ὀφείλομεν δὲ : what constitutes the obligation is seen in chap. 14. It arises out of our relation to others in Christ. Looking at them in the light of what He has done for them as well as for us, and in the light of our responsibility to the Judge of all, we cannot question that this is our duty, ἡμεῖς οἱ δυνατοὶ : Paul classes himself with the strong, and makes the obligation his own. δυνατοὶ is of course used as in chap. 14: not as in 1 Corinthians 1:26. τὰ ἀσθενήματα τῶν ἀδυνάτων : the things in which their infirmity comes out, its manifestations: here only in N.T. Paul says “bear” their infirmities: because the restrictions and limitations laid by this charity on the liberty of the strong are a burden to them. For the word βαστάζειν and the idea see Matthew 8:17; Galatians 6:2; Galatians 6:5; Galatians 6:17. μὴ ἑαυτοῖς ἀρέσκειν : it is very easy for self-pleasing and mere wilfulness to shelter themselves under the disguise of Christian principle. But there is only one Christian principle which has no qualification love.

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Old Testament