Romanos 14

Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another

1 As for *ch. 15:1;1 Cor. 8:9-11;9:22the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 *ver. 14One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and *Col. 2:16let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 *James 4:12Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master*14:4 Or lord that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

5 *Gal. 4:10;[Zech. 7:5,6] One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. *ver. 23Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since *1 Cor. 10:30,31;1 Tim. 4:3,4;See Matt. 15:36he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For *2 Cor. 5:15;Gal. 2:20;1 Pet. 4:2;[1 Cor. 6:19;1 Thess. 5:10]none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, *Phil. 1:20whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end Christ *Rev. 1:18;2:8died and lived again, that he might be Lord both *See Acts 10:42;Rev. 20:12of the dead and of the living.

10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For *[See ver. 9above] we will all stand before *2 Cor. 5:10the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,

*Phil. 2:10,11;Cited from Isa. 45:23"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,

and every tongue shall confess*14:11 Or shall give praise to God."

12 So then *Matt. 12:36;16:27;1 Pet. 4:5;[Gal. 6:5]each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Do Not Cause Another to Stumble

13 *See Matt. 7:1Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide *[1 Cor. 8:13]never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus *ver. 2, 20;See Acts 10:15that nothing is unclean in itself, *[1 Cor. 8:7,10]but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, *Eph. 5:2you are no longer walking in love. *1 Cor. 8:11;[ver. 20]By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. 16 *[ch. 12:17;1 Cor. 10:29,30]So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 *1 Cor. 8:8For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but *[1 Cor. 6:9] of righteousness and *Gal. 5:22;[ch. 15:13]peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever thus serves Christ is *[2 Cor. 8:21]acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us *Ps. 34:14;1 Cor. 7:15;2 Tim. 2:22pursue what makes for peace and for *ch. 15:2;1 Cor. 14:12mutual upbuilding.

20 *ver. 15Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. *Titus 1:15;See ver. 14Everything is indeed clean, but *1 Cor. 8:9-12it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 *1 Cor. 8:13It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.*14:21 Some manuscripts add or be hindered or be weakened22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. *1 John 3:21Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.*14:23 Some manuscripts insert here 16:25–27