The words "offend" and "offense" are used in two main ways in the Bible:
Doing something wrong oneself
Causing someone else to do wrong or to make a mistake in their faith
Doing Wrong
In both the Old Testament Hebrew and the New Testament Greek, there are many words for sin or wrongdoing. When we use the words "offend" or "offense," we focus on sin against a person or the law, which means an offense against either God or people.
Sin is mainly an offense against God. For example, the people of Edom offended God by taking revenge on Judah, so God judged them (Ezekiel 25:12–13). Israel offended God by worshipping Baal (Hosea 13:1). Breaking God's law is called an offense committed (Deuteronomy 19:15; compare 22:26; 25:2). In the New Testament, James talks about offenses against God and God's law (James 2:10; 3:2).
The Bible also talks about offenses between people. For example, Abraham offended Abimelech (Genesis 20:9). Pharaoh's chief butler and baker offended their master (Genesis 40:1). Sometimes, the offense is only alleged, and no real wrong was done (for example, Genesis 31:36; 2 Kings 18:14; Jeremiah 37:18). Paul, defending himself before the Roman governor Festus, said, “I have committed no offense against the law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar” (Acts 25:8).
The Bible also teaches how to handle real offenses against God and people. Offenses should be acknowledged and confessed (Hosea 5:15). A proper resolution before God is, “I will offend no more” (Job 34:31). We need to make amends for offenses and forgive others' offenses (Ecclesiastes 10:4; Proverbs 17:9; 19:11). Jesus Christ died for our offenses (Romans 4:25; 5:15–21). By turning to Jesus, there is forgiveness for all sins.
Causing Another to Sin
The words "offense" and "offend" also mean causing someone else to stumble or do wrong. There are three ways this can happen:
Personal Cause: Something within a person might cause them to stumble. Jesus emphasized the seriousness of this and suggested taking extreme measures to prevent it (Matthew 5:29–30; 18:8–9).
Causing Others to Stumble: Something in a person's actions might cause others to stumble. Jesus warned, “Woe to the world for the causes of sin. These stumbling blocks must come, but woe to the man through whom they come!” (Matthew 18:7). The New Testament teaches that we should live in a way that does not cause others to stumble (Romans 14:13). The apostle Paul says, “Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to let his eating be a stumbling block. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything to cause your brother to stumble” (Romans 14:20–21; compare 1 Corinthians 10:32; 2 Corinthians 6:3).
Offense at the Truth: People may be offended by the truth, even if the person presenting it is not at fault. Isaiah describes God as “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense” (Isaiah 8:14) because people would not always accept His demands and the way of faith in Him. The New Testament applies these words to the offense of the gospel of Christ (Romans 9:32–33; 1 Peter 2:8). During His ministry, people were offended by Jesus—by His humble birth (Matthew 13:57), at what he said and did (Matthew 15:12), or because of the cost of following him (Matthew 13:21). Even some disciples were offended and turned away (John 6:61). Eventually, all were offended and fled from Him (Matthew 26:31, 56). Paul spoke of the offense in preaching the cross of Christ. He could have avoided persecution by preaching a message that did not offend anyone (Galatians 5:11). He chose to preach the cross, even though it was a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles (1 Corinthians 1:23).