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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadCambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges - 1 Corinthians 8:9 - 8:9
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9. ἐξουσία. See note on ch. 1Co 7:4. Under ordinary circumstances we have a right to act upon our rational convictions. See ch. 1Co 10:29. But this right has its limits, see ch. 1Co 6:12, and note. We are bound to respect the scruples of the conscientious, though perhaps unenlightened man. In this particular case there are those who conscientiously regard the deity symbolized by an idol as having a real existence, and anything offered in sacrifice to it as formally dedicated to it, and therefore as unfit to be partaken of by those who have renounced all fellowship with it. The perceptions of such persons may be far from clear, but their motives are pure and worthy of respect. We may be wiser than they, but we must be careful that we do not by our wisdom betray them into sin.
πρόσκομμα. ‘What reality is there in your religion if you look at men struggling in darkness, and are content to congratulate yourselves that you are in the light?… Slaves—idolaters—superstitious—alas! is that all that we have to say?’ Robertson. For πρόσκομμα see Rom 9:32. Also LXX. Exo 23:33; Isa 8:14.