Isaiah 65:5

65:5 They say, ‘Keep to yourself!

Don’t get near me, for I am holier than you!’

These people are like smoke in my nostrils,

like a fire that keeps burning all day long.

Matthew 7:1

Do Not Judge

7:1 “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. ¹ 

Romans 2:1-2

The Condemnation of the Moralist

2:1 ² Therefore ³  you are without excuse, ⁴  whoever you are, ⁵  when you judge someone else. ⁶  For on whatever grounds ⁷  you judge another, you condemn yourself, because you who judge practice the same things. 2:2 Now we know that God’s judgment is in accordance with truth ⁸  against those who practice such things.

Romans 14:3-4

14:3 The one who eats everything must not despise the one who does not, and the one who abstains must not judge the one who eats everything, for God has accepted him. 14:4 Who are you to pass judgment on another’s servant? Before his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord ⁹  is able to make him stand.

Romans 14:10-16

14:10 But you who eat vegetables only – why do you judge your brother or sister? ¹⁰  And you who eat everything – why do you despise your brother or sister? ¹¹  For we will all stand before the judgment seat ¹²  of God. 14:11 For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” ¹³  14:12 Therefore, each of us will give an account of himself to God. ¹⁴ 

Exhortation for the Strong not to Destroy the Weak

14:13 Therefore we must not pass judgment on one another, but rather determine never to place an obstacle or a trap before a brother or sister. ¹⁵  14:14 I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean in itself; still, it is unclean to the one who considers it unclean. 14:15 For if your brother or sister ¹⁶  is distressed because of what you eat, ¹⁷  you are no longer walking in love. ¹⁸  Do not destroy by your food someone for whom Christ died. 14:16 Therefore do not let what you consider good ¹⁹  be spoken of as evil.

Romans 14:1

Exhortation to Mutual Forbearance

14:1 Now receive the one who is weak in the faith, and do not have disputes over differing opinions. ²⁰ 

Colossians 4:3-5

4:3 At the same time pray ²¹  for us too, that ²²  God may open a door for the message ²³  so that we may proclaim ²⁴  the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ²⁵  4:4 Pray that I may make it known as I should. ²⁶  4:5 Conduct yourselves ²⁷  with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunities.

James 4:11-12

4:11 Do not speak against one another, brothers and sisters. ²⁸  He who speaks against a fellow believer ²⁹  or judges a fellow believer speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but its judge. ³⁰  4:12 But there is only one who is lawgiver and judge – the one who is able to save and destroy. On the other hand, who are you to judge your neighbor? ³¹ 

[7:1]  ¹ sn The point of the statement do not judge so that you will not be judged is that the standards we apply to others God applies to us. The passive verbs in this verse look to God’s action.

[2:1]  ² sn Rom 2:1-29 presents unusual difficulties for the interpreter. There have been several major approaches to the chapter and the group(s) it refers to: (1) Rom 2:14 refers to Gentile Christians, not Gentiles who obey the Jewish law. (2) Paul in Rom 2 is presenting a hypothetical viewpoint: If anyone could obey the law, that person would be justified, but no one can. (3) The reference to “the ones who do the law” in 2:13 are those who “do” the law in the right way, on the basis of faith, not according to Jewish legalism. (4) Rom 2:13 only speaks about Christians being judged in the future, along with such texts as Rom 14:10 and 2 Cor 5:10. (5) Paul’s material in Rom 2 is drawn heavily from Diaspora Judaism, so that the treatment of the law presented here cannot be harmonized with other things Paul says about the law elsewhere (E. P. Sanders, Paul, the Law, and the Jewish People, 123); another who sees Rom 2 as an example of Paul’s inconsistency in his treatment of the law is H. Räisänen, Paul and the Law [WUNT], 101-9. (6) The list of blessings and curses in Deut 27–30 provide the background for Rom 2; the Gentiles of 2:14 are Gentile Christians, but the condemnation of Jews in 2:17-24 addresses the failure of Jews as a nation to keep the law as a whole (A. Ito, “Romans 2: A Deuteronomistic Reading,” JSNT 59 [1995]: 21-37).

[2:1]  ³ tn Some interpreters (e.g., C. K. Barrett, Romans [HNTC], 43) connect the inferential Διό (dio, “therefore”) with 1:32a, treating 1:32b as a parenthetical comment by Paul.

[2:1]  ⁴ tn That is, “you have nothing to say in your own defense” (so translated by TCNT).

[2:1]  ⁵ tn Grk “O man.”

[2:1]  ⁶ tn Grk “Therefore, you are without excuse, O man, everyone [of you] who judges.”

[2:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “in/by (that) which.”

[2:2]  ⁸ tn Or “based on truth.”

[14:4]  ⁹ tc Most mss, especially Western and Byzantine (D F G 048 33 1739 1881 Ï latt), read θεός (qeos, “God”) in place of κύριος (kurios, “Lord”) here. However, κύριος is found in many of the most important mss (Ì⁴⁶ א A B C P Ψ pc co), and θεός looks to be an assimilation to θεός in v. 3.

[14:10]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “But why do you judge your brother?” The introductory phrase has been supplied in the translation to clarify whom Paul is addressing, i.e., the “weak” Christian who eats only vegetables (see vv. 2-3). The author uses the singular pronoun here to rhetorically address one person, but the plural has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[14:10]  ¹¹ tn Grk “Or again, why do you despise your brother?” The introductory phrase has been supplied in the translation to clarify whom Paul is addressing, i.e., the “strong” Christian who eats everything (see vv. 2-3). The author uses the singular pronoun here to rhetorically address one person, but the plural has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[14:10]  ¹² sn The judgment seat (βῆμα, bhma) was a raised platform mounted by steps and sometimes furnished with a seat, used by officials in addressing an assembly or making pronouncements, often on judicial matters. The judgment seat was a familiar item in Greco-Roman culture, often located in the agora, the public square or marketplace in the center of a city.

[14:11]  ¹³ sn A quotation from Isa 45:23.

[14:12]  ¹⁴ tc ‡ The words “to God” are absent from some mss (B F G 6 630 1739 1881 pc) but are found in א A C D Ψ 0209 33 Ï lat sy co. External evidence somewhat favors their inclusion since Alexandrian, Western, and Byzantine mss are well represented. From an internal standpoint, however, it is easy to see the words as a scribal gloss intended to clarify the referent, especially as a reinforcement to the quotation of Isa 45:23 in v. 11. Not only that, but the abrupt ending of the verse without “to God” is harsh, both in Greek and in English. In this instance, the internal considerations seem overwhelming on the side of the omission. At the same time, English stylistic needs require the words and they have been put into the translation, even though they are most likely not original. NA²⁷ places the words in brackets, indicating doubt as to their authenticity.

[14:13]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “brother.”

[14:15]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “brother.”

[14:15]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “on account of food.”

[14:15]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “according to love.”

[14:16]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “do not let your good.”

[14:1]  ²⁰ tn Grk “over opinions.” The qualifier “differing” has been supplied to clarify the meaning.

[4:3]  ²¹ tn Though προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi) is an adverbial participle related to the previous imperative, προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite), it is here translated as an independent clause due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[4:3]  ²² tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been rendered as substantival here, indicating the content of the prayer rather than the purpose for it. These two ideas are very similar and difficult to differentiate in this passage, but the conjunction ἵνα following a verb of praying is generally regarded as giving the content of the prayer.

[4:3]  ²³ tn Grk “that God may open for us a door of the word to speak the mystery of Christ.” The construction in Greek is somewhat awkward in this clause. The translation attempts to simplify this structure somewhat and yet communicate exactly what Paul is asking for.

[4:3]  ²⁴ tn Or “so that we may speak.”

[4:3]  ²⁵ tn Or “in prison.”

[4:4]  ²⁶ tn The phrase begins with the ἵνα (Jina) clause and is subordinate to the imperative προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite) in v. 2. The reference to the idea that Paul must make it known indicates that this clause is probably best viewed as purpose and not content, like the ἵνα of v. 3. It is the second purpose stated in the context; the first is expressed through the infinitive λαλῆσαι (lalhsai) in v. 3. The term “pray” at the beginning of the sentence is intended to pick up the imperative of v. 3.

[4:5]  ²⁷ tn Grk “walk.” The verb περιπατέω (peripatew) is a common NT idiom for one’s lifestyle, behavior, or manner of conduct (L&N 41.11).

[4:11]  ²⁸ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[4:11]  ²⁹ tn See note on the word “believer” in 1:9.

[4:11]  ³⁰ tn Grk “a judge.”

[4:12]  ³¹ tn Grk “who judges your neighbor.”