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 way of a true prophet of God
62-0513M §29
Now, to the church, we are journeying to a land of immortality, a land where there's no death, a land where the dead's raised up. And we had a great Saviour in our camp. Jesus means "Jehovah-Saviour, beloved." And He crossed the Jordan of death, over into the other land, and come back, and brought the evidence that we live after death. Amen! So where is death at?
Only Believe
61-0427 §55
He didn't say, "I'll go down and see what I can do about it." No, no, no, no. "Where have you buried him? He didn't say, "Jairus ... well, Jairus, I'm sorry I caused you this trouble. Now your church has excommunicated you, and you're in trouble with your brethren, and all that. I know that, and everything. I really feel sorry for you, Jairus. But if I could've got there a little bit sooner, why it might've been all right. But Jairus, I'm sorry to cause you this trouble." Oh, no. Oh, no. He said, "... and I say to...
A Testimony
53-0607E §5
Jesus speaking to the Jews. He said, "You don't have to judge Me," said, "because God has already judged you by what you think of Me," in other words. Said, "I come and testified of the truth. And God come down and confirmed that that was the truth. And the Father bears witness of His Son." And then, His witness is the truth, because the Scripture spoke of His Son. Jesus said, "Well did Isaiah speak of you, 'Have ears and can't hear; eyes and can't see.'" Isaiah thirty-five told just what He would do. The lame woul...
The Seal of God and the Mark of the Beast, part 2
61-0217 §65
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Preparation
53-1111 §33
Now, God in His preparation. Back when God was going to destroy the world. Before He destroyed the world, He sent forth a preparation for the saving of the people that desired to be saved. He always does it. He shows mercy before judgment. And if men spurn mercy, there's only one thing left and that is judgment. And God don't judge you, you judge yourself. That's true. As long as you're under this spray of blood that's around the world, you have a right for mercy. The blood of Christ keeps God from killing you or H...