Proverbs 16:2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weighs the spirits. 

‘All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weighs the spirits.’ A self-righteous person may see his own ways as pure, but the Lord examines the heart and weighs the true motives of the spirit. As Jeremiah 17:9 declares, the human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, a sobering truth about our natural condition. The very next verse, Jeremiah 17:10, reminds us that the LORD searches the heart and tests the inner motives, rewarding each individual according to their deeds and behaviour.

‘Clean in his own eyes.’ Many consider themselves righteous in their own eyes, but God sees beyond appearances. Here are three biblical examples of such self-deception: Jehu, who boasted of his zeal but did not fully follow the Lord (2Kin. 10:16, 31). The Pharisee, who trusted in his own righteousness and looked down on others (Luke 18:11-14). Paul, before his conversion, was convinced he was serving God, even while persecuting Christians (Acts 26:9; com. Pro. 9:4).

True righteousness begins not with self-justification, but with humility, repentance, and a heart fully surrendered to God.