Justin Bieber Did Not ‘Compare Himself To God,’ Gossip Sites Soar To Whole New Level Of Reach

Justin Bieber did not compare himself to God, as several clickbait-chasing gossip websites claimed after the young superstar referenced scripture in an Instagram he posted.

The 22-year-old, who is a Christian, subsequently took those sites to task in frustrated-toned posts on Instagram. He also edited his original, innocuous caption.

Justin shared the pic (shown below) on Thursday morning. The selfie shows the singer lying in bed with his puppy Esther.

The heartthrob’s caption originally read, “And on the 7th day.”

Harmless, right? The Biebs often quotes bible scripture on Instagram. This particular text comes from Genesis 2:2.

“And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.”

To many reasonable observers, Bieber’s snap and caption — and the context that he is currently moving through his 114-date Purpose World Tour — was a simple enough post by a guy looking forward to getting some rest, not a sign that he was comparing himself to God.

On a more serious note, the singer has repeatedly said in numerous magazine interviews that he feels he needs God and feels lost without his Christian faith. In his February GQ magazine cover story, Justin said. “I feel like that’s why I have a relationship with Him, because I need it. I suck by myself.”

But, by far the simplest point came from Gossip Cop, who noted that nowhere in Bieber’s caption, “And on the 7th day,” did he remotely compare himself to God.

Gossip Cop wrote, “The singer merely quoted a Bible verse that explains why most people opt to rest one day of the week. Surely not everyone who observes that principle is comparing his or herself to God?”

Despite the logic of all the above, a slew of U.K. tabloids — the Daily Mail, Daily Star, The Mirror, and blogs such as the Hollywood Gossip, Perez Hilton, Hollywood Life, and more — churned out spiteful articles boldly assuming that Bieber was comparing himself to God.

The Daily Mail’s headline trumpeted, “And on the 7th day…’ Justin Bieber compares himself to God as he posts a shirtless snap in bed.” Meanwhile, Perez Hilton slammed with, “Justin Bieber Compares Himself To God — Watch Out Kanye West.”

And so on. Shortly after these gossip stories went to press on Thursday, the “Sorry” singer took to Instagram to call out the outlets. He also edited his first post to add an evidently incredulous response to the media reports.

“And on the 7th day….. AND MY GOODNESS I WAS MAKING A REFERENCE,” Bieber blasted. “I AM NOT COMPARING MYSELF TO GOD IM THE FARTHEST THING FROM!!!!”

The singer continued, “IT WAS MY WAY OF SAYING HOW IMPORTANT REST IS…WHEN THERE IS NOTHING TO PICK AT ME FOR YOU MAKE SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING — BUT I GET IT YOU NEED RATINGS AND TRACTION [FOR] YOUR BLOGS. But if truthfully if you were offended it was in no way shape or form me comparing myself to the most high.”

Doubling down, he reposted his clap back in its own separate post.

Not done, Bieber shared a third post with screen shots of the Daily Mail and Perez Hilton’s headlines.

Alongside these he wrote, “Would love to talk about this because it’s another moment to point to God,” before adding, “When I said on the 7th day it was a reference to say that on the 7th day he rested giving us a template and example letting us know how important rest is.”

The singer went on, “People love to twist what was meant for good and maybe it was my fault by not explaining my thought correctly. You can think the worst about me but never ever want people to think I compare myself to The MOST HIGH.”

The Inquisitr has previously reported on the self-serving and often-dishonest state of much of the entertainment media’s coverage of Bieber and certain other celebrities or stars. It is no stretch to speculate that not one of the writers (or reporters) peddling this current claim actually believed Bieber was comparing himself to a divinity just because he cited the bible.

Put simply: The aim of those gossip stories was to reel in website traffic (online), readers (press), or viewers (TV), usually by using the tactic of over-the-top, sensationalized and typically snarky headlines. As a result, accuracy isn’t a priority.

This isn’t going to change. If anything, the rot is on the increase. Unsolicited advice to Bieber and other celebrities caught in the rumormill’s vice grip who use social media?

Take a leaf out of Beyonce’s Instagram playbook and either post minimal, factual, or no captions at all. And if long captions are unavoidable, imagine your audience are simpletons. Always make it clear who you are talking to, and when using references, say they are references and not comparisons. In short: leave zero leeway for those only to eager to misinterpret.

[Images via Instagram]