karma, such as how the verses say that we will be judged according to how we judge others. Alot of it has to do with Hypocrisy, such as calling a man a liar, knowing full well that you also lie. And then there is the basic fallability of judging others, since we aren't GOD and have no idea who goes to Hell or not. So, why do it in the first place? we will only create enemies. We are taught in the bible to judge circumstances and even judge saints and angels in order to find discernment, so that we will know more clearly how GOD wants us to live OUR lives, and to distinguish between the WORD of GOD and the tempatations of Satan. But, to judge someone elses sins only opens the door to bring judgement to ourselves and it's pretty futile anyways, since we don't know any man's heart. Leave judgement to GOD and try to live in faith and love instead.

Answer 3

Jesus is talking to a multitude of sinners, as evidenced by the 11th verse; this is not directed toward his disciples or those who are righteous. As noted in I Corinthians 5:3, Paul judges among the body of believers. In I Corinthians 2:15 we are instructed to judge all things. We can not admonish one another as we are called to do without making judgments. So, therefore, Jesus was saying simply if ye are with sin, ye cannot judge; but, if ye are saved and spiritual you should judge all things. For one thing before being saved you can't rightly discern good and evil, because you only can do what your father the devil desires of you evil. After becoming saved you have a new Father, one who teaches you good from evil through his word, and you can then rightfully judge what is good versus what is evil. (I John 3:10) In the Old Testament God sent Israel judges to judge the people and to mete out punishment. In the end days the church is called to judge between one another and settle differences.

Answer 4

It means that a Christian is not to have a spirit of criticism and finding fault. Judgment can mean the same thing as decision. When you make a decision to do something, instead of another, you are judging that one is better for you than the other. Say, like spending time in prayer vs on here, the computer. LOL

Answer 5

Well I believe it means, who made us a judge over others since all we know is what we see and assume. But we know absolutely nothing about what they think or what their heart is actually like. So in all reality at best we only can possibly know 50% at best. But I do see some people making the biggest error of all and judge GOD.

Answer 6

Same as 1st Corinthians 6:2:1-7 judging for or against right or wrong, immoral things...

Answer 7

There are things in the Bible like "thou shalt not steal" if someone steals you can judge them through the Bible.
What I think this verse means is the things that it dosent say is directly wrong in the Bible like drinking, it dosent say in the Bible that you cant drink alchahol, so if you drank and another person said it was wrong, then they would be judging you in the way that this verse is telling them not to.
Hope I made this clear

Answer 8

Don't judge people and if you do, God will judge you (and other people will judge you too). Judging is not a good idea.

Answer 9

OK... judgement... keeping in mind that the bible was written by MEN... and that there IS NO god... it STILL has some good stuff in it. The mythical 'god' is not against judgement... he is against 'hypocritical' judgement... the OPPOSITE of 'righteous' judgement. Hypocritical judgement is when you judge somebody else for an offense that you are or have been guilty of, yourself.

"Judge not, lest ye be judged" is NOT a prohibition against judging others... it is practical advice on how to get along in the world. Here is a translation... what the fictional 'Jesus' character might have said if the fantasy had been written by a more modern writer: "Lookee here, Buckwheat... if y'all keep bangin' around, flappin' your lips and judgin' folks, don't be surprised if somebody turns around, gives you a dope-slap, and judges you right back... 'cause you're gonna danged-well deserve it."

Good advice... even from a fictional character.



Well... it is reassuring to see that at least a FEW christians know how to interpret and understand their bible.


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Answer 10

It means, by your own words will you be judged, remember Jesus said, I judge no man, it is your spirit that is judged.

You will be judge by how you judge other, if you show no mercy, mercy will not be shown to you. If you condemn someone for their beliefs, you will also be condemn.

Jesus said, that a person who owes society for a crime that they committed shall be thown in prison until the last penny has been repaid. What you remit shall be remitted back to you, and what you retain shall be retained back to you.

This means, if you do not teach your brother the truth about God, and he continues to sin, he will be reborn back to you.