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Romans 14
Legacy Standard Bible
Romans 14
Legacy Standard Bible
Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another
14 Now (A)accept the one who is (B)weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on opinions. 2 (C)One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is (D)weak eats vegetables only. 3 The one who eats must not (E)view the one who does not eat with contempt, and the one who does not eat must not (F)judge the one who eats, for God (G)accepted him. 4 (H)Who are you to judge the [a]servant of another? To his own [b]master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 (I)One person judges one day above another, another judges every day alike. Each person must be (J)fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who regards the day, regards it for the Lord, and he who eats, eats for the Lord, for he (K)gives thanks to God; and he who does not eat, for the Lord he does not eat and gives thanks to God. 7 For not one of us (L)lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; 8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore (M)whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end (N)Christ died and lived again, that He might be (O)Lord both of the dead and of the living.
10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you (P)view your brother with contempt? For (Q)we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written,
“(R)As I live, says the [c]Lord, (S)to Me every knee shall bow,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”
12 So then (T)each one of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not (U)judge one another anymore, but rather judge this—(V)not to put a stumbling block or offense before a brother. 14 I know and am convinced [d]in the Lord Jesus that (W)nothing is defiled in itself; but to him who (X)considers anything to be defiled, to him it is defiled. 15 For if because of food your brother is grieved, you are no longer (Y)walking according to love. (Z)Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore (AA)do not let what is for you a good thing be [e]slandered; 17 for the kingdom of God (AB)is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and (AC)peace and (AD)joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 For he who in this way (AE)serves Christ is (AF)pleasing to God and approved by men. 19 So then [f]let us (AG)pursue the things which make for peace and the (AH)building up of one another. 20 (AI)Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. (AJ)All things indeed are clean, but (AK)they are evil for the man who eats [g]and gives offense. 21 (AL)It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles. 22 The faith which you have, have [h]as your own conviction before God. Blessed is he who (AM)does not judge himself in what he approves. 23 But (AN)he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.
Footnotes
- Romans 14:4 Or house-servant
- Romans 14:4 Lit lord
- Romans 14:11 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Is 45:23
- Romans 14:14 Lit through
- Romans 14:16 Or blasphemed
- Romans 14:19 Some mss we pursue
- Romans 14:20 Lit through stumbling, cf. 14:13, 21
- Romans 14:22 Lit according to yourself
Romans 14
New International Version
Romans 14
New International Version
The Weak and the Strong
14 Accept the one whose faith is weak,(A) without quarreling over disputable matters. 2 One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.(B) 3 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt(C) the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge(D) the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant?(E) To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
5 One person considers one day more sacred than another;(F) another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God;(G) and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives for ourselves alone,(H) and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.(I) 9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life(J) so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.(K)
10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister[a]? Or why do you treat them with contempt?(L) For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.(M) 11 It is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’(N) says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”[b](O)
12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.(P)
13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment(Q) on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.(R) 14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself.(S) But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.(T) 15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love.(U) Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died.(V) 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil.(W) 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking,(X) but of righteousness, peace(Y) and joy in the Holy Spirit,(Z) 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.(AA)
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace(AB) and to mutual edification.(AC) 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food.(AD) All food is clean,(AE) but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.(AF) 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.(AG)
22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn(AH) himself by what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts(AI) is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.[c]
Footnotes
- Romans 14:10 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family; also in verses 13, 15 and 21.
- Romans 14:11 Isaiah 45:23
- Romans 14:23 Some manuscripts place 16:25-27 here; others after 15:33.
Romans 14
Easy-to-Read Version
Romans 14
Easy-to-Read Version
Don’t Criticize Others
14 Be willing to accept those who still have doubts about what believers can do. And don’t argue with them about their different ideas. 2 Some people believe they can eat any kind of food,[a] but those who have doubts eat only vegetables. 3 Those who know they can eat any kind of food must not feel that they are better than those who eat only vegetables. And those who eat only vegetables must not decide that those who eat all foods are wrong. God has accepted them. 4 You cannot judge the servants of someone else. Their own master decides if they are doing right or wrong. And the Lord’s servants will be right, because the Lord is able to make them right.
5 Some people might believe that one day is more important than another. And others might believe that every day is the same. Everyone should be sure about their beliefs in their own mind. 6 Those who think one day is more important than other days are doing that for the Lord. And those who eat all kinds of food are doing that for the Lord. Yes, they give thanks to God for that food. And those who refuse to eat some foods do that for the Lord. They also give thanks to God.
7 We don’t live or die just for ourselves. 8 If we live, we are living for the Lord. And if we die, we are dying for the Lord. So living or dying, we belong to the Lord. 9 That is why Christ died and rose from death to live again—so that he could be Lord over those who have died and those who are living.
10 So why do you judge your brother or sister in Christ? Or why do you think that you are better than they are? We will all stand before God, and he will judge us all. 11 Yes, the Scriptures say,
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘Everyone will bow before me;
everyone will say that I am God.’” (A)
12 So each of us will have to explain to God about the things we do.
Don’t Cause Others to Sin
13 So we should stop judging each other. Let’s decide not to do anything that will cause a problem for a brother or sister or hurt their faith. 14 I know that there is no food that is wrong to eat. The Lord Jesus is the one who convinced me of that. But if someone believes that something is wrong, then it is wrong for that person.
15 If you hurt the faith of your brother or sister because of something you eat, you are not really following the way of love. Don’t destroy anyone’s faith by eating something they think is wrong. Christ died for them. 16 Don’t allow what is good for you to become something they say is evil. 17 In God’s kingdom, what we eat and drink is not important. Here is what is important: a right way of life, peace, and joy—all from the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever serves Christ by living this way is pleasing God, and they will be accepted by others.
19 So let’s try as hard as we can to do what will bring peace. Let’s do whatever will help each other grow stronger in faith. 20 Don’t let the eating of food destroy the work of God. All food is right to eat, but it is wrong for anyone to eat something that hurts the faith of another person. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that hurts the faith of your brother or sister.
22 You should keep your beliefs about these things a secret between yourself and God. It is a blessing to be able to do what you think is right without feeling guilty. 23 But anyone who eats something without being sure it is right is doing wrong. That is because they did not believe it was right. And if you do anything that you believe is not right, it is sin.
Footnotes
- Romans 14:2 any kind of food The Jewish law said there were some foods that Jews could not eat. When they became followers of Christ, some of them did not understand that they could now eat all foods.
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