Matthew 7:4 (LSB)

Passage

Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye?

Nearby Context

Matthew 7:2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with what measure you measure, it will be measured to you.

Matthew 7:3 And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

Matthew 7:4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye?

Matthew 7:5 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 7:6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "brother", "take", "speck", and "behold". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "brother" and "take", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "And why do you look at the..." into verse 5's "You hypocrite first take the log out...", so "brother" and "take" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "brother" and "take" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.