“…and the hypocrite’s hope shall perish” (Job 8:3b)
If you do a cursory google search for the phrase “I can’t stand hypocrites” you’ll find all kinds of results, from the shocking to the mundane. In fact, I use to say, quite emphatically, “I can’t stand a hypocrite!”
However, I’ve come to appreciate the necessity of those poor souls, and I can now stand hypocrites because of what they reveal.
Andrae Crouch wrote a line in the song “Through It All” that reminds me of the necessity of hypocrites:
So I thank God for the mountains
And I thank Him for the valleys
And I thank Him for the storms He’s brought me through
For if I’d never had a problem
I’d never know God could solve them
I’d never know what faith in His word could do
Albert Barnes’ note on this passage: “That there were hypocrites even in that early age of the world. They are confined to no period, or country, or religious denomination, or profession. There are hypocrites in religion – and so there are in politics, and in business, and in friendship, and in morals. There are pretended friends, and pretended patriots, and pretended lovers of virtue, whose hearts are false and hollow, just as there are pretended friends of religion. Wherever there is genuine coin, it will be likely to be counterfeited; and the fact of a counterfeit is always a tribute to the intrinsic worth of the coin – for who would be at the pains to counterfeit that which is worthless? The fact that there are hypocrites in the church, is an involuntary tribute to the excellency of religion.”
Hypocrisy is actually a compliment to the authenticity of the Christian life. So, in a sense, we should thank God for the hypocrite. They remind us of the value of the true and the faithful.
So, I thank God for the hypocrites, for if I’d never met one then I’d never truly know the value of the authentic in comparison to the fake.
I can stand a hypocrite for that reason…
The Pillar and Ground of Truth 