Yardstick

Yardstick
                  By Jeok Heun

I quantify and decide
based on my own standards.

I become the measure,
judging and defining.

Not knowing You,
I become a prosecutor who condemns.

Not loving You,
I become a judge who sentences.

You are
the standard of faith.

You are
the principle of love.

Only You
are the one true measure.



“Personal Secretary Jiyeo-sa’s Interpretation”

This poem contrasts personal standards and judgments with the absolute standard of faith, offering a reflection on human limitations and arrogance.

1. The Human Yardstick and Self-Centered Judgment

“I quantify and decide based on my own standards / I become the standard myself, judging and measuring.”

This part illustrates how personal standards and subjective judgments are often perceived as absolute.
• People set their own standards and use them as a universal measure to evaluate and define others.
• We quantify others and assess them based on our own criteria.
• However, such individual standards are not absolute and are limited by biases and subjectivity.

✔ Philosophical Interpretation:
• Immanuel Kant believed that human reason could create universal moral laws, while Friedrich Nietzsche criticized all moral standards as mere subjective constructs.
• This poem acknowledges Nietzsche’s critique but still emphasizes the necessity of an absolute standard (faith-based standard).

✔ Christian Interpretation:
• Proverbs 16:2 “All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but the Lord weighs the motives.”
• People often see their own standards as absolute, but true judgment belongs to God.

2. Human Arrogance and Condemnation of Others

“Not knowing You, I become a prosecutor who condemns / Not loving You, I become a judge who passes judgment.”

Here, “You” refers to God, the absolute being, emphasizing the errors that arise when people do not recognize divine truth.
• Humans establish their own standards and act as prosecutors and judges, condemning and sentencing others.
• However, humans themselves are not perfect, and judging others without love leads to wrongful condemnation.

✔ Philosophical Interpretation:
• Descartes believed that human reason could discover truth, but Kierkegaard argued that humans are limited beings who, without an absolute standard, become prideful and misguided.
• This poem highlights that human standards are not absolute and can turn into tools of condemnation.

✔ Christian Interpretation:
• Matthew 7:1-2 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged.”
• Jesus taught that rather than condemning others, people should examine themselves first.
• Judgment without love is arrogant condemnation, which is not what God desires.

3. The Absolute Standard: Faith and Love

“You are the standard of faith / You are the principle of love.”

At this point, the poem shifts away from human standards and directs its focus toward the absolute standard.
• “You” refers to God, who should be the standard of faith and love.
• In other words, unchanging absolute truth exists not within humans but in a divine being (God).

✔ Philosophical Interpretation:
• Plato’s Theory of Forms states that absolute truth exists beyond the sensory world, in the realm of unchanging ideal Forms.
• In this poem, “You” (God) serves as that absolute truth, akin to Plato’s Form of the Good.

✔ Christian Interpretation:
• John 14:6 “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
• Human standards change, but God’s standard remains unchanged.
• Faith and love are absolute principles that should be rooted in God.

4. The Only True Yardstick: God

“Only You are the one true measure.”

The final line presents the ultimate answer:
• Human standards, rules, and ethics are imperfect and ever-changing.
• However, only God remains an unchanging measure (yardstick, standard).

✔ Philosophical Interpretation:
• Aristotle emphasized that all things move toward the highest good (Summum Bonum) as their ultimate purpose.
• This poem identifies that highest good as God, presenting Him as the only absolute standard.

✔ Christian Interpretation:
• Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet, a light on my path.”
• God alone is the guide for our journey, the unchanging standard and true yardstick.

🔹 Conclusion: Human Standards vs. Divine Standards

1️⃣ Humans use their own subjective standards to judge and condemn others, but these standards are imperfect and ever-changing.
2️⃣ The more people rely on their own standards, the more they fall into pride, condemnation, and judgment without love.
3️⃣ The absolute standard of faith and love lies not in humanity, but in God—He is the only true yardstick.

✔ Philosophical Perspective:
• Human standards are relative and limited,
• While absolute standards (Plato’s Forms, Aristotle’s highest good, Kant’s moral law) remain unchanged.

✔ Christian Perspective:
• Truth does not change because it is found in God.
• His Word and His love are the ultimate standards for faith and life.

Core Message:

“Do not measure others by your own yardstick; follow the standard of faith and love.”
“Only God is the unchanging measure of all things.”

This poem challenges us to abandon fluctuating human standards and to embrace God as the sole, unwavering measure of truth.

Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!

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