TO JUDGE OR NOT TO JUDGE?
“Yes,” and, “No.”
Jesus said, “Judge not yet you be judged.”
Brace yourself! It is the detail which makes me a boring person that brings the Bible alive for me. There may be more here than the normal, well adjusted person would care to know.
But if you happen to like what you read, there’s more to be found here.
It would be surprising if you have not heard someone ejaculate this verse during an argument (never seems to be an unemotional debate). It is used so often it has become a cliché (well-used, hackneyed phrase) hurled at Christians by non-believers. (It is surprising how much non-Christians know about how Christians should behave.)
Christian Nobel Prize winner who survived the Soviet Gulag System, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, wrote, “The Bible is more known-about than known.” This seems to be true because, within the Church, ‘Tolerance’ and ‘Inclusiveness’ are the new Gospels because, “We are told to love everyone, aren’t we? Who am I to judge? We’re all sinners.” Consequently, any behaviour is tolerated, in love, in a number of (small c)churches. Even to the point of misbehaviour of the highest officer in the Assembly. “Touch not the Lord’s Anointed,” is another popular lore which contradicts the Bible’s teaching that the Body of Christ is the most exclusive and intolerant group ever, as is written in 1 Corinthians 6:8–10, . . . you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren! Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
But Did Jesus actually say that about “judgement?” ‘Yes’ and ‘no’ — depending which language you are reading. An extremely good post on this topic has been published by a Jason Staples. I don’t know Jason but I’ve read his work on this and recommend it highly (for whatever that is worth). It is to be found at https://www.jasonstaples.com/bible/new-testament/misinterpreted-bible-passages-3-judge-not-lest-you-be-judged/ .
This aggressive counter-attack defence, used by those who are doing the sinning against the Saints pointing out the behaviour, is often successful because, living in the Land of the Catchphrase and Soundbite, there is no depth of knowledge in the (big C)Church to repel the assault. Personal experience is that the attack can be vicious in shouting down the opponent. Sometimes watching these scenes, which can become ugly, is like watching a tennis match as single verses are hurled back-and-forth like balls of fire to cause enough damage to cower the other.
The problem lies, not with the original Greek, but with the sloppy English translation.
The evidence below has been used to postulate that a reasonable person could deduce that the use of the English word, JUDGE, is a casualty to the problems of translation because the shades of meaning in the different languages form clusters of words from which to choose.
The Holy Spirit chooses His Words well. The translations, however, are not Divine and require eternal vigilance. My weapon of choice is the Blue Letter Bible (https://www.blueletterbible.org/ ). There are others probably just as good but it is the first one I used so know it better. It is free but is an excellent text book so probably worth a donation of similar value, at least.
- Examining the words.
There are six Greek words translated to the English, JUDGE, in the Bible. All have a similar flavour but the three important verbs are:-
○ krinō (G2919) meaning to make an opinion. Criticise, condemn, call in question, to subject to censure, to contend together, of warriors and combatants, to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong, show contempt, avenge.
We are admonished NOT to krinō (criticise) so that we condemn ourselves. Matthew 7:1–2 states, Judge(G2919 krinō) not, that you be not judged(G2919 krinō). For with what judgement you judge(G2919 krinō), you will be judged(G2919 krinō).”
Boring detail:-
krinō (G2919) Verb: an action
Present tense: continued action → Habitual.
Active voice: the hearer is doing the action → Cannot shift the blame.
Imperative mood: an order (not to do the action)→ Every imperative in the Bible carries the same weight as any of the 10 Commandments → sin
Interpretation from one Greek word. “I command you not to adopt an attitude of habitual harsh criticism. The consequence is that you will be harshly criticised in kind.” Jesus also offers the instruction on how to deal with this, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
○ anakrinō (G350) meaning to specifically, in a forensic sense of a judge, to hold an investigation; to interrogate, examine the accused or witnesses and make unbiased estimates.
We are admonished to anakrinō so that we get all the facts to make proper judgements. In Luke 23:14 (Pilate) said to them, “You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having examined(G350 anakrinō) Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him
Boring detail:-
anakrinō (G350) Verb: an action
Aorist tense: single complete action → one-off, as required; a conclusion has been reached after examining the evidence as if in a court of law.
Active voice: the speaker (Pilate) has personally done the action → He examined the evidence and did not rely on rumour.
Interpretation from one Greek word. Pilate has practised due diligence and carefully considered the evidence before making an unbiased decision that Jesus has no charge to answer.
○ diakrinō (G1252) meaning to discern, choose, separate, doubt. In an unbiased manner.
We are admonished to diakrinō in order to be discerning and separate fact from opinion. 1Corinthians 6:5 states, I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge(G1252 diakrinō) between his brethren?
Boring detail:-
diakrinō (G1252) Verb: an action
Aorist tense: single complete action → one-off, as required; a conclusion must be reached after examining the evidence as if in a court of law.
Active voice: the referee must personally do the action → He must be skilled enough in the Word of God to examine the evidence and not rely on rumour or emotion.
Interpretation from one Greek word. The referee must impartially examine and consider the details (from the perspective of God’s Word) of the matter before ruling on a dispute. Because of the nature of the evidence, discernment is necessary because the evidence is not clear-cut. (There is no smoking gun to make the decision easier.)
Conclusions
- If you don’t judge, how do yo know what is wrong? But judge in a Godly manner.
- Truth is eternal — not subjective.
- Distinguishing between right and wrong is not necessarily bigotry. It depends on where the definitions of right and wrong emanate.
“DISCERNMENT is NOT knowing the difference between RIGHT and WRONG. It is knowing the difference between RIGHT and ALMOST RIGHT.” Charles Spurgeon
The forgoing evidence has not been presented to convince any reader but to allow a personal decision to be made. There is much more to know about this subject. Perhaps you’ll pay another visit, sometime.
All Glory to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
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