Therefore let’s not judge one another any more, but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block in his brother’s way, or an occasion for falling. I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Yet if because of food your brother is grieved, you walk no longer in love. Don’t destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. Then don’t let your good be slandered,
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Romans 14:13-16 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Therefore let’s not judge one another any more, but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block in his brother’s way, or an occasion for falling. I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Yet if because of food your brother is grieved, you walk no longer in love. Don’t destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. Then don’t let your good be slandered, for God’s Kingdom is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. For he who serves Christ in these things is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then, let’s follow after things which make for peace, and things by which we may build one another up. Don’t overthrow God’s work for food’s sake. All things indeed are clean, however it is evil for that man who creates a stumbling block by eating. It is good to not eat meat, drink wine, nor do anything by which your brother stumbles, is offended, or is made weak.
Parallel Translations
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Therefore let’s not judge one another any more, but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block in his brother’s way, or an occasion for falling.
I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
Yet if because of food your brother is grieved, you walk no longer in love. Don’t destroy with your food him for whom Christ died.
Then don’t let your good be slandered,
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Let vs not therfore iudge one another eny more. But iudge this rather that no man put a stomblynge blocke or an occasion to faule in his brothers waye.
For I knowe and am full certified in the Lorde Iesus that ther is nothinge comen of it selfe: but vnto him that iudgeth it to be comen: to him is it comen.
If thy brother be greved with thy meate now walkest thou not charitablye. Destroye not him with thy meate for whom Christ dyed.
Cause not youre treasure to be evyll spoken of.
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Let vs not therefore iudge one another any more: but vse your iudgement rather in this, that no man put an occasion to fall, or a stumbling blocke before his brother.
I know, and am perswaded through the Lord Iesus, that there is nothing vncleane of it selfe: but vnto him that iudgeth any thing to be vncleane, to him it is vncleane.
But if thy brother be grieued for the meate, nowe walkest thou not charitably: destroy not him with thy meate, for whome Christ dyed.
Cause not your commoditie to be euill spoken of.
Cross-references (53)
- 2 Corinthians 6:3 (v13) We give no occasion of stumbling in anything, that our service may not be blamed,
- 1 Corinthians 8:9-13 (v13) But be careful that by no means does this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to the weak. For if a man sees you who have knowledge…
- Titus 1:15 (v14) To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience…
- Romans 14:2 (v14) One man has faith to eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables.
- 1 Timothy 4:4 (v14) For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving.
Show all 52 cross-references
- James 4:11 (v13) Don’t speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the…
- Luke 17:2 (v13) It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should cause one…
- 1 Corinthians 8:11-12 (v15) And through your knowledge, he who is weak perishes, the brother for whose sake Christ died. Thus, sinning against the brothers, and…
- Acts 10:14-15 (v14) But Peter said, “Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” A voice came to him again the second time, “What…
- Romans 16:17 (v13) Now I beg you, brothers, look out for those who are causing the divisions and occasions of stumbling, contrary to the doctrine which you…
- 1 Corinthians 8:7 (v14) However, that knowledge isn’t in all men. But some, with consciousness of the idol until now, eat as of a thing sacrificed to an idol, and…
- Isaiah 57:14 (v13) He will say, “Build up, build up, prepare the way! Remove the stumbling-block out of the way of my people.”
- Luke 12:57 (v13) Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right?
- Romans 14:10 (v13) But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of…
- James 2:4 (v13) haven’t you shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?
- Matthew 7:1 (v13) “Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged.
- Acts 11:8-9 (v14) But I said, ‘Not so, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered into my mouth.’ But a voice answered me the second time out of…
- 1 Corinthians 10:29-30 (v16) Conscience, I say, not your own, but the other’s conscience. For why is my liberty judged by another conscience? If I partake with…
- Galatians 5:13 (v15) For you, brothers, were called for freedom. Only don’t use your freedom for gain to the flesh, but through love be servants to one another.
- Philippians 2:2-4 (v15) make my joy full by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind; doing nothing through rivalry or through…
- Revelation 2:14 (v13) But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to throw a stumbling…
- Romans 14:20 (vv14–15) Don’t overthrow God’s work for food’s sake. All things indeed are clean, however it is evil for that man who creates a stumbling block by…
- Matthew 16:23 (v13) But he turned, and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, for you are not setting your mind on the things…
- Matthew 18:7 (v13) “Woe to the world because of occasions of stumbling! For it must be that the occasions come, but woe to that person through whom the…
- Romans 12:17 (v16) Repay no one evil for evil. Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men.
- Romans 14:4 (v13) Who are you who judge another’s servant? To his own lord he stands or falls. Yes, he will be made to stand, for God has power to make him…
- 1 Corinthians 10:32 (v13) Give no occasion for stumbling, whether to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the assembly of God;
- 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 (v15) Love is patient and is kind. Love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its…
- 1 Thessalonians 5:22 (v16) Abstain from every form of evil.
- Acts 10:28 (v14) He said to them, “You yourselves know how it is an unlawful thing for a man who is a Jew to join himself or come to one of another nation,…
- Romans 9:32-33 (v13) Why? Because they didn’t seek it by faith, but as it were by works of the law. They stumbled over the stumbling stone; even as it is…
- Romans 11:9 (v13) David says, “Let their table be made a snare, a trap, a stumbling block, and a retribution to them.
- Romans 15:2 (v15) Let each one of us please his neighbor for that which is good, to be building him up.
- 1 Corinthians 8:1 (v15) Now concerning things sacrificed to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
- 1 Corinthians 8:10 (v14) For if a man sees you who have knowledge sitting in an idol’s temple, won’t his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things…
- 1 Corinthians 11:13 (v13) Judge for yourselves. Is it appropriate that a woman pray to God unveiled?
- 2 Corinthians 5:14 (v13) For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge thus, that one died for all, therefore all died.
- Ephesians 5:2 (v15) Walk in love, even as Christ also loved us and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance.
- Philippians 1:10 (v13) so that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense to the day of Christ,
- 1 Timothy 5:14 (v13) I desire therefore that the younger widows marry, bear children, rule the household, and give no occasion to the adversary for insulting.
- 1 John 2:10 (v13) He who loves his brother remains in the light, and there is no occasion for stumbling in him.
- Leviticus 19:14 (v13) “ ‘You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind; but you shall fear your God. I am Yahweh.
- 2 Samuel 12:14 (v13) However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to Yahweh’s enemies to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you will surely…
- Ezekiel 13:22 (v15) Because with lies you have grieved the heart of the righteous, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he…
- Romans 13:10 (v15) Love doesn’t harm a neighbor. Love therefore is the fulfillment of the law.
- Romans 14:23 (v14) But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because it isn’t of faith; and whatever is not of faith is sin.
- 1 Corinthians 10:25 (v14) Whatever is sold in the butcher shop, eat, asking no question for the sake of conscience,
- 1 Corinthians 13:1 (v15) If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don’t have love, I have become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.
- 2 Corinthians 8:20-21 (v16) We are avoiding this, that any man should blame us concerning this abundance which is administered by us. Having regard for honorable…
- Ezekiel 14:3 (v13) “Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their heart, and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face. Should I…
- 2 Peter 2:1 (v15) But false prophets also arose among the people, as false teachers will also be among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies,…
- 1 John 2:2 (v15) And he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world.
52 distinct cross-references across this passage (53 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (24 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv14–15 14. I know, etc. To anticipate their objection, who…
14. I know, etc. To anticipate their objection, who made such progress in the gospel of Christ as to make no distinction between meats, he first shows what must be thought of meats when viewed in themselves; and then he subjoins how sin is committed in the use of them. He then declares, that no meat is impure to a right and pure conscience, and that there is no hindrance to a pure use of meats, except ignorance and infirmity; for when any imagines an impurity in them, he is not at liberty to use them. But he afterwards adds, that we are not only to regard meats themselves, but also the brethren before whom we eat: for we ought not to view the use of God’s bounty with so much indifference as to disregard love. His words then have the same meaning as though he had said, — “I know that all meats are clean, and therefore I leave to thee the free use of them; I allow thy conscience to be freed from all scruples: in short, I do not simply restrain thee from meats; but laying aside all regard for them, I still wish thee not to neglect thy neighbor.”
By the word common, in this place, he means unclean, and what is taken indiscriminately by the ungodly; and it is opposed to those things which had been especially set apart for the use of the faithful people. He says that he knew, and was fully convinced, that all meats are pure, in order to remove all doubts. He adds, in the Lord Jesus; for by his favor and grace it is, that all the creatures which were accursed in Adam, are blessed to us by the Lord. He intended, however, at the same time, to set the liberty given by Christ in opposition to the bondage of the law, lest they thought that they were bound to observe those rites from which Christ had made them free. By the exception which he has laid down, we learn that there is nothing so pure but what may be contaminated by a corrupt conscience: for it is faith alone and godliness which sanctify all things to us. The unbelieving, being polluted within, defile all things by their very touch. (Titus 1:15.)
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv13–16 After that he hath concluded what is not to…
After that he hath concluded what is not to be done, he showeth what is to be done: to wit, we must take heed that we do not utterly cast down with abusing our liberty, our brother who is not yet strong.
He rebuketh by this way, these malicious judgers of others, which occupy their heads about nothing, but to find fault with their brethren’s life, whereas they should rather bestow their wits upon this, that they do not with their disdainfulness either cast their brethren clean down, or give them some offense.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv13–16 13 Let us not therefore judge one another any…
13 Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.
Ver. 13. Any more] As they formerly had done; being overly sour and supercilious.
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A stumblingblock, or an occasion &c.] A lighter or greater offence to make him go halting to heaven.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Let us not therefore judge one another any more:…
Let us not therefore judge one another any more: q.d. Seeing all must be judged by Christ, let us no more judge one another, but mend this fault for time to come.
But judge this rather: hitherto his counsel was more general, respecting both the strong and the weak. Here he begins, in a more particular manner, to apply himself to the more strong and knowing Christians; counselling them to take heed, lest, by the abuse of their Christian liberty, they should be an offence to them that were weak and more ignorant. He entereth upon this with an elegant transition, making use of the same word in a different sense; for he doth not speak contraries, when he says, judge not, but judge; for the word in the former part of the verse signifies, to condemn and censure; but here, in the following part, to deliberate or consider: q.d. Instead of judging others, let us look upon this as a rule for ourselves, and our own deportment, that we put no stumblingblock, &c.
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That no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way: q.d. Take heed of offending your brethren in any kind; do not, by an unseasonable use of your liberty, either drive them from their Christian profession, or provoke them to imitate you, and so to sin against their consciences. You have a parallel text, 1Co 8:9. There he speaks only of a stumblingblock; here he adds an occasion of falling, or, as it is in the original, a scandal. Though these two words do differ in their etymologies, yet they have one and the same signification. The latter word, as Stephanus observes, is peculiar to Holy Scripture, and seldom, if ever, used in any common author: it signifieth, properly, the bridge in a trap, which, by its falling down, catcheth a creature in a snare, and so occasions its ruin; and from thence it is used to denote any thing which is an occasion to others of stumbling or falling; any thing whereby we so offend another, as that he is hindered from good, drawn into or confirmed in evil. Scandal, or offence, is either passive or active. Passive scandal is, when that which is good is, by reason of man’s corruption, an occasion of fillling to him. So Christ himself, and his doctrine, was a scandal to the Jews: see 1Co 1:23; 1Pe 2:8. Active scandal is, when any thing is done or said which gives occasion of offence to others, when it is an occasion of grief, or of sin to them, Rom 14:15,21. This occasion may be administered, either by evil counsel, Mat 16:23; Rev 2:14; or by evil example, Isa 9:16; Mat 15:14; or by the abuse of Christian liberty in things indifferent, 1Co 8:9.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain On v13 Observe here, 1. How the apostle advises persons to…
Observe here, 1. How the apostle advises persons to be very cautious in the use of their Christian liberty: Put not a stumbling-block, or an occasion of falling, into your brother’s way.
Learn thence, That to use our Christian liberty when it may be an occasion of sin, by laying a stumbling-block before others, although we do not use it with an intent or purpose to make them stumble, is very sinful.
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Observe, 2. The apostle’s final determination concerning those meats which some of the Jews scrupled as unclean, was taken away by our Lord Jesus Christ.
Observe, 3. That although the apostle pronounces that there is no meat unclean in itself, yet notwithstanding this, to him that esteemeth any thing unclean, to him , as to the use of it, it is unclean.
Observe, 4. With what tenderness the apostle directs all Christians to carry themselves towards their weaker brethren, even to the abridging themselves of their lawful liberty in the use of indifferent things, rather than give the weak an occasion of offence. If thy brother be grieved with thy meat, (though no meat be unclean of itself,) yet in eating thou doest amiss, for three reasons:
(1.) Because it is against the laws of charity so to act in things indifferent: If thy brother be grieved, now walkest thou uncharitably.
(2.) Because it is the way to occasion him to sin, and consequently to do what in us lies to bring destruction upon him, for whom Christ died: Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.
(3.) Because eating thus with offence to the weak, causeth Christian liberty, purchased by Christ, to be evil spoken of before the world: Let not then your good be evil spoken of.
The sum of the whole is this, To show how uncharitable, unsafe, and unchristian a thing it is, to make such an undue use of our Christian liberty, as may occasion our weak brother to fall or stumble.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Let us not therefore judge one another more,.... With…
Let us not therefore judge one another more,.... With respect to the observance or non-observance of the laws relating to meats and drinks, and days, and times; the apostle means, that they should not judge rashly, nor anything before the time; they should not censure and judge each other's characters and states, on account of these things, but leave all to the decisive day, to Christ the Judge, and to his bar, before which all must stand:
but judge this rather; or reckon this to be the most proper, fit, and advisable:
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that no man put a stumblingblock or occasion to fall in his brother's way; as in the former part of the advice the apostle seems to have respect more especially to the weak brethren, who were ready to judge and condemn such as neglected the observance of the laws about meats and days, as transgressors, and as wicked persons, that ought not to be in the communion of the church; so in this he seems more principally to have regard to the stronger brethren; who, through their imprudent use of their Christian liberty, offended weaker minds, and were the occasion of their stumbling and falling, which it became them to be careful to prevent; and rather than be a means of anything of this nature, it was much better, as he afterwards observes, neither to eat flesh, nor drink wine, and entirely drop or forego the use of their liberty.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv13–16 But judge this rather - Concerning ourselves. Not to…
But judge this rather - Concerning ourselves. Not to lay a stumblingblock - By moving him to do as thou doest, though against his conscience. Or a scandal - Moving him to hate or judge thee.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Verse 13. Let us not, therefore, judge one another…
Verse 13. Let us not, therefore, judge one another any more] Let us abandon such rash conduct; it is dangerous, it is uncharitable: judgment belongs to the Lord, and he will condemn those only who should not be acquitted.
That no man put a stumbling block] Let both the converted Jew and Gentile consider that they should labour to promote each other's spiritual interests, and not be a means of hindering each other in their Christian course; or of causing them to abandon the Gospel, on which, and not on questions of rites and ceremonies, the salvation of their soul depends.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv13–14 Rom 14:13. Let us not therefore judge one another…
Rom 14:13. Let us not therefore judge one another any more — Seeing that judgment belongs to Christ. “The apostle’s meaning is, Since we are all the servants of Christ, and are to be judged by him at the last day, we ought not to usurp his prerogative, by pronouncing one another profane, or bigoted, or wicked, merely because we differ in opinion about matters, concerning which Christ hath commanded us to judge for ourselves. Nevertheless, notorious wickedness, whether in principle or practice, whereby society is injured,” and God dishonoured, “being a matter subject to no doubt, we ought not only to judge and condemn in our own minds every instance thereof, but should rebuke those sharply who are guilty of it.” But judge this rather — Instead of judging others, let us observe this as an important rule for our conduct; that no man put a stumbling-block — Any cause of stumbling; or an occasion to fall — Into sin; in his brother’s way — Hindering him in his way to heaven: let us do nothing, how indifferent soever it may be in itself, which may tend to prejudice, discourage, or mislead any other Christian; especially let us not, by an unseasonable use of our Christian liberty, induce him to act against his conscience, or with a doubting conscience, or unnecessarily move him to hate or judge us.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Let us not therefore judge ... - Since we…
Let us not therefore judge ... - Since we are to give account of ourselves at the same tribunal; since we must be there on the same “level,” let us not suppose that we have a right here to sit in judgment on our fellow-Christians.
But judge this rather - If disposed to “judge,” let us be employed in a better kind of judging; let us come “to a determination” not to injure the cause of Christ. This is an instance of the happy “turn” which the apostle would give to a discussion. Some people have an irresistible propensity to sit in judgment, to pronounce opinions. Let them make good use of that. It will be well to exercise it on what can do no injury, and which may turn to good account. Instead of forming a judgment about “others,” let the man form a determination about his own conduct.
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That no man ... - A “stumbling-block” literally means anything laid in a man’s path, over which he may fall. In the Scriptures, however, the word is used commonly in a figurative sense to denote anything which shall cause him to “sin,” as sin is often represented by “falling;” see the note at Mat 5:29. And the passage means that we should resolve to act so as not “by any means” to be the occasion of leading our brethren into sin, either by our example, or by a severe and harsh judgment, provoking them to anger, or exciting jealousies, and envyings, and suspicions. No better rule than this could be given to promote peace. If every Christian, instead of judging his brethren severely, would resolve that “he” would so live as to promote peace, and so as not to lead others into sin, it would tend more, perhaps, than any other thing to advance the harmony and purity of the church of Christ.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv14–16 Nothing is unclean itself. Because the law that made…
Nothing is unclean itself. Because the law that made them unclean, is not now binding of itself, yet a man must not act against his conscience, neither must he, when he can avoid it, scandalize or offend the weak: nor cause divisions or dissensions. (Witham)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Let us not therefore judge--"assume the office of judge…
Let us not therefore judge--"assume the office of judge over"
one another; but judge this rather, &c.--a beautiful sort of play upon the word "judge," meaning, "But let this be your judgment, not to put a stumbling-block," &c.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv13–16 13. Judge this rather—Rather than judge each other, let…
13. Judge this rather—Rather than judge each other, let us judge what our own conduct should be toward each other.
Stumbling-block—(See note on Mat_18:7.)
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv13–16 13. judge this rather] The verb “to judge” is…
13. judge this rather] The verb “to judge” is used elsewhere (e.g. Act_20:16,) in the sense of “to decide, to determine.” Here, of course, it is so used with epigrammatic emphasis just after the use of it in the ordinary sense.
that no man put, &c.] Wonderfully does this passage shew the harmony of true Christian independence with Christian unselfishness. The Gospel teaches that man has not merely a right to his opinion; a truth which, taken alone, leads to little save mutual repulsion or indifference. It teaches that he is responsible for his opinion to the Lord; and this leads his Christian neighbour to thoughtful watchfulness lest his own example should lead another astray in this deep matter of forming the opinions for which account must be given.—See 1 Corinthians 8 throughout for illustrations.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv13–16 (13) Judge this rather.—The word “judge” forms the connecting-link…
(13) Judge this rather.—The word “judge” forms the connecting-link between what follows and what has gone before. If any judgment is to be formed at all, let it be rather as a principle to guide our own action, and not in the shape of a criticism upon others. This principle, in the case of those who are themselves liberal and large-minded, should be not to put temptation in the way of their weaker brethren.
Stumblingblock or an occasion to fall.—The same words that occur in Rom_9:33. That translated “occasion to fall,” is the origin of our word “scandal.” It is properly a trap or snare. Both the idea and the word are found in Mat_18:6 (= Mar_9:42), where it is disguised by the translation “offend,” in the sense of “cause to stumble.” The same translation appears frequently elsewhere. One of the special characteristics of Christianity is its tenderness for the weak
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Vers. 13-23. Deference to weak consciences, not condemnation of…
Vers. 13-23. Deference to weak consciences, not condemnation of them.
Having taken his readers up to the judgment-bar of Jesus, the only Lord of the conscience, he now proceeds to show how we are to help weak brethren. It will not be by condemning their scruples, but by following Christ in seeking their salvation. We are to defer to conscience so far as our weaker brother"s spiritual interests are concerned, and surrender meat or wine, if by our total abstinence we can promote his salvation.
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I WE ARE BOUND TO CONSIDER WHETHER OUR MANNER OF LIVING MAY NOT BE A STUMBLING-BLOCK TO OUR WEAK BROTHER. Having taken his readers to Christ"s judgment-bar, he now asks them to examine themselves as to the influence of their mode of living. Is their freedom an offence to the weak? Then in the spirit of the Master, who gave his life to save the weak brother, they ought to surrender their freedom in deference to their scruples. Surely, if Jesus surrendered life for the weak brother, dying to redeem him, we ought to be ready to surrender meat or to surrender wine, if by so doing we can promote our weaker brother"s welfare. Paul"s position was a noble one. He knew that nothing was unclean of itself. He was none of your squeamish and scrupulous individuals. He could eat whatever was set before him; he could drink without the least excess. But he was ready to surrender both meat and wine for the weak brother"s sake. And this is the very spirit of Christ. It is here that we base our temperance reformation; not on partaking being a sin, but being inexpedient in view of the weak brother"s dangers.
II DOUBT AS TO OUR DUTY SHOULD LEAD US TO ABSTAIN RATHER THAN INDULGE UNTIL WE ARE FULLY PERSUADED IN OUR OWN MINDS. The apostle wants every man to be fully persuaded in his own mind as to his course of action. One who is not, one who has no real faith in the course of action he is pursuing, is self condemned. Paul wishes to bring all such to the side of abstinence. Better abstain from meat or drink until such times as the path of duty is clear. Now, there are multitudes that act quite differently. They go on indulging themselves because they have not made up their minds. Now, this is moral indifference, and deserves reprobation.
III THE DEATH OF CHRIST IS THE GREAT MORAL LEVER WITH CONSCIENTIOUS SOULS. The apostle bases his whole plea for the endangered brother on the death of Christ for him. If Christ died for him, we should surely abstain for him. The death of Jesus is thus seen to be the great moral leverage for the world. Into the midst of things indifferent for "the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost the self-sacrifice of our Master enters and compels conscientious souls to make some sacrifices for the sake of the brethren. Their edification becomes our aim, since the things are indifferent. We are not selfishly to assert our liberty, but self-denyingly we are to forego it, and bind ourselves to abstinence for whatever may be a brother"s snare. If we could get such a deference to conscience practised in the Christian Church, society would very soon be regenerated. R.M.E.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv13, 16 Let us not therefore judge one another any more:…
Rom_14:13-15
Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling-block … , in his brothers way.
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Limitations of Christian liberty
It is limited--
I. In its extent; by a tender regard for the weak. Love--
1. Avoids offence.
2. Respects the convictions of others.
3. Denies itself.
II. In its object; the furtherance of the kingdom of God.
1. By guarding against reproach.
2. By esteeming spiritual blessings above all others.
3. By promoting the work of God in others.
III. In its rule of action; faith.
1. Allows only what faith permits.
2. Avoids what faith does not endorse. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
The voluntary limitation of Christian liberty
I. Its extent. It--
1. Avoids offence.
2. Yields its conscious right for the sake of others.
3. Guards against the appearance of evil.
II. Its encouragements.
1. The kingdom of God suffers no disadvantage.
2. The weak brother is spared.
3. Private conviction and action are not sacrificed. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
Things indifferent
I. What things are indifferent? Things--
1. Not forbidden.
2. That have in themselves no moral value.
3. That are clearly ascertained as such by an enlightened conscience.
II. When do they cease to be so?
1. When they become a stumbling-block to others.
2. When they infringe the law of love.
3. When they oppose the work of Christ--when they occasion reproach. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
In guarding against offence we must take care
1. To preserve our personal liberty.
2. Not to violate the law of love. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
Personal responsibility
In the early part of his letter to the Romans the apostle expounds the fundamental doctrines of the Christian religion. In this latter part he applies these doctrines to the problems and duties of daily life. In the Roman Church he is confronted, as ministers of the gospel are confronted even to the present day, with two antagonistic parties, the legal and the spiritual, the conservative and the liberal, or, as he terms them, the weak and the strong. How to reconcile these two parties in the one Christian Church is the problem which engages the attention of him who has the care of all the Churches. A recognition of the Lords authority, a desire to execute the Lords purpose, and a confession of the Lords goodness, characterise both parties. But while there is good on both sides, there are on both sides manifestations of evil. A spirit of uncharitableness is seen in the judgments of both, and to this the apostle directs his teaching as he urges the exhortation, Let us not therefore judge one another any more.
1. The first argument against this habit of uncharitable criticism is found in the truth that judgment belongs unto God, man being incompetent to render it. Why dost thou judge thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of God. The Omniscient alone is competent to judge.
(1) We have not sufficient knowledge of the mind of the Master to determine the standard of action. Who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been His counsellor? My conception is my working standard. It is the Masters commission to me. His word to my brother may be different. We may move in opposite directions and yet both fulfil the purpose of one controlling mind. Let me be assured that my feet are planted on the truth, but let me beware how I deny that my brother stands upon the truth because he does not occupy the same square-foot of ground on which I stand. No man has a monopoly of truth.
(2) Again, we are incompetent to judge because we have not sufficient knowledge of the mind of the fellow-servant to determine the motive with which his action is performed. Let not him that eateth not judge him that eateth; for the Lord hath received him. Ofttimes man can look no farther than the outward appearance. God looketh upon the heart. He weighs the motive. Yet, spite of their incompetence, how free men are to usurp this Divine prerogative of judgment! Without Gods knowledge, without Gods love, they are quick to condemn. Before the bar of God each is responsible for himself alone.
2. In this solemn fact the apostle finds his second argument against the habit of judging others. Each one of us shall give account of himself to God: let us not, therefore, judge one another any more. God does not hold us responsible for our brothers action; but He does hold us responsible for our influence upon him. The large demands of the Divine Judge upon the Christian in relation to his brethren, the apostle now urges especially upon the strong. There is reason in making the application especially to the strong, for in the matters under discussion they alone have freedom of choice. The strong Christian may eat or forbear eating. He may observe the day or not observe the day. The weak, however, in his present moral condition, has no choice. To those who have the larger opportunity the truth is the more broadly applied. But we are not obliged to think that the entire doctrine of the relation of the strong to the weak is set forth in this chapter. Were that the case it might seem as if Paul exalted the weak mans conscience to a place of tyranny. This surely is not his teaching. Truth is supreme. Opinion can never usurp her throne. If the weak brothers opinion is not the truth, his position is open to attack, and in the fuller presentation of the truth it may be necessary to oppose it. Paul himself was constantly leading in such opposition. Not only may the position of the weak brother be attacked; there are times when his scruples have to be disregarded. They may always be disregarded by you when they are opposed to a clear conviction of your duty. Let each man be fully persuaded in his own mind, and he need not, he must not desist out of regard for anothers conscience. But if, after sufficient and candid study, he is fully assured that it is his duty to act, he must act, however his action may grieve his weaker brother. Even in matters which may be termed indifferent, the scruples of the weak brother may deserve to be set aside. Paul himself is our example. To him circumcision is nothing. At one time, on account of the Jews, he circumcises Timothy. At another time, when certain came to spy out the Christians liberty and to bring him into bondage, he refuses to circumcise Titus. To these he gave place in the way of subjection, no, not for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with the Christian disciples. There are, therefore, grounds on which the position of the weak brother may be attacked and his scruples disregarded. Nevertheless, there are grounds on which the position of the weaker brother must be respected, and his scruples receive special regard. If because of meat thy brother is grieved, thou walkest no longer according to love. My act is not right simply because it does not harm me. As a child of God I must look upon the things of others. Christianity is satisfied with no standard but that of love. If this is true Christian doctrine the application in Christian ethics is clear. Justice is conformity to a standard; the Christian standard of life is the loving nature of God. I cannot therefore be just in the Christian sense unless I have love. Not what is good for me alone, nor what is good for my brother alone, but what is best for all, is to determine my action as a child of God. But the law of love is not satisfied with the attainment of anything less than the best good of all. There are many goods. They are of divers values. Freedom in eating and drinking is a good, but this is not the highest good which Christianity has to bestow. For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking; but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. The man who, in his zeal to establish the right to eat and drink, or the right to the free observance to a religious day, cares not how much he disturbs the peace, diminishes the joy, and undermines the righteousness of his brethren, really places the minor above the major, the subordinate above the supreme. In seeking a good, he misses the best good of the kingdom of God. But the strong may say in way of defence: Inasmuch as nothing is unclean of itself, may we not encourage other to imitate us in customs which are not opposed to any law of righteousness? No, says the apostle, not so long as the weak brother considers the thing unclean, or the act unrighteous. The end of Christianity is not right conduct, viewed apart from its motive, but virtuous character. Christianity has not attained its ideal when certain legal decrees have been obeyed, but only when certain moral experiences have been evoked. A merely legal system might be satisfied with formally correct conduct, but a vital religion demands a godly character. The teaching is sharp and decisive. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. Whatsoever is done without consent of the moral nature, whatsoever is done contrary to what one believes to be right, is sin. This is striking doctrine. But does not our best ethics confirm this view? Do we not frequently see the unhappy results of submission to precepts which may be right, and yet are in opposition to the beliefs of the heart? In such submission the man surrenders his freedom, the birthright of moral manhood. He submits to the rule of his fellow-men. In opposition to the teaching of Christ, Call no man master, he yields his sovereignty and lets others lay down the law of his life. Whatsoever is not of faith is of foreign dictation. It is the act of the bondman, not of the freeman. By such conformity the man benumbs his sense of obligation. It is this sense which binds him to the eternal truth. It is like the cable which holds the buoy to its moorings. The sense of obligation is the one assuring evidence that God has not forgotten us. This binds us to the eternal throne. Like the clue which Ariadne gave to Theseus, it leads through devious ways out into the world of light, of life, and of love; it leads to the throne, to the feet, to the heart of God. Lose this thread and the soul is left alone, in wandering mazes lost. Cherish your own sense of obligation; beware how you injure anothers. More fundamentally still, the performance of an act which is contrary to the souls belief, to which the consent of the moral nature is not given, is essentially subordination of the impulse to live for others to the impulse to live for ones self. The teachings of this chapter become intelligible in proportion as we come to understand the end which Christianity seeks to attain. Christianity aims not simply to cause our actions to conform to a certain legal standard, but rather to make us partake of the nature and thus of the blessed experiences of the ever-blessed God. (T. D. Anderson.)
Personal responsibility
The discussion which we reach in this part of the Epistle to the Romans turns not on great and plain matters of righteousness and equity, on which there can be but one opinion. It is not aimed against our judging a wrong to be what it is, for how can we help condemning the violator of law? but it all has reference to daily questions where there is no positive rule for any one but such as grows up in the community and shifts with changing circumstances. The private conscience properly asks, Is this right for me? The social conscience asks, Is this right, all things considered? So the well-trained moral sense of the Christian is broad in its scope and unselfish in its utterances. Practical duties in the New Testament are seen to be the sequence of sublime truths. We see that there could not help being wide differences in temperament and attainments among such converts, and that many serious complications might arise in their attempts to walk according to the new Way of life. It is so everywhere in modern times in the missionary fields. We can see, from our own selves, how strong the temptation would be to take positions upon such matters where there was no, Thus saith the Lord, and where for that very reason men grow pugnaciously sure. First of all we note that while he places himself on the side of the strong and says that nothing is unclean of itself, he does not try to change the feelings of either party for the sake of a dull and heartless uniformity of practice. He does not turn to the weak brother and say to him, Give up your absurd scruples! or belabour him with proofs that he ought to be free from the law. Nor does he say to the strong, You have no right to a freedom upon things not free to others! Give up your liberty for the common good! On the contrary, he tells him to keep his faith as to all these things and have it before God. And for the establishment of this he sets up a great landmark in morals. We are personally accountable for ourselves unto God, and are never called upon to sit in judgment upon others who are the servants of the same God and show the fruits of the Spirit in their lives. Of course we must condemn wickedness wherever we behold it. While we are our brothers keeper and owe him a debt of loving care and sympathetic influence, we are not his overseer, divinely set up to regulate every attitude of his mind and the small details of his conduct. Christian love may degenerate into officiousness. The apostle shows that we ought to cultivate a regard for anothers conscience all the more if it is weak. God is speaking through it. To him that esteemeth a thing to be profane, to him it is profane. By your inconsiderate freedom, he says, you may actually destroy your brother who will stand by your side at the judgment-seat and for whom Christ died. But besides this, love is more than liberty. What is liberty? Does not all turn upon the use we make of liberty and the nature of the thing about which we are free? One observation seems proper at this point as to the use of wine. It is of the Lord that Christian sentiment should favour the weaker side everywhere, but the question may fairly arise whether the strong have any rights or any place for the use of their freedom. The words of Paul are clear that if we have faith that gives us liberty we are to hold it before God and not to create a sin for ourselves because another has found one. In the constant movements towards a better social life more and more attention is given to the poor and the oppressed, to the victims of appetite and of evil in all its forms, and more is asked of every Christian to-day in the way of personal sacrifice than ever before. But the practical guide upon a thousand matters of daily conduct, where we ask, Shall we dance? Shall we play cards? Shall we attend the theatre? Shall we visit and ride on the Lords Day? is found within these great lessons of the apostle. He says, Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. That faith is not the common belief of the Christian, but a regulative principle derived from the Word of God and the practices of His people. For us, then, if serious questions arise, let there be a simple rule. We can abstain. We can be safe. We can place ourselves where no act of ours can by any possibility destroy the delicate bloom of anothers faith, and where we give up a trifle and have a kingdom of peace within! (E. N. Packard.)
Personal rights
Well, is there no other question? Yes, oh yes, there is another question. What is that? It is the great question as to what a man may do with his rights. Paul takes the ground that every man must assert his personal rights. Now the question is, having once shown that I can indulge in such and such pleasures without any harm to me, and with some benefit, shall I go on and indulge in them without any regard to the effect which my indulgence may have on others? Oh no, says Paul. There is no harm in your eating meat dedicated to an idol, but if your brother sees you do it, and, misunderstanding the whole of it, is led conscientiously into wrong, then you do not act wisely or kindly; for you use your right to break down his conscience and his right. There are two principles in regard to rights. The first is to ascertain and vindicate them, and the next is to subject them to the law of love. There are a great many things that I have a right to, till love comes and says, Will you not forbear them for the sake of others? I have a right to eat meat; but for me to do it under circumstances such that my whole household are led to eat it, and they are thrown into a fever, is wrong. For the sake of keeping my children well, I would abstain from eating meat. I have a right to drink wine; but if I found that my drinking wine would lead poorer men to drink whiskey, or the young men around me to drink wine, I would say to myself, Shall I use a right of mine in such a way as to destroy my fellow-men for whom Christ died? That would not be acting wisely nor well. (H. W. Beecher.)
Self-denial for others
A friend told me that he was visiting a lighthouse lately, and said to the keeper, Are you not afraid to live here? it is a dreadful place to be constantly in. No, replied the man, I am not afraid. We never think of ourselves here. Never think of yourselves! How is that? The reply was a good one. We know that we are perfectly safe, and only think of having our lamps burning brightly, and keeping the reflectors clear, so that those in danger may be saved. That is what Christians ought to do. They are safe in a house built on a rock, which cannot be moved by the wildest storm, and in a spirit of holy unselfishness they should let their light gleam across the dark waves of sin, that they who are imperilled may be guided into the harbour of eternal safety. (Sword and Trowel.)
Selfishness
A man is called selfish, not for pursuing his own good, but for neglecting his neighbours. (Abp. Whately.)
The sacredness of man
While from the beginning the kindly affections of mens nature have been largely developed, outside of their own households they have seldom felt themselves under much obligation to men, and outside their acquaintanceship and nation are felt a hundred obligations of aversion. And it is one of the tokens of the Divine inspiration of the truth that Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself has been the declaration of the Divine law from the earliest period. And there is no duty that the Apostle Paul so developed as this. Note--
I. The ground on which he puts men is the ground of their sacredness.
1. Christians are tempted to judge men by standards that are not the highest nor the most Christian.
(1) We are tempted to put value upon men according to their social relationships. A man may be very low in the social scale, and we may be accustomed in measuring him to call him a brute, and worthless, but the man has some other value besides that which consists in his relationship to society.
(2) Nay, a mans economic value may be nil. There are many who do not produce as much as they eat. They are sick or shiftless, and die useless paupers. And we are apt to speak of them with contempt as being the dregs of society.
2. And yet, low as they are, their value may be beyond count.
(1) For every man is Gods creature in a sense that none of the inferior animals are. He is made after the image of God.
(2) More than this, every man is made sacred by what has been done for him. In the old days the colonists were forbidden to manufacture anything for themselves. The privilege of furnishing these things to them was reserved to the Crown. Not only that, but the very timber of the country was sorted out, and wherever a valiant pine or a noble oak, fit for the masts or for the ribs of ships was found, the Broad Arrow was stamped on it. The tree was in no respect different, but when people saw the Broad Arrow they said, That is the kings. Now it is not an arrow, it is a cross that is stamped upon every living soul. For every human being Christ died; and this is made to he the sign and token of the value that is in every man (verse 15).
(3) Again, men are to be greatly respected for their development into immortality. Although there is but very little value in acorns, when they are planted they will become trees; but what they will be when a hundred years have dealt with them no man can tell. And though men, as seeds, are comparatively insignificant, when they shall have been planted again, in a fairer clime and in a better soil, and shall have been under a higher culture, they will then unfold their real and true selves, to which they will not come in their relationship to time and society.
II. It is upon the ground of the value that inheres in men that we must not put any stumbling-block in their way. It is a case in which the highest are to serve the lowest. It is being to men what mothers are to children. What father is there that does not subdue himself to the level of the cradle? Accomplishments, tastes, and liberties are commanded to serve the wants of the little one. We must use our liberty and our strength for men, not them for our strength and liberty.
1. It is right, if a man is worshipping superstitiously, to supplant the superstition by a more rational worship. If I go into a Catholic church, and there stands the font of sacred water by the door, and I perceive one and another dipping their hands in and making the sign of the cross with the utmost reverence, I do not follow their example; I have no need of it; and yet I should abuse my liberty if I were to ridicule the act, or if I were to use my liberty and my intelligence to oppress the consciences of those that were lower and less than I. To a person who performs the act it may seem sacred; and if you cast contempt upon it you may be a violator of what is sacred to him, and therefore you may put a stumbling-block in his way. Idolaters were not treated with disrespect by Christ and His apostles. When Paul stood in the midst of the radiant idols at Athens he never spoke of them in such a way as to wound the feelings of any one who believed in them.
2. It is sometimes said of men, They do not preach all that they believe. They would be fools if they did. You might as well say to the mother who has a medicine chest, Give all the medicine there is in that chest, as to say to a man, Preach all that you believe. A man preaches to build men up. Are you to reproach a man for not putting all the materials for building into every edifice that he constructs? If a man builds of brick he does not think it necessary to exhaust the whole material that the country affords. And a man that teaches is not teaching for the sake of unsettling men. There are those who pile sermon upon sermon the year round, loosening everything, and at last nothing remains. But it is said, They are bold men. Yes; and they may do harm with their boldness. Well, they are honest. Honesty is a good thing; but even that should be handled prudently. It is better that men should have truth than that they should have delusion and falsity; but it is not wise that the change should be made too abruptly. Where a man has on a filthy garment, it is better that he should wear it than that he should go naked. Dont take it from him until you have a better one to put in the place of it.
3. A man has a right, in the employment of his wealth, to have regard for the comfort and refinement of himself and his household. But no man has a right to such a use of wealth as shall be exclusive and selfish. A man has a right to the use of his property, but he must use it charitably. And, on the other hand, those that are poor are not to rail at rich men, but are to act according to the spirit which is contained in the gospel (verses 2, 3).
4. There are very many pleasures which I avoid, not because I have the slightest conscience respecting the things themselves, or because I suppose they would be otherwise than beneficial to me, but because my example should be such as not to mislead, but lead aright, the young men of the community, who, in looking upon what I did, if I indulged in all those things which were harmless to me, might venture on things that I could do safely, and they could not.
5. This should be carried still further. I hold that there is no one thing that is more perilous to young men than the usages of society in the matter of intoxicating drinks. Nevertheless, if I observe that my brother, in a neighbouring church, holds a contrary view, I have no right of disputation over his conscience. I may wish that he could see as I do; I may even attempt to give him the light that I have; but if, after all, in the exercise of his own judgment and discretion, he says, I stand in my liberty before God, I have no right to cast an imputation on him and his liberty. (H. W. Beecher.)
I know … , that there is nothing unclean of itself.
How the same thing may be clean and unclean
I. Nothing is unclean of itself.
1. Every creature of God is good.
2. May be lawfully used.
3. When sanctified by an enlightened conscience.
II. Everything becomes unclean.
1. When abused.
2. When used by him that esteems it unclean. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably.--
The duty of sacrificing private enjoyment for anothers benefit
I. The case supposed. The enjoyment though lawful, is a stumbling-block to another.
II. The apostles decision of it. It is a violation of the law of love, because selfish in itself, injurious in its effect.
III. The consequent duty. Of abstinence, lest you destroy him for whom Christ died, leaving you an example of self-sacrifice. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.--
Christs death, a mans destruction
I. Christ died to save all. He is the propitiation … for the sins of the whole world. His death was a fact in the Divine government in which all are interested, a provision of Divine mercy, like the sun, the air, and the various elements of nature, from which all could derive the same supplies.
II. Though He died to save all, some will be destroyed. The truth has no practical influence on a man unless he studies it, and he may study it or not, rightly or not, the provision does not stream its blessings into a man, irrespective of his choice or efforts. The sun will not give its light to a man unless he open his eyes, nor will the water allay his burning thirst unless he drinks it in. Ye will not come unto Me, etc.
III. This destruction may be effected by a brother. One man can and often does spiritually ruin another by his suggestions, his spirit, his example. Whilst God saves man by man the devil damns man by man. Through man the spiritually restorative and destructive forces of the universe are everlastingly working.
IV. The brother may do this by a trifling thing--meat. By urging thy ceremonial observances thou art likely to ruin him; leave him free to his own conscience. As an invisible atom can destroy animal life, a little sin can damn a soul. (D. Thomas, D.D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain On vv13–16 13. Let us not therefore judge one another. Since…
13. Let us not therefore judge one another. Since God is to judge us all, brethren should not condemn each other for differences of opinion over some untaught question. But judge this rather. Rather condemn severely throwing a stumbling-block in a brother's way. A stumbling-block is anything which might cause a brother to fall.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v16 Rom_14:16. Let not your good be evil spoken of.—Let…
CRITICAL NOTES
Rom_14:16. Let not your good be evil spoken of.—Let not Christian liberty be abused by offence given to the weak.
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Rom_14:17. The kingdom of God.—What commends us to God is not the outward but the inward, only the outward must be in conformity with the inward. Peace, in opposition to discord among brethren; a peaceful and gentle demeanour.
Rom_14:18. Acceptable to God.—The things being required of Him. Approved of men, is profitable to them. Saying of the Rabbins: “He who conscientiously observes the law is acceptable to God and approved of men.”
MAIN HOMILETIC S OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Rom_14:16-18
A new kind of kingdom.—We cannot prevent our good being evil spoken of, for evil men will both think and speak evil. St. Paul himself did not prevent it. Jesus Christ, the best of men, was numbered among the transgressors both in His death and in His life. We cannot hope to escape slaneer, but we must strive so to live that the slanderous tale may be baseless. We must conduct our lives according to the laws of God’s spiritual kingdom, and thus we may move in peace amid the strife of evil torgues. “Let not then your good be evil spoken of: for the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” Here we have a new kind of kingdom set up in the world—new, doubtless, in the apostle’s day. If not new in these times, certainly far different from the kingdoms set up by men. Let us examine and compare the constituent elements of this kingdom. This is a kingdom in which:—
I. Material forces do not reckon.—Take any kingdom of human device and material forces are placed in the ascendant. The kingdom of the state of course depends upon material forces. The commercial kingdom is mainly materialistic. The modern intellectual kingdom is tending in the same direction. What about our moral kingdoms—our kingdoms for social reform? There is a constant appeal for funds; there is a large number of secretaries; there is extensive organisation. He who said the kingdom of God is not meat and drink stood almost alone, and yet he effected the greatest moral and social reformation the world has seen.
II. External pomp does not count.—The modern conception of a kingdom is that of one in which there shall be effective display. This is the day for advertisements. A kingdom without external pomp is not our modern notion. A kingdom without its banquets! A kingdom without either meats or drinks does not suit an earthborn and earthbound nature. Complexity and not simplicity is too much the modern idea of a kingdom, whether commercial, social, or ecclesiastical.
III. Vague yearnings are not sufficient.—George Eliot says: “Justice is like the kingdom of God: it is not without us as a fact; it is within us as a great yearning.” The reputation of George Eliot is such that to say the sentence looks to us meaningless might be to provoke the smile of contempt. Is then justice a yearning? Is the just man one who has a yearning after an abstraction defined as justice? Suppose justice to mean rectitude in dealing—would it satisfy any one if a man pleased himself with wronging his neighbour and indulging in yearnings after justice? Whatever may be said of the definition of justice, we are quite sure that the definition of God’s kingdom is not correct. The kingdom of God is both within us and without us. It is within us as a sanctifying force, making us righteous, producing peace, inspiring joy; it is without us, for it is seen in righteous conduct, in holy lives. It is not enough to yearn after righteousness. Vapid sentimentalism is not adequate. We must strive after righteousness. Christ’s righteousness must be both imputed and imparted. Great yearnings tell of the dignity of human nature; but great yearnings, earnest desires, without corresponding efforts tell of human littleness.
IV. The territory cannot be measured.—“The kingdom of God is not meat and drink.” Viewed from the standpoint of the political economist, it is a non-productive realm, and the members are supposed to be non-producers, and therefore not valuable as citizens of earth. But the members of this kingdom do always increase the material wealth of any kingdom. They own no lands, it may be, but all lands are better for their presence. The political economist has not the word “righteousness” in his vocabulary, but he shows how much is lost to the community by the dishonesty of men, by the need of overlookers, etc., so that the righteous man is indirectly a producer of material wealth. The territory of this kingdom cannot be measured. It is unseen, but extensive.
V. The possessions cannot be either weighed or calculated.—They are of little account at the bank; and yet how much gold many a man would give for peace of mind, for joy in the Holy Ghost, if he only understood the priceless nature of the blessing! The small footrules of time cannot be applied to the righteousness of God. We can measure the great mountains on the surface of our planet, but the great mountain of God’s righteousness is of infinite height. The righteousness also of the true member of God’s kingdom rises high above scales of human measurement. The scales of time can be so adjusted as to be sensitive to the slightest air motion, but they cannot weigh righteousness, peace, and joy. Blessed possessions above all price! More to be valued than fine gold! Better far than rubies or diamonds!
I. This is a kingdom in which all the subjects are kings.—They are kingly, not by their first but. their second birth. They are kingly, not in outward seeming always, but in inward worth and nobility of character. They are kingly, not in knowing earthly love, but in knowing the love of heaven. They are kingly, not in being able at state etiquette, able in court graces, able in senate or in war, but as being able in heaven’s graces, in overcoming the great enemies of humanity, in loving and serving the eternal Righteousness.
II. This is an ecclesiastical kingdom in which all are priests.—No sphere for priestly ambition, for priestly assumptions, for sacerdotal claims, in this realm, for all the members of this kingdom are priests. They offer themselves living sacrifices; they wear the splendid vestments of righteousness. There floats around them the sacred incense of peace. They walk through earth’s aisles chanting hymns of praise, for the joy of the Holy Ghost inspires and gladdens their nature.
III. This is a kingdom in which all are successful.—No blanks in this kingdom; no disappointments; no working for honours and dying of broken hearts. For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men. St. Paul was not approved of men—that is, not of all men: approved of men who worthily bear the name, who show the nobility of manhood. Let us then in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost serve Christ, and we shall meet with highest approvals. Heaven’s plaudits will amply compensate for every loss, for every effort, in the cause of truth and righteousness.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON Rom_14:16-18
“Let not then your good be evil spoken of.”—
1. We are to inquire what we are to understand the apostle to mean by our good. And here we may meet with different opinions: some, by our good, understand our religion, which is indeed every Christian’s chief good; and according to this sense of the words the apostle must be understood to exhort us to have a regard to the honour of the gospel in all our actions, to administer no occasion to the enemies of our religion either to deride or despise our holy calling. And thus the text amounts to an argument or exhortation to move us to a simplicity of manners and an inoffensive behaviour, for fear lest we bring a reproach upon our profession. But the apostle seems to aim at something further: his business here is, not to deter us from the practice of evil, but to direct us in the use and practice of that which is good, that our virtue may be without offence, and secured from calumny and reproach; and our good, mentioned in the text, is not the topic from which the apostle draws an argument or exhortation, but is the subject-matter concerning which he is giving directions. According to this interpretation of the words the text may be thus paraphrased: Be not content with merely doing that which is in itself good and commendable, but look forward to the consequences which are likely to attend it, and endeavour to prevent any mischief that may grow out of it to yourself or others, that your good may be inoffensive and irreproachable. In this sense it is that I propose to consider the text, and shall now proceed:
2. To show that our good is often exposed to be evil spoken of through our own indiscretion, and consequently that it is often in our own power to prevent it. This is one way by which men expose their good to be evil spoken of. Their mistake lies in not rightly distinguishing between a servile compliance with the world and a prudent behaviour towards it; and yet there is as much difference between them as between virtue and vice: one is the way which men who sacrifice honour and conscience to their interest make use of; the other is the method which wise and good men take to recommend the practice of virtue and religion. And what a wide difference is this! In the first case to comply with the world you must be like it, you must conform yourself to it; in the other you treat the world civilly, that it may the more easily become like you—that you may gain upon and instil the principles of virtue, which may be infused by gentle degrees, but cannot be obtruded by noise and violence. Sometimes men expose their good to be evil spoken of out of pure pride and haughtiness of temper: this is the case when men have such a contempt for the world as not to think it worth their while to guard against the misapprehensions of those about them. They reckon it below their dignity to render any account of what they do, and a mark of guilt to descend so low as to justify their actions. But surely, if we estimate the thing fairly, it is betraying of that which is good to reproach, and laying of stumbling-blocks in the way of the blind.
3. That as it is often in our power to prevent our good from being evil spoken of, so in many cases it is our duty. This duty may, I think, be deduced from these principles: the honour of God and of truth, the charity that is owing to our brethren, and the justice that is due to ourselves.—Sherlock.
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 14
Rom_14:18. Livingstone’s answer to the charge of neglecting his work.—When Livingstone was charged with neglecting missionary work, he boldly answered: “My views of missionary duty are not so contracted as those whose only ideal is a man with a Bible under his arm. I have laboured in bricks and mortar, and at the forge, and at the carpenter’s bench, and in medical practice as well as in preaching. I am serving Christ when I shoot a buffalo for my men, or take an astronomical observation, or write to one of His children who forgot during the little moment of penning a note that charity which is eulogised as ‘thinking no evil.’ ”
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain On vv13–16 13. “Therefore let us not judge one another, but…
13. “Therefore let us not judge one another, but judge this rather that no one put a stumbling block or an offense in the way of his brother. All we have to do is to be true to God and keep out of each other’s way.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain On vv13–16 Let us not therefore judge one another any more:…
Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge [decide] ye this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock in his brother's way, or an occasion of falling . [This warning is addressed both to the weak and to the strong. Each censorious judgment tempts the strong to a reactionary and excessive assertion of liberty, and each despising of the weak tends to decrease his faith in the power of God and the influence of the Holy Spirit to regenerate and sanctify men. Hence each is warned to show charity, and thus avoid placing stumbling-blocks in his brother's way. At this point Paul ceases to address both parties, and turns his remarks exclusively to the strong, since the weak have less control over their actions than the strong, and hence are mercifully spared the imposition of burdens too heavy for their strength.]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v13 Of the abuse of Christian liberty:
Of the abuse of Christian liberty:
v. 13. Let us not, therefore, judge one another anymore; but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling-block or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.
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v. 14. I know and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him that esteems anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
v. 15. But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ died.
v. 16. Let not, then, your good be evil spoken of;
v. 17. for the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.
v. 18. For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men.
His entire admonition up to this point the apostle now condenses in the one short expression No more, now, let us judge one another. Not only the condemnation of the strong by the weaker is here referred to, but also the contempt which the strong are apt to feel for the weak. ALL such manifestations are decidedly out of place among Christians. Christian liberty, as directed by true love, is rather exercised in this way, that we make this our rule or maxim in our dealings with the brethren, not to put a stumbling-block for our brother or an offense. We should neither put something in the weaker brother’s way over which he will fall, nor should we place an offense before him which would incite him to sin. In what way this may be done the next sentence explains: I know and have the full conviction in the Lord Jesus that nothing is common in itself, but only to him that thinks something is common, to him it is common. Paul has the divine assurance based upon his intimate union with Christ, whose servant he is, that nothing in itself, no food, not even the meat of animals bought in the meat-stalls, in itself is of a nature to render a person unclean. No matter what food it is that the Christian might choose for himself, the eating of it will not in itself stain his conscience or be a sin. Only one limitation is made, namely, that resulting from the state of mind of him that eats: except as the opinion of the eater takes it to be profane and harmful. If a person thinks that some food will make him unclean, he sins in partaking of this food. It is not that the food has the inherent power to work uncleanness, but that the person believing that there is a distinction between clean and unclean foods commits a sin in offering violence to his conscience. And this sin is occasioned by the brother who abandons all consideration and tact, and deliberately, in the presence of the weaker brother, partakes of the food in question, and thus by his example entices the other to follow him. The weaker brother in that case has not yet reached a state of knowledge according to which his erring conscience has been corrected, and the result is a sin. And thus the reaction strikes also the stronger brother: For if through thy food thy brother is grieved, thou walkest no more according to love. The indulgence in itself may be harmless and innocent enough, but if in this way it becomes injurious to the Christian brethren, then the indulgence becomes a violation of the law of love, an uncharitable act, a sin. By eating of the food in question in the presence of the weaker brother, and thus challenging him to partake of the same food, the stronger Christian, upon whom the obligation of love rests, becomes guilty of uncharitable behavior. The admonition, therefore, is very emphatic: Do not destroy through thy food him for whom Christ died. It cost Christ His very life to save your brother from everlasting damnation, and it is a terrible thing to endanger the salvation of any person by an uncharitable harping upon Christian liberty. Surely it is not asking too much to renounce the eating of a certain food for the sake of a brother, to avoid giving him any offense, if Christ gave His life as a ransom to keep him from eternal perdition! "If Christ so loved him as to die for him, how base it would be in us not to submit to a little self-denial for his welfare!"
At the same time, the Christians should lead such a life and at all times, in all circumstances, comport themselves so that they do not give offense to those that are without: Let, then, your good thing not be blasphemed. This is addressed to all Christians and should be kept in mind by them always. The great possession of the Christians, the highest and most glorious good, is salvation in Christ, through which redemption has been transmitted to them. The believers should never give the unbelievers occasion to speak abusively of, to blaspheme this wonderful gift, as they would if they haggle about foods. Such behavior on the part of the members of the Church naturally causes the unbelievers to assume that mere external matters are the essence of Christianity, that salvation depends upon the fact of a person’s using or abstaining from certain foods. This the apostle substantiates: For not is the kingdom of God eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost; for he that serves Christ herein is well-pleasing to God and acceptable to men. The matters about which the Christians should be concerned are those which pertain to the kingdom of God, to that great invisible Kingdom established by Christ, the communion of saints. The act of eating and drinking does not influence a person’s standing either way in this Kingdom. The matters that do count very emphatically are justification, the certainty that we possess the righteousness of God by faith, peace with God through the merits of Jesus Christ, and the joy of faith which is characteristic of all true Christians, which is wrought in their hearts by the Holy Ghost. These are the essential blessings of the kingdom of God, upon which everything depends. If any person, in the certainty of the possession of these gifts and blessings, lives in accordance with this realization, then God takes pleasure in him, and he will be acceptable to men. Every one that has been justified before God through Christ, that has peace with God through Christ, that truly rejoices in the redemption given by faith in Christ, will make it the object of his life to serve the Lord Jesus with all the powers of body and mind. Thus the remembrance of the relation in which a person stands to God, together with the Christian conduct which results there from and its effect upon the unbelievers, will cause all Christians to heed the admonition of the apostle not to let their good be evil spoken of.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv14, 16 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus
I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus
Here the words "know" and "am persuaded" mean basically the same thing; Paul uses them to emphasize his certainty. AT: "I am certain because of my relationship with the Lord Jesus" (See: Doublet)
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nothing is unclean by itself
You can translate this in a positive form. AT: "everything by itself is clean" (See: Double Negatives)
by itself
"by its nature" or "because of what it is"
Only for him who considers anything to be unclean, for him it is unclean
Paul implies here that a person should stay away from anything that he thinks is unclean. You can make this explicit in your translation. AT: "But if a person thinks something is unclean, then for that person it is unclean and he should stay away from it" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
If because of food your brother is hurt
"If you hurt your fellow believer's faith over the matter of food." Here the word "your" refers to those who are strong in faith and "brother" refers to those who are weak in faith.
brother
Here this means a fellow Christian, male or female.
you are no longer walking in love
Paul speaks of the behavior of believers as if it were a walk. AT: "then you are no longer showing love" (See: Metaphor)
translationWords
lord
Jesus
clean
brother
wrong
walk
love
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv13–15 14:13 This verse acts as a bridge. Let’s stop…
14:13 This verse acts as a bridge. Let’s stop condemning each other summarizes 14:1-12, while the concern about causing another believer to stumble and fall becomes the major emphasis of 14:14-23. • stumble and fall: This phrase originally applied to obstacles that could trip people as they walked, or to traps into which a person might fall. It is used metaphorically throughout the New Testament for behavior that might bring spiritual harm to another person (see 1 Cor 8:9, 13; 1 Jn 2:10; cp. Matt 21:42-44; Luke 20:17-18; Rom 9:32-33; 1 Pet 2:8).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.