50 Bible Verses about Legalism

But Israel, who followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling-stone;

Therefore by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

For as many as are of the works of the law, are under the curse: for it is written, Accursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we may be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering, to go in.

Therefore by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being testified by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ to all, and upon all them that believe; for there is no difference:read more.
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ:

Yes doubtless, and I count all things to be loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them to be dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith:

Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath reason to trust in the flesh, I more: Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; with respect to the law, a Pharisee; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; with respect to the righteousness which is by the law, blameless.

And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint, and anise, and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ye ought to have done, and not to leave the others undone.

For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice: and the knowledge of God more than burnt-offerings.

Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath shown thee, O man, what is good; and what the LORD doth require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

And by chance there came down a certain priest that way; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

But this people who know not the law are cursed.

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen by them: otherwise ye have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Therefore, when thou doest thy alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do, in the synagogues, and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Verily, I say to you, they have their reward.

But all their works they do to be seen by men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called by men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

And he said to them, Ye are they who justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men, is abomination in the sight of God.

For they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God.

Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear towards me is taught by the precept of men:

He answered and said to them, Well hath Isaiah prophesied concerning you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoreth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

But, in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like whitened sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Thus ye also outwardly appear righteous to men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Why then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD? And Saul said to Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the LORD thy God in Gilgal.read more.
And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

But he answered and said to them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honor thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatever thou mightest be profited by me;read more.
And honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, This people draw nigh to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

And he said to them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition, For Moses said, Honor thy father and thy mother; and, Whoever curseth father or mother, let him die the death: But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.read more.
And ye suffer him no more to do aught for his father or his mother; Making the word of God of no effect through your traditions, which ye have delivered: and many such like things ye do.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?

Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not from God, because he keepeth not the sabbath. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.

Then Jesus said to them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

And he charged them saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Then they understood that he did not caution them against the leaven of bread, but against the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain.

Behold, I Paul say to you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect to you, whoever of you are justified by the law; ye have fallen from grace.

Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?

For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

But we believe, that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be saved even as they.

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Accursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? For it is written, that Abraham had two sons; the one by a bond-maid, the other by a free-woman. But he who was of the bond-woman, was born according to the flesh; but he of the free-woman was by promise.read more.
Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she who hath a husband. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born according to the flesh persecuted him that was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless, what saith the scripture? Cast out the bond-woman and her son: for the son of the bond-woman shall not be heir with the son of the free-woman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bond-woman, but of the free.

For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not by works, lest any man should boast.

And the Pharisees said to him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath that which is not lawful?

And certain of the Pharisees said to them, Why do ye that which it is not lawful to do on the sabbath-days?

And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, and said to the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath.

Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean by itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.

I am verily a man who am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, being zealous towards God, as ye all are this day.

Then answered one of the lawyers, and said to him, Master, thus saying, thou reproachest us also.