Romans 14:19-23

14:19 So then, let us pursue what makes for peace and for building up one another. 14:20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. For although all things are clean, ¹  it is wrong to cause anyone to stumble by what you eat. 14:21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything that causes your brother to stumble. ²  14:22 The faith ³  you have, keep to yourself before God. Blessed is the one who does not judge himself by what he approves. 14:23 But the man who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not do so from faith, and whatever is not from faith is sin. ⁴ 

¹ sn Here clean refers to food being ceremonially clean.

² tc A large number of mss, some of them quite important (Ì^46vid א² B D F G Ψ 0209 33 1881 Ï lat sa), read “or to be offended or to be made weak” after “to stumble.” The shorter reading “to stumble” is found only in Alexandrian mss (א* A C 048 81 945 1506 1739 pc bo). Although external evidence favors inclusion, internal evidence points to a scribal expansion, perhaps reminiscent of 1 Cor 8:11-13. The shorter reading is therefore preferred.

³ tc ‡ Several important Alexandrian witnesses (א A B C 048) have the relative pronoun ἥν ({hn, “the faith that you have”) at this juncture, but D F G Ψ 1739 1881 Ï lat co lack it. Without the pronoun, the clause is more ambiguous (either “Keep the faith [that] you have between yourself and God” or “Do you have faith? Keep it between yourself and God”). The pronoun thus looks to be a motivated reading, created to clarify the meaning of the text. Even though it is found in the better witnesses, in this instance internal evidence should be given preference. NA²⁷ places the word in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

⁴ tc Some mss insert 16:25-27 at this point. See the tc note at 16:25 for more information.