Romanos 14

ARC · Chapter 14/16

1Ora, quanto ao que está enfermo na fé, recebei-o, não em contendas de disputas.

2Porque um crê que de tudo se pode comer, e outro, que é enfermo, come legumes.

3O que come não despreze ao que não come; e o que não come não julgue ao que come; porque Deus o recebeu por seu

4Quem és tu, que julgas ao servo alheio? Para seu proprio Senhor está em pé ou cae; porém estará firme; porque poderoso é Deus para o firmar.

5Um faz differença entre dia e dia, mas outro julga eguaes todos os dias. Cada um esteja inteiramente seguro em seu proprio animo.

6Aquelle que faz caso do dia, para o Senhor o faz; e o que não faz caso do dia, para o Senhor o não faz. O que come, para o Senhor come, porque dá graças a Deus; e o que não come, para o Senhor não come, e dá graças a Deus.

7Porque nenhum de nós vive para si, e nenhum morre para si.

8Porque, se vivemos, para o Senhor vivemos: se morremos, para o Senhor morremos. De sorte que, ou vivamos ou morramos, somos do Senhor.

9Porque para isto tambem morreu Christo, e resuscitou, e tornou a viver; para ser Senhor, tanto dos mortos, como dos vivos.

10Mas tu, porque julgas a teu irmão? Ou tu, tambem, porque desprezas a teu irmão? Pois todos havemos de comparecer ante o tribunal de Christo.

11Porque está escripto: Vivo eu, diz o Senhor: que todo o joelho se dobrará diante de mim, e toda a lingua confessará a Deus.

12De maneira que cada um de nós dará conta de si mesmo a Deus.

13Assim que não nos julguemos mais uns aos outros; mas antes julgae isto, não pôr tropeço ou escandalo ao irmão.

14Eu sei, e estou certo no Senhor Jesus, que nenhuma coisa é de si mesmo immunda senão para aquelle que a tem por immunda, para esse é immunda.

15Mas, se por causa da comida se contrista teu irmão, já não andas conforme o amor. Não destruas com a tua comida aquelle por quem Christo morreu.

16Não seja pois blasphemado o vosso bem;

17Porque o reino de Deus não é comida nem bebida, mas justiça, e paz, e alegria no Espirito Sancto.

18Porque quem n'isto serve a Christo agradavel é a Deus e acceito aos homens.

19Sigamos pois as coisas que servem para a paz e para a edificação de uns para com os outros.

20Não destruas por causa da comida a obra de Deus. É verdade que todas as coisas são limpas, mas é mau para o homem que come com escandalo.

21Bom é não comer carne, nem beber vinho, nem fazer outras coisas em que teu irmão tropece, ou se escandalize, ou se enfraqueça.

22Tens tu fé? Tem-n'a em ti mesmo diante de Deus. Bemaventurado aquelle que não se condemna a si mesmo no que approva.

23Mas aquelle que duvida, se come está condemnado, porque não come por fé; e tudo que não é de fé é peccado.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Paul urges patience among Christians with differing convictions about food and holy days, asking that no one judge a brother or sister on these secondary matters. He teaches that each person should act in faith and not cause another to stumble for the sake of their own freedom.

Explanation

The context here likely involves real debates within the church in Rome between Jewish Christians (who perhaps still kept dietary restrictions and observed holy days) and Gentile Christians (who had no such traditions). Paul doesn't resolve the issue by taking sides, but teaches a greater principle: in matters that are not central to the gospel, love and unity matter more than being 'right.' The phrase 'the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit' helps distinguish between what is essential to the faith and what is personal preference — a wisdom still valuable for conflicts within churches today.

Fun facts

  • The disputes about 'days' likely involved the observance of the Jewish Sabbath and other festival days, a real and sensitive issue between Christians of Jewish and Gentile background in the early church in Rome.
  • The chapter's closing line, 'whatever is not from faith is sin,' has become a widely cited ethical principle for evaluating personal decisions in gray areas not clearly addressed by Scripture.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Romanos 14:1“Weak in the faith” is not a physical illness, it is an expression for someone who still has scruples about certain practices, in this case, someone who feels they must follow certain restrictions to be at peace with God. Paul asks that this person be welcomed, not debated.
  2. Romanos 14:2The likely background is meat sold in the market, which often came from animals sacrificed to pagan idols or did not follow Jewish dietary rules, which is why some people preferred to eat only vegetables to avoid the risk. Paul does not settle who is right, he only asks that neither side judge the other.
  3. Romanos 14:3He introduces the chapter's practical conflict, between those who eat everything and those who restrict themselves out of conviction: neither side should look at the other with contempt or judgment, because God has accepted both.
  4. Romanos 14:4He uses an image of household servitude: judging another person's servant is not the role of an outsider, it is the master who decides, and Paul trusts that God has power to make that person stand.
  5. Romanos 14:5The discussion likely involves observing sacred Jewish days, such as the Sabbath or specific feasts on the calendar. Again Paul does not settle the question; his point is that each person should act on their own conviction, without forcing the practice on the other.
  6. Romanos 14:6He acknowledges that both positions, eating or not eating, observing certain days or not, can be practiced sincerely before God, each side giving thanks in its own way.
  7. Romanos 14:7He broadens the argument beyond food: no one lives or dies in isolation, every personal decision is connected to something greater than one's own individual will.
  8. Romanos 14:8He applies this idea specifically to the relationship with God: whether in life or in death, the Christian belongs to the Lord, not to himself.
  9. Romanos 14:9He explains why Christ has authority over life and death: His own death and resurrection established Him as Lord of both the dead and the living.
  10. Romanos 14:10The “judgment seat” (bema, in Greek) was the raised platform where a Roman judge sat to hand down public sentences, the kind of structure used in the rulings of local authorities. Paul uses this familiar, physical image to speak of a final accounting.
  11. Romanos 14:11He cites Isaiah to reinforce this universal authority of God: a day will come when everyone, without exception, will publicly acknowledge it.
  12. Romanos 14:12A practical conclusion from the previous quotation: each person will give account of their own life directly to God, not of someone else's life.
  13. Romanos 14:13If each person will answer for himself (previous verse), then time spent judging another would be better used making sure not to put obstacles in the path of a brother in the faith.
  14. Romanos 14:14Paul states his own position on the matter: no food is unclean by nature, but it becomes unclean in practice for whoever holds that personal conviction.
  15. Romanos 14:15Even while arguing that food itself is not the problem, Paul urges caution: hurting a brother over food goes against love, and it is worth remembering that Christ also died for the person who takes offense.
  16. Romanos 14:16He asks for care so that a person's freedom, something good in itself, does not end up being used as a reason to criticize Christians because of how it is exercised.
  17. Romanos 14:17He redirects the focus of the discussion: what really matters in the kingdom of God is not a matter of diet, but living with righteousness, peace, and joy that come from the Holy Ghost.
  18. Romanos 14:18Whoever lives this way, prioritizing these things instead of arguing about food, is acceptable to God and gains the respect of those around him.
  19. Romanos 14:19He concludes the reasoning with a practical priority: pursuing what brings peace and builds up the community, instead of insisting on one's own view about food.
  20. Romanos 14:20He repeats the warning from verse 15 with another image: using freedom regarding food to tear down someone's faith is destroying something God built, even though the food itself is permitted.
  21. Romanos 14:21This is not a general rule against meat or wine, it is a specific piece of advice about restraint. The idea is to give up something of one's own so as not to trouble the conscience of another person who still has doubts about it.
  22. Romanos 14:22He advises discretion: personal conviction about this kind of matter can stay between the person and God, without needing to be imposed on others; happy is the one who acts without feeling guilty about what he decides.
  23. Romanos 14:23He closes the chapter with a broader principle: acting against one's own conviction, even if the action itself is not wrong, is sin, because it does not spring from sincere faith in the decision made.

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