Bible Verses About Self-Righteousness

A generation--pure in their own eyes, But from their own filth not washed.

A generation--how high are their eyes, Yea, their eyelids are lifted up.

Woe to the wise in their own eyes, And--before their own faces--intelligent!

And I have put judgment for a line, And righteousness for a plummet, And sweep away doth hail the refuge of lies, And the secret hiding-place do waters overflow.

For shorter hath been the bed Than to stretch one's self out in, And the covering hath been narrower Than to wrap one's self up in.

And thou sayest, `To the age I am mistress,' While thou hast not laid these things to thy heart, Thou hast not remembered the latter end of it.

Lo, all ye kindling a fire, girding on sparks, Walk ye in the light of your fire, And in the sparks ye have caused to burn, From my hand hath this been to you, In grief ye lie down!

I declare thy righteousness, and thy works, And they do not profit thee.

And we are as unclean--all of us, And as a garment passing away, all our righteous acts; And we fade as a leaf--all of us. And our iniquities as wind do take us away.

The people who are provoking Me to anger, To My face continually, Sacrificing in gardens, and making perfume on the bricks:

Who are dwelling among sepulchres, And lodge in reserved places, Who are eating flesh of the sow, And a piece of abominable things--their vessels.

Who are saying, `Keep to thyself, come not nigh to me, For I have declared thee unholy.' These are a smoke in Mine anger, A fire burning all the day.

For two evils hath My people done, Me they have forsaken, a fountain of living waters, To hew out for themselves wells--broken wells, That contain not the waters.

But though thou dost wash with nitre, And dost multiply to thyself soap, Marked is thine iniquity before Me, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.

How sayest thou, `I have not been defiled, After the Baalim I have not gone?' See thy way in a valley, know what thou hast done, A swift dromedary winding her ways,

Also in thy skirts hath been found the blood of innocent needy souls, Not by digging have I found them, but upon all these.

And thou sayest, `Because I have been innocent, Surely turned back hath His anger from me?' Lo, I have been judged with thee, Because of thy saying, `I have not sinned.'

Do not trust for yourselves Unto the words of falsehood, saying, The temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah, The temple of Jehovah are they!

How do ye say, We are wise, And the law of Jehovah is with us? Surely, lo, falsely it hath wrought, The false pen of scribes.

Thus said Jehovah: Cursed is the man who doth trust in man, And hath made flesh his arm, And from Jehovah whose heart turneth.

What--dost thou boast thyself in valleys? Flowed hath thy valley, O backsliding daughter, Who is trusting in her treasures: Who doth come in unto me?

Thy terribleness hath lifted thee up, The pride of thy heart, O dweller in clefts of the rock, Holding the high place of the height, For thou makest high as an eagle thy nest, From thence I bring thee down, An affirmation of Jehovah.

`Son of man, the inhabitants of these wastes on the ground of Israel are speaking, saying: Alone hath been Abraham--and he possesseth the land, and we are many--to us hath the land been given for a possession.

Therefore say unto them: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: With the blood ye do eat, And your eyes ye lift up unto your idols, And blood ye shed, and the land ye inherit!

Ye have stood on your sword, Ye have done abomination, Each the wife of his neighbour ye have defiled, And the land ye possess!