“‘They draw near to me with their lips . . . having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof” [Joseph Smith History 1:19; see 2 Timothy 3:5).
What is a Hypocrite?
The accepted modern definition of hypocrisy is claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform; pretense.
Hypocrisy, in simple terms, is when someone pretends to have virtues, moral beliefs, or qualities they don’t possess. It’s essentially acting one way while believing a different way.
It’s easy for critics to accuse church members of being hypocrites because the Lord has given us very high standards. Then President Uchtdorf said: “If you define hypocrite as someone who fails to live up perfectly to what he or she believes, then we are all hypocrites. None of us is quite as Christlike as we know we should be” (“Come, Join with Us,” Ensign, Nov. 2013, 23). Elder Jeffrey Holland added that “every one of us aspires to a more Christlike life than we often succeed in living. If we admit that honestly and are trying to improve, we are not hypocrites; we are human” (“Be Ye Therefore Perfect—Eventually, Nov 2017, Ensign, Nov. 2017, 42).
Ancient Origin
Most scholars believe that the word “hypocrite” originates from the Greek word hypokrites, which originally meant “an actor” or “stage player”. It literally translates to “an interpreter from underneath,” referring to ancient Greek actors who wore masks and spoke from underneath them. Over time, the term evolved to describe someone who pretends to be something they are not, particularly in terms of virtue or morality.
Professor Richard D. Draper wrote a brilliant article which unpacked what a hypocrite was in the time of the Savior and why the Lord so strongly denounced hypocrisy, it went way beyond saying one thing and doing another (See “Scribes, Pharisees, Hypocrites: A Study in Hypókrisis” in “The Disciple as Scholar: Essays on Scripture and the Ancient World in Honor of Richard Lloyd Anderson,” 2000).
Biblical Usage
By the time of Jesus, the Jewish use of hypókrisis had already gained a strong negative meaning. There is no direct Hebrew or Aramaic equivalent for “hypocrite”. However, the Greek word hypókrisis was used by translators in the second and first centuries B.C. to convey the Hebrew idea of moral sin, specifically godlessness. For Greek-speaking Jews, hypókrisis was closely tied to the idea of pollution and profanation, signifying standing opposed to God, i.e., being apostate. The hypokrités was an ungodly man, and hypókrisis identified apostasy as the reason. When Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees “hypocrites,” he was not merely attacking them for feigning goodness, but for polluting His sacred gospel. They genuinely believed they were righteous, trusting in themselves and justifying themselves before men. It represented a stance opposite God, showing an opposition to His will or intent.
Professor Draper explains that the Pharisees’ hypocrisy came from their own interpretations and traditions that went beyond God’s true plan. They created their own rules to judge themselves righteous, but they were acting like apostates. Throughout history, they thought they had a special key to spiritual insight, but they became so obsessed with making their own complicated rules that they forgot the original purpose of the key. This trapped them and led others astray in their own complicated system of rules. They made up their own rules without authority. They had a “form of godliness, but denied the power thereof”.
