--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We shall be judged according to our works…" description: "\"“We shall be judged according to our works – this is why we are exhorted to do good works. The Bible assuredly knows nothing of those qualms about good..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f4d/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_bible_we-shall-be-judged-according-to-our-work_365454.jpg" --- # We shall be judged according to our works – this is why we… ![“We shall be judged according to our works – this is why we are exhorted to do good works. The Bible assuredly knows nothing of those qualms about good works, by which we only try to excuse ourselves and justify our evil works. The Bible never draws the antithesis between faith and good works so…” quote by Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f4d/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_bible_we-shall-be-judged-according-to-our-work_365454.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f4d/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_bible_we-shall-be-judged-according-to-our-work_365454.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f4d/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_bible_we-shall-be-judged-according-to-our-work_365454.jpg) > ““We shall be judged according to our works – this is why we are exhorted to do good works. The Bible assuredly knows nothing of those qualms about good works, by which we only try to excuse ourselves and justify our evil works. The Bible never draws the antithesis between faith and good works so sharply as to maintain that good works undermine faith. No, it is evil works rather than good works which hinder and destroy faith. Grace and active obedience are complementary. There is no faith without good works, and no good works apart from faith.”” [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True faith and good works are interdependent; neither can exist fully without the other, and evil works undermine faith. **In simple terms:** Faith needs deeds, deeds need faith; evil harms both. Key Takeaway Cultivate good works alongside belief. Themes faith works morality grace obedience Mood reflective serious Type theological ethical When to use this quote - church leadership - personal devotion - community service - ethical decision making Key Concepts theology ethical practice spiritual synergy Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance belief and action? - What good works reflect your faith? A Different Perspective Evil actions can erode faith even when good works are present. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Good works](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-works/) [Justification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justification/) ## Related quotes > [“Good works do not make a good man, but a good man does good works; evil works do not make a wicked man, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/good-works-do-not-make-a-good-man-but-a-good-man-does-good-works-evil/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [“If faith is being sure of what we hope for, then being unsure of what we hope for is the antithesis of faith, isn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-batterson/if-faith-is-being-sure-of-what-we-hope-for-then-being-unsure-of-what/) [Mark Batterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-batterson/) > [Faith is an evil precisely because it requires no justification and brooks no argument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/faith-is-an-evil-precisely-because-it-requires-no-justification-and-2/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I love good versus evil. It always works. Even when you look at superhero movies, the action is really cool and all that, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommaso-ciampa/i-love-good-versus-evil-it-always-works-even-when-you-look-at/) [Tommaso Ciampa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommaso-ciampa/) > [“I'd heard a Catholic nun on TV once saying that bearing suffering was the route to grace. I remembered Fluff saying: If there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/i-d-heard-a-catholic-nun-on-tv-once-saying-that-bearing-suffering-was/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [A man who works evil against another works it really against himself, and bad advice is worst for the one who devised it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesiod/a-man-who-works-evil-against-another-works-it-really-against-himself/) [Hesiod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesiod/) > [God Almighty would in no way permit evil in His works were He not so omnipotent and good that even out of evil He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/god-almighty-would-in-no-way-permit-evil-in-his-works-were-he-not-so/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“Faith is an evil precisely because it requires no justification and brooks no argument. Teaching children that unquestioned faith is a virtue primes them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/faith-is-an-evil-precisely-because-it-requires-no-justification-and/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [So we can see we must substitute faith for fear, for fear is only inverted faith; it is faith in evil instead of good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-scovel-shinn/so-we-can-see-we-must-substitute-faith-for-fear-for-fear-is-only/) [Florence Scovel Shinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-scovel-shinn/) > [“Without time as a reference, the mind sits idly by and wanders into the ways of dark imaginings and evil works ~Hecate”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-l-stephens/without-time-as-a-reference-the-mind-sits-idly-by-and-wanders-into/) M.L. Stephens > [The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/the-confession-of-evil-works-is-the-first-beginning-of-good-works/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [To be afraid is to have more faith in evil than in God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-fox/to-be-afraid-is-to-have-more-faith-in-evil-than-in-god/) [Emmet Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-fox/) > [You must learn that if you are a Christian, you will without a doubt experience all kinds of opposition and evil inclinations in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/you-must-learn-that-if-you-are-a-christian-you-will-without-a-doubt/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [The evil works from a bad center both ways. It demoralizes those who practice it and destroys the faith of those who suffer by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-harrison/the-evil-works-from-a-bad-center-both-ways-it-demoralizes-those-who/) [Benjamin Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-harrison/) > [We must substitute fear for faith, for fear is only inverted faith; it is faith in evil instead of good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-scovel-shinn/we-must-substitute-fear-for-faith-for-fear-is-only-inverted-faith-it/) [Florence Scovel Shinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-scovel-shinn/) ## More by Dietrich Bonhoeffer > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Why do Christians sing when they are together? The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [What we shall need is not geniuses, or cynics, or misanthropes, or clever tacticians, but plain, honest, straghtforward men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/what-we-shall-need-is-not-geniuses-or-cynics-or-misanthropes-or/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. 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The only way to overcome our enemy is by loving him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/from-now-on-there-can-be-no-more-wars-of-faith-the-only-way-to/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“The scriptures do not present us with a series of Christian types to be imitated according to choice; they preach to us in every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/the-scriptures-do-not-present-us-with-a-series-of-christian-types-to/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/we-are-not-to-simply-bandage-the-wounds-of-victims-beneath-the-wheels/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) [Explore all 711 Dietrich Bonhoeffer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) ## More Bible quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“God hates Hell. 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Peterson > [“The wife of a junior officer cooped up in a horrible canvas partition in steerage for five months wrote: "I had enjoyed much peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-taylor/the-wife-of-a-junior-officer-cooped-up-in-a-horrible-canvas-partition/) Stephen Taylor > [O Word of God incarnate . . . 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