Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 7:3-5

"And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother`s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother`s eye." — Matthew 7:3-5 (ASV)

And why do you behold the mote that is in your brother's eye, but do not consider the beam that is in your own eye? Or how will you say to your brother, Let me pull out the mote out of your eye; and, behold, a beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of your own eye; and then you will see clearly to cut out the mote out of your brother's eye.

The judging faculty is best employed at home. Our tendency is to spy out splinters in other men's eyes, and not to see the beam in our own. Instead of beholding, with gratified gaze, the small fault of another, we should act reasonably if we penitently considered the greater fault of ourselves. It is the beam in our own eye which blinds us to our own wrongdoing; but such blindness does not suffice to excuse us, since it evidently does not shut our eyes to the little error of our brother.

Officiousness pretends to play the eye doctor; but in very truth it plays the fool. Imagine a man with a beam in his eye pretending to deal with so tender a part as the eye of another, and attempting to remove so tiny a thing as a mote or splinter! Is he not a hypocrite to pretend to be so concerned about other men's eyes, and yet he never attends to his own?

Jesus is gentle, but He calls that man a "hypocrite" who fusses about small things in others and pays no attention to great matters in his own life. Our reformations must begin with ourselves, or they are not true, and do not spring from a right motive.

Sin we may rebuke, but not if we indulge it. We may protest against evil, but not if we willfully practice it. The Pharisees were great at censuring, but slow at amending. Our Lord will not have His kingdom made up of hypocritical theorists; He calls for practical obedience to the rules of holiness.

After we ourselves are sanctified, we are bound to be eyes to the blind and correctors of unholy living; but not until then. Until we have personal piety, our preaching of godliness is sheer hypocrisy.

May none of us provoke the Lord to say to us, "You hypocrite"!

And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye! Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, 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.

At the bottom of all censoriousness lies hypocrisy. An honest man would apply to himself the judgment which he exercises upon others, but it usually happens that those who are so busy spying out other people's faults have no time to see their own; and what is this, at the bottom, but insincerity and hypocrisy?

The judging faculty is best employed at home. Our tendency is to spy out splinters in other men’s eyes and not to see the beam in our own. Instead of beholding, with gratified gaze, the small fault of another, we should act reasonably if we penitently considered the greater fault of ourselves. It is the beam in our own eye which blinds us to our own wrongdoing, but such blindness does not suffice to excuse us, since it evidently does not shut our eyes to the little error of our brother.

Officiousness pretends to play the oculist, but in truth it plays the fool. Fancy a man with a beam in his eye pretending to deal with so tender a part as the eye of another, and attempting to remove so tiny a thing as a mote or splinter! Is he not a hypocrite to pretend to be so concerned about other men’s eyes and yet he never attends to his own? Jesus is gentle, but He calls that man a “hypocrite” who fusses about small things in others, and pays no attention to great matters within himself.

Our reformations must begin with ourselves or they are not true, and do not spring from a right motive. Sin we may rebuke, but not if we indulge it. We may protest against evil, but not if we willfully practice it. The Pharisees were great at censuring, but slow at amending. Our Lord will not have His kingdom made up of hypocritical theorists. He calls for practical obedience to the rules of holiness.

After we are ourselves sanctified, we are bound to be eyes to the blind and correctors of unholy living, but not until then. Until we have personal piety, our preaching of godliness is sheer hypocrisy. May none of us provoke the Lord to say to us, “Thou hypocrite”!