Romans 14; 1 Corinthians 8
Romans 14:1 begins by contrasting the weak and the strong brother. The strong brother is to accept the weak, and not argue on and on about secondary issues.
Paul’s use of weak here echoes 1 Corinthians 8:7-12. In both contexts he is dealing with brethren who are not inclined to eat meat out of fear that it has been offered to an idol. Paul explains in 1 Corinthians that idols are nothing,[1] therefore one may eat meat, asking no questions about whether or not the meat had been sacrificed to an idol.[2]
In Romans 14, the strong brother eats all things (veggies and meat), while the weak brother eats only veggies (Rom. 14:2). The “all things” mentioned here should not be looked at in the sense of dogs, cats, poisonous frogs, etc. Rather it is understood as meat on top of a veggie diet. The strong brother realizes that an idol is nothing, so he eats asking no questions.
This understanding filters down to verse 14 where Paul states that nothing is common of itself. Most translations read “nothing is unclean of itself,” but it is probably better to translate this as “common” (as is done in Acts 10-11 where Peter explains that he’s never eaten anything common or unclean. Peter uses two different Greek words for two different categories of animals). Something common does not necessarily mean it is unclean. (See my notes on Acts 10.)
What Paul is saying in Romans 14:14 is that he is persuaded by the Lord that there is no clean animal common of itself, but if a person esteems such a clean animal to be common, then to them it is common (because it’s been sacrificed to an idol).
Some people attempt to combat this understanding by citing Romans 14:20, but it’s really simple. It falls on the heels of what I've already explained. “All things“ in this context is a reference to meat in addition to veggies. So Paul is speaking about all foods (both meat and veggies) being pure or clean in spite of being offered to idols, but the man that eats thinking the idol is something defiles his conscience.
Concerning the days mentioned in Romans 14: the Sabbath, Feasts, and New Moons aren’t under discussion. The likely understanding is that Paul is talking about observing certain “fasting days.”
Romans 14:5 says that one person considers one day above another, while someone else considers every day to be the same. Verse 6 expounds further by saying, “Whoever observes the day, observes it to the Lord. Whoever eats, eats to the Lord since he gives thanks to the Almighty, and whoever does not eat, it is to the Lord that he does not eat, yet he thanks the Almighty.” Notice how these two contrasted are described:
(1) One person observes the day to the Lord.
(2) The other person eats to the Lord and gives thanks.
In other words, the person observing a day to the Lord is fasting that day for spiritual reasons. These are personal fast days, not commanded fast days.
This entire chapter has nothing to do with whether or not to keep the law, but rather with non-essential practices that may differ from one believer to another. The law never commands a person to be a vegetarian or abstain from wine (Romans 14:21). This had to do with personal preferences.
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[1] Are idols nothing? Some people have stated that Paul came up with something new here, but consider Jeremiah 10:3-5 where we are commanded to not be afraid of an idol, and that they can neither do good or evil. Verse 8 says “it is just wood.”
[2] It is true that Exodus 34:15 teaches against covenanting with idolaters, committing spiritual prostitution with their mighty ones, and eating the meat of the animals sacrificed to their mighty ones. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:14-22 (in part), "what they sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to the Almighty. I do not want you to be partners with demons."
To harmonize these texts with what Paul writes in Romans 14 (and 1 Corinthians 8), we must understand something: there is a difference between participating in the worship of an entity behind the idol (sacrificing to it and eating the meat), and buying meat that might have been offered to a lifeless idol (and eating it in your home). The first action directly violates Exodus 34:15, while the second does not. In the second act, you are cooking clean meat and thanking Yahweh for the meat, for all the earth is His (1 Corinthians 10:26). You aren’t worshiping another mighty one, which is what the law in Exodus 34 is about.
These texts also teach us that we should not eat meat (in our homes) that may have been sacrificed to an idol if it is causing our weaker brother to stumble (1 Corinthians 10:25-30). Stumble means that he may eat with us out of pressure with a guilty conscience, and possibly return back to idol worship.
Paul’s use of weak here echoes 1 Corinthians 8:7-12. In both contexts he is dealing with brethren who are not inclined to eat meat out of fear that it has been offered to an idol. Paul explains in 1 Corinthians that idols are nothing,[1] therefore one may eat meat, asking no questions about whether or not the meat had been sacrificed to an idol.[2]
In Romans 14, the strong brother eats all things (veggies and meat), while the weak brother eats only veggies (Rom. 14:2). The “all things” mentioned here should not be looked at in the sense of dogs, cats, poisonous frogs, etc. Rather it is understood as meat on top of a veggie diet. The strong brother realizes that an idol is nothing, so he eats asking no questions.
This understanding filters down to verse 14 where Paul states that nothing is common of itself. Most translations read “nothing is unclean of itself,” but it is probably better to translate this as “common” (as is done in Acts 10-11 where Peter explains that he’s never eaten anything common or unclean. Peter uses two different Greek words for two different categories of animals). Something common does not necessarily mean it is unclean. (See my notes on Acts 10.)
What Paul is saying in Romans 14:14 is that he is persuaded by the Lord that there is no clean animal common of itself, but if a person esteems such a clean animal to be common, then to them it is common (because it’s been sacrificed to an idol).
Some people attempt to combat this understanding by citing Romans 14:20, but it’s really simple. It falls on the heels of what I've already explained. “All things“ in this context is a reference to meat in addition to veggies. So Paul is speaking about all foods (both meat and veggies) being pure or clean in spite of being offered to idols, but the man that eats thinking the idol is something defiles his conscience.
Concerning the days mentioned in Romans 14: the Sabbath, Feasts, and New Moons aren’t under discussion. The likely understanding is that Paul is talking about observing certain “fasting days.”
Romans 14:5 says that one person considers one day above another, while someone else considers every day to be the same. Verse 6 expounds further by saying, “Whoever observes the day, observes it to the Lord. Whoever eats, eats to the Lord since he gives thanks to the Almighty, and whoever does not eat, it is to the Lord that he does not eat, yet he thanks the Almighty.” Notice how these two contrasted are described:
(1) One person observes the day to the Lord.
(2) The other person eats to the Lord and gives thanks.
In other words, the person observing a day to the Lord is fasting that day for spiritual reasons. These are personal fast days, not commanded fast days.
This entire chapter has nothing to do with whether or not to keep the law, but rather with non-essential practices that may differ from one believer to another. The law never commands a person to be a vegetarian or abstain from wine (Romans 14:21). This had to do with personal preferences.
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[1] Are idols nothing? Some people have stated that Paul came up with something new here, but consider Jeremiah 10:3-5 where we are commanded to not be afraid of an idol, and that they can neither do good or evil. Verse 8 says “it is just wood.”
[2] It is true that Exodus 34:15 teaches against covenanting with idolaters, committing spiritual prostitution with their mighty ones, and eating the meat of the animals sacrificed to their mighty ones. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:14-22 (in part), "what they sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to the Almighty. I do not want you to be partners with demons."
To harmonize these texts with what Paul writes in Romans 14 (and 1 Corinthians 8), we must understand something: there is a difference between participating in the worship of an entity behind the idol (sacrificing to it and eating the meat), and buying meat that might have been offered to a lifeless idol (and eating it in your home). The first action directly violates Exodus 34:15, while the second does not. In the second act, you are cooking clean meat and thanking Yahweh for the meat, for all the earth is His (1 Corinthians 10:26). You aren’t worshiping another mighty one, which is what the law in Exodus 34 is about.
These texts also teach us that we should not eat meat (in our homes) that may have been sacrificed to an idol if it is causing our weaker brother to stumble (1 Corinthians 10:25-30). Stumble means that he may eat with us out of pressure with a guilty conscience, and possibly return back to idol worship.