49 Bible Verses about Legalism

But Israel, going after a law of righteousness, did not get it. Why? Because they were not searching for it by faith, but by works. They came up against the stone which was in the way;

Because by the works of the law no man is able to have righteousness in his eyes, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.

For all who are of the works of the law are under a curse: because it is said in the Writings, A curse is on everyone who does not keep on doing all the things which are ordered in the book of the law. Now that no man gets righteousness by the law in the eyes of God, is clear; because, The upright will be living by faith.

Being conscious that a man does not get righteousness by the works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ, we had faith in Christ Jesus, so that we might get righteousness by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law: because by the works of the law will no flesh get righteousness.

But a curse is on you, scribes and Pharisees, false ones! because you are shutting the kingdom of heaven against men: for you do not go in yourselves, and those who are going in, you keep back.

Because by the works of the law no man is able to have righteousness in his eyes, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin. But now without the law there is a revelation of the righteousness of God, to which witness is given by the law and the prophets; That is, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ, to all those who have faith; and one man is not different from another,read more.
For all have done wrong and are far from the glory of God; And they may have righteousness put to their credit, freely, by his grace, through the salvation which is in Christ Jesus:

Yes truly, and I am ready to give up all things for the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, which is more than all: for whom I have undergone the loss of all things, and to me they are less than nothing, so that I may have Christ as my reward, And be seen in him, not having my righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Even though I myself might have faith in the flesh: if any other man has reason to have faith in the flesh, I have more: Being given circumcision on the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in relation to the law, a Pharisee: In bitter hate I was cruel to the church; I kept all the righteousness of the law to the last detail.

And I went farther in the Jews' religion than a number of my generation among my countrymen, having a more burning interest in the beliefs handed down from my fathers.

A curse is on you, scribes and Pharisees, false ones! for you make men give a tenth of all sorts of sweet-smelling plants, but you give no thought to the more important things of the law, righteousness, and mercy, and faith; but it is right for you to do these, and not to let the others be undone.

Because my desire is for mercy and not offerings; for the knowledge of God more than for burned offerings.

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of sheep or with ten thousand rivers of oil? am I to give my first child for my wrongdoing, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has made clear to you, O man, what is good; and what is desired from you by the Lord; only doing what is right, and loving mercy, and walking without pride before your God.

[

And by chance a certain priest was going down that way: and when he saw him, he went by on the other side. And in the same way, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, went by on the other side.

But these people who have no knowledge of the law are cursed.

The Pharisee, taking up his position, said to himself these words: God, I give you praise because I am not like other men, who take more than their right, who are evil-doers, who are untrue to their wives, or even like this tax-farmer. Twice in the week I go without food; I give a tenth of all I have.

Take care not to do your good works before men, to be seen by them; or you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. When then you give money to the poor, do not make a noise about it, as the false-hearted men do in the Synagogues and in the streets, so that they may have glory from men. Truly, I say to you, They have their reward.

But all their works they do so as to be seen by men: for they make wide their phylacteries, and the edges of their robes, And the things desired by them are the first places at feasts, and the chief seats in the Synagogues, And words of respect in the market-places, and to be named by men, Teacher.

And he said, You take care to seem right in the eyes of men, but God sees your hearts: and those things which are important in the opinion of men, are evil in the eyes of God.

Because, not having knowledge of God's righteousness, and desiring to give effect to their righteousness, they have not put themselves under the righteousness of God.

And the Lord said, because this people come near to me with their mouths, and give honour to me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and their fear of me is false, a rule given them by the teaching of men;

And he said, Well did Isaiah say of you, you false ones: These people give me honour with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

But their worship is to no purpose, while they give as their teaching the rules of men. For, turning away from the law of God, you keep the rules of men.

A curse is on you, scribes and Pharisees, false ones! for you are like the resting-places of the dead, which are made white, and seem beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men's bones and of all unclean things. Even so you seem to men to be full of righteousness, but inside you are all false and full of wrongdoing.

Why then did you not do the orders of the Lord, but by violently taking their goods did evil in the eyes of the Lord? And Saul said, Truly, I have done the orders of the Lord and have gone the way the Lord sent me; I have taken Agag, the king of Amalek, and have given the Amalekites up to destruction. But the people took some of their goods, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which were put to the curse, to make an offering of them to the Lord your God in Gilgal.read more.
And Samuel said, Has the Lord as much delight in offerings and burned offerings as in the doing of his orders? Truly, to do his pleasure is better than to make offerings, and to give ear to him than the fat of sheep.

And in answer he said to them, Why do you, yourselves, go against the word of God on account of the teaching which has been handed down to you? For God said, Give honour to your father and mother: and, He who says evil of father or mother will be put to death. But you say, If a man says to his father or his mother, That by which you might have had profit from me is given to God;read more.
There is no need for him to give honour to his father. And you have made the word of God without effect because of your teaching. You false ones, well did Isaiah say of you, These people give me honour with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But their worship is to no purpose, while they give as their teaching the rules of men.

And he said to them, Truly you put on one side the law of God, so that you may keep the rules which have been handed down to you. For Moses said, Give honour to your father and mother, and, He who says evil of father or mother, let him have the punishment of death: But you say, If a man says to his father or his mother, That by which you might have had profit from me is Corban, that is to say, Given to God,read more.
You no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother; Making the word of God of no effect by your rule, which you have given: and a number of other such things you do.

A curse is on you, scribes and Pharisees, false ones! for you make clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of violent behaviour and uncontrolled desire. You blind Pharisee, first make clean the inside of the cup and of the plate, so that the outside may become equally clean.

Did not Moses give you the law? Even so, not one of you keeps the law. Why have you a desire to put me to death?

Then some of the Pharisees said, That man has not come from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath. Others said, How is it possible for a sinner to do such signs? So there was a division among them.

And Jesus said to them, Take care to have nothing to do with the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

And he said to them, Take care to be on the watch against the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.

Then they saw that it was not the leaven of bread which he had in mind, but the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

You keep days, and months, and fixed times, and years. I am in fear of you, that I may have been working for you to no purpose.

See, I Paul say to you, that if you undergo circumcision, Christ will be of no use to you. Yes, I give witness again to every man who undergoes circumcision, that he will have to keep all the law. You are cut off from Christ, you who would have righteousness by the law; you are turned away from grace.

Why then are you testing God, by putting on the neck of the disciples a yoke so hard that not even our fathers or we were strong enough for it?

For anyone who keeps all the law, but makes a slip in one point, is judged to have gone against it all.

But we have faith that we will get salvation through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same way as they.

Let there be no thought that I have come to put an end to the law or the prophets. I have not come for destruction, but to make complete.

Christ has made us free from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us: because it is said in the Writings, A curse on everyone who is put to death by hanging on a tree:

Say, you whose desire it is to be under the law, do you not give ear to the law? Because it is in the Writings, that Abraham had two sons, one by the servant-woman, and one by the free woman. Now the son by the servant-woman has his birth after the flesh; but the son by the free woman has his birth through the undertaking of God.read more.
Which things have a secret sense; because these women are the two agreements; one from the mountain of Sinai, giving birth to servants, which is Hagar. Now this Hagar is the mountain Sinai in Arabia, and is the image of the Jerusalem which now is: which is a servant with her children. But the Jerusalem on high is free, which is our mother. For it is in the Writings, You who have never given birth, be glad; give cries of joy, you who have had no birth-pains; for the children of her who has been given up by her husband are more than those of the woman who has a husband. Now we, brothers, as Isaac was, are the children of the undertaking of God. But as in those days he who had birth after the flesh was cruel to him who had birth after the Spirit, even so it is now. What then do the Writings say? Send away the servant-woman and her son; for the son of the servant-woman will not have a part in the heritage with the son of the free woman. So, brothers, we are not children of the servant-woman, but of the free woman.

Because by grace you have salvation through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is given by God: Not by works, so that no man may take glory to himself.

And the Pharisees said to him, Why are they doing what it is not right to do on the Sabbath?

But some of the Pharisees said, Why do you do what it is not right to do on the Sabbath?

And the ruler of the Synagogue was angry because Jesus had made her well on the Sabbath, and he said to the people, There are six days in which men may do work: so come on those days to be made well, and not on the Sabbath.

Who has made us able to be servants of a new agreement; not of the letter, but of the Spirit: for the letter gives death, but the Spirit gives life.

I am conscious of this, and am certain in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself; but for the man in whose opinion it is unclean, for him it is unclean.

I am a Jew of Tarsus in Cilicia by birth, but I had my education in this town at the feet of Gamaliel, being trained in the keeping of every detail of the law of our fathers; given up to the cause of God with all my heart, as you are today.

And one of the teachers of the law, answering, said to him, Master, in saying this, you give a bad name to us as to them.