--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are only two kinds of men…" description: "\"“There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous. Pascal, Pensées”\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/blaise-pascal-167_quote_there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteou_849060.jpg" --- # There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe… ![“There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous. Pascal, Pensées” quote by Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/blaise-pascal-167_quote_there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteou_849060.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/blaise-pascal-167_quote_there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteou_849060.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/blaise-pascal-167_quote_there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteou_849060.jpg) > ““There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous. Pascal, Pensées”” [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often misjudge their moral standing, either overestimating or underestimating themselves. **In simple terms:** Self‑assessment can be flawed. Key Takeaway Seek honest self‑reflection. Themes humility self‑knowledge morality Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal development - spiritual guidance - education - leadership training Key Concepts cognitive bias ethical perception Questions to Reflect On - Do you think you are more righteous or sinful? - How can humility improve decision‑making? A Different Perspective Overconfidence can blind one to growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe Sinners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-sinners-729572/) [Men Righteous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-righteous-729570/) [Pascal Pensées](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pascal-pens-es-729571/) [Righteous Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/righteous-men-443221/) [Sinners Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sinners-believe-729569/) ## Related quotes > [“There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous - Pascal”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteous-men-who-believe-themselves-2/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Il n'y a que deux sortes d'hommes: les uns justes, qui se croient pe cheurs; les autres pe cheurs, qui se croient justes. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/il-n-y-a-que-deux-sortes-d-hommes-les-uns-justes-qui-se-croient-pe/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [There are only two kinds of men: the righteous who think they are sinners and the sinners who think they are righteous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-the-righteous-who-think-they-are/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [We are not without empathetic terror when we open Pascal's 'Pensees' and read, 'I am the great silent spaces between worlds.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/we-are-not-without-empathetic-terror-when-we-open-pascal-s-pensees/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“At Sunday worship, as in every dimension of our existence, many of us pretend to believe we are sinners. Consequently, all we can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/at-sunday-worship-as-in-every-dimension-of-our-existence-many-of-us/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [“Christians must show that misery fits the good for heaven, while happiness prepares the bad for hell; that the wicked get all their good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-g-ingersoll/christians-must-show-that-misery-fits-the-good-for-heaven-while/) [Robert G. Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-g-ingersoll/) > [We are perfect. According to God, we are perfect, yet we know that we are sinners. We believe in the fact that we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-zobrist/we-are-perfect-according-to-god-we-are-perfect-yet-we-know-that-we/) [Ben Zobrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-zobrist/) > [“These people who expect to be saints in heaven, though they were not on Earth, have ignored the wisdom of the founders of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/these-people-who-expect-to-be-saints-in-heaven-though-they-were-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“decent ladies don't cry, because tears are how wicked women make righteous men doubt their convictions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-rocha/decent-ladies-don-t-cry-because-tears-are-how-wicked-women-make/) [Kit Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-rocha/) > [The other part of the true religion is our duty to man. We must love our neighbour as our selves, we must be charitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/the-other-part-of-the-true-religion-is-our-duty-to-man-we-must-love/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [“When EVIL men make bad laws, righteous men disobey them." Pastor Butch Paugh”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarrin-p-lupo/when-evil-men-make-bad-laws-righteous-men-disobey-them-pastor-butch/) [Tarrin P. Lupo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarrin-p-lupo/) > [“The righteous men who eat the residue of the sacrifice are freed from all sin, but the wicked who cook for themselves eat sin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-righteous-men-who-eat-the-residue-of-the-sacrifice-are-freed-from/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“I am as much a villain in my nature as a common thief on the high road,” he said. “Did you not know it?”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-duran/i-am-as-much-a-villain-in-my-nature-as-a-common-thief-on-the-high/) [Meredith Duran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-duran/) > [The world has no idea how much it owes to the presence of righteous men in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-f-bruce/the-world-has-no-idea-how-much-it-owes-to-the-presence-of-righteous/) [F. F. Bruce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-f-bruce/) > [Time is the best preserver of righteous men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pindar/time-is-the-best-preserver-of-righteous-men/) [Pindar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pindar/) ## More by Blaise Pascal > [“Do they think that they have given us great pleasure by telling us that they hold our soul to be no more than wind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/do-they-think-that-they-have-given-us-great-pleasure-by-telling-us/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [There should be in eloquence that which is pleasing and that which is real; but that which is pleasing should itself be real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-should-be-in-eloquence-that-which-is-pleasing-and-that-which-is/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [The method of not erring is sought by all the world. The logicians profess to guide it, the geometricians alone attain it, and apart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-method-of-not-erring-is-sought-by-all-the-world-the-logicians/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [When we read too fast or too slowly, we understand nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/when-we-read-too-fast-or-too-slowly-we-understand-nothing/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Mahomet established a religion by putting his enemies to death; Jesus Christ by commanding his followers to lay down their lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/mahomet-established-a-religion-by-putting-his-enemies-to-death-jesus/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Reflect on death as in Jesus Christ, not as without Jesus Christ. Without Jesus Christ it is dreadful, it is alarming, it is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/reflect-on-death-as-in-jesus-christ-not-as-without-jesus-christ/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [The Stoics say, "Retire within yourselves; it is there you will find your rest." And that is not true. Others say, "Go out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-stoics-say-retire-within-yourselves-it-is-there-you-will-find/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Happiness can be found neither in ourselves nor in external things, but in God and in ourselves as united to him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/happiness-can-be-found-neither-in-ourselves-nor-in-external-things/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Amusement that is excessive and followed only for its own sake, allures and deceives us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/amusement-that-is-excessive-and-followed-only-for-its-own-sake/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Rivers are highways that move on and bear us whither we wish to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/rivers-are-highways-that-move-on-and-bear-us-whither-we-wish-to-go/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [We desire truth, and find within ourselves only uncertainty. We seek happiness, and find only misery and death. We cannot but desire truth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/we-desire-truth-and-find-within-ourselves-only-uncertainty-we-seek/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Vanity is illustrated in the cause and effect of love, as in the case of Cleopatra.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/vanity-is-illustrated-in-the-cause-and-effect-of-love-as-in-the-case/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“There is no denying it; one must admit that there is something astonishing about Christianity. 'It is because you were born in it,' they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-is-no-denying-it-one-must-admit-that-there-is-something/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Imagination is the deceptive part in man, the mistress of error and falsehood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/imagination-is-the-deceptive-part-in-man-the-mistress-of-error-and/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [The majority is the best way, because it is visible, and has strength to make itself obeyed. Yet it is the opinion of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-majority-is-the-best-way-because-it-is-visible-and-has-strength/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) [Explore all 988 Blaise Pascal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) ## More Righteous Men quotes > [Time is the best preserver of righteous men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pindar/time-is-the-best-preserver-of-righteous-men/) [Pindar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pindar/) > [The world has no idea how much it owes to the presence of righteous men in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-f-bruce/the-world-has-no-idea-how-much-it-owes-to-the-presence-of-righteous/) [F. F. Bruce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-f-bruce/) > [“I am as much a villain in my nature as a common thief on the high road,” he said. “Did you not know it?”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-duran/i-am-as-much-a-villain-in-my-nature-as-a-common-thief-on-the-high/) [Meredith Duran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-duran/) > [“The righteous men who eat the residue of the sacrifice are freed from all sin, but the wicked who cook for themselves eat sin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-righteous-men-who-eat-the-residue-of-the-sacrifice-are-freed-from/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“When EVIL men make bad laws, righteous men disobey them." Pastor Butch Paugh”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarrin-p-lupo/when-evil-men-make-bad-laws-righteous-men-disobey-them-pastor-butch/) [Tarrin P. Lupo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarrin-p-lupo/) > [The other part of the true religion is our duty to man. We must love our neighbour as our selves, we must be charitable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/the-other-part-of-the-true-religion-is-our-duty-to-man-we-must-love/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [“There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous - Pascal”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-are-only-two-kinds-of-men-righteous-men-who-believe-themselves-2/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“decent ladies don't cry, because tears are how wicked women make righteous men doubt their convictions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-rocha/decent-ladies-don-t-cry-because-tears-are-how-wicked-women-make/) [Kit Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-rocha/) > [The company of just and righteous men is better than wealth and a rich estate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/the-company-of-just-and-righteous-men-is-better-than-wealth-and-a/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [It is the duty of righteous men to make war on all undeserved privilege, but one must not forget that this is a war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/it-is-the-duty-of-righteous-men-to-make-war-on-all-undeserved/) [Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/) > [“He was so certain it was the right thing to do. And we all know, don’t we, gentlemen, of the deadliness of righteous men?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-brown/he-was-so-certain-it-was-the-right-thing-to-do-and-we-all-know-don-t/) [Dee Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-brown/) [Browse all 12 Righteous Men quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/righteous-men-443221/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There are only two kinds of men: righteous men who believe themselves sinners; the rest, sinners, who believe themselves righteous. 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