08 · Words of Jesus

Do Not Judge – The Speck and the Beam

Matthew 7:1–5

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Jesus teaches about the speck and the beam while one person scrutinizes another without first seeing his own much greater problem.

Jesus warns against seeing others' faults while missing our own.

Does Jesus forbid every moral judgment?

Choose a perspective

There is no score – choose the perspective you find closest and discuss why.

Discuss: How can we address wrong without becoming judgmental?

After your discussion: compare with our assessment

Our assessment

We consider options A and C together to be closest to the main sense of the passage. A captures Jesus' warning against a judgmental posture in which a person focuses on the faults of others while overlooking his or her own. C captures the word “first” in verse 5. Jesus requires self-examination before one person tries to help another. The goal is not to deny that the speck exists, but to be able to see clearly. Together, A and C take seriously both the warning against hypocrisy and the constructive ending of Jesus' image.

08 · Matthew 7:1–5

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Text & context

Full translation

1 Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. 2 For with the judgment you judge, you will be judged, and with the measure you measure, it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye but do not notice the beam in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, “Let me remove the speck from your eye,” when there is a beam in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye. Then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

Translated from the Greek text – SBLGNT

What is happening here?
Jesus begins with the short and forceful command: “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.” He follows it with a warning that the same judgment and measure a person uses toward others will also be used toward that person. Jesus then uses a deliberately exaggerated image. Someone tries to detect and remove a tiny speck from a brother's eye while having a beam in his own eye. But the teaching does not end by leaving the other person with the speck. Jesus says, “First remove the beam from your own eye.” Then the person can see clearly enough to help his brother. The passage therefore combines a strong warning against hypocritical judgment with self-examination and the possibility of genuinely helping another person.
Notice this

Jesus does not say that the speck in the other person's eye is unimportant. He says: “First remove the beam from your own eye.” Then he continues: “Then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.” The word “first” matters. Jesus' answer to hypocritical judgment is self-examination and clearer vision, not necessarily complete silence about other people's actions. Also notice the humor and exaggeration in the image: someone tries to detect a tiny speck while a construction beam protrudes from his own eye.

Language & translation

From the Greek

κρίνετε – krinete

judge / evaluate The form comes from krinō, a verb with a broad range of meaning including distinguishing, evaluating, deciding, and judging. Context therefore matters. Jesus' following example especially exposes the danger of judging others while being blind to one's own greater faults.

κρίμα – krima

judgment / verdict The noun appears in verse 2 when Jesus says that the judgment people use will also be used toward them, creating a clear verbal connection with krinō.

κάρφος – karphos

speck / splinter The word describes something small, such as a speck or splinter. In Jesus' image it is contrasted with an enormous beam.

δοκός – dokos

beam A dokos is a beam or substantial piece of timber. The contrast between karphos and dokos is deliberately extreme, making Jesus' criticism of hypocrisy vivid and memorable.

ὑποκριτά – hypokrita

hypocrite Jesus himself uses a sharp form of address in verse 5. This shows that his prohibition against judging cannot simply mean that a person may never identify or speak about a problem in another person's behavior.

Translation note

Independent English translation from the Greek text, using SBLGNT as the primary Greek edition.

Compare for yourself

Read Matthew 7:1–5 in another Bible translation. Pay particular attention to how these expressions are rendered:

  • krinō
  • krima
  • karphos
  • dokos
  • hypokritēs
  • “first” in verse 5

Consider especially whether “Do not judge” sounds different when verse 1 is read together with the whole of verse 5.

Continue the conversation

Discuss further
  1. What is the difference between evaluating an action and being judgmental toward a person?
  2. How much must we have dealt with our own faults before we can help someone else?
  3. Can fear of “judging” sometimes cause us to avoid necessary conversations?
  4. How can self-examination change the way we correct or criticize others?
Parallel passages
  • Luke 6:37–42
  • Matthew 7:15–20
  • John 7:24
Sources
  • The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition (SBLGNT), Matthew 7:1–5
  • Luke 6:37–42
  • Standard Greek lexical resources for krinō, krima, karphos, dokos, and hypokritēs