47 Bible Verses about Criticism, against believers

Meanwhile, Jacob had pitched his tent on the mountain, where Laban had caught up with him. Laban and his relatives encamped on that same mountain in the hill country of Gilead, too. Then Laban asked Jacob, "What did you do? You deceived me, carried off my daughters like you would war captives, ran away from me secretly, and stole from me by not keeping me informed. Otherwise, I could have sent you off with a party and singing, accompanied by a band playing tambourines and harps. read more.
As it is, you didn't even allow me to kiss my grandchildren and daughters goodbye! You've acted foolishly. It's actually in my power to do some serious evil to you, but last night the God of your father told me, "Be careful what you say to Jacob whether good or evil.' Now, you can go if you must go, because you certainly are longing to go to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?"

But the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife. Pharaoh summoned Abram and asked, "What have you done to me! Why didn't you tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, "She is my sister,' so that I took her as a wife for myself? Now, here is your wife! Take her and get out!"read more.
So Pharaoh assigned men to Abram, and they escorted him, his wife, and all that he had out of the country.

Then Sarai told Abram, "My suffering is your fault! I gave you my servant so you could have sex with her, and when she discovered that she was pregnant, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between you and me!"

Then Abimelech called Abraham and asked him, "What have you done to us? How have I sinned against you, that you have brought such great sin against me and my kingdom? You've done things to me that ought not to have been done." Abimelech also asked Abraham, "What could you have been thinking when you did this?"

Rachel noticed that she was not bearing children for Jacob, so because she envied her sister Leah, she told Jacob, "If you don't give me sons, I'm going to die!" That made Jacob angry with Rachel, so he asked her, "Can I take God's place, who has not allowed you to conceive?"

But the people were thirsty there for water, so they complained against Moses: "Why did you bring us up from Egypt to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?"

Years later, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people, and took notice of their heavy burdens. He saw an Egyptian beating up a Hebrew, one of his own people. Looking around and seeing no one else, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. Going out the next day, Moses noticed two Hebrew men fighting right in front of him. He told the one who was at fault, "Why did you strike your companion?"read more.
The man replied, "Who appointed you to be an official judge over us? Are you planning to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?" Then Moses became terrified and told himself, "Certainly this event has become known!"

The Israeli supervisors realized they were in trouble when he said, "You won't reduce each day's quota of bricks!" As they left Pharaoh's presence, they met Moses and Aaron standing there. The supervisors told them, "May the LORD look on you and judge you! You have made us repulsive to Pharaoh and his servants. You have put a sword in their hands to kill us."

They also told Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you took us out to die in the desert? What have you done to us, by bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not what we told you in Egypt, when we said, "Leave us alone!' and "Let us serve the Egyptians!'? Indeed, it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"

Then the people complained against Moses: "What are we to drink?"

The whole congregation of the Israelis complained against Moses and Aaron in the desert.

Miriam and Aaron rebelled against Moses on account of the Cushite woman that he had married. They asked, "Has the LORD spoken only through Moses? Hasn't he also spoken through us?" But the LORD heard it.

Now Izhar's son Korah, the grandson of Kohath, a descendant of Levi, along with Eliab's sons Dathan and Abiram, and Peleth's son On, a descendant of Reuben, took charge of a rebellion against Moses, along with 250 community leaders, Israelis who were famous men and representatives from the assembly. They gathered together against Moses and Aaron and told them, "You have appropriated too much for yourselves from the entire congregation, since all of them are holy, and the LORD is among them, too. Why do you exalt yourselves over the LORD's assembly?"

Eliab his oldest brother heard him talking to the men. Eliab was angry with David and said, "Why did you come down here? And who did you leave those few sheep with in the wilderness? I know your insolence and wicked intentions. You came down just to see the battle!"

As the ark of the LORD was coming into the City of David, Saul's daughter Michal was peering out a window, watching King David jumping and dancing in the LORD's presence, and she despised him in her heart. They brought in the ark of the LORD, set it in place inside the tent that David had erected for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings in the presence of the LORD. After David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of the Heavenly Armies read more.
and distributed to all the people the entire multitude of Israel, including both men and women a cake made of bread, one made of dates, and one made of raisins to each one. Then all the people left, each headed for home. When David returned to bless his household, Saul's daughter Michal came out to meet him and called out, "How the king of Israel honored himself today by undressing himself right in front of his women staff members, just like any pervert would dare to expose himself!" But David replied to Michal, "It was in front of the LORD, who appointed me to replace your father and his entire household by selecting me as Commander-in-Chief over Israel, the people of the LORD, that I danced in front of the LORD. I'm going to act more shamelessly than this, even to humbling myself in my own eyes. Now as to the women staff members about whom you have spoken, they are to hold me in honor!" And Saul's daughter Michal bore no children from that day on until the day she died.

Sometime later, Absalom acquired a chariot equipped with horses and recruited 50 men to accompany him. Then he would get up early, stand near the passageway to the palace gate, and when anyone arrived to file a legal complaint for a hearing before the king, Absalom would call to him and ask, "You're from what city?" If he replied, "Your servant is from one of Israel's tribes," Absalom would respond, "Look, your claims are valid and defensible, but nobody will listen to you on behalf of the king. read more.
Who will appoint me to be a judge in the land? When anyone arrived to file a legal complaint or other cause, he could approach me for justice and I would settle it!"

Then in response, Bildad from Shuah said: "How long will you keep talking like this? How long will you keep talking like a wind storm?

Zophar from Naamath had this to say: "Shouldn't a multitude of words be answered, or a person who talks too much be vindicated? Will your irrational babble silence people, and when you mock them, will you escape without being shamed?read more.
You've said, "My teaching is flawless; I'm clean in God's sight.' "But what if God were to speak? What if he were to talk with you, and disclose his wise secrets? After all, there's so much more to understanding. So be aware that God will exact from you less than your sin deserves."

Then Eliphaz from Teman responded: "Should a wise person respond with knowledge based on wind? Should he fill his stomach with a wind storm from the east? Should he engage in unprofitable argument, or give a speech that benefits no one?read more.
Yet you dispense with fear of God and hinder meditations before God. Because your sin dictates your speech, you have chosen the language of the crafty. Your own mouth is condemning you, not I; your own lips will testify against you."

Indeed, as often as I speak, I cry out, and shout, "Violence and destruction!" For this message from the LORD has caused me constant reproach and derision.

When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab asked him, "Is it really you, you destroyer of Israel?"

Right then, Chenaanah's son Zedekiah approached Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. Then he asked him, "How did the Spirit of the LORD move from me to speak to you?" Micaiah replied, "You'll see how when the day comes that you run away to hide yourself in a closet!" Then the king of Israel ordered, "Take Micaiah and place him in the custody of Amon, the city governor. Hand him over to Joash, the king's son. read more.
Give him this order: "Place him in prison on survival rations of bread and water only until I come back safely.'"

So Amaziah priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel. It said, "Amos has been conspiring against you in the very heart of the house of Israel! The land cannot bear everything he has to say, because Amos is saying this: "By the sword will Jeroboam die, and Israel will surely go into exile far from her homeland.'" So Amaziah kept saying to Amos, "Get out of here, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Live there and prophesy there.

Then he went home. Such a large crowd gathered again that Jesus and his disciples couldn't even eat. When his family heard about it, they went to restrain him, because they kept saying, "He's out of his mind!"

When Jesus' parents saw him, they were shocked. His mother asked him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been worried sick looking for you!"

Now the Jewish Festival of Tents was approaching. So his brothers told him, "You should leave this place and go to Judea, so that your disciples can see the actions that you're doing, since no one acts in secret if he wants to be known publicly. If you're going to do these things, you should reveal yourself to the world!" read more.
Not even his brothers believed in him.

But Jesus was in the back of the boat, asleep on a cushion. So they woke him up and asked him, "Teacher, don't you care that we're going to die?"

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he would have to go to Jerusalem and suffer a great deal because of the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God be merciful to you, Lord! This must never happen to you!" But Jesus turned and told Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an offense to me, because you are not thinking God's thoughts but human thoughts!"

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a great deal and be rejected by the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but after three days he would rise again. He was speaking about this matter quite openly. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, Jesus rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind me, Satan, because you're not thinking God's thoughts, but human thoughts!"

But Martha was worrying about all the things she had to do, so she came to him and asked, "Lord, you do care that my sister has left me to do the work all by myself, don't you? Then tell her to help me."

When many of his disciples heard this, they said, "This is a difficult statement. Who can accept it?" But Jesus, knowing within himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, asked them, "Does this offend you?

Then he came to Simon Peter, who asked him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered him, "You don't realize now what I'm doing, but later on you'll understand." Peter told him, "You must never wash my feet!" Jesus answered him, "Unless I wash you, you cannot be involved with me."read more.
Simon Peter told him, "Lord, not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well!"

While he was having dinner at Matthew's home, many tax collectors and sinners arrived and began eating with Jesus and his disciples. The Pharisees saw this and asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

Later, he was having dinner at Levi's house. Many tax collectors and sinners were also eating with Jesus and his disciples, because there were many who were following him. When the scribes and the Pharisees saw him eating with sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples, "Why does he eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"

Later, Levi gave a large banquet at his home for Jesus. A large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. The Pharisees and their scribes started complaining to Jesus' disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"

At that time, Jesus walked through the grain fields on a Sabbath. His disciples became hungry and began picking heads of grain to eat. When the Pharisees saw this, they told him, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"

Jesus happened to be going through the grain fields on a Sabbath. As they made their way, his disciples began picking the heads of grain. The Pharisees asked him, "Look! Why are they doing what is not lawful on Sabbath days?"

One time Jesus was walking through some grain fields on a Sabbath. His disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. Some of the Pharisees asked, "Why are you doing what isn't lawful on Sabbath days?"

Now all the tax collectors and sinners kept coming to listen to Jesus. But the Pharisees and the scribes kept complaining, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

Then the Jewish leaders began grumbling about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." They kept saying, "This is Jesus, the son of Joseph, isn't it, whose father and mother we know? So how can he say, "I have come down from heaven'?"

Then some of the scribes told themselves, "This fellow is blaspheming!"

Now some scribes were sitting there, arguing among themselves, "Why does this man talk this way? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

The scribes and the Pharisees began to argue among themselves, saying, "Who is this man who is uttering blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

Then the Jewish leaders told him, "Now we really know that you have a demon. Abraham died, and so did the prophets, but you say, "If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.' You aren't greater than our father Abraham, who died, are you? The prophets also died. Who are you making yourself out to be?"

When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, seeing Paul in the Temple, stirred up a large crowd. They grabbed Paul, yelling, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere to turn against our people, the Law, and this place. More than that, he has even brought Greeks into the Temple and desecrated this Holy Place."

While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jewish leaders gathered together, attacked Paul, and brought him before the judge's seat. They said, "This man is persuading people to worship God in ways that are contrary to the Law."

For someone is saying, "His letters are impressive and forceful, but his bodily presence is weak and his speech contemptible."