PARAPHRASE. tized into the faith of Christ, and let not the great employment of your thoughts and cares be wholly in -making provision for the body, that you may have wherewithal to satisfy your carnal lusts. SECT. XIII. CHAP. XIV. 1.—XV. 13. CONTENTS. ST. Paul instructs both the strong and the weak in their mutual duties one to another, in respect of things indifferent, teaching them, that the strong should not use their liberty, where it might offend a weak brother: nor the weak censure the strong, for using their liberty. TEXT. 1 HIM that is weak in the faith receive you, but not to doubtful disputations. 2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. PARAPHRASE. 1 HIM, that is weak in the faith, i. e. not fully persuaded of his christian liberty, in the use of some indifferent thing, receive you into your friendship and conversation, without any coldness, or distinction, but do not engage him in disputes and controversies 2 about it. For such variety is there in men's persuasions, about their christian liberty, that one believeth NOTE. 1 * That the reception, here spoken of, is the receiving into familiar and ordinary conversation, is evident from chap. xv. 7, where he, directing them to receive one another mutually, uses the same word wpooλaμ¤ávɛobe, i. e. live together in a free and friendly manner, the weak with the strong, and the strong with the weak, without any regard to the differences among you, about the lawfulness of any indifferent things. Let those, that agree, or differ, concerning the use of any indifferent thing, live together all alike. TEXT. 3 Let not him, that eateth, despise him that eateth not: and let not him, which eateth not, judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. 4 Who art thou, that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth: yea, he shall be holden up; for God is able to make him stand. 5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. PARAPHRASE. that he may, without restraint, eat all things; another is so scrupulous, that he eateth nothing but 3 herbs. Let not him, that is persuaded of his liberty, and eateth, despise him that, through scruple, eateth not and let not him, that is more doubtful, and eateth not, judge, or censure, him that eateth, for God hath received him into his church and family: 4 And who art thou, that takest upon thee to judge the domestic of another, whether he be of his family, or no? It is his own master alone, who is to judge, whether he be, or shall continue, his domestic, or no: what hast thou to do, to meddle in the case? But trouble not thyself, he shall stand and stay in the family. For God is able to confirm and establish him 5 there. One man judgeth one † day to be set apart NOTES. 3, 4" By him that eateth,"ver. 3, St. Paul seems to mean the gentiles, who 'were less scrupulous, in the use of indifferent things; and, by "him that eateth "not," the jews, who made a great distinction of meats and drinks and days, and placed in them a great, and, as they thought, necessary part of the worship of the true God. To the gentiles the apostle gives this caution, that they should not contemn the jews as weak narrow minded men, that laid so much stress on matters of so small moment, and thought religion so much concerned in those indifferent things. On the other side, he exhorts the jews, not to judge that those, who neglected the jewish observances of meats and days, were still heathens, or would soon apostatize to heathenisin again: no, says he; God has received them, and they are of his family: and thou hast nothing to do to judge, whether they are, or will continue, of his family, or no; that belongs only to him, the master of the family, to judge, whether they shall stay, or leave his family, or no. But, notwithstanding thy censure, or hard thoughts, of them, they shall not fall off, or apostatize; for God is able to continue them in his family, in his church, notwithstanding thou suspectest, from their free use of things indifferent, they incline too much, or approach too near to gentilism. 5 The apostle having, in the foregoing verse used xpive aλλóтpicu oinétny for judging any one, to be, or not to be, another man's servant, or domestic, he seems here to continue the use of the word xpíve, in the same signification, i. e. for judging a day to be more peculiarly God's. TEXT. 6 He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks ; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. 7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. 8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live, therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. PARAPHRASE. to God, more than another: another man judgeth every day to be God's alike. Let every one take care to be satisfied in his own mind, touching the 6 matter. But let him not censure another in what he doth. He that observeth a day, observeth it as the Lord's servant, in obedience to him: and he that observeth it not, passes by that observance, as the Lord's servant, in obedience also to the Lord. He that eateth what another out of scruple forbears, eateth it as the Lord's servant: for he giveth God thanks. And he that, out of scruple, forbeareth to eat, does it also as the Lord's servant: for he giveth God thanks, even for that which he doth, 7 and thinks he may not eat. For no one of us christians liveth, as if he were his own man, perfectly at his own disposal: and no one † of us dies 8 so. For, whether we live, our life is appropriated to the Lord or, whether we die, to him we die, as his servants. For whether we live, or die, we are his, in his family, his domestics, appropriated to him. NOTES. This may be concluded to be the apostle's sense, because the thing, he is upon here, is to keep them from censuring one another, in the use of things indifferent; particularly the jews, from judging the gentiles, in their neglect of the observance of days, or meats. This judging being what St. Paul principally endeavoured here to restrain, as being opposite to the liberty of the gospel, which favoured a negiect of these rituals of the law, which were now antiquated. See Gal. iv. 9-11, and v. 1, 2. 66 7+ Oudes should, I suppose, be taken here with the same limitation it hath in the former part of the verse, with the pronoun μv: and so should here, as there, be rendered in english, no one of us," and not, "no man," St. Paul speaking here only of christians: this sense of as the next verse seems to confirm. 8These words, "we are the Lord's," give an easy interpretation to these phrases of "eating and living, &c. to the Lord;" for they make them plainly TEXT. 9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. 10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. 12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. 13 Let us not, therefore, judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling-block, or an occasion to fall, in his brother's way. 10 dead and living. PARAPHRASE. 9 For to this end Christ died, and rose, and lived again, that he might be Lord and proprietor of us *, both What hast thou then to do, to judge thy brother, who is none of thy servant, but thy equal? Or how darest thou to think contemptibly of him? For we shall, thou, and he, and all of us, be brought before the judgment-seat of Christ, and there we shall answer, every one for himself, to 11 our Lord and master. For it is written, "As I live, "saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and 12" every tongue shall confess to God." So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to 13 God. Let us not, therefore, take upon us to judge one another; but rather come to this judgment, or determination of mind, that no man put † a tsumbling-block, or an occasion of falling, in his brother's NOTES. refer to what he had said at the letter end of ver. 3, "For God hath received "him; "signifying, that God had received all those, who profess the gospel, and had given their names up to Jesus Christ, into his family, and had made them his domestics. And therefore, we should not judge, or censure, one another, for that every christian was the Lord's domestic, appropriated to him, as his menial servant: and therefore, all that he did, in that state, was to be looked on, as done to the Lord, and not to be accounted for to any body else. 9* Kupieúon, "might be Lord; must be taken so, here, as to make this agree with the foregoing verse. There it was "we," i. e. we christians, whether we live or die, are the Lord's property: for the Lord died and rose again, that we, whether living or dying, should be his. 13+ He had, before, reproved the weak, that censured the strong, in the use of their liberty. He comes, now, to restrain the strong, from offending their weak brethren, by a too free use of their liberty, in not forbearing the use of it, where it might give offence to the weak. TEXT. 14 I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean. 15 But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ did. 16 Let not then your good be evil spoken of. 17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. 18 For he that in these things serveth Christ, is acceptable to God, and approved of men. 19 Let us, therefore, follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another. PARAPHRASE. 14 way. I know and am fully assured by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean or unlawful to be eaten, of itself. But to him, that accounts any 15 thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean. But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, thy carriage is uncharitable to him. Destroy not him with thy 16 meat, for whom Christ died. Let not then your liberty, which is a good † you enjoy, under the gos17 pel, be evil spoken of. For the privileges and advantages of the kingdom of God do not consist in the enjoyment of greater variety of meats and drinks, but in uprightness of life, peace of all kinds, and joy in the gifts and benefits of the Holy Ghost, 18 under the gospel. For he that, in these things, pays his allegiance and service to Jesus Christ, as a dutiful subject of his kingdom, is acceptable to God, The things, therefore, that we set our hearts upon, to pursue and promote, let them be such as tend to peace and good-will, and 19 and approved of men. NOTES. 15 "Grieved" does not here signify simply made sorrowful for what thot doest; but brought into trouble and discomposure, or receives an hurt, or wound, as every one does, who, by another's example, does what he supposes to be unlawful. This sense is confirmed in the words, "destroy not him with "thy meat; " and also by what he says, 1. Cor. viii. 9-13, in the like case. 16 See 1 Cor. x. 30, |