And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?
Shall ... perish. So G g, Vulgate. But 'Aleph (') A B C Delta f read 'is being destroyed.' A single act, seemingly unimportant, may produce everlasting consequences (Romans 14:23).
For whom, [ di' (G1223 ) hon (G3739 )] Christ died - implying how precious He counted even the weakest; for whose sake we too ought to be willing to die (1 John 3:16). Yet professing Christians tempted brethren to their damnation sooner than forego meats for their salvation. It is not true that if Christ died even for those who perish, He would have died in vain for many. More is involved in redemption than man's salvation: the character of God, at once just and loving, is vindicated even in the lost; for they might have been saved: so even in their case Christ has not died in vain. God's providential mercies are not in vain, though many abuse them. Even the condemned shall manifest God's love, in that they too had the offer of God's mercy. The bitterest ingredient in their cup shall be, they might have been saved, but would not: Christ died to redeem even them (2 Peter 2:1).