1 Corinthians 8:10

For if a man sees you who have knowledge sitting in an idol’s temple, won’t his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols?

World English Bible
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Other translations

WEBBE

For if a man sees you who have knowledge sitting in an idol’s temple, won’t his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols?

BSB

For if someone with a weak conscience sees you who are well informed eating in an idol’s temple, will he not be encouraged to eat food sacrificed to idols?

KJV

For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol’s temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols;

ASV

For if a man see thee who hast knowledge sitting at meat in an idol’s temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols?

BBE

For if a man sees you, who have knowledge, taking food as a guest in the house of an image, will it not give him, if he is feeble, the idea that he may take food offered to images?

Original Greek

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ἐὰν ean If G1437 γάρ gar for G1063 τις tis anyone G5100 ἴδῃ idē shall see G1492 σὲ se you G4771 τὸν ton who G3588 ἔχοντα echonta is having G2192 γνῶσιν gnōsin knowledge G1108 ἐν en in G1722 εἰδωλείῳ eidōleiō an idol’s temple G1493 κατακείμενον katakeimenon eating G2621 οὐχὶ ouchi surely G3780 ἡ hē the G3588 συνείδησις suneidēsis conscience G4893 αὐτοῦ autou of him G846 ἀσθενοῦς asthenous weak G772 ὄντος ontos being G1510 οἰκοδομηθήσεται oikodomēthēsetai he will be encouraged G3618 εἰς eis (to) G1519 τὸ to (the) G3588 τὰ ta the G3588 εἰδωλόθυτα eidōlothuta idol-sacrifices G1494 ἐσθίειν; esthiein to eat G2068

The early church

"For if a man see thee who hast knowledge, sitting at meat in an idol's temple, will not his conscience if he is weak, be emboldened to eat things sacrificed to idols?" After having said, "Take heed lest this your liberty become a stumbling-block," he explains how and in what manner it becomes so: and he continually employs the term "weakness," that the mischief may not be thought to arise from the nature of the thing, nor demons appear formidable. As thus: "At present," saith he, "a man is on the point of withdrawing himself entirely from all idols; but when he sees you fond of loitering about them, he takes the circumstance for a recommendation and abides there himself also. So that not only his weakness, but also your ill-timed behavior, helps to further the plot against him; for it is you who make him weaker."
John Chrysostom · d. 407Homilies on 1 Corinthians

Commentary

Matthew Henry · Verses 7–13

Eating one kind of food, and abstaining from another, have nothing in them to recommend a person to God. But the apostle cautions against putting a stumbling-block in the way of the weak; lest they be made bold to eat what was offered to the idol, not as common food, but as a sacrifice, and thereby be guilty of idolatry. He who has the Spirit of Christ in him, will love those whom Christ loved so as to die for them. Injuries done to Christians, are done to Christ; but most of all, the entangling them in guilt: wounding their consciences, is wounding him. We should be very tender of doing any thing that may occasion stumbling to others, though it may be innocent in itself. And if we must not endanger other men's souls, how much should we take care not to destroy our own! Let Christians beware of approaching the brink of evil, or the appearance of it, though many do this in public matters, for which perhaps they plead plausibly. Men cannot thus sin against their brethren, without offending Christ, and endangering their own souls.

Read Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 8 →

Cross-references

11

Topics

Self-Denial

Cross-references: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Hebrew and Greek data from STEPBible.org (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0. Library: sources.