Barnes New Testament Notes

Verse 12. But when ye sin so against the brethren. This is designed further to show the evil of causing others to sin; and hence the evil which might arise from partaking of the meat offered to idols. The word sin here is to be taken in the sense of injuring, offending, leading into sin. You violate the law which requires you to love your brethren, and to seek their welfare, and thus you sin against them. Sin is properly against God; but there may be a course of injury pursued against men, or doing them injustice or wrong, and this is sin against them. Christians are bound to do right towards all.

And wound their weak conscience. The word wound here (tuptontev, smiting, beating) is taken in the sense of injure. Their consciences are ill-informed. They have not the knowledge which you have. And by your conduct they are led farther into error, and believe that the idol is something, and is to be honoured. They are thus led into sin, and their conscience is more and more perverted, and oppressed more and more with a sense of guilt.

Ye sin against Christ. Because,

(1.) Christ has commanded you to love them, and seek their good, and not to lead them into sin; and,

(2.) because they are so intimately united to Christ, See Barnes "Joh 15:1, etc., that to offend them is to offend him; to injure the members is to injure the Head; to destroy their souls is to pain his heart and to injure his cause. See Barnes "Mt 10:40".

Comp. Lu 10:16.

{a} "But when" Mt 25:40,45