What Did Jesus Mean When He Said, "judge Not, That You Be Not Judged"?
1) Direct Answer
Jesus forbade a harsh, condemning, hypocritical spirit that sets oneself up as the final judge. He called us to judge ourselves first, then help our brother in meekness by the Word. He did not forbid righteous judgment; He forbade self-righteous condemnation.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- Matthew 7:1-5: “Judge not… for with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged.” Then He says, “First cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” Now notice, He didn’t say leave the mote there; He said get yourself right first, then you can see clearly to help.
- Luke 6:37-38: “Judge not… condemn not… forgive… for with the same measure… it shall be measured to you again.” The issue is the measure and the spirit.
- John 7:24: “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” You see, Jesus Himself commands judgment—righteous judgment—according to truth, not appearances.
- Matthew 7:15-20: “By their fruits ye shall know them.” Recognizing fruit requires discernment.
- 1 Corinthians 5:1-13: Open sin in the church must be judged inside, not ignored. “Do not ye judge them that are within?” The Word is the standard, and the goal is purity and restoration.
- Galatians 6:1: “If a man be overtaken in a fault… restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself.” That’s judgment with mercy and humility.
- Romans 14:4,13: Don’t set yourself as judge over doubtful matters; don’t put stumbling blocks. God is the Master of His servant.
- James 4:11-12: There is one Lawgiver and Judge. We don’t usurp God’s throne.
- 1 Corinthians 11:31: “If we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.” Self-judgment comes first.
- Matthew 18:15-17: Private correction, then witnesses, then the church. That is righteous, ordered judgment for the purpose of winning a brother.
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- If “judge not” meant never make any judgment, you could not obey “by their fruits ye shall know them,” nor protect the flock, nor correct error. So Jesus is not banning discernment; He is banning hypocrisy and condemnation.
- The standard we use will be used on us. If we deal in mercy and truth, we will meet mercy and truth. If we deal in hard, fleshly criticism, we invite the same on ourselves.
- We never pronounce the final sentence on a soul—that belongs to God. But we do discern doctrine, conduct, and fruit by the Scripture for restoration and protection.
- Start at the mirror. Clean the beam out first. Then, with meekness, help remove the mote. The Word is the measure; love is the motive; restoration is the aim.
4) Reinforcing Statement
Judge yourself by the Word, walk in mercy and truth, and when judgment is required, let it be righteous—Scripture-based, Spirit-led, humble, and aimed at redemption, not destruction.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
The great warrior Joshua
55-0119 §12
You see, after he had been... He was getting his position then. He was to be the greatest military man that's ever been on the face of the earth. There's never been a general like Joshua, no time, no age, nowhere has ever been compared with Joshua. The word Joshua comes from the word of "Jesus," means "Jesus" or "Saviour, deliverer." And so when he seen this man, what was it? It was the captain, in other words, the leader of the host of Israel. And that leader was none other than Christ, Himself. And what was He fi...
A Greater than Solomon is here
61-0412 §63
But remember, there wasn't a drop of rain fell till Noah got in the ark. There was no fire fell at all till Sodom ... Lot come out of Sodom. Jesus said, "As it was in them days, so will it be in the coming of the Son of man." The church already is... It don't have to be judged; it's already been judged. For it judged Christ, and Christ stood its judgment. When we are in Him, we are free from judgment. If God judges you, then He's unjust. Christ took our judgment for us, and by one Spirit we are baptized into that b...
Questions and Answers
61-1015M §38
QUESTION: "Brother Branham, what did Jesus mean in St. John 21:15 through 17 when He asked Peter if he loved Him and told him to feed His lambs; then He said, 'Feed my sheep!' and in the seventeenth verse He said again, 'Feed my sheep!'?" Well, that is merely this. See, Christ is the shepherd. He was going away, and He was leaving the commission of His sheep---which any shepherd feeds, which is His flock, His church, see---He was leading ... or, leaving the commission with these disciples to continue to feed the fl...
Countdown
64-0209 §8
When she got so low she couldn't smile or speak, I said, "Mother, you're dying." She was in my arm. I said, "Mother, if Jesus Christ still means the same to you, and this is sweeter, even sweeter, than He was when you received the Holy Ghost... "I am your preacher son. I've got to meet the public. Does Jesus mean something to you while you're dying? If it did ... if you can't speak..." She couldn't speak. I said, "Can't you speak, Mother?" She couldn't move. I said, "Bat your eyes, real fast." And she started batti...
Church Ages, part 2: The Patmos Vision
60-1204E §89
You believe He's a judge? Let's read St. John 5:22 right quick, and we'll see whether He's a judge or not. St. John 5 and 22: For the Father judges no man, but has committed all judgment unto the Son: That right? He is the judge, the supreme judge. And John shows that He wasn't in the day of his prophecy as a prophet; neither was He plumb out into the days of his kingship; but He was in the day of the Lord as a judge. Now, how many knows that the priest having his girdle---his string---around his waistline meant he...