Matthew 7:4

Berean Standard Bible

How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye?

--------------------------------

How can you say, "Let me clear your sight,"

When logs in your eye block heaven’s light?

Your zeal to fix blinds you to your sin,

Humble your heart, let grace begin.

The speck you seek to lift from their gaze,

Fades next to beams your pride displays.

First cast out flaws that cloud your view,

Then aid with love, both pure and true.

Seek God’s own truth to cleanse your soul,

His mercy makes the broken whole.

With vision cleared by grace divine,

Guide gently those whose paths align.

------------------------------------

The verse Matthew 7:4, “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?” serves as a continuation of Jesus’ vivid teaching on judgment in the Sermon on the Mount, intensifying the call to self-examination and humility introduced in the preceding verses. Building on the speck-and-log metaphor of Matthew 7:3, this verse sharpens the focus on the hypocrisy of attempting to correct others’ minor faults while ignoring one’s own significant failings. With a rhetorical question, Jesus exposes the absurdity of such a posture and invites believers to a life marked by grace, self-awareness, and dependence on God. To fully understand the depth of this verse, we must explore its context within the Sermon, its theological implications, and its practical application for those seeking to live out the values of God’s kingdom.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus outlines the character of kingdom living, emphasizing a righteousness that flows from a transformed heart rather than external conformity. The teaching on judgment, beginning in Matthew 7:1, addresses the human tendency to criticize others while excusing oneself, a tendency Jesus condemns as hypocritical. The speck-and-log analogy, introduced in verse 3, uses exaggerated imagery to highlight the blindness of focusing on another’s minor fault (the speck) while ignoring one’s own greater sin (the log). Verse 4 takes this further by imagining a scenario where someone actively offers to remove the speck from their brother’s eye, oblivious to the log obstructing their own vision. The rhetorical question—“How can you say?”—is both a rebuke and an invitation, challenging the listener to recognize their own spiritual blindness before attempting to correct others.

The metaphor of the speck and log is deliberately absurd, underscoring the irrationality of hypocritical judgment. A speck, a tiny particle of dust or straw, represents a minor fault, while a log, a massive beam, symbolizes a significant sin or moral failing. The image of someone with a log in their eye offering to perform the delicate task of removing a speck from another’s eye is not only humorous but also tragic, revealing a profound lack of self-awareness. The use of “brother” in the verse is significant, indicating that Jesus is addressing relationships within the community of faith, where mutual care and accountability are expected but must be exercised with humility. The verse sets the stage for Matthew 7:5, where Jesus instructs to first remove the log from one’s own eye before helping another, suggesting that self-examination and repentance are prerequisites for any attempt at correction.

Theologically, Matthew 7:4 points to the universal reality of human sinfulness and the necessity of grace. The log in one’s eye represents not just a single sin but the broader condition of a fallen heart, prone to pride, self-deception, and self-righteousness. Scripture consistently teaches that all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory, and no one can claim moral superiority. By highlighting the log, Jesus reminds his listeners that their own need for repentance is far greater than their impulse to judge others. This aligns with the broader biblical narrative, where God’s grace is the only remedy for human sin. The verse also underscores God’s role as the ultimate judge, who alone sees the heart with clarity. When believers presume to correct others without first addressing their own sins, they act as if they possess God’s insight, a posture that is both prideful and misguided.

For Jesus’ first-century audience, this teaching would have been profoundly convicting. In a religious culture dominated by the Pharisees and scribes, who often judged others based on strict adherence to the Law, Jesus’ words exposed the hypocrisy of their approach. They were quick to condemn those they deemed less righteous—tax collectors, sinners, the poor—while overlooking their own pride and lack of mercy. The speck-and-log imagery would have resonated with an audience familiar with carpentry, making the point both accessible and sharp. It challenged them to rethink their posture toward others, calling for a humility that recognized their own need for God’s grace. At the same time, it offered hope to those who were often judged, affirming that the kingdom of God is a place where mercy prevails and all are invited to come as they are.

In a modern context, Matthew 7:4 is strikingly relevant. Today’s culture is marked by a readiness to criticize, whether through social media, public discourse, or personal interactions. People are quick to point out the specks in others’ eyes—whether political differences, lifestyle choices, or minor moral failings—while ignoring their own logs of pride, bias, or sin. Within the church, this tendency persists, as believers sometimes judge one another over theological disagreements, worship styles, or personal struggles, often without reflecting on their own shortcomings. Jesus’ rhetorical question cuts through this noise, exposing the absurdity of such hypocrisy and calling for a posture of humility. It challenges believers to ask themselves: What logs are blinding me? Is it pride, resentment, or self-righteousness? The Spirit’s conviction invites repentance, urging a return to the grace that saves and transforms.

Practically, this verse calls for a disciplined practice of self-examination before engaging with others’ faults. Believers are urged to seek God’s light on their own hearts, confessing their sins and seeking His forgiveness before offering correction. This aligns with the biblical call to remove the log first, ensuring that any attempt to help another is rooted in humility and love. When correction is necessary—as it sometimes is, for the sake of restoration or the health of the community—it should be approached gently, with an awareness of one’s own vulnerability to sin. This requires prayerful dependence on the Holy Spirit, who reveals truth without crushing and guides without shaming. In daily life, this might mean choosing to listen rather than criticize, seeking to understand before correcting, or offering grace instead of judgment in conversations with family, friends, or coworkers.

The communal implications of this teaching are significant. The use of “brother” in the verse points to the context of the faith community, where mutual accountability is vital but must be exercised with care. The church is called to be a place where believers help one another grow, not by pointing out specks with pride, but by approaching each other with humility and love. This means fostering environments where confession is safe, where correction is offered with the goal of restoration, and where grace binds the community together. Such a community stands as a witness to a world quick to judge, showing that the kingdom of God is a place where humility prevails and mercy transforms. It also challenges believers to extend this humility beyond the church, engaging with a divided society in a way that reflects Christ’s love.

Ultimately, Matthew 7:4 is a call to live in light of the gospel. It reminds believers that their own logs—sins, pride, self-deception—require the transforming grace of Christ before they can help others with their specks. It invites them to trust in God’s justice rather than taking correction into their own hands and to approach others with the mercy they have received. By living out this principle, believers embody the righteousness of the kingdom, pointing others to the God who sees all, forgives all, and transforms all who come to Him in humility. This verse is not just a warning against hypocrisy but a transformative invitation to a life of grace, self-awareness, and love that reflects the heart of the Savior.

--------------------------------

Grace and peace to you, beloved saints, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, whose gospel unveils our hearts and whose grace transforms our lives. I write to you, not with the fleeting wisdom of this age, but with the truth of the Savior, whose words pierce like a double-edged sword, exposing our sin and calling us to humility. My heart is stirred by the Spirit to exhort you with the words of Jesus, spoken in the Sermon on the Mount, where He asks, “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?” This vivid question, sharp with divine insight, confronts our hypocrisy and summons us to a life of self-examination, mercy, and love. May you hear this call and be transformed, that your lives may shine as a testimony to the God who sees all and redeems all through His grace.

Consider, dear brothers and sisters, the piercing clarity of this teaching. With the image of a speck in another’s eye and a log in our own, Jesus lays bare the absurdity of our readiness to correct others while blind to our own failings. The speck, a minor fault, is so easy to spot in our brother, yet the log, a glaring sin, escapes our notice. This is not mere oversight but spiritual blindness, born of pride and self-deception, which tricks us into believing we are fit to judge while our own hearts are clouded by sin. When we offer to remove the speck from another’s eye, we presume a clarity we do not possess, acting as if our vision is unhindered. Yet Jesus, in His mercy, calls us to look within, to see the logs of pride, selfishness, and unconfessed sin that obstruct our sight, before we dare to correct another. This is the gospel at work, humbling us before the cross and inviting us to live as those transformed by grace.

Theologically, this verse reveals the heart of God’s kingdom, where humility is the foundation of righteousness and grace is the currency of relationships. The log in our eye is not just a single sin but the condition of our fallen hearts, prone to self-righteousness and quick to judge. Scripture declares that all have sinned, that none are righteous apart from God’s grace. When we focus on another’s speck, we usurp the role of God, who alone sees the heart with perfect clarity and judges with perfect justice. Yet the God who judges is also the God who saves, sending His Son to bear our logs—our sins, our shame—upon the cross, that we might be cleansed and made new. To live in light of this truth is to approach our brothers and sisters with the humility of one who knows their own need for mercy, extending the same grace that has redeemed us.

For Jesus’ first audience, this teaching would have been a thunderbolt, striking at the heart of a religious culture steeped in judgment. The Pharisees and scribes, with their meticulous adherence to the Law, were quick to point out the specks in others’ eyes—sinners, tax collectors, the poor—while ignoring the logs of pride and hypocrisy in their own hearts. Jesus’ words challenged them to rethink their posture, calling for a humility that recognized their own need for God’s grace. Yet they also offered hope to those who were judged, affirming that the kingdom of God is a place where mercy prevails, where all are invited to come as they are. The imagery of the speck and log, familiar to a people accustomed to carpentry, made the point both accessible and sharp, urging a new way of relating to one another.

In our world today, the relevance of this teaching is undeniable. We live in a culture quick to criticize, where social media amplifies every fault, where pointing out specks—whether in politics, lifestyle, or personal choices—has become a way of life. Even within the church, we are not immune, judging one another over theological nuances, worship preferences, or personal struggles, often without pausing to examine our own hearts. Jesus’ question—“How can you say?”—cuts through this noise, exposing the hypocrisy of our actions. It challenges us to ask: What logs blind us? Is it pride, resentment, or self-righteousness? The Spirit calls us to repentance, urging us to turn from the sin of judgmentalism and to embrace the humility that comes from knowing we are saved only by grace.

Practically, this teaching reshapes how we live in community. Before you offer to remove a speck from your brother’s eye, pause to seek God’s light on your own heart. Pray, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; see if there is any offensive way in me.” Confess your logs—your sins, your blind spots—and seek His forgiveness. This self-examination is not a burden but a gift, freeing you from hypocrisy and enabling you to approach others with grace. When correction is needed—for there are times when truth must be spoken—let it be with gentleness, as one who knows their own weakness. Speak with the goal of restoration, not condemnation, as Paul instructs, bearing one another’s burdens and fulfilling the law of Christ. In daily life, this might mean choosing to listen rather than criticize, seeking to understand before correcting, or offering grace instead of judgment in conversations with family, friends, or coworkers.

The church, beloved, is called to be a community where humility binds us together. Create spaces where people can confess their struggles without fear of condemnation, where correction is offered with love, and where grace prevails. Be a people who model the kingdom’s values, showing the world that there is a better way than pointing out specks—a way of humility, forgiveness, and restoration. This does not mean ignoring sin or abandoning truth, but it means holding fast to both with a heart of love. Your witness is not in your ability to critique but in your reflection of Christ’s grace, drawing others to the One who cleanses logs and specks alike. Let your churches be havens where the judged find acceptance, the broken find healing, and the gospel shines forth.

I am mindful of the challenges you face. Some of you live in communities where criticism is the norm, where pointing out flaws divides families and churches. Others carry the pain of being judged, feeling the sting of rejection or harsh words. Yet take heart, for the God who calls you to see your own logs is the same God who offers you His mercy. Lean into His grace, which covers every fault and heals every wound. Trust that He is at work, even in the hardest situations, bringing redemption where judgment has caused pain. Let your lives be a testimony to the power of the gospel, which transforms hearts, reconciles enemies, and measures all by the standard of Christ’s love.

As I close, my prayer is that you would know the freedom of living with humble hearts, seeing your own logs and extending grace to others. May the Spirit empower you to examine yourselves, to walk in mercy, and to trust in God’s perfect justice. Let your lives proclaim the beauty of the kingdom, where grace abounds, humility reigns, and love transforms. To Him who is able to do far more than we ask or imagine, to the only God our Savior, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, now and forever. Amen.

-----------------------------------

O God of infinite wisdom and boundless grace, whose gaze pierces every heart and whose mercy restores every soul, we come before Your throne in humble adoration, awed by Your holiness and transformed by Your love. You are the One who sees our hidden faults, who knows our deepest need, and who sent Your Son, Jesus Christ, to bear our sins and call us to a life of humility and grace. In His words, You have spoken a truth that convicts and frees us, asking, “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?” In the light of this piercing question, we pour out our souls in prayer, seeking Your Spirit’s guidance to examine our hearts, to walk in humility, and to reflect Your mercy in a world quick to judge.

Forgive us, O Father, for our blindness to our own sins, for the times we have eagerly offered to remove the speck from our brother’s eye while ignoring the log that clouds our own vision. We confess that we have been swift to criticize, quick to point out the faults of others, and slow to see the pride, selfishness, and hypocrisy that obstruct our own hearts. Our judgments have wounded, our words have divided, and our failure to look within has dimmed the light of Your gospel. Cleanse us, we pray, from the sin of hypocrisy that blinds us to our need for Your grace. By Your Spirit, shine Your light upon our souls, revealing the logs that hinder us, that we may repent and be renewed by the blood of Christ, who bore our sins to make us whole.

We praise You, Lord, for Your kingdom, where humility is the path to righteousness and grace is the measure of relationships. You are the God who sent Your Son not to condemn but to save, who humbled Himself to the point of death, that we might be lifted from our sin. Your gospel exposes our logs—our pride, our self-righteousness—and offers the remedy: Your forgiveness, Your transformation, Your love. To see our own logs is to recognize our dependence on You, to know that we are sinners saved only by Your grace, called to extend that same grace to our brothers and sisters. Grant us, by Your mercy, the courage to look within, to confess our faults, and to approach others with the humility of Christ, who welcomed sinners and called them to repentance.

In this moment, we bring before You the brokenness caused by our judgmental hearts—the relationships strained by our criticism, the communities fractured by our pride, the souls wounded by our failure to see our own logs. Teach us to pause before we offer to remove another’s speck, to seek Your light on our own hearts, to confess our sins before we speak of others’ faults. When correction is needed, let it flow from love, guided by Your Spirit, aimed at restoration rather than condemnation. Help us to trust in Your justice, knowing that You alone see all things clearly, that You alone can judge rightly. Free us from the burden of playing judge, that we may live lightly, reflecting Your mercy in every encounter.

We pray for Your church, the body of Christ, called to be a community where humility binds us together and grace prevails. Unite us in the pursuit of Your righteousness, that we may be a people who confess their logs, who support one another in love, and who speak truth with gentleness. Raise up among us those who model the way of Christ, who approach others with humility, who build up rather than tear down. Let our churches be havens where the broken find restoration, where the judged find acceptance, and where the gospel shines forth as a beacon of hope. May our witness draw others to You, the God who sees all, forgives all, and transforms all who come to You in humility.

O Father, we long for the day when Your kingdom will come in fullness, when every log and speck will be removed by Your healing touch, when Your grace will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. Until that day, sustain us by Your Spirit. Fill us with the humility to see our own logs, the grace to extend mercy, and the faith to trust Your perfect judgment. Let our lives proclaim the beauty of Your gospel, showing a world divided by judgment that there is a Savior who reconciles, a God who forgives, and a kingdom where love reigns. We ask all this in the name of Jesus, our Redeemer, who taught us to walk in humility, who bore our sins, and who reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.