Having a holier-than-thou attitude means viewing oneself as spiritually superior to others. This phrase comes from the King James Version of Isaiah 65:5, which says “Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou.” A holier-than-thou attitude is characterized by self-righteousness, judgmentalism, pride, and hypocrisy.
Characteristics of a Holier-Than-Thou Attitude
Self-Righteousness
A key characteristic of a holier-than-thou attitude is self-righteousness—the attitude that one is righteous based on their own merits rather than Christ’s righteousness. The self-righteous person trusts in their own goodness and obedience to the law for justification. They see themselves as better than others because of their good works and moral living (Luke 18:9-14). However, Scripture is clear that no one will be declared righteous by observing the law, but only through faith in Christ (Galatians 2:16). Our righteousness is not our own, but is Christ’s righteousness credited to us (Philippians 3:9). Self-righteousness fails to acknowledge that all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23).
Judgmentalism
A holier-than-thou attitude is often accompanied by a judgmental spirit towards others. The Pharisees displayed this in Luke 18:11 when the Pharisee prayed “God, I thank you that I am not like other men.” He went on to judge the sinful tax collector as inferior. A judgmental attitude stems from hypocrisy – judging others for sins you yourself commit (Matthew 7:1-5). Jesus commands us not to judge or condemn others, for we all stand condemned before God apart from His mercy (John 8:7). Only God has the authority to judge the hearts and motives of men.
Pride
Pride is at the heart of a holier-than-thou attitude. Pride leads to an inflated view of oneself and a low view of others. The apostle Paul warns against thinking too highly of ourselves in Romans 12:3. Pride causes us to trust in our own righteousness rather than humility that recognizes our constant need for God’s grace. Jesus strongly warned against pride and self-exaltation. He said “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11). Pride is often what blinds us to our own sins. We must humbly admit our status as forgiven sinners, dependent wholly on God’s mercy.
Hypocrisy
A holier-than-thou attitude often leads to hypocrisy – pretending to live by a higher standard than one actually does. Jesus confronted the Pharisees for their hypocrisy: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence” (Matthew 23:25). They acted holy outwardly through rigorous rule-following, but inwardly harbored evil. The hypocrite judges others for moral failings they themselves practice. True holiness starts on the inside with a clean heart, not external appearance (1 Samuel 16:7).
What Does the Bible Say?
The Bible strongly warns against having a holier-than-thou attitude as it is completely antithetical to the gospel.
Romans 12:3 – “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”
This verse advises humility rather than an inflated view of oneself. Holier-than-thou thinking fails to acknowledge God’s grace in saving us and thinks too highly of our own goodness and spirituality.
Luke 18:9-14 – “He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
This parable demonstrates the stark contrast between the self-righteous pride of the religious Pharisee and the humble repentance of the tax collector. Jesus makes it clear the tax collector’s humility is the proper attitude that leads to justification before God.
1 Corinthians 4:7 – “For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?”
Any good in us is only by God’s grace. There is no basis for pride or boasting of our own righteousness. True holiness recognizes everything we have comes from God.
Matthew 23:27-28 – “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
Jesus rebukes religious hypocrites who have an external veneer of righteousness but inwardly harbor wickedness. True righteousness comes from the inside out, through spiritual rebirth.
James 4:12 – “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?”
We have no right to judge others’ standing before God. Only He knows their hearts and deserves to judge.
Dangers of a Holier-Than-Thou Attitude
Having a holier-than-thou attitude can be spiritually dangerous:
Leads to spiritual pride and blindness to one’s own sin
The Pharisees’ outward rule-keeping led to an inflated view of their own righteousness. This blinded them to their own hidden sins like greed, hypocrisy and self-indulgence. Spiritual pride prevents us from honestly examining our own hearts.
Causes harm to others
When we judge others as morally inferior, it hurts and damages relationships. This contradicts Jesus’ command to love others as ourselves (Mark 12:31). It fails to display the grace and compassion Jesus showed to sinners.
Hinders evangelism
A judgmental, holier-than-thou attitude repels nonbelievers from the gospel. No one wants to open their heart to someone who looks down on them as unrighteous. We must have humility remembering we too were lost sinners before believing (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
Leads to hypocrisy
The higher the perceived moral standard, the harder it is to live up to. Hypocrisy is almost inevitable with holier-than-thou thinking. We end up straining out gnats while swallowing camels as Jesus said of the Pharisees (Matthew 23:24). We major on minor outward sins but tolerate inward sins.
Erodes trust in religious leaders
The many scandals of prominent religious leaders stem from holier-than-thou attitudes that covered hidden sins. This has caused many to become cynical of all religious authority. Humble leadership is key to restoring trust.
Distorts the gospel
Self-righteousness shifts the basis of our justification from Christ’s finished work to our own righteousness. Adding any human works distorts the free offer of salvation through faith alone in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Antidotes to a Holier-Than-Thou Attitude
Thankfully Scripture provides antidotes to holier-than-thou thinking:
Remember we are all sinners
Reflecting on the universal reality of human sinfulness promotes humility rather than superiority. Paul calls himself the “chief” of sinners showing his lack of holier-than-thou thinking (1 Timothy 1:15). We must daily recognize our need for God’s grace.
Focus on inner transformation
Outward rule-following and performance focus tempt us toward self-righteous pride. But we need heart transformation through God’s Spirit (Ezekiel 36:26). Ask God to purify your motives and root out the inward sins feeding self-righteousness.
Measure yourself by God’s standard, not others’
It’s easy to feel superior by comparing ourselves to others. But we all fall infinitely short of God’s perfection. His standard exposes our need for a Savior (Romans 3:20). We must stop using other people’s flaws to ignore our own.
Pursue humility
Scripture repeatedly emphasizes humility as a key virtue and antidote to pride (Proverbs 11:2, James 4:6). Following Christ’s model as a humble servant will change how we view ourselves and others (Philippians 2:3-11).
Extend grace
Remembering how much grace God has given us empowers us to graciously overlook others’ faults. We must show the same patience and mercy toward others that God continually shows us (Colossians 3:13).
Die to self
The holier-than-thou attitude is fueled by obsession with self. But Jesus calls us to die to ourselves and live fully for Him and others (Luke 9:23-24). This destroys self-absorption and pride.
How Should We Respond to Holier-Than-Thou People?
It’s inevitable we will encounter self-righteous, holier-than-thou people as Christians. How should we respond in a Christ-like way?
Avoid retaliation or anger
Our natural response may be to become angry or lash back in defense. But this only perpetuates conflict. As believers we are called to love our enemies, not retaliate (Matthew 5:44).
Respond with grace and gentleness
We can gently point out inconsistencies and hypocrisy using Scripture, but with a humble heart, not self-righteousness. However, we must allow God’s Word to penetrate hearts, not force change.
Set a humble example
Rather than engage in fruitless debate, we can model Christ-like humility, patience and compassion. Our upright lives can convict holier-than-thou critics without a word (1 Peter 2:15).
Confront respectfully
If a spirit of judgmentalism and hypocrisy persists, we may need to respectfully challenge it. Jesus confronted the Pharisees but showed love. The goal is repentance and restoration, not humiliation.
Limit interaction
In extreme cases it may be necessary to limit contact with unrepentant holier-than-thou people as their attitudes can be toxic. Jesus said to remove an unrepentant sinner from fellowship as a last resort to prompt repentance (Matthew 18:15-17).
Pray
Only God can bring conviction and change hearts. Pray for holier-than-thou people to encounter God’s grace. And pray for humility and compassion in yourself. God exalts the humble and resists the proud (James 4:6-10).
Biblical Examples
Several biblical examples illustrate the holier-than-thou attitude:
Pharisees
The Gospels portray the Pharisees obsessively following extra rules they added to Scripture to appear righteous. But inwardly they were full of pride, hypocrisy and judgmentalism. Their holier-than-thou attitudes blinded them to Jesus as Messiah.
Saul (before conversion)
As a zealous Pharisee, Saul mercilessly persecuted Christians thinking he was serving God. But his violence stemmed from self-righteous pride. His dramatic conversion humbled him and changed him into Paul the apostle (Acts 9:1-19).
Simon the Pharisee (Luke 7:36-50)
Simon was appalled when Jesus let a sinful woman anoint his feet. Simon’s self-righteousness made him blind to his own need for forgiveness and unable to love as Jesus did.
Older brother (Luke 15:11-32)
In Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son, the older brother displayed holier-than-thou attitudes in his criticism and refusal to join the father in celebrating his brother’s return. His relationship with his father suffered as a result.
Job’s friends
When Job suffered, his friends were convinced it resulted from sin, as Job seemed too righteous to suffer otherwise. Their holier-than-thou attitudes led them to falsely judge rather than comfort Job.
Conclusion
A holier-than-thou attitude is severely cautioned against in Scripture. It stems from spiritual pride and self-righteousness and leads to hypocrisy and harm. We must remember we are all saved by grace and have no grounds for feeling morally superior. Our model is the perfect humility of Christ who emptied himself to serve. As believers we must clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one another in love (Colossians 3:12-14). This reflects the heart of our gracious God.