separate the sheep from the goats

Idioms  

1. Distinguish between good and bad individuals, or superior and inferior ones. For example, In a civil war where both sides commit atrocities, you can't separate the sheep from the goats. This term refers to Jesus's prophecy in the New Testament (Matthew 25:32) that the sheep (that is, the compassionate) will sit on God's right hand (and find salvation), and the goats (the hard-hearted) will sit on the left (and be sent to damnation).

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Example Sentences

One woman mentioned Jesus’ promise to separate the sheep from the goats on the Last Judgment.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2023

As colleges cut spending - as they must - how they do that will separate the sheep from the goats.

From Washington Times • Jun. 3, 2020

They guarantee every child an elementary education, but at the end of this period they separate the sheep from the goats.

From Time Magazine Archive

To separate the sheep from the goats, Mr. Lovejoy devised the "Lovejoy College Rating Guide."

From Time Magazine Archive

This was an excellent time for Tacon to find a pretext to separate the sheep from the goats, and to put those who seemed likely to oppose him where he thought they belonged.

From The History of Cuba, vol. 2 by Johnson, Willis Fletcher