“Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.”
My Notes
What Does Romans 14:4 Mean?
"Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand." Paul addresses the Roman church's internal disputes about dietary and calendar observance (14:1-6). His rebuke: you don't judge someone else's servant. The person you're judging answers to their own master — God, not you. Your evaluation of their standing is irrelevant because their standing isn't determined by your assessment. It's determined by their master's support: God is able to make him stand.
The final phrase — "God is able to make him stand" — shifts the ground entirely: the person you're ready to condemn has a master who's able to sustain them. Your judgment assumes they'll fall. God's ability ensures they won't.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where are you judging 'another man's servant' — evaluating someone's standing with God based on secondary issues?
- 2.How does 'God is able to make him stand' change your verdict about someone you think is falling?
- 3.What disputes in your community are about 'servant-jurisdiction' issues that belong to the master, not to you?
- 4.Where do you need to replace judgment with the trust that God is able to sustain the person you're worried about?
Devotional
Who are you to judge someone else's servant? The question isn't rhetorical. It demands a specific answer: nobody. You're nobody in the relationship between that person and their master. Your opinion about their standing is irrelevant because their standing isn't in your jurisdiction.
To his own master he standeth or falleth. The servant answers to the master. Not to the other servants. Not to the senior servants. Not to the servants who think their standards are higher. To the master. And the master's evaluation is the only one that determines standing or falling.
Yea, he shall be holden up. The expected conclusion after 'standeth or falleth' would be: and the outcome is uncertain. Paul surprises: no, he'll stand. Not because the servant is strong. Because the master is supportive. The master holds the servant up. The standing isn't the servant's achievement. It's the master's sustaining.
For God is able to make him stand. The ultimate assurance: the person you're judging has a God who is able (dynatos — powerful, capable, potent) to make them stand. Your verdict says 'they'll fall.' God's ability says 'I'll sustain them.' And God's ability outranks your verdict by infinity.
Paul is addressing specific disputes: should Christians eat meat or only vegetables? Should they observe special days or treat all days alike? The Roman church was dividing over secondary issues — matters of conscience, not matters of gospel. And Paul's response isn't to resolve the disputes. It's to remove the judging: stop evaluating the other person's servant-standing. Their master handles that.
The principle extends beyond dietary disputes to every area where Christians judge each other's standing with God based on secondary issues: worship style, political views, lifestyle choices that aren't addressed by clear Scripture. The person you're evaluating has a master. And the master is able to make them stand. Your judgment isn't needed. Your love is.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Who art thou that judgest another man's servant,.... This is another reason, dissuading from censoriousness and rash…
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Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? - Who has ever given thee the right to condemn the servant of another…
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I. An account of the unhappy contention which had broken out in the Christian church. Our…
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Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture