the Week of Proper 23 / Ordinary 28
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Christian Standard Bible ®
Romans 14:21
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It is better to stay away from meat or wine if it causes the other person to question their beliefs.
It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles.
It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles.
It is better not to take meat or wine or to do anything which might be a cause of trouble to your brother.
[It is] right not to eat meat, nor drink wine, nor [do anything] in which thy brother stumbles, or is offended, or is weak.
It is good not to eat meat, drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles, is offended, or is made weak.
It is good, not to eat flesh, neither to drink wine, nor to do any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or made weak.
The right course is to forego eating meat or drinking wine or doing anything that tends to your brother's fall.
It is good neither to eate flesh, nor to drinke wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weake.
It is good not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything by which your brother stumbles, or is offended, or is weak.
It is moch better yt thou eate no flesh, and drynke no wyne, nor eny thinge, wherby thy brother stombleth, or falleth, or is made weake.
it is better to abstain from flesh, and wine, and every thing whereby your brother is in danger of falling off.
It is good [to do the right thing and] not eat meat or drink wine, or do anything that offends your brother and weakens him spiritually.
It is good not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor to do anything whereby thy brother stumbleth.
it is right not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes your brother stumble.
It is good nether to eate flesshe nether to drincke wyne nether eny thinge wherby thy brother stombleth ether falleth or is made weake.
It is good not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor [to do anything] whereby your brother stumbles.
[It is] good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor [any thing] by which thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.
Right [it is] not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor to [do anything] in which thy brother doth stumble, or is made to fall, or is weak.
It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that will cause your brother or sister to sin.
It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything to cause your brother to stumble.
It is best not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that causes problems for other followers of the Lord.
What is good is not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
It is good neither to eate flesh, nor to drinke wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or made weake.
It is better that we neither eat meat nor drink wine nor do any other thing whereby we cause our brother to stumble.
It is good not to eat meat, drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles, is offended, or is made weak.
The right thing to do is to avoid eating meat, drinking wine, or doing anything else that makes your brother stumble or become upset or weak.or become upset or weak">[fn]1 Corinthians 8:13;">[xr]
It is well not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing by which our brother is offended.
It is proper, that we neither eat flesh, nor drink wine, nor [fn] any thing, whereby our brother is stumbled.
It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak. [fn]
It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble.
Do not eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it would make your Christian brother fall into sin.
It is good not to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor to do anything whereby thy brother stumbleth.
it is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes your brother or sister stumble.
Well, is it not to eat flesh nor to drink wine nor to do aught whereby thy brother is caused to stumble.
It is good not to eat flesh and not to drink wine: nor any thing whereby thy brother is offended or scandalized or made weak.
It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.
It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine or to do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is weakened.
It is good neither to eate fleshe, neither to drinke wine, neither any thyng wherby thy brother stumbleth, either falleth, or is made weake.
It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that hurts the faith of your brother or sister.
It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother or sister stumbles.
The right thing to do is to keep from eating meat, drinking wine, or doing anything else that will make other believers fall.
It is good to not ete fleisch, and to not drynke wyn, nethir in what thing thi brother offendith, or is sclaundrid, or is maad sijk.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
good: Romans 14:17, Romans 15:1, Romans 15:2, 1 Corinthians 8:13
whereby: Romans 14:13, Malachi 2:8, Matthew 16:23, Matthew 18:7-10, Luke 17:1, Luke 17:2, Philippians 1:10, Hebrews 12:13, Revelation 2:14
Reciprocal: Leviticus 11:8 - they are unclean Numbers 32:15 - ye shall 1 Samuel 25:31 - grief Psalms 73:15 - offend Jeremiah 18:15 - caused Matthew 5:30 - offend Matthew 17:27 - lest Matthew 18:6 - offend Matthew 18:10 - heed John 16:1 - General Acts 15:29 - ye abstain Romans 4:19 - being Romans 14:3 - despise Romans 14:20 - but 1 Corinthians 8:9 - take 1 Corinthians 8:11 - shall Colossians 2:16 - in meat
Gill's Notes on the Bible
It is good neither to eat flesh,.... Any sort of flesh, even that which is not forbidden in the law, rather than offend a weak brother; and the apostle determines for himself, that he would not, where there was any danger of doing this, 1 Corinthians 8:13.
Nor to drink wine; not only the wine of libations to Heathen deities, but wine in common; which was not prohibited by the law of Moses, but in the case of a Nazarite, and of vows:
nor anything, be it what it will,
whereby thy brother stumbleth. The Syriac version reads, "our brother"; anyone that stands in such a spiritual relation to any of us; and for which reason care should be taken, that no stumblingblock, or occasion to fall, should be put in his way; particularly that Christian liberty in things indifferent be not unseasonably and imprudently used, and so become a means of stumbling and staggering to weak minds:
or is offended; to that degree, as to censure and judge him that eats, as an impious person, and a transgressor of the law; with whom he cannot keep his communion, but withdraws himself from it, and is even tempted to drop his profession of the Christian religion entirely, being ready to think it is not right, since contrary to the law of Moses:
or is made weak; more weak in the faith than he was before, and his love is weakened and grows very cold and indifferent to his Christian brethren, that can take and use a liberty which he cannot. These two last phrases are not in the Syriac and Ethiopic versions, nor in the Alexandrian copy, though in others, and are used for the sake of explanation and amplification.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
It is good - It is right; or it is better. This verse is an explanation or enlarged specification of the meaning of the former.
To eat flesh - That is, such flesh as the “Jewish” convert regarded as unclean; Romans 14:2.
Nor to drink wine - Wine was a common drink among the Jews, and usually esteemed lawful. But the Nazarites were not allowed to drink it Numbers 6:3, and the Rechabites Jeremiah 35:0 drank no wine, and it is possible that some of the early converts regarded it as unlawful for Christians to drink it. Wine was moreover used in libations in pagan worship, and perhaps the Jewish coverts might be scrupulous about its use from this cause. The caution here shows us what should be done “now” in regard to the use of wine. It may not be possible to prove that wine is absolutely unlawful, but still many friends of “temperance” regard it as such, and are grieved at its use. They esteem the habit of using it as tending to intemperance, and as encouraging those who cannot afford expensive liquors. Besides, the wines which are now used are different from those which were common among the ancients. That was the pure juice of the grape. That which is now in common use is mingled with alcohol, and with other intoxicating ingredients. Little or none of the wine which comes to this country is pure. And in this state of the case, does not the command of the apostle here require the friends of temperance to abstain even from the use of wine?
Nor anything - Any article of food or drink, or any course of conduct. So valuable is peace, and so desirable is it not to offend a brother, that we should rather deny ourselves to any extent, than to be the occasion of offences and scandals in the church.
Stumbleth - For the difference between this word and the word “offended,” see the note at Romans 11:11. It means here that by eating, a Jewish convert might be led to eat also, contrary to his own conviction of what was right, and thus be led into sin.
Or is made weak - That is, shaken, or rendered “less stable” in his opinion or conduct. By being led to imitate the Gentile convert, he would become less firm and established; he would violate his own conscience; his course would be attended with regrets and with doubts about its propriety, and thus he would be made “weak.” In this verse we have an eminent instance of the charity of the apostle, and of his spirit of concession and kindness. If this were regarded by all Christians, it would save no small amount of strife, and heart-burnings, and contention. Let a man begin to act on the principle that peace is to be promoted, that other Christians are not to be offended, and what a change would it at once produce in the churches, and what an influence would it exert over the life!
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Romans 14:21. It is good neither to eat flesh, c.] The spirit and self-denying principles of the Gospel teach us, that we should not only avoid every thing in eating or drinking which may be an occasion of offence or apostasy to our brethren, but even to lay down our lives for them should it be necessary.
Whereby thy brother stumbleth — Προσκοπτει, from προς, against, and κοπτω, to strike, to hit the foot against a stone in walking, so as to halt, and be impeded in one's journey. It here means, spiritually, any thing by which a man is so perplexed in his mind as to be prevented from making due progress in the Divine life. Any thing by which he is caused to halt, to be undecisive, and undetermined and under such an influence no man has ever yet grown in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Or is offended — Η σκανδαλιζεται, from σκανδαλον, a stumbling-block; any thing by which a person is caused to fall, especially into a snare, trap, or gin. Originally the word signified the piece of wood or key in a trap, which being trodden on caused the animal to fall into a pit, or the trap to close upon him. In the New Testament it generally refers to total apostasy from the Christian religion; and this appears to be its meaning in this place.
Or is made weak. — Η ασθενει, from α, negative, and σθενος, strength; without mental vigour; without power sufficiently to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil, lawful and unlawful. To get under the dominion of an erroneous conscience, so as to judge that to be evil or unlawful which is not so. The two last terms are omitted by two excellent MSS. (the Codex Alexandrinus and the Codex Ephraim,) by the Syriac of Erpen, the Coptic and the Ethiopic, and by some of the primitive fathers. It is very likely that they were added by some early hand by way of illustration. Griesbach has left them in the text with a note of doubtfulness.
