Who Are You to Judge?

“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” (James 4:11-12)

James 4:11-12

One paraphrase of verse 11 puts it this way, “Don’t bad-mouth each other, friends.”[1] This is the sense of what James is getting at. The Legacy Standard Bible states, “Do not slander one another, brothers.” Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary defines slander as, “The utterance of false charges or misrepresentations which defame and damage another’s reputation. [Or] a false and defamatory oral statement about a person.” The word James uses can mean slander or any way of speaking ill of another person.
 
We live in a course age where everyone is looking for a “gotcha” moment. A person misspeaks or is inarticulate and immediately there are people there to jump on the person and amplify what was said, often taking the words out of context. We often think the worst of people we disagree with, so we are quick to believe the spin that is put on the quote even if it was not what the person meant. (Now that we have a new President, I am sure this will stop happening.)
 
A lot of the attitudes and behaviors in the world have spilled over into the church. We often look for ways to interpret or read a person’s words to paint them in the worst light possible. We are quick to believe the worst in others and freely share the things we have heard whether first or second-hand. The Bible is clear that it is wrong to falsely talk about others. One of the 10 commandments says, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”[2] We have to be careful what we say about others because we could falsely accuse someone of something that he did not do or say.
 
What if what we are saying about someone else is true? What if we heard it ourselves and it is irrefutable, is it okay for us to share? We need to be nuanced in how we answer this. First, I would ask, “Why do you think it is necessary or important for you to be sharing this about someone else?”[3] Just because we can say something, that doesn’t mean we should say something. The Bible also tells us that our words should be gracious. Does what we are saying give grace to those who hear?[4]
 
One helpful comment I heard at a Peacemakers training meeting is, “If the person you are talking to is not a part of the problem (that you are trying to fix) or part of the solution (who can give you genuine help), you are gossiping.” In these instances you are likely gossiping regardless of if what you are saying is true or not. Also, Jesus says in Matthew 12:36 that God will judge us for every careless word that comes out of our mouths, so we need to weigh carefully our words. Finally, James warns us here of putting ourselves in the place of God and acting like a judge over others. We are to use wise judgment, but we should not have a condescending or judgmental attitude towards others even if what we are saying is true. Scripture reminds us, “Let your words always be with grace, seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should answer each person.”[5]

[1] The Message. I’m not a big fan of the message, but sometimes he captures the sense of the author. I do not recommend this paraphrase as it has too many of the author’s opinions and biases to be consistently reliable.

[2] Exodus 20:16.

[3] See Ephesians 4:29.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Colossians 4:6.