I’m not a very religious person, but I’m certainly not a bad person . I’m basically a normal, middle-of-the-road, good person.

By whose standards? Did you know the Hebrew Bible does not even recognize a “not too good and not too bad” class of people? You are either a sinner or you are righteous, a servant of the Lord or a transgressor.

The Talmud recognizes three classes of humanity: the righteous, the wicked, and the average (literally, “between, in the middle,” in Hebrew benoni (pronounced bey-no-nee); see, e.g., b. Rosh Hashanah 16b). The Bible does not recognize this “middle” class.

Look in the Torah: There are blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience, with nothing in between. Look in Psalms: There are righteous people and wicked people, with no middle-of-the-road people. Look in Proverbs: There are fools and there are wise. That’s it! And look in Daniel 12:2: There are those who are raised to everlasting life and those who are raised to everlasting shame, in other words, heaven or hell (1.10–1.11). Where do you fit?

When the flood came in Noah’s day, only eight people were spared. Where were all the middle-of-the-road, basically good people? Throughout the Scriptures, the nonreligious—those who did not take God and his Word seriously—were judged by him as sinners. Why should you be any different?

Unfortunately, we tend to justify ourselves, pronouncing ourselves pretty good in comparison with others. So the thief is pretty good in comparison to the murderer, and the onetime killer is pretty good in comparison to the serial killer.

Once, my wife, Nancy, had to go to court because of a problem with the license plates on her vehicle. We had moved to another state, and we assumed the plates were good for one year after registration, as they had been where we previously lived. We found out that wasn’t the case, even though we never received a notice in the mail. In court, Nancy waited as people were called up on all kinds of charges—including stalking and contempt of court—but most of the violations were for infractions such as DWI (Driving While Intoxicated).

One man stood up and, pleading for leniency, said to the judge, “But sir, I have a good driving record.” The judge replied, “What are you talking about? Look at all these violations,” proceeding to list many driving infractions. “But,” the man said, “I’ve never been arrested for DWI!” Isn’t that the way we are? “I’m not as bad as the next guy,” or, “By my standards—which tend to shift according to convenience—I’m a pretty good person!”

It is with good reason that the Book of Proverbs says, “All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the Lord weighs the heart… . All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord… . There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Prov. 21:2; 16:2; 14:12).

Beware that you do not play the role of judge and jury in the trial of your own life. It’s all too easy to acquit yourself, whereas the Lord might pronounce you guilty. How do you think he would rate you as a Jew and as a human being? By what standard? Irreligious Jews are condemned by their neglect of the law; religious Jews are aware of their shortcomings and sins. You had better make sure you know how to receive forgiveness of sins and how to live a life that the Lord Almighty accepts. This is nothing to take lightly.

Many years ago, Billy Graham appeared on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. As the two of them talked, Carson said, somewhat apologetically, “You know, I can’t even quote all of the Ten Commandments.” Dr. Graham gently but firmly replied, “Yes, but you have broken all of them.” Does this apply to you?

Brown, M. L. (2000). Answering Jewish objections to Jesus, Volume 1: General and historical objections. (55). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Books.

I’m not a very religious person, but I’m certainly not a bad person . I’m basically a normal, middle-of-the-road, good person.