30 Bible Verses about Self Deception

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived; neither lewd persons, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor catamites, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor defrauders, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Because you say I am rich, and abound in wealth, and have need of nothing, and know not that you are miserable and pitiable and poor and blind and naked,

But alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you eat up the houses of widows, and for a pretext make long prayers. For this reason, you shall receive the greater condemnation. Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you close the kingdom of heaven in the face of men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you suffer those who are entering, to go in. Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you traverse sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is made, you make him twofold more a child of hell than yourselves.

But alas for you, Pharisees! for you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and pass by the justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, and those you ought not to have left undone. Alas for you, Pharisees! for you love the chief seat in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets. Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like graves that are not seen; and men that walk over them know it not.read more.
And one of the lawyers answered and said to him: Teacher, in saying these things, you reproach us also. He replied: Alas for you, lawyers, also! for you bind upon men burdens hard to be borne, and you yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers, Alas for you! for you build the sepulchers of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. Therefore you attest and approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their sepulchers. For this reason also the Wisdom of God said: I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill, and persecute, that the blood of all the prophets, which has been shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zachariah, who perished between the altar and the temple; yes, I say to you, It shall be required of this generation. Alas for you, lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not go in yourselves, and those who were entering in, you prevented.

They answered him: We are the posterity of Abraham, and have never been in bondage to any one. How say you, You shall be made free? Jesus answered them: Verily, verily I say to you, whoever works sin is the servant of sin.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if any one is a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like a man that looks at his natural face in a mirror: for he looks at himself, and goes away, and immediately forgets what sort of person he is.read more.
But he that looks intently into the perfect law of liberty, and remains constant, being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, he shall be blessed in his deed. If any one among you seems to be religious, and bridles not his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is vain.

Come, now, you that say, Let us go to-day, or to-morrow, into this city, and remain there a year, and trade, and make gain; and yet you know not what will take place to-morrow. For what is your life? Is it not, indeed, a vapor, that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away? Instead of that, you ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.read more.
But now you glory in your boastings: all such glorying is evil.

And he spoke a parable to them, saying: The farm of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. And he reasoned within himself, saying: What shall I do? for I have no place in which I can store my fruits. And he said: This will I do: I will pull down my barns and I will build larger ones; and there I will store ail my produce, and my good things;read more.
and I will say to my soul: Soul, you have many good things laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry. But God said to him: Senseless man, this night shall your soul be required of you; and who shall have the things which you have provided?

Bring forth, therefore, fruit worthy of repentance: and think not to say within yourselves, "We have Abraham for our father; for I say to you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.

Bring forth, therefore, fruits worthy of repentance. And begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham for our father; for I say to you, that God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.

Not every one that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name cast out demons, and in thy name done many mighty works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity.

When once the master of the house has risen, and closed the door, and you begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open for us, and he shall answer and say to you, I know you not, whence you are; then, you will begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. And he shall say, I tell you, I know you not, whence you are; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity.

Then will he say to those on his left hand: Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave me no food; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and you took me not to your houses; naked, and you did not clothe me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit me.read more.
Then they also will answer, and say: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to thee? Then will he answer them, saying: Verily I say to you, Inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me. And these shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

They answered and said to him: Abra ham is our father. Jesus said to them: If you were the children of Abraham, you would do the works of Abraham. But now you seek to kill me, a man that has spoken to you the truth, which I have heard from God; this Abraham did not. You do the works of your father. They said to him: We were not born of lewdness; we have one father, God.read more.
Jesus said to them: If God were your father, you would love me; for I came forth from God and have come hither; nor, indeed, did I come of myself, but he sent me. Why do you not know what I say? Because you can not understand my words. You are of your father, the devil; and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the be ginning, and stood not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks that which is false, he speaks from what is his own; for he is a liar, and the father of it. But because I speak the truth, you believe me not. Which of you convicts me of sin? If I speak the truth, why do you not believe me? He that is of God, hears God's words. For this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.

But if you are named Jew, and rest in the law, and make your boast in God. and know his will, and approve what is excellent, being instructed by the law: if you are also confident that you yourself are a guide for the blind, a light to those who are in darkness,read more.
an instructor of the simple, a teacher of the unlearned, because you have the form of true knowledge in the law; you, then, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? You who say that a man should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? You who make your boast in the law, do you, by transgressing the law, dishonor God? For the name of God is reviled among the Gentiles, on account of you, as it is written. Now, circumcision is indeed profitable, if you keep the law: but, if you transgress the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. If, then, he who is uncircumcised keeps the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? And shall not he whose want of circumcision is owing to his birth, if he keeps the law, condemn you, who, by the literal circumcision, transgress the law? For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh: but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, not in the letter, whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing; but the keeping of the commandments of God is our aim.

Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the concision. For we are the circumcision, who worship God in spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh; though, indeed, I have a ground of confidence in the flesh. If any other thinks he has a ground of confidence in the flesh, I more;read more.
circumcised the eighth day, of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as it respects law, a Pharisee; as it respects zeal, persecuting the church; as it respects righteousness which is by law, blameless. But the things which were gain to me, these I counted loss for Christ.

Let no one deceive himself: if any one among you is considered as wise in this age, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God; for it is written: He takes the wise in their own craftiness. And again: The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.

Peter answered and said to him: Though all shall be offended at thee, yet will I never be offended. Jesus said to him: Verily I say to you, This night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times. Peter said to him: Though it should be necessary for me to die with thee, I will not deny thee. In like manner said all the disciples.

And Jesus said to them: All of you will find in me an occasion for offense this night; for it is written: I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. But after I have risen, I will go before you into Galilee. Peter said to him: Though all should find occasion for offense, yet I will not.read more.
And Jesus said to him: Verily I say to you, this day, during this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times. But he said with the more vehemence: Though it should be necessary for me to die with thee, I would not deny thee. And so said they all.

And he said to him: Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both to prison and to death. He replied: I tell you, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day before you have three times denied that you know me.

Peter said to him: Lord, why can I not follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thee. Jesus answered him: Will you lay down your life for me? Verily, verily I say to you, the cock will not crow till you have denied me three times.

For we do not presume to rank or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves: but they, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves with them selves, have no understanding.

For if any one think himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives himself:

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Verily, I say to you, They have their reward.

And he said to them: You set yourselves forth as righteous before men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men, is detestable in the sight of God.

And he spoke this parable to some, who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and who despised others. Two men went up into the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself: God, I thank thee that I am not as other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.read more.
I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying: God, be merciful to me a sinner. I say to you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For every one that exalts himself, shall be humbled; but he that humbles himself, shall be exalted.

(for, since the creation of the world, his attributes, which are invisible, are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, both his eternal power and divinity,) that they may be without excuse; because, when they knew God, they did not glorify him as God, nor were they thankful; but they became perverse in their reasonings, and their wicked heart was darkened; professing to be wise, they became foolish,read more.
and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image like corruptible man, and birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things.