The judgment seat of Christ, also known as the bema seat of Christ, is the judgment where God judges the works of the Christians. All Christians will give an account of their lives to God. This includes their thoughts, intentions, and actions. This judgment is not for salvation because Christians are not judged for salvation based on their works (Rom. 3:28; 4:5; 5:1; Gal. 2:16, 21). They have escaped that judgment of damnation (Rom. 8:1). Instead, the Judgment Seat of Christ deals with the reward and loss of reward that Christians will receive in heaven.
- Rom. 14:10, “But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.”
- 2 Cor. 5:10, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”
The “judgment seat” is the single word βῆμα bḗma in Greek from where we get the phrase Bema Seat. It occurs 12 times in the New Testament (Matt. 27:19; John 19:13; Acts 7:5; 12:21; 18:12, 16, 17; 25:6, 10, 17; Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10). The NASB uses it when referring to Pilate who was sitting on his judgment seat (Matt. 27:19; John 19:13), the ground (Acts 7:5), Herod on his rostrum (Acts 12:21), the judgment seat before Gallio (Acts 18:12, 16, 17), a tribunal (Acts 25:6), Caesar’s tribunal (Acts 25:10, 17), the judgment seat of God (Rom. 14:10), and the judgment of seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10).
| Great White Throne | Judgment Seat of Christ (Bema Seat) | |
| Who is the Judge? | Christ (John 5:22; Matt. 16:27; 25:31; Acts 10:40–42; Rev. 4:10; 20:11) | Christ (John 5:22; Matt. 16:27; 25:312 Cor. 5:10) |
| Who is judged | Non Believers (Rev. 20:11-15) | Christians (2 Cor. 5:10) |
| Basis of Judgment | Deeds (Rev. 20:12-13) | Deeds (2 Cor. 5:10) |
| Result | Eternal Damnation (Rev. 20:15) | Reward and loss of reward in heaven (Rev. 22:12) |
What is the White Throne Judgment?
The Judgment Seat of Christ is different than the White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11-15), which is the judgment of God upon unbelievers.
Rev. 20:11–15, “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
Judgment to come
When the end comes for the sinful reign of evil forces upon the earth, there will be a resurrection of all people. The sea and Hades will give up their dead (Rev. 20:13). There will be a judgment of all people according to their works (Matt. 16:27; 1 Cor. 3:13; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:12; Rev. 2:23). for the Christian there will be reward and a loss of reward. But they have escaped the judgment of damnation by trusting in Christ. The unbelievers will face the judgment of their works along with their rejection of Christ. The punishment in hell will be eternal. The wickedness of unbelievers will affect their eternal condition in hell.
