The Most Misused Verse in the Bible

The notion that it’s never okay to judge someone by the fruit their life produces is honestly crazy. It’s always been one of those things that drives me nuts when I hear someone foolishly throw out the statement “you can’t judge me”, or “who are you to judge me”, because it sounds spiritual, but most of the time it’s really just a way to shut down accountability.

What makes it even more ironic is that Jesus Himself explicitly said it’s perfectly acceptable to judge someone by the fruit their life produces. He didn’t hint at it—He taught it plainly:

“You will recognize them by their fruits, are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?” (Matthew 7:16, ESV).

If Jesus tells us that fruit is how we recognize what’s true, then He’s telling us that there is a place for evaluating a person’s life—not by the outward image, but by what their life consistently produces.

The kind of judgment Scripture warns us about is superficial judgment. We’re not called to judge someone’s character based on social structure or outward appearance. We’re not supposed to decide someone is “good” or “bad” based on how they look, how they talk, what they wear, the car they drive, how polished they seem, or how much charisma they can put on display. That sort of judgment is shallow, usually prideful, and often completely detached from truth. But the Bible does make clear that we can, and indeed must, judge people by the fruit their lives bring forth. And if someone’s life isn’t producing the fruit that matches a profession of faith, it is not “wrong” to acknowledge the disconnect.

Most people default to the famous verse you’ve no doubt heard a hundred times:

“Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matthew 7:1, ESV).

But the problem is that people quote that line as if Jesus ended the conversation there. He didn’t. He keeps talking, and the rest of the passage makes it clear what He’s actually addressing. Jesus says,

“For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you” (Matthew 7:2, ESV).

Then He continues: “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3–4, ESV).

That “speck and log” language is not Jesus banning discernment, but rather condemning hypocrisy. He’s talking about someone who isn’t producing the fruit of the Spirit in their own life, yet feels entitled to play spiritual referee over someone else’s life. That’s why He calls it what it is:

“You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5, ESV).

Notice what He says: not “ignore your brother,” but deal with yourself first, then you’ll be able to help him clearly. Jesus isn’t abolishing righteous judgment. He’s demanding that it be done with humility, self-awareness, and integrity.

And then, to make sure nobody misses the point, Jesus gives the standard: fruit.

“You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16, ESV).

He’s essentially saying, “Stop pretending you can read hearts by appearances. You want to know what’s real? Look at what their life produces.” That’s not superficial judgment. That’s discernment.

What’s also important to note here is that Jesus is talking about brothers, or fellow believers. He’s addressing life inside the community of faith, where hypocrisy is especially dangerous because it corrupts the witness of the church and gives cover for sin. That’s why the apostles echo the exact same narrative later on. In 1 Corinthians, Paul addresses a situation where someone in the church is openly living in sin while claiming the name of Christ. And Paul makes a distinction that people today often ignore. He writes,

“I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world” (1 Corinthians 5:9–10, ESV).

In other words, Paul is saying, “I’m not telling you to separate from the world. That’s impossible—and not the point.”

Then he clarifies exactly what he means:

“But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one” (1 Corinthians 5:11, ESV).

Paul’s not talking about judging unbelievers; he’s talking about Christians judging the lifestyle of someone who claims to be a Christian while living in open rebellion.

And this is where the whole conversation turns, because verse 12 is the crux of the argument. Paul doesn’t just give a general principle about being “judgmental.” He draws a clear boundary line that most people blur on purpose, because it’s uncomfortable. He asks,

“For what have I to do with judging outsiders?” (1 Corinthians 5:12, ESV).

In other words, “Why would I hold unbelievers to a standard they’ve never claimed to live under?” That’s not Paul being soft on sin…it’s Paul being realistic about what the church is and what the world is. The world doesn’t confess Christ, doesn’t claim to follow Him, and isn’t pretending to represent Him. So Paul isn’t telling Christians to go around scanning unbelievers for flaws so they can feel morally superior. That is not and has never been the mission.

He immediately follows it with the part everyone wants to skip over:

“Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?” (1 Corinthians 5:12, ESV)

That’s the dividing line. Paul is saying that judgment—meaning moral discernment and accountability—is primarily an inside-the-house issue. It’s about the integrity of the church. It’s about protecting the witness of Christ. It’s about refusing to let someone claim Jesus with their mouth while openly rejecting Him with their life, because that doesn’t just affect them—it affects everyone watching and everyone following.

And that’s exactly why the “don’t judge me” argument falls apart when someone is claiming to be a Christian. If a person is part of the family of God, they are also part of the responsibility of the family of God. The moment someone says, “I’m a follower of Christ,” they’re not just making a personal statement. They are publicly attaching Christ’s name to their life. And Scripture says that matters. It matters for the church’s health, for the person’s soul, and for the people outside the faith who are trying to figure out whether Christianity is real or just some crazy, religious talk.

So when Paul says, “I’m not talking about outsiders,” he’s not excusing sin in the world. What he’s doing is clarifying the church’s role. Our posture toward the world is not condemnation; it’s to love, to witness, to have patience, and to speak truth. But our posture toward professing believers is different, because believers are called to produce fruit consistent with repentance. If they aren’t doing that, then the most loving thing we can do is not to pretend it’s fine, but to speak plainly about what their life is showing.

That’s why verse 12 isn’t just a random side note—it’s the center of the entire debate. Paul is saying, “Stop misusing the words of Jesus to avoid accountability. Judgment is wrong when it’s hypocritical and superficial. But discernment is necessary when someone claims Christ while producing rotten fruit.” That’s not hate. It’s not bigotry. It’s not arrogance. That’s the church taking holiness seriously and taking the name of Jesus seriously.

And this is exactly where it ties right back into Jesus’ words in Matthew 7. When people quote “Judge not” (Matthew 7:1, ESV) as a blanket ban on discernment, they miss the very thing Jesus was trying to correct. Jesus wasn’t saying, “Never confront anyone.” He was saying, “Don’t confront anyone from a place of hypocrisy.” The entire “speck and log” illustration assumes that there will be a moment when you help your brother see clearly—after you’ve dealt honestly with yourself. “First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5, ESV). That intentional placement of the word “then” matters. Because it means that the goal isn’t silence…it’s clarity. It’s truth without pretense.

And immediately after warning against hypocritical judgment, Jesus gives the standard we’re supposed to use: fruit.

“You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16, ESV). “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:20, ESV).

That means Jesus expects His people to be able to look at a life and say, “This is consistent with the Spirit,” or “This is not consistent with the Spirit.” But let’s just clear the air on something…we are not called to be obsessed with finding faults in brothers and sisters in Christ! There is the extreme of silence, cover up, and acceptance, but there is also the other extreme of constantly looking for the negative in people under the guise of doing God’s work. Here’s the thing, fruit reveals what’s actually growing at the root. Jesus calls us away from superficial judgment (appearance, status, charisma) and toward true discernment: “What is this life producing?”

So when you lay Matthew 7 beside 1 Corinthians 5, the biblical picture becomes hard to ignore. Jesus forbids the kind of judgment that is proud, shallow, and hypocritical, while Paul forbids the church from turning its moral energy outward toward unbelievers while neglecting holiness inward. Both are saying the same thing: the church is not called to police the world, but it is called to protect the integrity of Christ’s name among those who claim it.

That’s why the biblical response to “you can’t judge me” isn’t, “Actually, I can.” And it’s also not, “You’re right, Christians should never judge.” The biblical response is more honest and more balanced: we don’t judge the world the way we judge the church. We love the world, we serve the world, we preach Christ to the world, and we leave final judgment to God. But inside the church, love doesn’t look like silence. Love looks like truth. Love looks like accountability. Love looks like refusing to let someone destroy themselves while wearing the name of Jesus like a badge.

And if someone wants to claim Jesus and then reaches for “judge not” every time sin gets exposed, they’re not quoting Scripture—they’re hiding behind it. That’s not Christianity; that’s camouflage. And Jesus and John have already answered them….plainly, directly, and without any loopholes.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven….” (Matthew 7:21)

“Whoever says ‘I know him’ but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4, ESV)