John Gill Commentary Matthew 7

Judge not, that you be not judged . ] This is not to be understood of any sort of judgment; not of judgment in the civil courts of judicature, by proper magistrates, which ought to be made and pass, according to the nature of the case; nor of judgment in the churches of Christ, where offenders are to be called to an account, examined, tried, and dealt with according to the rules of the Gospel; nor of every private judgment, which one man may make upon another, without any detriment to him; but of rash judgment, interpreting men's words and deeds to the worst sense, and censuring them in a very severe manner; even passing sentence on them, with respect to their eternal state and condition. Good is the advice given by the famous Hillell ^F21 , who lived a little before Christ's time; "Do not judge your neighbour, (says he,) until you come into his place." It would be well, if persons subject to a censorious spirit, would put themselves in the case and circumstances the persons are in they judge; and then consider, what judgment they would choose others should pass on them.

The argument Christ uses to dissuade from this evil, which the Jews were very prone to, is, "that you be not judged"; meaning, either by men, for such censorious persons rarely have the good will of their fellow creatures, but are commonly repaid in the same way; or else by God, which will be the most awful and tremendous: for such persons take upon them the place of God, usurp his prerogative, as if they knew the hearts and states of men; and therefore will have judgment without mercy at the hands of God.

FOOTNOTES:

• F21: Pirke Abot, c. 2. sect. 4.

For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged
Both by God and men; to which agree those proverbial sentences used by the Jews;

``He that judgeth his neighbour according to the balance of righteousness, or innocence, they judge him according to righteousness.''

``As you have judged me according to the balance of righteousness, God will judge you according to the balance of righteousness.'' Hence that advice of Joshua ben Perachiah <sup>F24</sup> , who, by the Jewish writers, is said to be the master of Christ; ``Judge every man according to the balance of righteousness.'' Which their commentators explain thus ^F25 ; when you see a man as it were in "equilibrio", inclining to neither part, it is not clear from what he does, that he is either good or evil, righteous or unrighteous; yet when you see him do a thing which may be interpreted either to a good or a bad sense, it ought always to be interpreted to the best.

And with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you again .
This was an usual proverb among the Jews; it is sometimes delivered out thus, (hdm dgnk hdm) , "measure against measure" ^F26 ; but oftener thus, and nearer the form of it here, (wl Nyddwm hb ddwm Mdav hdmb) , "with what measure a man measures, they measure to him": one might fill up almost a page, in referring to places, where it is used in this form: besides those in the ^F1 margin, take the following, and the rather, because it gives instances of this retaliation ^F2 :

``"With what measure a man measures, they measure to him"; so the woman suspected of adultery, she adorned herself to commit sin, and God dishonoured her; she exposed herself to iniquity, God therefore stripped her naked; the same part of her body in which her sin begun, her punishment did. Samson walked after his eyes, and therefore the Philistines plucked out his eyes. Absalom was lifted up in his mind, with his hair, and therefore he was hanged by it; and because he lay with his father's ten concubines, they therefore pierced him with ten lances; and because he stole away three hearts, the heart of his father, the heart of the sanhedrim, and the heart of Israel, therefore he was thrust with three darts: and so it is with respect to good things; Miriam waited for Moses one hour, therefore the Israelites waited for her seven days in the wilderness; Joseph, who was greater than his brethren, buried his father; and Moses, who was the greatest among the Israelites took care of the bones of Joseph, and God himself buried Moses.''

FOOTNOTES:

• F24: Pirke Abot, c. 1. sect. 6.
• F25: Maimon. & Bartenora in ib.
• F26: Bereshit Rabba, sect. 9. fol. 7. 4.
• F1: T. Bab. Megilla, fol. 12. 2. Sota, fol. 8. 2. Sanhedrim, fol. 100. 1. Zohar in Gen. fol. 87. 4. & in Lev. fol. 36. 1. & 39. 3. & in Num. fol. 67. 3. Bemidbar Rabba, fol. 194. 1. Misn. Beracot, c. 9. sect. 5.
• F2: Misn. Sota, c. 1. sect. 7, 8, 9. Vid. Tzeror Hammor, fol. 99. 1, 2.

And why do you behold the mote that is in your brother's
eye ?
&c.] By "mote" is meant, any little bit of straw, or small splinter of wood, that flies into the eye, and does it damage, hinders its sight, and gives it pain; and designs little sins, comparatively speaking, such as youthful follies, human frailties, and infirmities, inadvertencies and imprudencies; which may be said to be light faults, in comparison of others: and though not to be vindicated, nor continued in, yet not to be severely looked upon and chastised. To scrutinize diligently into, aggravate, dwell upon, and sharply reprove the lighter faults of others, is a conduct, which is here inveighed against, and condemned by Christ; and more especially, when it may be said with the greatest truth and justice to such,

but you do not consider the beam that is in your own eye :
by the "beam" is meant, greater sins, grosser abominations, and such as were more peculiar to the Pharisees; as pride, arrogance, a vain opinion of themselves, confidence in their own righteousness, hypocrisy, covetousness, and iniquity; things they did not advert to in themselves, when they loudly exclaimed against lesser evils in others. Such men must be of all persons inexcusable, who condemn that in others, which either they themselves do, or what is abundantly worse.

Or how will you say to your brother? This is not so much an interrogation, as an expression of admiration, at the front and impudence of such censorious remarkers, and rigid observators; who not content to point at the faults of others, take upon them to reprove them in a very magisterial way: and it is as if Christ had said, with what face can you say to your friend or neighbour, let me pull out the mote out of your eye? give me leave to rebuke you sharply for your sin, as it deserves, and behold a beam is in your own eye; you are guilty of a far greater iniquity: astonishing impudence! Are you so blind, as not to see and observe your viler wickedness? Or which, if conscious of, how can you prevail upon yourself to take upon yourself to reprove and censure others?

Do you think your brother cannot see your beam? And may he not justly retort your iniquities upon you, which exceed his? and then what success can you promise yourself? Such persons are very unfit to be reprovers of others.

You hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of your own
eye
Very rightly does our Lord call such a man an hypocrite, who is very free in remarking and reproving other men's sins, and covering his own; and indeed, one end of his critical observations, rigid censures, and rash judgments is, that he might be thought to be holier than he is. Christ very manifestly points at the Scribes and Pharisees, who were men of such a complexion; and whom he often, without any breach of charity, calls hypocrites. The meaning of this proverbial expression is, that a man should first begin with himself, take notice of his own sins, reprove himself for them, and reform; and then it will be soon enough to observe other men's.

And then will you see clearly, to cast out the mote out of your
brother's eye :
then will he, and not before, be a proper person to reprove others; all objections and impediments to such a work will then be removed. Our Lord here speaks in the language of the Jewish nation, with whom such like expressions were common, and of long standing ^F3

``In the generation that judged the judges, one said to another, (Kynye Nybm Moyq lwj) , "cast out the mote out of your eye"; to whom it was replied, (Kynye Nybm hrwq lwj) , "cast out the beam from your eye": one said to another, "your silver is become dross": the other replies, "your wine is mixed with water".'' Again <sup>F4</sup> , ``R. Taphon said, I wonder whether there is any in this generation, that will receive reproof; if one should say to him, "cast out the mote out of your eye", will he say to him, "cast out the beam out of your eye?" Says R. Eleazer ben Azariah, I wonder whether there is any in this generation, that knows how to reprove.'' From which it is clear, that these phrases were used in the same sense they are by Christ; and which is still more evident by the gloss upon them: for upon the word "mote", it observes, ``That it is as if it had been said, (Nwjq Nwe) , "a little sin", which is in your hand (i.e. which you have committed): the other could say to him, cast you away (lwdg Nwe) , "the great sin", which is in your hand; so that they could not reprove, because they were all sinners.''

Agreeable to these, are some other proverbs used by the Jews, such as ``a vice which is in yourself, do not speak of to your neighbour,''

FOOTNOTES:

• F3: T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 15. 2.
• F4: T. Bab. Erachin, fol. 16. 2.
• F5: T. Bab. Bava Metzia, fol. 59. 2.
• F6: T. Bab. Sanhedrim, fol. 19. 1.
• F7: R. David Kimchi in Zeph. ii. 1. Vid. Tzeror Hammor, fol. 142. 4.