Text -- 1 Corinthians 1:18--2:5 (NET)

The Message of the Cross

1:18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1:19 For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will thwart the cleverness of the intelligent.” 1:20 Where is the wise man? Where is the expert in the Mosaic law? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made the wisdom of the world foolish? 1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world by its wisdom did not know God, God was pleased to save those who believe by the foolishness of preaching. 1:22 For Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks ask for wisdom, 1:23 but we preach about a crucified Christ, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles. 1:24 But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1:25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. 1:26 Think about the circumstances of your call, brothers and sisters. Not many were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were born to a privileged position. 1:27 But God chose what the world thinks foolish to shame the wise, and God chose what the world thinks weak to shame the strong. 1:28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, what is regarded as nothing, to set aside what is regarded as something, 1:29 so that no one can boast in his presence. 1:30 He is the reason you have a relationship with Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 1:31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” 2:1 When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come with superior eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed the testimony of God. 2:2 For I decided to be concerned about nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. 2:3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and with much trembling. 2:4 My conversation and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 2:5 so that your faith would not be based on human wisdom but on the power of God.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: 1Co 1:18

For the word of the cross ( ho logos gar ho tou staurou ).

Literally, "for the preaching (with which I am concerned as the opposite of wisdom of word in 1Co 1:17) that (repeated article ho , almost demonstrative) of the cross.""Through this incidental allusion to preaching St. Paul passes to a new subject. The discussions in the Corinthian Church are for a time forgotten, and he takes the opportunity of correcting his converts for their undue exaltation of human eloquence and wisdom"(Lightfoot).

Robertson: 1Co 1:18

To them that are perishing ( tois men apollumenois ).

Dative of disadvantage (personal interest). Present middle participle is here timeless, those in the path to destruction (not annihilation. See note on 2Th 2:10). Cf. 2Co 4:3.

Robertson: 1Co 1:18

Foolishness ( mōria ).

Folly. Old word from mōros , foolish. In N.T. only in 1Co 1:18, 1Co 1:21, 1Co 1:23; 1Co 2:14; 1Co 3:19.

Robertson: 1Co 1:18

But unto us which are being saved ( tois sōzomenois hēmin ).

Sharp contrast to those that are perishing and same construction with the articular participle. No reason for the change of pronouns in English. This present passive participle is again timeless. Salvation is described by Paul as a thing done in the past, "we were saved"(Rom 8:24), as a present state, "ye have been saved"(Eph 2:5), as a process, "ye are being saved"(1Co 15:2), as a future result, "thou shalt be saved"(Rom 10:9).

Robertson: 1Co 1:18

The power of God ( dunamis theou ).

So in Rom 1:16. No other message has this dynamite of God (1Co 4:20). God’ s power is shown in the preaching of the Cross of Christ through all the ages, now as always. No other preaching wins men and women from sin to holiness or can save them. The judgment of Paul here is the verdict of every soul winner through all time.

Robertson: 1Co 1:19

I will destroy ( apolō ).

Future active indicative of apollumi . Attic future for apolesō . Quotation from Isa 29:14 (lxx). The failure of worldly statesmanship in the presence of Assyrian invasion Paul applies to his argument with force. The wisdom of the wise is often folly, the understanding of the understanding is often rejected. There is such a thing as the ignorance of the learned, the wisdom of the simple-minded. God’ s wisdom rises in the Cross sheer above human philosophizing which is still scoffing at the Cross of Christ, the consummation of God’ s power.

Robertson: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? ( Pou sophos̱ pou grammateus̱ pou sunzētētēs tou aiōnos toutou̱ ).

Paul makes use of Isa 33:18 without exact quotation. The sudden retreat of Sennacherib with the annihilation of his officers. "On the tablet of Shalmaneser in the Assyrian Gallery of the British Museum there is a surprisingly exact picture of the scene described by Isaiah"(Robertson and Plummer). Note the absence of the Greek article in each of these rhetorical questions though the idea is clearly definite. Probably sophos refers to the Greek philosopher, grammateus to the Jewish scribe and sunzētētēs suits both the Greek and the Jewish disputant and doubter (Act 6:9; Act 9:29; Act 17:18; Act 28:29). There is a note of triumph in these questions. The word sunzētētēs occurs here alone in the N.T. and elsewhere only in Ignatius, Ephesians. 18 quoting this passage, but the papyri give the verb sunzēteō for disputing (questioning together).

Robertson: 1Co 1:20

Hath not God made foolish? ( ouchi emōranen ho theos̱ ).

Strong negative form with aorist active indicative difficult of precise translation, "Did not God make foolish?"The old verb mōrainō from mōros , foolish, was to be foolish, to act foolish, then to prove one foolish as here or to make foolish as in Rom 1:22. In Mat 5:13; Luk 14:34 it is used of salt that is tasteless.

Robertson: 1Co 1:20

World ( kosmou ).

Synonymous with aiōn (age), orderly arrangement, then the non-Christian cosmos.

Robertson: 1Co 1:21

Seeing that ( epeidē ).

Since (epei and dē ) with explanatory gar .

Robertson: 1Co 1:21

Through its wisdom ( dia tēs sophias ).

Article here as possessive. The two wisdoms contrasted.

Robertson: 1Co 1:21

Knew not God ( ouk egnō ).

Failed to know, second aorist (effective) active indicative of ginōskō , solemn dirge of doom on both Greek philosophy and Jewish theology that failed to know God. Has modern philosophy done better? There is today even a godless theology (Humanism). "Now that God’ s wisdom has reduced the self-wise world to ignorance"(Findlay).

Robertson: 1Co 1:21

Through the foolishness of the preaching ( dia tēs mōrias tou kērugmatos ).

Perhaps "proclamation"is the idea, for it is not kēruxis , the act of heralding, but kērugma , the message heralded or the proclamation as in 1Co 1:23. The metaphor is that of the herald proclaiming the approach of the king (Mat 3:1; Mat 4:17). See also kērugma in 1Co 2:4; 2Ti 4:17. The proclamation of the Cross seemed foolishness to the wiseacres then (and now), but it is consummate wisdom, God’ s wisdom and good-pleasure (eudokēsan ). The foolishness of preaching is not the preaching of foolishness.

Robertson: 1Co 1:21

To save them that believe ( sōsai tous pisteuontas ).

This is the heart of God’ s plan of redemption, the proclamation of salvation for all those who trust Jesus Christ on the basis of his death for sin on the Cross. The mystery-religions all offered salvation by initiation and ritual as the Pharisees did by ceremonialism. Christianity reaches the heart directly by trust in Christ as the Saviour. It is God’ s wisdom.

Robertson: 1Co 1:22

Seeing that ( epeidē ).

Resumes from 1Co 1:21. The structure is not clear, but probably 1Co 1:23, 1Co 1:24 form a sort of conclusion or apodosis to 1Co 1:22 the protasis. The resumptive, almost inferential, use of de like alla in the apodosis is not unusual.

Robertson: 1Co 1:22

Ask for signs ( sēmeia aitousin ).

The Jews often came to Jesus asking for signs (Mat 12:38; Mat 16:1; Joh 6:30).

Robertson: 1Co 1:22

Seek after wisdom ( sophian zētousin ).

"The Jews claimed to possess the truth: the Greeks were seekers, speculators "(Vincent) as in Act 17:23.

Robertson: 1Co 1:23

But we preach Christ crucified ( hēmeis de kērussomen Christon estaurōmenon ).

Grammatically stated as a partial result (de ) of the folly of both Jews and Greeks, actually in sharp contrast. We proclaim, "we do not discuss or dispute"(Lightfoot). Christ (Messiah) as crucified, as in 1Co 2:2; Gal 3:1, "not a sign-shower nor a philosopher"(Vincent). Perfect passive participle of stauroō .

Robertson: 1Co 1:23

Stumbling-block ( skandalon ).

Papyri examples mean trap or snare which here tripped the Jews who wanted a conquering Messiah with a world empire, not a condemned and crucified one (Mat 27:42; Luk 24:21).

Robertson: 1Co 1:23

Foolishness ( mōrian ).

Folly as shown by their conduct in Athens (Act 17:32).

Robertson: 1Co 1:24

But to them that are called ( autois de tois klētois ).

Dative case, to the called themselves.

Robertson: 1Co 1:24

Christ ( Christon ).

Accusative case repeated, object of kērussomen , both the power of God (theou dunamin ) and the wisdom of God (theou sophian ). No article, but made definite by the genitive. Christ crucified is God’ s answer to both Jew and Greek and the answer is understood by those with open minds.

Robertson: 1Co 1:25

The foolishness of God ( to mōron tou theou ).

Abstract neuter singular with the article, the foolish act of God (the Cross as regarded by the world).

Robertson: 1Co 1:25

Wiser than men ( sophōteron tōn anthrōpōn ).

Condensed comparison, wiser than the wisdom of men. Common Greek idiom (Mat 5:20; Joh 5:36) and quite forcible, brushes all men aside.

Robertson: 1Co 1:25

The weakness of God ( to asthenes tou theou ).

Same idiom here, the weak act of God , as men think, is stronger (ischuroteron ). The Cross seemed God’ s defeat. It is conquering the world and is the mightiest force on earth.

Robertson: 1Co 1:26

Behold ( blepete ).

Same form for imperative present active plural and indicative. Either makes sense as in Joh 5:39 eraunate and Joh 14:1 pisteuete .

Robertson: 1Co 1:26

Calling ( klēsin ).

The act of calling by God, based not on the external condition of those called (klētoi , 1Co 1:2), but on God’ s sovereign love. It is a clinching illustration of Paul’ s argument, an argumentum ad hominen .

Robertson: 1Co 1:26

How that ( hoti ).

Explanatory apposition to klēsin .

Robertson: 1Co 1:26

After the flesh ( kata sarka ).

According to the standards of the flesh and to be used not only with sophoi (wise, philosophers), but also dunatoi (men of dignity and power), eugeneis (noble, high birth), the three claims to aristocracy (culture, power, birth).

Robertson: 1Co 1:26

Are called.

Not in the Greek, but probably to be supplied from the idea in klēsin .

Robertson: 1Co 1:27

God chose ( exelexato ho theos ).

First aorist middle of eklegō , old verb to pick out, to choose, the middle for oneself. It expands the idea in klēsin (1Co 1:26). Three times this solemn verb occurs here with the purpose stated each time. Twice the same purpose is expressed, that he might put to shame (hina kataischunēi , first aorist active subjunctive with hina of old verb kataischunō , perfective use of kata ). The purpose in the third example is that he might bring to naught (hina katargēsēi , make idle, argos , rare in old Greek, but frequent in Paul). The contrast is complete in each paradox: the foolish things (ta mōra ), the wild men (tous sophous ); the weak things (ta asthenē ), the strong things (ta ischura ); the things that are not (ta mē onta ), and that are despised (ta exouthenēmena , considered nothing, perfect passive participle of exoutheneō ), the things that are (ta onta ). It is a studied piece of rhetoric and powerfully put.

Robertson: 1Co 1:29

That no flesh should glory before God ( hopōs mē kauchēsētai pāsa sarx enōpion tou theou ).

This is the further purpose expressed by hopōs for variety and appeals to God’ s ultimate choice in all three instances. The first aorist middle of the old verb kauchaomai , to boast, brings out sharply that not a single boast is to be made. The papyri give numerous examples of enōpion as a preposition in the vernacular, from adjective eṅōpios , in the eye of God. One should turn to 2Co 4:7 for Paul’ s further statement about our having this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us.

Robertson: 1Co 1:30

Of him ( ex autou ).

Out of God. He chose you.

Robertson: 1Co 1:30

In Christ Jesus ( en Christōi Iēsou ).

In the sphere of Christ Jesus the choice was made. This is God’ s wisdom.

Robertson: 1Co 1:30

Who was made unto us wisdom from God ( hos egenēthē sophia hēmin apo theou ).

Note egenēthē , became (first aorist passive and indicative), not ēn , was, the Incarnation, Cross, and Resurrection. Christ is the wisdom of God (1Co 2:2.) "both righteousness and sanctification and redemption"(dikaiosunē te kai hagiasmos kai apolutrōsis ), as is made plain by the use of tė̇kai̇̇kai . The three words (dikaiosunē , hagiasmos , apolutrōsis ) are thus shown to be an epexegesis of sophia (Lightfoot). All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in Christ Jesus. We are made righteous, holy, and redeemed in Christ Jesus. Redemption comes here last for emphasis though the foundation of the other two. In Rom 1:17 we see clearly Paul’ s idea of the God kind of righteousness (dikaiosunē ) in Christ. In Rom 3:24 we have Paul’ s conception of redemption (apolutrōsis , setting free as a ransomed slave) in Christ. In Rom 6:19 we have Paul’ s notion of holiness or sanctification (hagiasmos ) in Christ. These great theological terms will call for full discussion in Romans, but they must not be overlooked here. See also Act 10:35; Act 24:25; 1Th 4:3-7; 1Co 1:2.

Robertson: 1Co 1:31

That ( hina ).

Probably ellipse (genētai to be supplied) as is common in Paul’ s Epistles (2Th 2:3; 2Co 8:13; Gal 1:20; Gal 2:9; Rom 4:16; Rom 13:1; Rom 15:3). Some explain the imperative kauchasthō as an anacoluthon. The shortened quotation is from Jer 9:24. Deissmann notes the importance of these closing verses concerning the origin of Paul’ s congregations from the lower classes in the large towns as "one of the most important historical witnesses to Primitive Christianity"( New Light on the N.T. , p. 7; Light from the Ancient East , pp. 7, 14, 60, 142).

Robertson: 1Co 2:1

Not with excellency of speech or of wisdom ( ou kath' huperochēn logou ē sophias ).

Huperochē is an old word from the verb huperechō (Phi 4:7) and means preeminence, rising above. In N.T. only here and 1Ti 2:2 of magistrates. It occurs in inscriptions of Pergamum for persons of position (Deissmann, Bible Studies , p. 255). Here it means excess or superfluity, "not in excellence of rhetorical display or of philosophical subtlety"(Lightfoot).

Robertson: 1Co 2:1

The mystery of God ( to mustērion tou theou ).

So Aleph A C Copt. like 1Co 2:7, but B D L P read marturion like 1Co 1:6. Probably mystery is correct. Christ crucified is the mystery of God (Col 2:2). Paul did not hesitate to appropriate this word in common use among the mystery religions, but he puts into it his ideas, not those in current use. It is an old word from mueō , to close, to shut, to initiate (Phi 4:12). This mystery was once hidden from the ages (Col 1:26), but is now made plain in Christ (1Co 2:7; Rom 16:25.). The papyri give many illustrations of the use of the word for secret doctrines known only to the initiated (Moulton and Milligan’ s Vocabulary ).

Robertson: 1Co 2:2

For I determined not to know anything among you ( ou gar ekrina ti eidenai en humin ).

Literally, "For I did not decide to know anything among you."The negative goes with ekrina , not with ti . Paul means that he did not think it fit or his business to know anything for his message beyond this "mystery of God."

Robertson: 1Co 2:2

Save Jesus Christ ( ei mē Iēsoun Christon ).

Both the person and the office (Lightfoot). I had no intent to go beyond him and in particular, and him crucified (kai touton estaurōmenon ). Literally, and this one as crucified (perfect passive participle). This phase in particular (1Co 1:18) was selected by Paul from the start as the centre of his gospel message. He decided to stick to it even after Athens where he was practically laughed out of court. The Cross added to the scandalon of the Incarnation, but Paul kept to the main track on coming to Corinth.

Robertson: 1Co 2:3

I was with you ( egenomēn pros humas ).

Rather, "I came to you"(not ēn , was). "I not only eschewed all affectation of cleverness or grandiloquence, but I went to the opposite extreme of diffidence and nervous self-effacement"(Robertson and Plummer). Paul had been in prison in Philippi, driven out of Thessalonica and Beroea, politely bowed out of Athens. It is a human touch to see this shrinking as he faced the hard conditions in Corinth. It is a common feeling of the most effective preachers. Cool complacency is not the mood of the finest preaching. See phobos (fear) and tromos (trembling) combined in 2Co 7:15; Phi 2:12; Eph 6:5.

Robertson: 1Co 2:4

Not in persuasive words of wisdom ( ouk en pithois sophias logois ).

This looks like a false disclaimer or mock modesty, for surely the preacher desires to be persuasive. This adjective pithos (MSS. peithos ) has not yet been found elsewhere. It seems to be formed directly from peithō , to persuade, as pheidos (phidos ) is from pheidomai , to spare. The old Greek form pithanos is common enough and is used by Josephus ( Ant. VIII. 9. 1) of "the plausible words of the lying prophet"in 1 Kings 13. The kindred word pithanologia occurs in Col 2:4 for the specious and plausible Gnostic philosophers. And gullible people are easy marks for these plausible pulpiteers. Corinth put a premium on the veneer of false rhetoric and thin thinking.

Robertson: 1Co 2:4

But in demonstration ( all' en apodeixei ).

In contrast with the plausibility just mentioned. This word, though an old one from apodeiknumi , to show forth, occurs nowhere else in the New Testament.

Robertson: 1Co 2:4

Spirit ( pneuma )

here can be the Holy Spirit or inward spirit as opposed to superficial expression and power (dunamis ) is moral power rather than intellectual acuteness (cf. 1Co 1:18).

Robertson: 1Co 2:5

That your faith should not stand ( hina hē pistis humōn mē ēi ).

Purpose of God, but mē ēi is "not be"merely. The only secure place for faith to find a rest is in God’ s power, not in the wisdom of men. One has only to instance the changing theories of men about science, philosophy, religion, politics to see this. A sure word from God can be depended on.

Vincent: 1Co 1:18

The word of the cross ( ὁ λόγος ὀ τοῦ σταυροῦ )

Lit., the word , that , namely , of the cross . The second article is definitive and emphatic. The word of which the substance and purport is the cross.

Vincent: 1Co 1:18

To them that perish ( τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις )

Lit., that are perishing . So Rev. The present participle denotes process: they who are on the way to destruction. Compare 2Co 2:15.

Vincent: 1Co 1:18

Foolishness ( μωρία )

Only in this epistle. See on have lost his savor , Mat 5:13.

Vincent: 1Co 1:18

Which are saved ( τοῖς σωζομένοις )

Rev., being saved: in process of salvation.

Vincent: 1Co 1:19

I will destroy, etc.

Cited literally from the Septuagint, Isa 29:14, except that the Septuagint has κρύψω I will conceal , instead of I will reject . The Hebrew reads: " The wisdom of its (Judah's) wise men shall perish, and the sagacity of its sagacious men shall hide itself."

Vincent: 1Co 1:19

Wisdom - prudence ( σοφίαν - σύνεσιν )

The two words are often found together, as Exo 31:3; Deu 4:6; Col 1:9. Compare σοφοὶ καὶ συνετοί wise and prudent , Mat 11:25. For the distinction, see, as to σοφία wisdom , on Rom 11:33; as to σύνεσις prudence , on Mar 12:33; Luk 2:47. Wisdom is the more general; mental excellence in its highest and fullest sense. Prudence is the special application of wisdom; its critical adjustment to particular cases.

Vincent: 1Co 1:19

Will bring to nothing ( ἀθετήσω )

See on Luk 7:30. Originally, to make disestablished (ἄθετον ) something which is established or prescribed (θετόν ) Hence to nullify , make void , frustrate , and, in a milder sense, to despise or reject , as Gal 2:21. The stronger sense is better here, so that Rev., reject is not an improvement on the A.V. The American revisers render: And the discernment of the discerning will I bring to nought .

Vincent: 1Co 1:20

Scribe ( γραμματεύς )

Always in the New Testament in the Jewish sense, an interpreter of the law , except Act 19:35, the town-clerk .

Vincent: 1Co 1:20

Disputer ( συζητητὴς )

Only here. Compare the kindred verb συζητέω to question with , Mar 1:27; Luk 22:23; Act 6:9; and συζήτησις disputation , Act 15:2, Act 15:7. Referring to Grecian sophistical reasoners, while scribe refers to rabbinical hair-splitters.

Vincent: 1Co 1:20

World ( αἰῶνος )

See on Joh 1:9. More correctly, age or period .

Vincent: 1Co 1:20

Made foolish ( ἐμώρανεν )

Proved it to be practical folly; stupefied it. Compare Rom 1:22. Possibly with a latent suggestion of the judicial power of God to make it foolish.

Vincent: 1Co 1:21

After that ( ἐπειδὴ )

Rev., correctly, seeing that .

Vincent: 1Co 1:21

By wisdom ( διὰ τῆς σοφίας )

Better, as Rev., giving the force of the article, " through its wisdom."

Vincent: 1Co 1:21

Preaching ( κηρύγματος )

Not the act, but the substance of preaching. Compare 1Co 1:23.

Vincent: 1Co 1:21

To save ( σῶσαι )

The word was technically used in the Old Testament of deliverance at the Messiah's coming; of salvation from the penalties of the messianic judgment, or from the evils which obstruct the messianic deliverance. See Joe 2:32; Mat 1:21; compare Act 2:40. Paul uses it in the ethical sense, to make one a partaker of the salvation which is through Christ. Edwards calls attention to the foregleam of this christian conception of the word in the closing paragraph of Plato's " Republic:" " And thus, Glaucon, the tale has been saved, and has not perished, and will save (σώσειεν ) us if we are obedient to the word spoken, and we shall pass safely over the river of forgetfulness and our soul will not be defiled."

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

The Jews

Omit the article. Among the Jews many had become Christians.

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

Require ( αἰτοῦσιν )

Rev., ask . But it is questionable whether the A.V. is not preferable. The word sometimes takes the sense of demand , as Luk 12:48; 1Pe 3:15; and this sense accords well with the haughty attitude of the Jews, demanding of all apostolic religions their proofs and credentials. See Mat 12:38; Mat 16:1; Joh 6:30.

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

Greeks

See on Act 6:1.

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

Seek after ( ζητοῦσιν )

Appropriate to the Greeks in contrast with the Jews. The Jews claimed to possess the truth: the Greeks were seekers , speculators (compare Act 17:23) after what they called by the general name of wisdom .

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

Christ crucified ( Χριστὸν ἐσταυρωμένον )

Not the crucified Christ , but Christ as crucified , not a sign-shower nor a philosopher; and consequently a scandal to the Jew and folly to the Gentile.

Vincent: 1Co 1:22

Unto the Greeks ( Ἕλλησι )

The correct reading is ἔθνεσιν to the Gentiles . So Rev. Though Ἕλληνες Greeks , is equivalent to Gentiles in the New Testament when used in antithesis to Jews , yet in this passage Paul seems to have in mind the Greeks as representing gentile wisdom and culture.

Vincent: 1Co 1:25

The foolishness ( τὸ μωρὸν )

Lit., the foolish thing . More specific than the abstract μωρία foolishness (1Co 1:18, 1Co 1:21), and pointing to the fact of Christ crucified.

Vincent: 1Co 1:26

Calling ( κλῆσιν )

Not condition of life , but your calling by God ; not depending on wisdom, power, or lineage.

Vincent: 1Co 1:26

Noble ( εὐγενεῖς )

Of high birth. So originally, though as Greece became democratic, it came to signify merely the better sort of freemen. Plato applies it to the children of native Athenians (" Menexenus," 237). Aeschylus makes Clytaemnestra say to the captive Cassandra that if slavery must befall one there is an advantage in having masters of ancient family property instead of those who have become unexpectedly rich (" Agamemnon," 1010).

Vincent: 1Co 1:27

Hath chosen

The threefold repetition of the word emphasizes the deliberate and free action of God's gracious will.

Vincent: 1Co 1:28

Base ( ὠγενῆ )

Of no family. The reverse of εὐγενεῖς noble .

Vincent: 1Co 1:28

Despised ( ἐξουθενημένα )

Lit., set at nought . Not merely despised, but expressly branded with contempt. See Luk 23:11.

Vincent: 1Co 1:30

Wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.

The last three terms illustrate and exemplify the first - wisdom . The wisdom impersonated in Christ manifests itself as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. For δικαιοσύνη righteousness , see on Rom 1:17. For ἁγιασμός sanctification , see on Rom 6:19. For ἀπολύτρωσις redemption , see on Rom 3:24.

Vincent: 1Co 1:31

He that glorieth, etc.

From Jer 9:23, Jer 9:24, abridged after the Septuagint.

Vincent: 1Co 2:1

With excellency ( καθ ὑπεροχὴν )

Lit., according to elevation or superiority . The noun occurs only here and 1Ti 2:2, where it is rendered authority . The phrase expresses the mode of his preaching. For similar adverbial phrases, see καθ ὑπερβολήν exceedingly or according to excess , Rom 8:13; κατὰ κράτος mightily or according to might , Act 19:20. Construe with declaring .

Vincent: 1Co 2:1

Declaring ( καταγγέλλων )

Rev., proclaiming . See on 1Jo 1:5; see on Act 17:23. Authoritative proclamation is implied. The word is found only in the Acts and in Paul.

Vincent: 1Co 2:1

Testimony ( μαρτύριον )

Some of the best texts read μυστήριον mystery . So Rev. See on Rom 11:25.

Vincent: 1Co 2:2

Crucified

Emphatic. That which would be the main stumbling-block to the Corinthians he would emphasize.

Vincent: 1Co 2:3

I was with you ( ἐγενόμην πρὸς ὑμᾶς )

I was is rather I became . I fell into a state of weakness, etc., after I had come among you. With you , i.e., in intercourse with. See on with God , Joh 1:1. The implication is that his condition grew out of the circumstances in which he found himself in Corinth.

Vincent: 1Co 2:4

In demonstration ( ἐν ἀποδείξει )

Only here in the New Testament. Lit., a showing forth .

Wesley: 1Co 1:18

By obstinately rejecting the only name whereby they can be saved.

Wesley: 1Co 1:18

Now saved from our sins, and in the way to everlasting salvation, it is the great instrument of the power of God.

Wesley: 1Co 1:19

And the words are remarkably applicable to this great event. Isa 29:14

Wesley: 1Co 1:20

_The deliverance of Judea from Sennacherib is what Isaiah refers to in these words; in a bold and beautiful allusion to which, the apostle in the clause that follows triumphs over all the opposition of human wisdom to the victorious gospel of Christ.

Wesley: 1Co 1:20

Those among both, who, proud of their acuteness, were fond of controversy, and thought they could confute all opponents.

Wesley: 1Co 1:20

That is, shown it to be very foolishness. Isa 33:18

Wesley: 1Co 1:21

According to his wise disposals, leaving them to make the trial.

Wesley: 1Co 1:21

Whether Jewish or gentile, by all its boasted wisdom knew not God - Though the whole creation declared its Creator, and though he declared himself by all the prophets; it pleased God, by a way which those who perish count mere foolishness, to save them that believe.

Wesley: 1Co 1:22

The depths of philosophy, and the charms of eloquence.

Wesley: 1Co 1:23

Just opposite to the "signs" they demand.

Wesley: 1Co 1:23

A silly tale, just opposite to the wisdom they seek.

Wesley: 1Co 1:24

And obey the heavenly calling.

Wesley: 1Co 1:24

With his cross, his death, his life, his kingdom. And they experience, first, that he is the power, then, that he is the wisdom, of God.

Wesley: 1Co 1:25

The gospel scheme, which the world judge to be mere foolishness, is wiser than the wisdom of men; and, weak as they account it, stronger than all the strength of men.

Wesley: 1Co 1:26

What manner of men they are whom God calls.

Wesley: 1Co 1:26

In the account of the world.

Wesley: 1Co 1:26

Men of power and authority.

Wesley: 1Co 1:28

The Jews frequently called the gentiles, "Them that are not," 2 Esdras vi. 56, 57. In so supreme contempt did they hold them.

Wesley: 1Co 1:28

In high esteem.

Wesley: 1Co 1:29

A fit appellation. Flesh is fair, but withering as grass.

Wesley: 1Co 1:29

In God we ought to glory.

Wesley: 1Co 1:30

Out of his free grace and mercy. Are ye Engrafted into Christ Jesus, who is made unto us that believe wisdom, who were before utterly foolish and ignorant.

Wesley: 1Co 1:30

The sole ground of our justification, who were before under the wrath and curse of God.

Wesley: 1Co 1:30

A principle of universal holiness, whereas before we were altogether dead in sin.

Wesley: 1Co 1:30

That is, complete deliverance from all evil, and eternal bliss both of soul and body.

Wesley: 1Co 1:31

Not in himself, not in the flesh, not in the world. Jer 9:23-24

Wesley: 1Co 2:1

I did not affect either deep wisdom or eloquence.

Wesley: 1Co 2:1

What God gave me to testify concerning his Son.

Wesley: 1Co 2:2

To wave all my other knowledge, and not to preach anything, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified - That is, what he did, suffered, taught. A part is put for the whole.

Wesley: 1Co 2:3

At my first entrance.

Wesley: 1Co 2:3

Of body, 2Co 12:7 And in fear - Lest I should offend any.

Wesley: 1Co 2:3

The emotion of my mind affecting my very body.

Wesley: 1Co 2:4

With that powerful kind of demonstration, which flows from the Holy Spirit; which works on the conscience with the most convincing light, and the most persuasive evidence.

Wesley: 1Co 2:5

That your faith might not be built on the wisdom or power of man, but on the wisdom and power of God.

JFB: 1Co 1:18

Literally, "the word," or speech as to the cross; in contrast to the "wisdom of words" (so called), 1Co 1:17.

JFB: 1Co 1:18

Rather, "them that are perishing," namely, by preferring human "wisdom of words" to the doctrine of the "cross of Christ." It is not the final state that is referred to; but, "them that are in the way of perishing." So also in 2Co 2:15-16.

JFB: 1Co 1:18

In the Greek the collocation is more modest, "to them that are being saved (that are in the way of salvation) as," that is, to which class we belong.

JFB: 1Co 1:18

Which includes in it that it is the wisdom of God" (1Co 1:24). God's powerful instrument of salvation; the highest exhibition of God's power (Rom 1:16). What seems to the world "weakness" in God's plan of salvation (1Co 1:25), and in its mode of delivery by His apostle (1Co 2:3) is really His mighty "power." What seems "foolishness" because wanting man's "wisdom of words" (1Co 1:17), is really the highest "wisdom of God" (1Co 1:24).

JFB: 1Co 1:19

Slightly altered from the Septuagint, Isa 29:14. The Hebrew is, "The wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid." Paul by inspiration gives the sense of the Spirit, by making GOD the cause of their wisdom perishing, &c., "I will destroy," &c.

JFB: 1Co 1:19

Literally, "of the understanding ones."

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Nowhere; for God "brings them to naught" (1Co 1:19).

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Generally.

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Jewish [ALFORD].

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Greek [ALFORD]. Compare the Jew and Greek of this world contrasted with the godly wise, 1Co 1:22-23. VITRINGA thinks the reference is to the Jewish discourses in the synagogue, daraschoth, from a Hebrew root "to dispute." Compare "questions," Act 26:3; Tit 3:9. If so, "wise" refers to Greek wisdom (compare 1Co 1:22). Paul applies Isa 33:18 here in a higher sense; there the primary reference was to temporal deliverance, here to external; 1Co 1:22, which is in threefold opposition to 1Co 1:18 there, sanctions this higher application; the Lord in the threefold character being the sole ground of glorying to His people.

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Rather, "dispensation (or age) . . . world"; the Greek words are distinct. The former is here this age or worldly order of things in a moral point of view, as opposed to the Christian dispensation or order of things. The latter is the world viewed externally and cosmically.

JFB: 1Co 1:20

Shown the world's philosophy to be folly, because it lacks faith in Christ crucified [CHRYSOSTOM]. Has treated it as folly, and not used its help in converting and saving men (1Co 1:26-27) [ESTIUS].

JFB: 1Co 1:21

Rather, "whereas."

JFB: 1Co 1:21

In the wise arrangement of God.

JFB: 1Co 1:21

Rather, "by its wisdom," or "its philosophy" (Joh 1:10; Rom 1:28).

JFB: 1Co 1:21

Whatever other knowledge it attained (Act 17:23, Act 17:27). The deistic theory that man can by the light of nature discover his duty to God, is disproved by the fact that man has never discovered it without revelation. All the stars and moon cannot make it day; that is the prerogative of the sun. Nor can nature's highest gifts make the moral day arise; that is the office of Christ. Even the Jew missed this knowledge, in so far as he followed after mere carnal world wisdom.

JFB: 1Co 1:21

Paul refers to Jesus' words (Luk 10:21).

JFB: 1Co 1:21

By that preaching which the world (unbelieving Jews and Gentiles alike) deem foolishness.

JFB: 1Co 1:21

(Rom 1:16).

JFB: 1Co 1:22

Literally, "Since," seeing that. This verse illustrates how the "preaching" of Christ crucified came to be deemed "foolishness" (1Co 1:21).

JFB: 1Co 1:22

The oldest manuscripts read "signs." The singular was a later correction from Mat 12:38; Mat 16:1; Joh 2:18. The signs the Jews craved for were not mere miracles, but direct tokens from heaven that Jesus was Messiah (Luk 11:16).

JFB: 1Co 1:22

Namely, a philosophic demonstration of Christianity. Whereas Christ, instead of demonstrative proof, demands faith on the ground of His word, and of a reasonable amount of evidence that the alleged revelation is His word. Christianity begins not with solving intellectual difficulties, but with satisfying the heart that longs for forgiveness. Hence not the refined Greeks, but the theocratic Jews were the chosen organ for propagating revelation. Again, intellectual Athens (Act 17:18-21, &c.) received the Gospel less readily than commercial Corinth.

JFB: 1Co 1:23

Paul and Apollos.

JFB: 1Co 1:23

The Greek expresses not the mere fact of His crucifixion, but the permanent character acquired by the transaction, whereby He is now a Saviour (Gal 3:1) crucified was the stone on which the Jews stumbled (Mat 21:44). The opposition of Jew and Gentile alike shows that a religion so seemingly contemptible in its origin could not have succeeded if it had not been divine.

JFB: 1Co 1:23

The oldest manuscripts read "unto the Gentiles."

JFB: 1Co 1:24

(compare 1Co 1:26). The same class as the "us which are (being) saved" (1Co 1:18); the elect, who have obeyed the call; called effectually (Rom 8:28, Rom 8:30).

JFB: 1Co 1:24

"Crucified" is not here added, because when the offense of the cross is overcome, "Christ" is received in all His relations, not only in His cross, but in His life and His future kingdom.

JFB: 1Co 1:24

So meeting all the reasonable requirements of the Jews who sought "a sign." The cross (the death of a slave), which to the Jews (looking for a temporal Messiah) was a "stumbling-block," is really "the power of God" to the salvation of all who believe.

JFB: 1Co 1:24

So really exhibiting, and in the highest degree (if they would but see it), that which the Greeks sought after--wisdom (Col 2:3).

JFB: 1Co 1:25

That is, God's plan of salvation which men deem "foolishness."

JFB: 1Co 1:25

Christ "crucified through weakness" (2Co 13:4, the great stumbling-block of the Jews), yet "living by the power of God." So He perfects strength out of the weakness of His servants (1Co 2:3; 2Co 12:9).

JFB: 1Co 1:26

Rather, from the prominence of the verb in the Greek, "see" or "consider" (imperative) [ALFORD from Vulgate and IRENÆUS].

JFB: 1Co 1:26

Instead of the words in italics, supplied by English Version, supply, "were your callers." What Paul is dwelling on (compare 1Co 1:27-28) is the weakness of the instrumentality which the Lord employed to convert the world [HINDS and WHATELY; so ANSELM]. However, English Version accords well with 1Co 1:24. "The whole history of the expansion of the Church is a progressive victory of the ignorant over the learned, the lowly over the lofty, until the emperor himself laid down his crown before the cross of Christ" [OLSHAUSEN].

JFB: 1Co 1:26

The wisdom of this world acquired by human study without the Spirit. (Contrast Mat 16:17).

JFB: 1Co 1:27

A general phrase for all persons and things foolish. Even things (and those, too, foolish things) are chosen by God to confound persons, (and those too persons who are wise). This seems to me the force of the change from neuter to masculine.

JFB: 1Co 1:27

The Greek is stronger, "that He might confound (or put to shame)." God confounds the wise by effecting through His instruments, without human wisdom, that the worldly wise, with it, cannot effect, namely, to bring men to salvation.

JFB: 1Co 1:27

The repetition indicates the gracious deliberateness of God's purpose (Jam 2:5).

JFB: 1Co 1:28

Yea is not in the Greek. Also some of the oldest manuscripts omit "and." Thus the clause, "things which are not" (are regarded as naught), is in apposition with "foolish . . . weak . . . base (that is, lowborn) and despised things." God has chosen all four, though regarded as things that are not, to bring to naught things that are.

JFB: 1Co 1:29

For they who try to glory (boast) because of human greatness and wisdom, are "confounded" or put to shame (1Co 1:27). Flesh, like "the flower of the field," is beautiful, but frail (Isa 40:6).

JFB: 1Co 1:29

We are to glory not before Him, but in Him [BENGEL].

JFB: 1Co 1:30

In contrast to them that "glory" in worldly wisdom and greatness.

JFB: 1Co 1:30

Not of yourselves (Eph 2:8), but of Him (Rom 11:36). From Him ye are (that is, have spiritual life, who once were spiritually among the "things which are not." 1Co 1:28).

JFB: 1Co 1:30

By living union with Him. Not "in the flesh" (1Co 1:26, 1Co 1:29).

JFB: 1Co 1:30

From God; emanating from Him and sent by Him.

JFB: 1Co 1:30

Has been made to us, to our eternal gain.

JFB: 1Co 1:30

Unattainable by the worldly mode of seeking it (1Co 1:19-20; contrast Col 2:3; Pro. 8:1-36; Isa 9:6). By it we become "wise unto salvation," owing to His wisdom in originating and executing the plan, whereas once we were "fools."

JFB: 1Co 1:30

The ground of our justification (Jer 23:5-6; Rom 4:25; 2Co 5:21); whereas once we were "weak" (Rom 5:6). Isa 42:21; Isa 45:24.

JFB: 1Co 1:30

By His Spirit; whereas formerly we were "base." Hereafter our righteousness and sanctification alike shall be both perfect and inherent. Now the righteousness wherewith we are justified is perfect, but not inherent; that wherewith we are sanctified is inherent, but not perfect [HOOKER]. Now sanctification is perfect in principle, but not in attainment. These two are joined in the Greek as forming essentially but one thing, as distinguished from the "wisdom" in devising and executing the plan for us ("abounded toward us in all wisdom," Eph 1:8), and "redemption," the final completion of the scheme in the deliverance of the body (the position of "redemption" last shows that this limited sense is the one intended here). Luk 21:28; Rom 8:23; Eph 1:14; Eph 4:30.

JFB: 1Co 1:30

Whereas once we were "despised."

JFB: 1Co 1:31

(Jer 9:23-24) --in opposition to "flesh glorying in His presence" (1Co 1:29). In contrast to morbid slavish self-abasement, Paul joins with humility the elevating consciousness of our true dignity in Christ. He who glories is to glory in the Lord, not in the flesh, nor in the world.

JFB: 1Co 2:1

"So I" [CONYBEARE] as one of the "foolish, weak, and despised" instruments employed by God (1Co 1:27-28); "glorying in the Lord," not in man's wisdom (1Co 1:31). Compare 1Co 1:23, "We."

JFB: 1Co 2:1

(Act 18:1, &c.). Paul might, had he pleased, have used an ornate style, having studied secular learning at Tarsus of Cilicia, which STRABO preferred as a school of learning to Athens or Alexandria; here, doubtless, he read the Cilician Aratus' poems (which he quotes, Act 17:28), and Epimenides (Tit 1:12), and Menander (1Co 15:33). Grecian intellectual development was an important element in preparing the way for the Gospel, but it failed to regenerate the world, showing that for this a superhuman power is needed. Hellenistic (Grecizing) Judaism at Tarsus and Alexandria was the connecting link between the schools of Athens and those of the Rabbis. No more fitting birthplace could there have been for the apostle of the Gentiles than Tarsus, free as it was from the warping influences of Rome, Alexandria, and Athens. He had at the same time Roman citizenship, which protected him from sudden violence. Again, he was reared in the Hebrew divine law at Jerusalem. Thus, as the three elements, Greek cultivation, Roman polity (Luk 2:1), and the divine law given to the Jews, combined just at Christ's time, to prepare the world for the Gospel, so the same three, by God's marvellous providence, met together in the apostle to the Gentiles [CONYBEARE and HOWSON].

JFB: 1Co 2:1

"the testimony of Christ" (1Co 1:6); therefore Christ is God.

JFB: 1Co 2:2

The Greek implies, "The only definite thing that I made it my business to know among you, was to know Jesus Christ (His person) and Him crucified (His office)" [ALFORD], not exalted on the earthly throne of David, but executed as the vilest malefactor. The historical fact of Christ's crucifixion had probably been put less prominently forward by the seekers after human wisdom in the Corinthian church, to avoid offending learned heathens and Jews. Christ's person and Christ's office constitute the sum of the Gospel.

JFB: 1Co 2:3

The preacher: as 1Co 2:2 describes the subject, "Christ crucified," and 1Co 2:4 the mode of preaching: "my speech . . . not with enticing words," "but in demonstration of the Spirit."

JFB: 1Co 2:3

Personal and bodily (2Co 10:10; 2Co 12:7, 2Co 12:9; Gal 4:13).

JFB: 1Co 2:3

(compare Phi 2:12). Not personal fear, but a trembling anxiety to perform a duty; anxious conscientiousness, as proved by the contrast to "eye service" (Eph 6:5) [CONYBEARE and HOWSON].

JFB: 1Co 2:4

In private.

JFB: 1Co 2:4

In public [BENGEL]. ALFORD explains it, My discourse on doctrines, and my preaching or announcement of facts.

JFB: 1Co 2:4

Rather, "persuasive."

JFB: 1Co 2:4

Man's is omitted in the oldest authorities. Still "wisdom" does refer to "man's" wisdom.

JFB: 1Co 2:4

Persuasion is man's means of moving his fellow man. God's means is demonstration, leaving no doubt, and inspiring implicit faith, by the powerful working of the Spirit (then exhibited both outwardly by miracles, and inwardly by working on the heart, now in the latter and the more important way only, Mat 7:29; Act 6:10; Heb 4:12; compare also Rom 15:19). The same simple power accompanies divine truth now, producing certain persuasion and conversion, when the Spirit demonstrates by it.

JFB: 1Co 2:5

Rest on it, owe its origin and continuance to it.

Clarke: 1Co 1:18

For the preaching of the cross - Ὁ λογος γαρ ὁ του σταυρου, The doctrine of the cross; or the doctrine that is of or concerning the cross; that is, the doctrine that proclaims salvation to a lost world through the crucifixion of Christ

Clarke: 1Co 1:18

Is to them that perish foolishness - There are, properly speaking, but two classes of men known where the Gospel is preached: απολλυμενοι, the unbelievers and gainsayers, who are perishing; and σοζομενοι, the obedient believers, who are in a state of salvation. To those who will continue in the first state, the preaching of salvation through the merit of a crucified Savior is folly. To those who believe this doctrine of Christ crucified is the power of God to their salvation; it is divinely efficacious to deliver them from all the power, guilt, and pollution of sin.

Clarke: 1Co 1:19

For it is written - The place referred to is Isa 29:14

Clarke: 1Co 1:19

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise - Των σοφων, Of wise men - of the philosophers who in their investigations seek nothing less than God, and whose highest discoveries amount to nothing in comparison of the grand truths relative to God, the invisible world, and the true end of man, which the Gospel has brought to light. Let me add, that the very discoveries which are really useful have been made by men who feared God, and conscientiously credited Divine revelation: witness Newton, Boyle, Pascal, and many others. But all the skeptics and deists, by their schemes of natural religion and morality, have not been able to save one soul! No sinner has ever been converted from the error of his ways by their preaching or writings.

Clarke: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise - the scribe - the disputer of this world? - These words most manifestly refer to the Jews; as the places (Isa 29:14; Isa 33:18; Isa 44:25) to which he refers cannot be understood of any but the Jews

The wise man σοφος, of the apostle, is the חכם chakam of the prophet ; whose office it was to teach others

The scribe, γραμματευς, of the apostle, is the ספר sopher of the prophet ; this signifies any man of learning, as distinguished from the common people, especially any master of the traditions

The disputer, συζητητης, answers to the דרש derosh , or דרשן darshan , the propounder of questions; the seeker of allegorical, mystical, and cabalistical senses from the Holy Scriptures. Now as all these are characters well known among the Jews, and as the words αιωνος τουτου, of this world are a simple translation of עולם הזה olam hazzeh , which is repeatedly used to designate the Jewish republic, there is no doubt that the apostle has the Jews immediately in view. This wisdom of theirs induced them to seek out of the sacred oracles any sense but the true one; and they made the word of God of none effect by their traditions. After them, and precisely on their model, the schoolmen arose; and they rendered the doctrine of the Gospel of no effect by their hypercritical questions, and endless distinctions without differences. By the preaching of Christ crucified God made foolish the wisdom of the Jewish wise men; and, after that the pure religion of Christ had been corrupted by a Church that was of this world, God rendered the wisdom and disputing of the schoolmen foolishness, by the revival of pure Christianity at the Reformation. The Jews themselves allow that nothing is wise, nothing strong, nothing rich, without God

"Our rabbins teach that there were two wise men in this world; one was an Israelite, Achitophel, the other was a Gentile, Balaam; but both were miserable in this world.

"There were also two strong men in the world; one an Israelite, Samson, the other a Gentile, Goliah; but they were both miserable in this world.

"There were two rich men in the world; one an Israelite, Korah, the other a Gentile, Haman; but both these were miserable in this world. And why? Because their gifts came not from God."See Schoettgen

In truth the world has derived very little, if any, moral good, either from the Jewish rabbins or the Gentile philosophers.

Clarke: 1Co 1:21

For after that in the wisdom of God - Dr. Lightfoot observes, "That σοφια του Θεου, the wisdom of God, is not to be understood of that wisdom which had God for its author, but that wisdom which had God for its object. There was, among the heathen, σοφια της φυσεως, wisdom about natural things, that is, philosophy; and σοφια του Θεου, wisdom about God; that is, divinity. But the world in its divinity could not, by wisdom, know God."The plain meaning of this verse is, that the wise men of the world, especially the Greek philosophers, who possessed every advantage that human nature could have, independently of a Divine revelation, and who had cultivated their minds to the uttermost, could never, by their learning, wisdom, and industry, find out God; nor had the most refined philosophers among them just and correct views of the Divine nature, nor of that in which human happiness consists. The work of Lucretius, De Natura Rerum, and the work of Cicero, De Natura Deorum, are incontestable proofs of this. Even the writings of Plato and Aristotle have contributed little to remove the veil which clouded the understanding of men. No wisdom but that which came from God could ever penetrate and illuminate the human mind

Clarke: 1Co 1:21

By the foolishness of preaching - By the preaching of Christ crucified, which the Gentiles termed μωρια, foolishness, in opposition to their own doctrines, which they termed σοφια, wisdom. It was not by the foolishness of preaching, literally, nor by the foolish preaching, that God saved the world; but by that Gospel which they called μωρια, foolishness; which was, in fact, the wisdom of God, and also the power of God to the salvation of them that believed.

Clarke: 1Co 1:22

For the Jews require a sign - Instead of σημειον, a sign, ABCDEFG, several others, both the Syriac, Coptic, Vulgate, and Itala, with many of the fathers, have σημεια, signs; which reading, as undoubtedly genuine, Griesbach has admitted into the text. There never was a people in the universe more difficult to be persuaded of the truth than the Jews: and had not their religion been incontestably proved by the most striking and indubitable miracles, they never would have received it. This slowness of heart to believe, added to their fear of being deceived, induced them to require miracles to attest every thing that professed to come from God. They were a wicked and adulterous generation, continually seeking signs, and never saying, It is enough. But the sign which seems particularly referred to here is the assumption of secular power, which they expected in the Messiah; and because this sign did not appear in Christ, therefore they rejected him

Clarke: 1Co 1:22

And the Greeks seek after wisdom - Such wisdom, or philosophy, as they found in the writings of Cicero, Seneca, Plato, etc., which was called philosophy, and which came recommended to them in all the beauties and graces of the Latin and Greek languages.

Clarke: 1Co 1:23

But we - Apostles, differing widely from these Gentile philosophers: -

Preach Christ crucified - Call on men, both Jews and Gentiles, to believe in Christ, as having purchased their salvation by shedding his blood for them

Clarke: 1Co 1:23

Unto the Jews a stumbling block - Because Jesus came meek, lowly, and impoverished; not seeking worldly glory, nor affecting worldly pomp; whereas they expected the Messiah to come as a mighty prince and conqueror; because Christ did not come so, they were offended at him. Out of their own mouths, we may condemn the gainsaying Jews. In Sohar Chadash, fol. 26, the following saying is attributed to Moses, relative to the brazen serpent: "Moses said, This serpent is a stumbling block to the world. The holy blessed God answered: Not at all, it shall be for punishment to sinners, and life to upright men."This is a proper illustration of the apostle’ s words

Clarke: 1Co 1:23

Unto the Greeks foolishness - Because they could not believe that proclaiming supreme happiness through a man that was crucified at Judea as a malefactor could ever comport with reason and common sense; for both the matter and manner of the preaching were opposite to every notion they had formed of what was dignified and philosophic. In Justin Martyr’ s dialogue with Trypho the Jew we have these remarkable words, which serve to throw light on the above. "Your Jesus,"says Trypho, "having fallen under the extreme curse of God, we cannot sufficiently admire how you can expect any good from God, who place your hopes επ ’ ανθρωπον σταυρωθεντα, upon a man that was Crucified."The same writer adds: "They count us mad, that after the eternal God, the Father of all things, we give the second place, ανθρωπῳ σταυρωθεντι, to a man that was crucified.""Where is your understanding,"said the Gentiles, "who worship for a god him who was crucified?"Thus Christ crucified was to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness. See Whitby on this verse.

Clarke: 1Co 1:24

But unto them which are called - Τοις κλητοις . Those, both of Jews and Greeks, who were by the preaching of the Gospel called or invited to the marriage feast, and have accordingly believed in Christ Jesus; they prove this doctrine to be divinely powerful, to enlighten and convert the soul, and to be a proof of God’ s infinite wisdom, which has found out such an effectual way to glorify both his justice and mercy, and save, to the uttermost, all that come to him through Christ Jesus. The called, or invited, κλητοι, is a title of genuine Christians, and is frequently used in the New Testament. Ἁγιοι, saints, is used in the same sense.

Clarke: 1Co 1:25

The foolishness of God is wiser, etc. - The meaning of these strong expressions is, that the things of God’ s appointment, which seem to men foolishness, are infinitely beyond the highest degree of human wisdom; and those works of God, which appear to superficial observers weak and contemptible, surpass all the efforts of human power. The means which God has appointed for the salvation of men are so wisely imagined and so energetically powerful, that all who properly use them shall be infallibly brought to the end - final blessedness, which he has promised to them who believe and obey.

Clarke: 1Co 1:26

Ye see your calling - Την κλησιν . The state of grace and blessedness to which ye are invited. I think, βλεπετε την κλησιν, etc., should be read in the imperative: Take heed to, or consider your calling, brethren; that ( ὁτι ) not many of you are wise after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble: men is not in the original, and Paul seems to allude to the Corinthian believers in particular. This seems to have been said in opposition to the high and worldly notions of the Jews, who assert that the Divine Spirit never rests upon any man, unless he be wise, powerful, and rich. Now this Divine Spirit did rest upon the Christians at Corinth, and yet these were, in the sense of the world, neither wise, rich, nor noble. We spoil, if not corrupt the apostle’ s meaning, by adding are called, as if God did not send his Gospel to the wise, the powerful, and the noble, or did not will their salvation. The truth is, the Gospel has an equal call to all classes of men; but the wise, the mighty, and the noble, are too busy, or too sensual, to pay any attention to an invitation so spiritual and so Divine; and therefore there are few of these in the Church of Christ in general.

Clarke: 1Co 1:27

But God hath chosen the foolish things - God has chosen by means of men who are esteemed rude and illiterate to confound the greatest of the Greek philosophers, and overturn their systems; and, by means of men weak, without secular power or authority, to confound the scribes and Pharisees, and in spite of the exertions of the Jewish sanhedrin, to spread the doctrine of Christ crucified all over the land of Judea, and by such instruments as these to convert thousands of souls to the faith of the Gospel, who are ready to lay down their lives for the truth. The Jews have proverbs that express the same sense as these words of the apostle. In Shemoth Rabba, sec. 17, fol. 117, it is said: "There are certain matters which appear little to men, yet by them God points out important precepts. Thus hyssop in the sight of man is worth nothing, but in the sight of God its power is great; sometimes he equals it to the cedar, particularly in the ordinance concerning the lepers, and in the burning of the red heifer. Thus God commanded them in Egypt, Exo 12:22 : And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, etc. And concerning Solomon it is said, 1Ki 4:33 : And he discoursed of trees, from the cedar on Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. Whence we may learn that great and small things are equal in the eyes of the Lord, and that even by small things He can work great miracles."

Clarke: 1Co 1:28

And base things - and things which are despised - It is very likely that the apostle refers here to the Gentiles and to the Gentile converts, who were considered base and despicable in the eyes of the Jews, who counted them no better than dogs, and who are repeatedly called the things that are not. By these very people, converted to Christianity, God has brought to nought all the Jewish pretensions; and by means of the Gentiles themselves, he has annihilated the whole Jewish polity; so that even Jerusalem itself was soon after this, trodden under foot of the Gentiles.

Clarke: 1Co 1:29

That no flesh should glory - God does his mighty works in such a way as proves that though he may condescend to employ men as instruments, yet they have no part either in the contrivance or energy by which such works are performed.

Clarke: 1Co 1:30

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus - Even the good which you possess is granted by God, for it is by and through him that Christ Jesus comes, and all the blessings of the Gospel dispensation

Clarke: 1Co 1:30

Who of God is made unto us wisdom - As being the author of that evangelical wisdom which far excels the wisdom of the philosopher and the scribe, and even that legal constitution which is called the wisdom of the Jews, Deu 4:6

Clarke: 1Co 1:30

And righteousness - Δικαιοσυνη, Justification, as procuring for us that remission of sins which the law could not give, Gal 2:21; Gal 3:21

Clarke: 1Co 1:30

And sanctification - As procuring for and working in us, not only an external and relative holiness, as was that of the Jews, but ὁσιοτητα της αληθειας, true and eternal holiness, Eph 4:24, wrought in us by the Holy Spirit

Clarke: 1Co 1:30

And redemption - He is the author of redemption, not from the Egyptian bondage, or Babylonish captivity, but from the servitude of Satan, the dominion of sin and death, and from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the sons of God, or the redemption of the body, Rom 8:21, Rom 8:23. See Whitby

The object of the apostle is to show that man of himself possesses no good, that whatever he has comes from God, and from God only through Christ. For the different acceptations of the word righteousness the reader may consult the note on Rom 1:17 (note), where the subject is considered in every point of view.

Clarke: 1Co 1:31

According as it is written - In Jer 9:23, Jer 9:24 : Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might; let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this: That he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord, which exercise loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth. So then, as all good is of and from God, let him that has either wisdom, strength, riches, pardon, holiness, or any other blessing, whether temporal or spiritual, acknowledge that he has nothing but what he has received; and that, as he has cause of glorying (boasting or exultation) in being made a partaker of these benefits and mercies of his Creator and Redeemer, let him boast in God alone, by whom, through Christ Jesus, he has received the whole

1.    This is an admirable chapter, and drawn up with great skill and address. The divided state of the Corinthian Church we have already noticed, and it appears that in these factions the apostle’ s authority had been set at nought by some, and questioned by many. St. Paul begins his letter with showing his authority; he had it immediately through Christ Jesus himself, by the will of God. And indeed the success of his preaching was a sufficient proof of the Divinity of his call. Had not God been with him he never could have successfully opposed the whole system of the national religion of the Corinthians, supported as it was by the prejudice of the people, the authority of the laws, and the eloquence and learning of their most eminent philosophers. It was necessary, therefore, that he should call the attention of this people to the Divine origin of his mission, that they might acknowledge that the excellency of the power was of God, and not of man

2.    It was necessary also that he should conciliate their esteem, and therefore speak as favourably concerning them as truth would allow; hence he shows them that they were a Church of God, sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be saints; that they abounded and even excelled in many extraordinary gifts and graces; and that they were not inferior to any Church of God in any gift. And he shows them that they received all these through God’ s confirmation of that testimony which he had delivered among them, 1Co 1:4-7

3.    When he had thus prepared their minds to receive and profit by his admonitions he proceeds to their schisms, which he mentions and reprehends in the most delicate manner, so that the most obstinate and prejudiced could take no offense

4.    Having gained this point, he gently leads them to consider that, as God is the fountain of all good, so their good had all come from him; and that none of them should rest in the gift, but in the giver; nor should they consider themselves as of particular consequence on account of possessing such gifts, because all earthly good is transitory, and those who trust in power, wisdom, or wealth, are confounded and brought to nought; and that they alone are safe who receive every thing as from the hand of God, and, in the strength of his gifts, glorify him who is the donor of all good. He who can read this chapter without getting much profit has very little spirituality in his soul, and must be utterly unacquainted with the work of God in the heart.

Clarke: 1Co 2:1

When I came to you - Acting suitably to my mission, which was to preach the Gospel, but not with human eloquence, 1Co 1:17. I declared to you the testimony, the Gospel, of God, not with excellency of speech, not with arts of rhetoric, used by your own philosophers, where the excellence of the speech recommends the matter, and compensates for the want of solidity and truth: on the contrary, the testimony concerning Christ and his salvation is so supremely excellent, as to dignify any kind of language by which it may be conveyed. See the Introduction, Section 2.

Clarke: 1Co 2:2

I determined not to know any thing among you - Satisfied that the Gospel of God could alone make you wise unto salvation, I determined to cultivate no other knowledge, and to teach nothing but Jesus Christ, and him crucified, as the foundation of all true wisdom, piety, and happiness. No other doctrine shall I proclaim among you.

Clarke: 1Co 2:3

I was with you in weakness - It is very likely that St. Paul had not only something in his speech very unfavourable to a ready and powerful elocution, but also some infirmity of body that was still more disadvantageous to him. A fine appearance and a fine voice cover many weaknesses and defects, and strongly and forcibly recommend what is spoken, though not remarkable for depth of thought or solidity of reasoning. Many popular orators have little besides their persons and their voice to recommend them. Louis XIV. styled Peter du Bosc le plus beau parleur de son royaume , the finest speaker in his kingdom; and among his own people he was styled l’ orateur parfait , the perfect orator. Look at the works of this French protestant divine, and you find it difficult to subscribe to the above sayings. The difficulty is solved by the information that the person of M. du Bosc was noble and princely, and his voice full, harmonious, and majestic. Paul had none of these advantages, and yet idolatry and superstition fell before him. Thus God was seen in the work, and the man was forgotten

Clarke: 1Co 2:3

In fear, and in much trembling - This was often the state of his mind; dreading lest he should at any time be unfaithful, and so grieve the Spirit of God; or that, after having preached to others, himself should be a castaway. See 1Co 9:27

An eminent divine has said that it requires three things to make a good preacher; study, temptation, and prayer. The latter, no man that lives near to God can neglect; the former, no man who endeavors rightly to divide the word of truth will neglect; and with the second every man will be more or less exercised whose whole aim is to save souls. Those of a different cast the devil permits to pass quietly on in their own indolent and prayerless way.

Clarke: 1Co 2:4

And my speech - Ὁ λογος μου, My doctrine; the matter of my preaching

Clarke: 1Co 2:4

And my preaching - Το κηρυγμα μου, My proclamation, my manner of recommending the grand but simple truths of the Gospel

Clarke: 1Co 2:4

Was not with enticing words of man’ s wisdom - Ενπειθοις ανθρωπινης σοφιας λογοις, With persuasive doctrines of human wisdom: in every case I left man out, that God might become the more evident. I used none of the means of which great orators avail themselves in order to become popular, and thereby to gain fame

Clarke: 1Co 2:4

But in demonstration of the Spirit - Αποδειξει, In the manifestation; or, as two ancient MSS. have it, αποκαλυψει, in the revelation of the Spirit. The doctrine that he preached was revealed by the Spirit: that it was a revelation of the Spirit, the holiness, purity, and usefulness of the doctrine rendered manifest: and the overthrow of idolatry, and the conversion of souls, by the power and energy of the preaching, were the demonstration that all was Divine. The greater part of the best MSS., versions, and fathers, leave out the adjective ανθρωπινης, man’ s, before σοφιας, wisdom: it is possible that the word may be a gloss, but it is necessarily implied in the clause. Not with the persuasive discourses, or doctrines of wisdom; i.e. of human philosophy.

Clarke: 1Co 2:5

That your faith should not stand - That the illumination of your souls and your conversion to God might appear to have nothing human in it: your belief, therefore, of the truths which have been proposed to you is founded, not in human wisdom, but in Divine power: human wisdom was not employed; and human power, if it had been employed, could not have produced the change.

Calvin: 1Co 1:18

18.For the preaching of the cross, etc. In this first clause a concession is made. For as it might very readily be objected, that the gospel is commonly held in contempt, if it be presented in so bare and abject a form, Paul of his own accord concedes this, but when he adds, that it is so in the estimation of them that perish, he intimates that no regard must be paid to their judgment. For who would choose to despise the gospel at the expense of perishing? This statement, therefore, must be understood in this way: “However the preaching of the cross, as having nothing of human wisdom to recommend it to esteem, is reckoned foolishness by them that perish; in our view, notwithstanding, the wisdom of God clearly shines forth in it.” He indirectly reproves, however, the perverted judgment of the Corinthians, who, while they were, through seduction of words, too easily allured by ambitious teachers, regarded with disdain an Apostle who was endowed with the power of God for their salvation, and that simply because he devoted himself to the preaching of Christ. In what way the preaching of the cross is the power of God unto salvation, we have explained in commenting upon Rom 1:16

Calvin: 1Co 1:19

19.For it is written, etc. He shows still farther, from the testimony of Isaiah, how unreasonable a thing it is that the truth of the gospel should be regarded with prejudice on the ground that the wise of this world hold it in contempt, not to say derision. For it is evident from the words of the Prophet, that their opinion is regarded as nothing in the account of God. The passage is taken from Isa 29:14, where the Lord threatens that he will avenge himself upon the hypocrisy of the people by this kind of punishment, that wisdom will perish from the wise, etc. Now the application of this to the subject in hand is this: “It is nothing new or unusual for men to form utterly absurd judgments, who appear in other respects to be distinguished for wisdom. For in this manner the Lord has been wont to punish the arrogance of those who, depending on their own judgment, think to be leaders to themselves and others. In this manner did He, among the Israelitish people of old, destroy the wisdom of those who were the leaders of the people. If this happened among a people, whose wisdom the other nations had occasion to admire, what will become of others?”

It is proper, however, to compare the words of the Prophet with those of Paul, and to examine the whole matter still more closely. The Prophet, indeed, makes use of neuter verbs when he says, Wisdom will perish and prudence will vanish, while Paul turns them into the active form, by making them have a reference to God. They are, however, perfectly the same in meaning. For this is a great prodigy which God declares he will exhibit, so that all will be filled with astonishment. Wisdom, therefore, perishes, but it is by the Lord’s destroying it: wisdom vanishes, but it is by the Lord’s covering it over and effacing it. As to the second term αθετεῖν, (which Erasmus renders reject,) as it is ambiguous, and is sometimes taken to mean efface, or expunge, or obliterate, I prefer to understand it in this sense here, so as to correspond with the Prophet’s word vanish, or be hid. At the same time, there is another reason that has weighed more with me, ⁸³ — that the word reject was not in accordance with the subject, as will appear ere long. Let us see, then, as to the meaning.

The Prophet’s meaning, without doubt, is precisely this, that they would no longer have governors that would rule well, because the Lord will deprive them of sound judgment and intelligence. For as he elsewhere threatens to send blindness upon the whole nation (Isa 6:10,) so here, upon the leaders; which is just as though he were plucking the eyes out of the body. However this may be, a great difficulty arises from the circumstance, that the term wisdom or prudence was taken by Isaiah in a good sense, while Paul quotes it for an opposite purpose, as though the wisdom of men were condemned by God, as being perverted, and their prudence set aside as being mere vanity. I confess that it is commonly expounded in this way; but as it is certain that the oracles of the Holy Spirit are not perverted by the Apostles to meanings foreign to their real design, I choose rather to depart from the common opinion of interpreters than to charge Paul with falsehood. In other respects, too, the natural meaning of the Prophet’s words accords not ill with Paul’s intention; for if even the wisest become fools, when the Lord takes away a right spirit, what confidence is to be placed in the wisdom of men? Farther, as it is God’s usual way of punishing, to strike blind those who, following implicitly their own judgment, are wise in their own esteem, it is not to be wondered if carnal men, when they rise up against God, with the view of subjecting His eternal truth to their rashness, are turned into fools, and become vain in their imaginations. We now see with what appropriateness Paul makes use of this testimony. Isaiah declares that the vengeance of God upon all those that served God with their own inventions would be, that wisdom would vanish from their wise men. Paul, with the view of proving that the wisdom of this world is vain and worthless, when it exalts itself against God, adduces this testimony from Isaiah.

Calvin: 1Co 1:20

20.Where is the wise? where is the scribe? This expression of triumph is added for the purpose of illustrating the Prophet’s testimony. Paul has not taken this sentiment from Isaiah, as is commonly thought, but speaks in his own person. For the passage which they point to (Isa 33:18) has nothing corresponding to the subject in hand, or nearly approaching to it. For in that passage, while he promises to the Jews deliverance from the yoke of Sennacherib, that he may magnify the more this great blessing from God, he shows how miserable is the condition of those that are oppressed by the tyranny of foreigners. He says, that they are in a constant fever of anxiety, from thinking themselves beset with scribes or questors, treasurers, and counters of towers. Nay more, he says, that the Jews were involved in such difficulties, that they were stirred up to gratitude by the very remembrance of them. ⁸⁴ It is a mistake, therefore, to suppose that this sentence is taken from the Prophet. ⁸⁵ The term world, ought not to be taken in connection with the last term merely, but also with the other two. Now, by the wise of this world, he means those who do not derive their wisdom from illumination by the Spirit through means of the word of God, but, endowed with mere worldly sagacity, rest on the assurance which it affords.

It is generally agreed, that by the term scribes is meant teachers. For as ספר , saphar, among the Hebrews, means to relate or recount, and the noun derived from it, ספר , sepher, , is used by them to signify a book or volume, they employ the term סופרימ , sopherim, to denote learned men, and those that are conversant with books; and, for the same reason, too, sopher regis is often used to denote a chancellor or secretary The Greeks, following the etymology of the Hebrew term, have translated it γραμματεις, scribes ⁸⁶ He appropriately gives the name of investigators ⁸⁷ to those that show off their acuteness by starting difficult points and involved questions. Thus in a general way he brings to nothing man’s entire intellect, so as to give it no standing in the kingdom of God. Nor is it without good reason that he inveighs so vehemently against the wisdom of men, for it is impossible to express how difficult a thing it is to eradicate from men’s minds a misdirected confidence in the flesh, that they may not claim for themselves more than is reasonable. Now there is more than ought to be, if, depending even in the slightest degree upon their own wisdom, they venture of themselves to form a judgment.

Hath not God made foolish, etc By wisdom here he means everything that man can comprehend either by the natural powers of his understanding, or as deriving aid from practice, from learning, or from a knowledge of the arts. For he contrasts the wisdom of the world with the wisdom of the Spirit. Hence, whatever knowledge a man may come to have without the illumination of the Holy Spirit, is included in the expression, the wisdom of this world This he says God has utterly made foolish, that is, He has convicted it of folly. This you may understand to be effected in two ways; for whatever a man knows and understands, is mere vanity, if it is not grounded in true wisdom; and it is in no degree better fitted for the apprehension of spiritual doctrine than the eye of a blind man is for discriminating colors. We must carefully notice these two things — that a knowledge of all the sciences is mere smoke, where the heavenly science of Christ is wanting; and man, with all his acuteness, is as stupid for obtaining of himself a knowledge of the mysteries of God, as an ass is unqualified for understanding musical harmonies. For in this way he reproves the destructive pride of those who glory in the wisdom of the world so as to despise Christ, and the entire doctrine of salvation, thinking themselves happy when they are taken up with creatures; and he beats down the arrogance of those who, trusting to their own understanding, attempt to scale heaven itself.

There is also a solution furnished at the same time to the question, how it happens that Paul in this way throws down upon the ground every kind of knowledge that is apart from Christ, and tramples, as it were, under foot what is manifestly one of the chief gifts of God in this world. For what is more noble than man’s reason, in which man excels the other animals? How richly deserving of honor are the liberal sciences, which polish man, so as to give him the dignity of true humanity! Besides this, what distinguished and choice fruits they produce! Who would not extol with the highest commendations civil prudence ⁸⁸ (not to speak of other things,) by which governments, principalities, and kingdoms are maintained? A solution of this question, I say, is opened up to view from the circumstance, that Paul does not expressly condemn either man’s natural perspicacity, or wisdom acquired from practice and experience, or cultivation of mind attained by learning; but declares that all this is of no avail for acquiring spiritual wisdom. And, certainly, it is madness for any one, confiding either in his own acuteness, or the assistance of learning, to attempt to fly up to heaven, or, in other words, to judge of the secret mysteries of the kingdom of God, ⁸⁹ or to break through (Exo 19:21) to a discovery of them, for they are hid from human view. Let us, then, take notice, that we must restrict to the specialities of the case in hand what Paul here teaches respecting the vanity of the wisdom of this world — that it rests in the mere elements of the world, and does not reach to heaven. In other respects, too, it holds true, that without Christ sciences in every department are vain, and that the man who knows not God is vain, though he should be conversant with every branch of learning. Nay more, we may affirm this, too, with truth, that these choice gifts of God — expertness of mind, acuteness of judgment, liberal sciences, and acquaintance with languages, are in a manner profaned in every instance in which they fall to the lot of wicked men.

Calvin: 1Co 1:21

21.For since the world knew not The right order of things was assuredly this, that man, contemplating the wisdom of God in his works, by the light of the understanding furnished him by nature, might arrive at an acquaintance with him. As, however, this order of things has been reversed through man’s depravity, God designs in the first place to make us see ourselves to be fools, before he makes us wise unto salvation, (2Ti 3:15;) and secondly, as a token of his wisdom, he presents to us what has some appearance of folly. This inversion of the order of things the ingratitude of mankind deserved. By the wisdom of God he means the workmanship of the whole world, which is an illustrious token and clear manifestation of his wisdom: God therefore presents before us in his creatures a bright mirror of his admirable wisdom, so that every one that looks upon the world, and the other works of God, must of necessity break forth in admiration of him, if he has a single spark of sound judgment. If men were guided to a right knowledge of God by the contemplation of his works, they would know God in the exercise of wisdom, or by a natural and proper method of acquiring wisdom; but as the whole world gained nothing in point of instruction from the circumstance, that God had exhibited his wisdom in his creatures, he then resorted to another method for instructing men. ⁹⁰ Thus it must be reckoned as our own fault, that we do not attain a saving acquaintance with God, before we have been emptied of our own understanding.

He makes a concession when he calls the gospel the foolishness of preaching, having that appearance in the view of those foolish sages (μωροσόφοις) who, intoxicated with false confidence, ⁹¹ fear not to subject God’s sacred truth to their senseless criticism. And indeed in another point of view nothing is more absurd in the view, of human reason than to hear that God has become mortal — that life has been subjected to death — that righteousness has been veiled under the appearance of sin — and that the source of blessing has been made subject to the curse, that by this means men might be redeemed from death, and become partakers of a blessed immortality — that they might obtain life — that, sin being destroyed, righteousness might reign — and that death and the curse might be swallowed up. We know, nevertheless, in the meantime, that the gospel is the hidden wisdom, (1Co 2:7,) which in its height surmounts the heavens, and at which angels themselves stand amazed. Here we have a most beautiful passage, from which we may see how great is the blindness of the human mind, which in the midst of light discerns nothing. For it is true, that this world is like a theater, in which the Lord presents to us a clear manifestation of his glory, and yet, notwithstanding that we have such a spectacle placed before our eyes, we are stone-blind, not because the manifestation is furnished obscurely, but because we are alienated in mind, (Col 1:21,)and for this matter we lack not merely inclination but ability. For notwithstanding that God shows himself openly, it is only with the eye of faith that we can behold him, save only that we receive a slight perception of his divinity, sufficient to render us inexcusable.

Accordingly, when Paul here declares that God is not known through means of his creatures, you must understand him to mean that a pure knowledge of him is not attained. For that none may have any pretext for ignorance, mankind make proficiency in the universal school of nature; so far as to be affected with some perception of deity, but what God is, they know not, nay more, they straightway become vain in their imaginations, (Rom 1:21.) Thus the light shineth in darkness, (Joh 1:5.) It follows, then, that mankind do not err thus far through mere ignorance, so as not to be chargeable with contempt, negligence, and ingratitude. Thus it holds good, that all

have known God, and yet have not glorified him,
(Rom 1:21,)

and that, on the other hand, no one under the guidance of mere nature ever made such proficiency as to know God. Should any one bring forward the philosophers as exceptions, I answer, that in them more especially there is presented a signal token of this our weakness. For there will not be found one of them, that has not from that first principle of knowledge, which I have mentioned, straightway turned aside into wandering ⁹² and erroneous speculations, and for the most part they betray a silliness worse than that of old wives. When he says, that those are saved that believe, this corresponds with the foregoing statement — that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation Farther, by contrasting believers, whose number is small, with a blind and senseless world, he teaches us that we err if we stumble at the smallness of their number, inasmuch as they have been divinely set apart to salvation.

Calvin: 1Co 1:22

22.For the Jews require a sign This is explanatory of the preceding statement — showing in what respects the preaching of the gospel is accounted foolishness At the same time he does not simply explain, but even goes a step farther, by saying that the Jews do not merely despise the gospel, but even abhor it. “The Jews,” says he, “desire through means of miracles to have before their eyes an evidence of divine power: the Greeks are fond of what tends to gratify human intellect by the applause of acuteness. We, on the other hand, preach Christ crucified, wherein there appears at first view nothing but weakness and folly. He is, therefore, a stumblingblock to the Jews, when they see him as it were forsaken by God. To the Greeks it appears like a fable, to be told of such a method of redemption.” By the term Greeks here, in my opinion, he does not mean simply Gentiles, but has in view those who had the polish of the liberal sciences, or were distinguished by superior intelligence. At the same time by synecdoche, all the others come in like manner to be included. Between Jews and Greeks, however, he draws this distinction, that the former, striking against Christ by an unreasonable zeal for the law, raged against the gospel with unbounded fury, as hypocrites are wont to do, when contending for their superstitions; while the Greeks, on the other hand, puffed up with pride, regarded him with contempt as insipid.

When he ascribes it to the Jews as a fault, that they are eagerly desirous of signs, it is not on the ground of its being wrong in itself to demand signs, but he exposes their baseness in the following respects: — that by an incessant demand for miracles, they in a manner sought to bind God to their laws — that, in accordance with the dullness of their apprehension, they sought as it were to feel him out ⁹³ in manifest miracles — that they were taken up with the miracles themselves, and looked upon them with amazement — and, in fine, that no miracles satisfied them, but instead of this, they every day gaped incessantly for new ones. Hezekiah is not reproved for having of his own accord allowed himself to be confirmed by a sign, (2Kg 19:29, and 2Kg 20:8,) nor even Gideon for asking a two-fold sign, (Jud 6:37.) Nay, instead of this, Ahaz is condemned for refusing a sign that the Prophet had offered him, (Isa 7:12.) What fault, then, was there on the part of the Jews in asking miracles? It lay in this, that they did not ask them for a good end, set no bounds to their desire, and did not make a right use of them. For while faith ought to be helped by miracles, their only concern was, how long they might persevere in their unbelief. While it is unlawful to prescribe laws to God, they wantoned with inordinate desire. While miracles should conduct us to an acquaintance with Christ, and the spiritual grace of God, they served as a hindrance in their way. On this account, too, Christ upbraids them, (Mar 8:12.)

A perverse generation seeketh after a sign.

For there were no bounds to their curiosity and inordinate desire, and for all that they had so often obtained miracles, no advantage appeared to arise from them.

Calvin: 1Co 1:24

24.Both Greeks and Jews He shows by this contrast, that the fact that Christ was so unfavorably received, was not owing to any fault on his part, nor to the natural disposition of mankind generally, but arose from the depravity of those who were not enlightened by God, inasmuch as the elect of God, whether Jews or Gentiles, are not hindered by any stumblingblock from coming to Christ, that they may find in him a sure salvation. He contrasts power with the stumblingblock, that was occasioned by abasement, and wisdom he contrasts with folly The sum, then, is this: — “I am aware that nothing except signs has effect upon the obstinacy of the Jews, and that nothing soothes down the haughtiness of the Greeks, except an empty show of wisdom. We ought, however, to make no account of this; because, however our Christ in connection with the abasement of his cross is a stumblingblock to the Jews, and is derided by the Greeks, he is, notwithstanding, to all the elect, of whatever nation they may be, at once the power of God unto salvation for surmounting these stumblingblocks, and the wisdom of God for throwing off that mask.” ⁹⁴

Calvin: 1Co 1:25

25.For the foolishness of God While the Lord deals with us in such a way as to seem to act foolishly, because he does not exhibit his wisdom, what appears foolishness surpasses in wisdom all the ingenuity of men. Farther, while God appears to act with weakness, in consequence of his concealing his power, that weakness, as it is reckoned, is stronger than any power of men. We must, however, always keep it in view, that there is a concession, as I have noticed a little ago. For no one can but perceive, that in strict propriety neither foolishness nor weakness can be ascribed to God, but it was necessary, by such ironical expressions, to beat down the mad presumption of the flesh, which does not scruple to rob God of all his glory.

Calvin: 1Co 1:26

26.Behold your calling As the mood of the Greek verb (βλέπετε) is doubtful, and the indicative suits the context equally as well as the imperative, I leave it to the reader’s choice which of them he may prefer. The meaning is manifestly the same in either case, for supposing it to be the indicative ( ye see,) he would in that case summon them as witnesses — as of a thing that is manifest, and call them forward as it were to a thing that is present. On the other hand, understanding it in the imperative, he stirs them up, as it were, from their drowsiness to a consideration of the matter itself. The term calling may be taken in a collective sense to mean the multitude of those that are called — in this sense: “Ye see what description of persons they are among you that the Lord has called.” I am, however, rather inclined to think, that he points out the manner of their calling, and it is a most forcible argument, because it follows from this, that, if they despise the abasement of the cross, they in a manner make void their calling, in which God had acted in such a manner, as to take away all merit from human wisdom, and power, and glory. Hence he tacitly accuses them of ingratitude, because, forgetful alike of God’s grace and of themselves, they regard the gospel of Christ with disdain.

Two things, however, must be observed here — that he was desirous from the example of the Corinthians to confirm the truth of what he had said: and farther, that he designed to admonish them, that they must be entirely divested of pride, if they duly considered the order of things that the Lord had observed in their calling. To put to shame, says he, the wise and noble, and to bring to naught things that are Both expressions are appropriate, for fortitude and wisdom vanish when they are put to shame, but what has an existence requires to be brought to naught By the choosing of the poor, and the foolish, and the ignoble, he means, that God has preferred them before the great, and the wise, and the noble. For it would not have sufficed, for beating down the arrogance of the flesh, if God had placed them all upon a level. Hence, those who appeared to excel he put in the background, in order that he might thoroughly abase them. That man, however, were an arrant fool, who would infer from this, that God has in this manner abased the glory of the flesh, in order that the great and noble might be shut out from the hope of salvation. There are some foolish persons that make this a pretext for not merely triumphing over the great, as if God had cast them off, but even despising them as far beneath them. Let us, however, bear in mind, that this is said to the Corinthians, who, though they had no great distinction in the world, were nevertheless, even without any occasion, puffed up. God, therefore, by confounding the mighty, and the wise, and the great, does not design to elate with pride the weak, the illiterate, and the abject, but brings down all of them together to one level. Let those, therefore, that are contemptible in the eyes of the world, think thus with themselves: “What modesty is called for on our part, when even those that have high honor in the view of the world have nothing left them?” ⁹⁸ If the effulgence of the sun is obscured, what must become of the stars? If the light of the stars is extinguished, what must become of opaque objects?” The design of these observations is, that those who have been called by the Lord, while of no estimation in the view of the world, may not abuse these words of Paul by pluming their crests, but, on the contrary, keeping in mind the exhortation —

Thou standest by faith, be not high-minded, but fear,
(Rom 11:20,)

may walk thoughtfully in the sight of God with fear and humility.

Paul, however, does not say here, that there are none of the noble and mighty that have been called by God, but that there are few He states the design of this — that the Lord might bring down the glory of the flesh, by preferring the contemptible before the great. God himself, however, by the mouth of David, exhorts kings to embrace Christ, ⁹⁹ (Psa 2:12,) and by the mouth of Paul, too, he declares, that he will have all men to be saved, and that his Christ is offered alike to small and great, alike to kings and their subjects, (1Ti 2:1.) He has himself furnished a token of this. Shepherds, in the first place, are called to Christ: then afterwards come philosophers: illiterate and despised fishermen hold the highest rank of honor; yet into their school there are received in process of time kings and their counselors, senators and orators.

Calvin: 1Co 1:28

28.Things that are not He makes use of similar terms in Rom 4:17, but in a different sense. For in that passage, when describing the universal call of the pious, he says, that we are nothing previously to our being called, which must be understood as referring to reality in the sight of God, however we may appear to be something in the eyes of men. Here, the nothingness (οὐδενεια) of which he speaks must be viewed as referring to the opinion of men, as is manifest from the corresponding clause, in which he says that this is done in order that the things that are may be brought to naught For there is nothing except in appearance, because in reality we are all nothing. Things that are, therefore, you must explain to mean things that appear, so that this passage corresponds with such statements as these: —

He raiseth up the poor out of the dunghill, (Psa 113:7.)

He raiseth up them that are cast down, (Psa 146:8,)

and the like. Hence we may clearly see how great is the folly of those who imagine that there is in mankind some degree of merit or worthiness, which would hold a place antecedent to God’s choice.

Calvin: 1Co 1:29

29.That no flesh should glory Though the term flesh here, and in many passages of Scripture, denotes all mankind, yet in this passage it carries with it a particular idea; for the Spirit, by speaking of mankind in terms of contempt, beats down their pride, as in Isa 31:3 — The Egyptian is flesh and not spirit It is a sentiment that is worthy to be kept in remembrance — that there is nothing left us in which we may justly glory. With this view he adds the expression in God’s presence For in the presence of the world many delight themselves for the moment in a false glorying, which, however, quickly vanishes like smoke. At the same time, by this expression all mankind are put to silence when they come into the presence of God; as Habakkuk says —

Let all flesh keep silence before God, (Hab 2:20.)

Let every thing, therefore, that is at all deserving of praise, be recognized as proceeding from God.

Calvin: 1Co 1:30

30.Of him are ye Lest they should think that any of those things that he had said were inapplicable to them, he now shows the application of those things to them, inasmuch as they are not otherwise than of God For the words ye are are emphatic, as though he had said — “You have your beginning from God, who calleth those things which are not, ” (Rom 4:17,) passing by those things that appear to be; and your subsistence is founded upon Christ, and thus you have no occasion to be proud. Nor is it of creation merely that he speaks, but of that spiritual existence, into which we are born again by the grace of God.

Who of God is made unto us As there are many to be found who, while not avowedly inclined to draw back from God, do nevertheless seek something apart from Christ, as if he alone did not contain all things ¹⁰⁰ in himself, he reckons up in passing what and how great are the treasures with which Christ is furnished, and in such a way as to intimate at the same time what is the manner of subsistence in Christ. For when he calls Christ our righteousness, a corresponding idea must be understood — that in us there is nothing but sin; and so as to the other terms. Now he ascribes here to Christ four commendatory titles, that include his entire excellence, and every benefit that we receive from him.

In the first place, he says that he is made unto us wisdom, by which he means, that we obtain in him an absolute perfection of wisdom, inasmuch as the Father has fully revealed himself to us in him, that we may not desire to know any thing besides him. There is a similar passage in Col 2:3 —

In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Of this we shall have occasion to speak afterwards when we come to the next chapter.

Secondly, he says that he is made unto us righteousness, by which he means that we are on his account acceptable to God, inasmuch as he expiated our sins by his death, and his obedience is imputed to us for righteousness. For as the righteousness of faith consists in remission of sins and a gracious acceptance, we obtain both through Christ.

Thirdly, he calls him our sanctification, by which he means, that we who are otherwise unholy by nature, are by his Spirit renewed unto holiness, that we may serve God. From this, also, we infer, that we cannot be justified freely through faith alone without at the same time living holily. For these fruits of grace are connected together, as it were, by an indissoluble tie, ¹⁰¹ so that he who attempts to sever them does in a manner tear Christ in pieces. Let therefore the man who seeks to be justified through Christ, by God’s unmerited goodness, consider that this cannot be attained without his taking him at the same time for sanctification, or, in other words, being renewed to innocence and purity of life. Those, however, that slander us, as if by preaching a free justification through faith we called men off from good works, are amply refuted from this passage, which intimates that faith apprehends in Christ regeneration equally with forgiveness of sins.

Observe, on the other hand, that these two offices of Christ are conjoined in such a manner as to be, notwithstanding, distinguished from each other. What, therefore, Paul here expressly distinguishes, it is not allowable mistakenly to confound.

Fourthly, he teaches us that he is given to us for redemption, by which he means, that through his goodness we are delivered at once from all bondage to sin, and from all the misery that flows from it. Thus redemption is the first gift of Christ that is begun in us, and the last that is completed. For the commencement of salvation consists in our being drawn out of the labyrinth of sin and death; yet in the meantime, until the final day of the resurrection, we groan with desire for redemption, (as we read in Rom 8:23.) If it is asked in what way Christ is given to us for redemption, I answer — “Because he made himself a ransom.”

In fine, of all the blessings that are here enumerated we must seek in Christ not the half, or merely a part, but the entire completion. For Paul does not say that he has been given to us by way of filling up, or eking out righteousness, holiness, wisdom, and redemption, but assigns to him exclusively the entire accomplishment of the whole. Now as you will scarcely meet with another passage of Scripture that more distinctly marks out all the offices of Christ, you may also understand from it very clearly the nature and efficacy of faith. For as Christ is the proper object of faith, every one that knows what are the benefits that Christ confers upon us is at the same time taught to understand what faith is.

Calvin: 1Co 1:31

31.He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord Mark the end that God has in view in bestowing all things upon us in Christ — that we may not claim any merit to ourselves, but may give him all the praise. For God does not despoil with the view of leaving us bare, but forthwith clothes us with his glory — yet on this condition, that whenever we would glory we must go out of ourselves. In short, man, brought to nothing in his own estimation, and acknowledging that there is nothing good anywhere but in God alone, must renounce all desire for his own glory, and with all his might aspire and aim at the glory of God exclusively. This is also more clearly apparent from the context in the writings of the Prophet, from whom Paul has borrowed this testimony; for in that passage the Lord, after stripping all mankind of glory in respect of strength, wisdom, and riches, commands us to glory only in knowing him, (Jer 9:23.) Now he would have us know him in such a way as to know that it is he that exercises judgment, righteousness, and mercy For this knowledge produces in us at once confidence in him and fear of him. If therefore a man has his mind regulated in such a manner that, claiming no merit to himself, he desires that God alone be exalted; if he rests with satisfaction on his grace, and places his entire happiness in his fatherly love, and, in fine, is satisfied with God alone, that man truly “glories in the Lord.” I say truly, for even hypocrites on false grounds glory in him, as Paul declares, (Rom 2:17,) when being either puffed up with his gifts, or elated with a base confidence in the flesh, or abusing his word, they nevertheless take his name upon them.

Calvin: 1Co 2:1

1.And I, when I came Paul having begun to speak of his own method of teaching, had straightway fallen into a discussion as to the nature of gospel preaching generally. Now again he returns to speak of himself, to show that nothing in him was despised but what belonged to the nature of the gospel itself, and did in a manner adhere to it. He allows therefore that he had not had any of the aids of human eloquence or wisdom to qualify him for producing any effect, but while he acknowledges himself to be destitute of such resources, he hints at the inference to be drawn from this — that the power of God shone the more illustriously in his ministry, from its standing in no need of such helps. This latter idea, however, he will be found bringing forward shortly afterwards. For the present he simply grants that he has nothing of human wisdom, and in the meantime reserves to himself this much — that he published the testimony of God Some interpreters, indeed, explain the testimony of God in a passive sense; but as for myself, I have no doubt that another interpretation is more in accordance with the Apostle’s design, so that the testimony of God is that which has come forth from God — the doctrine of the gospel, of which he is the author and witness. He now distinguishes between speech and wisdom (λόγον ἀπὸ τὢς σοφίας.) Hence what I noticed before ¹⁰³ is here confirmed — that hitherto he has not been speaking of mere empty prattling, but has included the entire training of human learning.

Calvin: 1Co 2:2

2.For I did not reckon it desirable As κρίνειν, in Greek, has often the same meaning as εκλεγειν, that is to choose out anything as precious, ¹⁰⁴ there is, I think, no person of sound judgment but will allow that the rendering that I have given is a probable one, provided only the construction admits of it. At the same time, if we render it thus — “No kind of knowledge did I hold in esteem,” there will be nothing harsh in this rendering. If you understand something to be supplied, the sentence will run smoothly enough in this way — “Nothing did I value myself upon, as worth my knowing, or on the ground of knowledge.” At the same time I do not altogether reject a different interpretation — viewing Paul as declaring that he esteemed nothing as knowledge, or as entitled to be called knowledge, except Christ alone. Thus the Greek preposition ανδ, would, as often happens, require to be supplied. But whether the former interpretation is not disapproved of, or whether this latter pleases better, the substance of the passage amounts to this: “As to my wanting the ornaments of speech, and wanting, too, the more elegant refinements of discourse, the reason of this was, that I did not aspire at them, nay rather, I despised them, because there was one thing only that my heart was set upon — that I might preach Christ with simplicity.”

In adding the word crucified, he does not mean that he preached nothing respecting Christ except the cross; but that, with all the abasement of the cross, he nevertheless preached Christ. It is as though he had said: “The ignominy of the cross will not prevent me from looking up to him ¹⁰⁵ from whom salvation comes, or make me ashamed to regard all my wisdom as comprehended in him — in him, I say, whom proud men despise and reject on account of the reproach of the cross.” Hence the statement must be explained in this way: “No kind of knowledge was in my view of so much importance as to lead me to desire anything but Christ, crucified though he was. ” This little clause is added by way of enlargement (αὔξησιν,) with the view of galling so much the more those arrogant masters, by whom Christ was next to despised, as they were eager to gain applause by being renowned for a higher kind of wisdom. Here we have a beautiful passage, from which we learn what it is that faithful ministers ought to teach, what it is that we must, during our whole life, be learning, and in comparison with which everything else must be “counted as dung.” (Phi 3:8.)

Calvin: 1Co 2:3

3.And I was with you in weakness He explains at greater length what he had previously touched upon — that he had nothing shining or excellent in him in the eyes of men, to raise him to distinction. He concedes, however, to his adversaries what they desired in such a way as to make those very things which, in their opinion, tended to detract from the credit of his ministry, redound to its highest commendation. If he appeared less worthy of esteem from his being so mean and abject according to the flesh, he shows that the power of God shone out the more conspicuously in this, that he could effect so much, while sustained by no human helps. He has in his eye not merely those foolish boasters ¹⁰⁷ who aimed at mere show, with the view of obtaining for themselves a name, but the Corinthians, too, who gazed with astonishment on their empty shows. Accordingly a recital of this kind was fitted to have great weight with them. They were aware that Paul had brought nothing with him in respect of the flesh that was fitted to help him forward, or that might enable him to insinuate himself into the favor of men, and yet they had seen the amazing success which the Lord had vouchsafed to his preaching. Nay more, they had in a manner beheld with their own eyes the Spirit of God present in his doctrine. When, therefore, despising his simplicity, they were tickled with a desire for a kind of wisdom, I know not of what sort, more puffed up and more polished, and were captivated with outward appearance, nay, even with adventitious ornament, rather than with the living efficacy of the Spirit, did they not sufficiently discover their ambitious spirit? It is with good reason, therefore, that Paul puts them in mind of his first entering in among them, (1Th 2:1,) that they may not draw back from that divine efficacy, which they once knew by experience.

The term weakness he employs here, and in several instances afterwards, (2Co 11:30; 2Co 12:5,) as including everything that can detract from a person’s favor and dignity in the opinion of others. Fear and trembling are the effects of that weakness There are, however, two ways in which these two terms may be explained by us. Either we may understand him to mean, that when he pondered the magnitude of the office that he sustained, it was tremblingly, and not without great anxiety, that he occupied himself in it; or that, being encompassed with many dangers, he was in constant alarm and incessant anxiety. Either meaning suits the context sufficiently well. The second, however, is, in my opinion, the more simple. Such a spirit of modesty, indeed, becomes the servants of the Lord, that, conscious of their own weakness, and looking, on the other hand, at once to the difficulty and the excellence of so arduous an office, they should enter on the discharge of it with reverence and fear For those that intrude themselves confidently, and in a spirit much elated, or who discharge the ministry of the word with an easy mind, as though they were fully equal to the task, are ignorant at once of themselves and of the task. ¹⁰⁸

As, however, Paul here connects fear with weakness, and as the term weakness denotes everything that was fitted to render him contemptible, it follows necessarily that this fear must relate to dangers and difficulties. It is certain, however, that this fear was of such a nature as did not prevent Paul from engaging in the Lord’s work, as facts bear witness. The Lord’s servants are neither so senseless as not to perceive impending dangers, nor so devoid of feeling as not to be moved by them. Nay more, it is necessary for them to be seriously afraid on two accounts chiefly — first, that, abased in their own eyes, they may learn wholly to lean and rest upon God alone, and secondly, that they may be trained to a thorough renunciation of self. Paul, therefore, was not devoid of the influence of fear, but that fear he controlled in such a manner as to go forward, notwithstanding, with intrepidity through the midst of dangers, so as to encounter with undaunted firmness and fortitude all the assaults of Satan and of the world; and, in fine, so as to struggle through every impediment.

Calvin: 1Co 2:4

4.And my preaching was not in the persuasive words By the persuasive words of man’s wisdom he means that exquisite oratory which aims and strives rather by artifice than by truth, and also an appearance of refinement, that allures the minds of men. It is not without good reason, too, that he ascribes persuasiveness (τό πιθάνον) ¹⁰⁹ to human wisdom. For the word of the Lord constrains us by its majesty, as if by a violent impulse, to yield obedience to it. Human wisdom, on the other hand, has her allurements, by which she insinuates herself ¹¹⁰ and her blandishments, as it were, by which she may conciliate for herself the affections of her hearers. With this he contrasts the demonstration of the Spirit and of power, which most interpreters consider as restricted to miracles; but I take it in a more general sense, as meaning the hand of God powerfully exercised in every way through the instrumentality of the Apostle. Spirit and power he seems to have made use of by hypallage, ¹¹¹ (καθ ᾿ ὑπαλλαγὴν,) to denote spiritual power, or at least with the view of showing by signs and effects in what manner the presence of the Spirit had shown itself in his ministry. He appropriately, too, makes use of the term ἀποδείξεως, ( demonstration;) for such is our dullness in contemplating the works of God, that when he makes use of inferior instruments, they serve as so many veils to hide from us his influence, so that we do not clearly perceive it. On the other hand, as in the furtherance given to Paul’s ministry, there was no aid furnished from the flesh or the world, and as the hand of God was as it were made bare, (Isa 52:10,) his influence was assuredly the more apparent.

Calvin: 1Co 2:5

5.That your faith should not be in the wisdom of men. To be is used here as meaning to consist His meaning, then, is, that the Corinthians derived this advantage from his having preached Christ among them without dependence on human wisdom, and relying solely on the Spirit’s influence, that their faith was founded not on men but on God. If the Apostle’s preaching had rested exclusively on the power of eloquence, it might have been overthrown by superior eloquence, and besides, no one would pronounce that to be solid truth which rests on mere elegance of speech. It may indeed be helped by it, but it ought not to rest upon it On the other hand, that must have been most powerful which could stand of itself without any foreign aid. Hence it forms a choice commendation of Paul’s preaching, that heavenly influence shone forth in it so clearly, that it surmounted so many hindrances, while deriving no assistance from the world. It follows, therefore, that they must not allow themselves to be moved away from his doctrine, which they acknowledge to rest on the authority of God. Paul, however, speaks here of the faith of the Corinthians in such a way as to bring forward this, as a general statement. Let it then be known by us that it is the property of faith to rest upon God alone, without depending on men; for it requires to have so much certainty to go upon, that it will not fail, even when assailed by all the machinations of hell, but will perseveringly endure and sustain every assault. This cannot be accomplished unless we are fully persuaded that God has spoken to us, and that what we have believed is no mere contrivance of men. While faith ought properly to be founded on the word of God alone, there is at the same time no impropriety in adding this second prop, — that believers recognize the word which they hear as having come forth from God, from the effect of its influence.

Defender: 1Co 1:18

Those who regard Christianity as foolishness, rejecting and perhaps even ridiculing God's Word, thereby prove to others that they are perishing in sin, on their way to hell."

Defender: 1Co 1:19

Paul is quoting here from Isa 29:14, with somewhat similar relevant passages in Jer 49:7 and Oba 1:8. The section from this verse through the end of Oba 1:2 is a sobering indictment of supposed human wisdom, as opposed to true wisdom in Christ (1Co 1:30)."

Defender: 1Co 1:21

Human wisdom - whether ancient Greek philosophy or modern evolutionary scientism - has always sought to explain the origin of the world by some means apart from its God and Creator. In the sight of God this attempt is not true wisdom, true philosophy, or true science, but mere rebellious foolishness (Psa 14:1; Rom 1:22).

Defender: 1Co 1:21

To the wisdom of the ungodly, "foolish preaching" is preaching the crucifixion of the world's Creator by his creation."

Defender: 1Co 1:22

Note Christ's rebuke of this carnal attitude in Mat 12:39, Mat 12:40, and Joh 4:48."

Defender: 1Co 1:26

Paul does not say: "not any," but: "not many." There have always been a few brilliant or powerful or aristocratic men who have devoted their gifts to the Lord and His Word, but they have always been the exceptions. This passage, in fact, is a remarkably fulfilled prophecy, having remained incisively true for almost 2000 years. Rather than being discouraged by the intellectual snobbery of educated unbelievers, their very dominance in the world should be regarded as merely another proof of the inspiration of the Scriptures."

Defender: 1Co 1:30

All we are, and all we have - if it is of any value at all in the scale of eternity - is given us by our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ. "In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col 2:3); "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth" (Rom 10:4); we are "sanctified in Christ Jesus" (1Co 1:2); and, "in whom we have redemption through his blood" (Col 1:14)."

Defender: 1Co 1:31

Pride is the devil's sin (1Ti 3:6; Jer 9:23, Jer 9:24), and "God resisteth the proud" (Jam 4:6)."

TSK: 1Co 1:18

the preaching : 1Co 1:23, 1Co 1:24, 1Co 2:2; Gal 6:12-14

to : Act 13:41; 2Co 2:15, 2Co 2:16, 2Co 4:3; 2Th 2:10

foolishness : 1Co 1:21, 1Co 1:23, 1Co 1:25, 1Co 2:14, 1Co 3:19; Act 17:18, Act 17:32

unto : 1Co 1:24, 1Co 15:2; Psa 110:2, Psa 110:3; Rom 1:16; 2Co 10:4; 1Th 1:5; Heb 4:12

TSK: 1Co 1:19

1Co 3:19; Job 5:12, Job 5:13; Isa 19:3, Isa 19:11, Isa 29:14; Jer 8:9

TSK: 1Co 1:20

is the wise : Isa 33:18, Isa 53:1

hath : 1Co 1:19; 2Sa 15:31, 2Sa 16:23, 2Sa 17:14, 2Sa 17:23; Job 12:17, Job 12:20,Job 12:24; Isa 44:25; Rom 1:22

TSK: 1Co 1:21

in : 1Co 1:24; Dan 2:20; Rom 11:33; Eph 3:10

the wisdom : Dr. Lightfoot well observes, ""that σοφια [Strong’ s G4678], του [Strong’ s G5120], Θεου [Strong’ s G2316], the wisdom of God, is not to be understood of that wisdom which had God for its author, but of that wisdom which had God for its object. There was, among the heathen, σοφια [Strong’ s G4678], της φυσεως , wisdom about natural things, that is philosophy; and σοφια [Strong’ s G4678], του [Strong’ s G5120], Θεου [Strong’ s G2316], wisdom about God, that is, divinity. But the world, in its divinity, could not, by wisdom, know God.""The wisest of the heathen had no just and correct views of the Divine nature; of which the works of Cicero and Lucretius are incontestable proofs.

the world : Mat 11:25; Luk 10:21; Rom 1:20-22, Rom 1:28

the foolishness : 1Co 1:18

TSK: 1Co 1:22

the Jews : Mat 12:38, Mat 12:39, Mat 16:1-4; Mar 8:11; Luk 11:16, Luk 11:20; Joh 2:18, Joh 4:28

the Greeks : Act 17:18-21

TSK: 1Co 1:23

we : 1Co 1:18, 1Co 2:2; Luk 24:46, Luk 24:47; Act 7:32-35, Act 10:39-43; 2Co 4:5; Gal 3:1, Gal 6:14; Eph 3:8

unto the Jews : Isa 8:14, Isa 8:15; Mat 11:6, Mat 13:57; Luk 2:34; Joh 6:53-66; Rom 9:32, Rom 9:33; Gal 5:11; 1Pe 2:8

foolishness : 1Co 1:28, 1Co 2:14

TSK: 1Co 1:24

called : 1Co 1:2, 1Co 1:9; Luk 7:35; Rom 8:28-30, Rom 9:24

the power : 1Co 1:18; Rom 1:4, Rom 1:16

the wisdom : 1Co 1:30; Pro 8:1, Pro 8:22-30; Col 2:3

TSK: 1Co 1:25

the foolishness : 1Co 1:18, 1Co 1:27-29; Exo 13:17, Exo 14:2-4; Jos 6:2-5; Jdg 7:2-8, Jdg 15:15, Jdg 15:16; 1Sa 17:40-51; 1Ki 20:14-22; Zec 4:6, Zec 4:7, Zec 12:7, Zec 12:8; Rom 11:33-36

TSK: 1Co 1:26

that : 1Co 1:20, 1Co 2:3-6, 1Co 2:13, 1Co 3:18-20; Zep 3:12; Mat 11:25, Mat 11:26; Luk 10:21; Joh 7:47-49; Jam 3:13-17

not many mighty : Luk 1:3 *Gr: Luk 18:24, Luk 18:25; Joh 4:46-53, Joh 19:38, Joh 19:39; Act 13:7, Act 13:12, Act 17:34; Phi 4:22; Jam 1:9-11, Jam 2:5; 2Jo 1:1

TSK: 1Co 1:27

Psa 8:2; Isa 26:5, Isa 26:6, Isa 29:14, Isa 29:19; Zep 3:12; Mat 4:18-22, Mat 9:9, Mat 11:25; Mat 21:16; Luk 19:39, Luk 19:40, Luk 21:15; Act 4:11-21, Act 6:9, Act 6:10, Act 7:35, Act 7:54, Act 17:18; Act 24:24, Act 24:25; 2Co 4:7, 2Co 10:4, 2Co 10:5, 2Co 10:10

TSK: 1Co 1:28

things which : Rom 4:17; 2Co 12:11

to bring : 1Co 2:6; Deu 28:63; Job 34:19, Job 34:20,Job 34:24; Psa 32:10, Psa 37:35, Psa 37:36; Isa 2:11, Isa 2:17; Isa 17:13, Isa 17:14, Isa 37:36, Isa 41:12; Dan 2:34, Dan 2:35, Dan 2:44, Dan 2:45; Rev 18:17

TSK: 1Co 1:29

1Co 1:31, 1Co 4:7, 1Co 5:6; Psa 49:6; Isa 10:15; Jer 9:23; Rom 3:19, Rom 3:27, Rom 4:2, Rom 15:17; Eph 2:9

TSK: 1Co 1:30

in : 1Co 12:18, 1Co 12:27; Isa 45:17; Joh 15:1-6, Joh 17:21-23; Rom 8:1, Rom 12:5, Rom 16:7, Rom 16:11; 2Co 5:17, 2Co 12:2; Eph 1:3, Eph 1:4, Eph 1:10, Eph 2:10

of God : Rom 11:36; 2Co 5:18-21

wisdom : 1Co 1:24, 1Co 12:8; Pro 1:20, Pro 2:6, Pro 8:5; Dan 2:20; Luk 21:15; Joh 1:18, Joh 8:12, Joh 14:6; Joh 17:8, Joh 17:26; 2Co 4:6; Eph 1:17, Eph 1:18, Eph 3:9, Eph 3:10; Col 2:2, Col 2:3, Col 3:16; 2Ti 3:15-17; Jam 1:5

righteousness : Psa 71:15, Psa 71:16; Isa 45:24, Isa 45:25, Isa 54:17; Jer 23:5, Jer 23:6, Jer 33:16; Dan 9:24; Rom 1:17, Rom 3:21-24, Rom 4:6, Rom 4:25, Rom 5:19, Rom 5:21; 2Co 5:21; Phi 3:9; 2Pe 1:1

sanctification : 1Co 1:2, 1Co 6:11; Mat 1:21; Joh 17:17-19; Act 26:18; Rom 8:9; Gal 5:22-24; Eph 2:10, Eph 5:26; 1Pe 1:2; 1Jo 5:6

redemption : 1Co 15:54-57; Hos 13:14; Rom 3:24, Rom 8:23; Gal 1:4, Gal 3:13; Eph 1:7, Eph 4:30; Col 1:14; Tit 2:14; Heb 9:12; 1Pe 1:18, 1Pe 1:19; Rev 5:9, Rev 14:4

TSK: 1Co 1:31

1Ch 16:10,1Ch 16:35; Psa 105:3; Isa 41:16, Isa 45:25; Jer 4:2, Jer 9:23, Jer 9:24; 2Co 10:17; Gal 6:13, Gal 6:14; Phi 3:3 *Gr.

TSK: 1Co 2:1

when : Act 18:1-4

with : 1Co 2:4, 1Co 2:13, 1Co 1:17; Exo 4:10; Jer 1:6, Jer 1:7; Rom 16:18; 2Co 10:10, 2Co 11:6

the testimony : 1Co 1:6; Isa 8:20; Act 20:21, Act 22:18; 2Th 1:10; 1Ti 1:11; 2Ti 1:8; 1Jo 4:14, 1Jo 5:11-13; Rev 1:2, Rev 1:9, Rev 19:10

TSK: 1Co 2:2

not : 1Co 1:22-25; Joh 17:3; Gal 3:1, Gal 6:14; Phi 3:8-10

TSK: 1Co 2:3

1Co 4:10-13; Act 17:1, Act 17:6-12, Act 20:18, Act 20:19; 2Co 4:1, 2Co 4:7-12, 2Co 4:16, 2Co 6:4, 2Co 7:5, 2Co 10:1, 2Co 10:10; 2Co 11:29, 2Co 11:30, 2Co 12:5-10, 2Co 13:4; Gal 4:13, Gal 4:14

TSK: 1Co 2:4

my speech : Act 20:27

not : 1Co 2:1, 1Co 2:13, 1Co 1:17; Jdg 14:15, Jdg 16:5; 2Sa 14:17-20, 2Sa 15:2-6; 1Ki 22:13, 1Ki 22:14; 2Ch 18:19-21; Pro 7:21, Pro 20:19; Jer 20:10; Eze 13:6, Eze 13:10,Eze 13:11; Rom 16:18; Col 2:4; 2Pe 1:16, 2Pe 2:18

enticing : or, persuasible, Act 26:28; Gal 1:10

but : 1Co 4:20; Joh 16:8-15; Rom 15:19; 1Th 1:5; 1Pe 1:12

TSK: 1Co 2:5

stand : Gr. be

but : 1Co 1:17, 1Co 3:6; Act 16:14; 2Co 4:7, 2Co 6:7

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: 1Co 1:18

For the preaching of the cross - Greek, "the word ( ὁ λόγος ho logos ) of the cross;"that is, the doctrine of the cross; or the doctrine which proclaims salvation only through the atonement which the Lord Jesus Christ made on the cross, This cannot mean that the statement that Christ died "as a martyr"on a cross, appears to be foolishness to people; because, if that was all, there would be nothing that would appear contemptible, or that would excite their opposition more than in the death of any other martyr. The statement that Polycarp, and Ignatius, and Paul, and Cranmer died as martyrs, does not appear to people to be foolishness, for it is a statement of an historical truth, and their death excites the high admiration of all people. And if, in the death of Jesus on the cross, there had been nothing more than a mere martyr’ s death, it would have been equally the object of admiration to all people. But; the "preaching of the cross"must denote more than that; and must mean:

(1) That Christ died as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of people, and that; it was this which gave its speciality to his sufferings on the cross.

(2) That people can be reconciled to God, pardoned, and saved only by the merits and influence of this atoning sacrifice.

To them that perish - τοις μεν απολλυμενοις tois men apollumenois . To those who are about to perish, or to those who have a character fitting them for destruction; that is, to the wicked. The expression stands in contrast with those who are "saved,"that is, those who have seen the beauty of the cross of Christ, and who have fled to it for salvation.

Foolishness - Folly. That is, it appears to them to be contemptible and foolish, or unworthy of belief. To the great mass of the Jews, and to the pagan philosophers, and indeed, to the majority of the people of this world, it has ever appeared foolishness, for the following reasons:

(1) The humble origin of the Lord Jesus. They despise him that lived in Nazareth; that was poor; that had no home, and few friends, and no wealth, and little honor among his own countrymen.

\caps1 (2) t\caps0 hey despise him who was put to death, as an impostor, at the instigation of his own countrymen, in an ignominious manner on the cross - the usual punishment of slaves.

\caps1 (3) t\caps0 hey see not why there should be any particular efficacy in his death. They deem it incredible that he who could not save himself should be able to save them; and that glory should come from the ignominy of the cross.

\caps1 (4) t\caps0 hey are blind to the true beauty of his personal character; to the true dignity of his nature; to his power over the sick, the lame, the dying, and the dead; they see not the bearing of the work of atonement on the law and government of God; they believe not in his resurrection, and his present state of exalted glory. The world looks only at the fact, that the despised man of Nazareth was put to death on a cross, and smiles at the idea that such a death could have any important influence on the salvation of man - It is worthy of remark, also, that to the ancient philosophers this doctrine would appear still more contemptible than it does to the people of these times. Everything that came from Judea, they looked upon with contempt and scorn; and they would spurn above all things else the doctrine that they were to expect salvation only by the crucifixion of a Jew. Besides, the account of the crucifixion has now lost to us no small part of its reputation of ignominy. Even around the cross there is conceived to be no small amount of honor and glory. There is now a sacredness about it from religious associations; and a reverence which people in Christian lands can scarcely help feeling when they think of it. But to the ancients it was connected with every idea of ignominy. It was the punishment of slaves, impostors, and vagabonds; and had even a greater degree of disgrace attached to it than the gallows has with us. With them, therefore, the death on the cross was associated with the idea of all that is shameful and dishonorable; and to speak of salvation only by the sufferings and death of a crucified man, was suited to excite in their bosoms only unmingled scorn.

But unto us which are saved - This stands opposed to "them that perish."It refers, doubtless, to Christians, as being saved from the power and condemnation of sin; and as having a prospect of eternal salvation in the world to come.

It is the power of God - See the note at Rom 1:16. This may either mean that the gospel is called "the power of God,"because it is the medium through which God exerts his power in the salvation of sinners; or, the gospel is adapted to the condition of man, and is efficacious in renewing him and sanctifying him. It is not an inert, inactive letter, but is so suited to the understanding, the heart, the hopes, the fears of people, and all their great constitutional principles of action, that it actually overcomes their sin, and diffuses peace through the soul. This efficacy is not unfrequently attributed to the gospel. Joh 17:17; Heb 4:12; Jam 1:18; 1Pe 1:22-23. When the gospel, however, or the preaching of the cross, is spoken of as effectual or powerful, it must be understood of all the agencies which are connected with it; and does not refer to simple, abstract propositions, but to the truth as it comes attended with the influences which God sends down to accompany it.

It includes, therefore, the promised agency of the Holy Spirit, without which it would not be effectual. But the agency of the Spirit is designed to give efficacy to that which is "really adapted"to produce the effects, and not to act in an arbitrary manner. All the effects of the gospel on the soul - in regeneration, repentance, faith, sanctification - in hope, love, joy, peace, patience, temperance, purity, and devotedness to God, are only such "as the gospel is suited to produce."It has a set of truths and promises just adapted to each of these effects; just suited to the soul by him who knows it; and adapted to produce just these results. The Holy Spirit secures their influence on the mind: and is the grand living agent of accomplishing just what the truth of God is "suited originally"to produce. Thus, the preaching of the cross is "the power of God;"and every minister may present it with the assurance that he is presenting, not "a cunningly devised fable,"but a system "really suited"to save people; and yet, that its reception by the human mind depends on the promised presence of the Holy Spirit.

Barnes: 1Co 1:19

For it is written - This passage is quoted from Isa 29:14. The Hebrew of the passage, as rendered in the English version is, "the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid."The version of the Septuagint is, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of the prudent I will hide" κρύψω krupsō , corresponding substantially with the quotation by Paul. The sense in the Hebrew is not materially different. The meaning of the passage as used by Isaiah is, that such was the iniquity and stupidity of "Ariel"Isa 29:1, that is, Jerusalem, that God would so execute his judgments as to confound their wise men, and overwhelm those who boasted of their understanding. Those in whom they had confided, and on whom they relied, should appear to be bereft of their wisdom; and they should be made conscious of their own lack of counsel to meet and remove the impending calamities. The apostle does not affirm that this passage in Isaiah refers to the times of the gospel. The contrary is manifestly true. But it expresses a general principle of the divine administration - "that the coming forth of God is often such as to confound human prudence; in a manner which human wisdom would not have devised; and in such a way as to show that he is not dependent on the wisdom of man."As such, the sentiment is applicable to the gospel; and expresses just the idea which the apostle wished to convey - that the wisdom of the wise should be confounded by the plan of God; and the schemes of human devising be set at naught.

I will destroy - That is, I will abolish; or will not be dependent on it; or will show that my plans are not derived from the counsels of people.

The wisdom of the wise - The professed wisdom of philosophers.

And will bring to nothing - Will show it to be of no value in this matter.

The prudent - The people professing understanding; the sages of the world. We may remark:

(1) That the plan of salvation was not the contrivance of human wisdom.

\caps1 (2) i\caps0 t is "unlike"what people have themselves devised as systems of religion. It did not occur to the ancient philosophers; nor has it occurred to the modern.

\caps1 (3) i\caps0 t may be expected to excite the opposition, the contempt, and the scorn of the wise people of this world; and the gospel makes its way usually, not with their friendship, but in the face of their opposition.

\caps1 (4) i\caps0 ts success is such as to confound and perplex them. They despise it, and they see not its secret power; they witness its effects, but are unable to account for them. It has always been a question with philosophers why the gospel met with such success; and the various accounts which have been given of it by its enemies, show how much they have been embarrassed. The most elaborate part of Gibbon’ s "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,"is contained in his attempt to state the causes of the early propagation of Christianity, in 1Co 15:16; and the obvious failure of the account shows how much the mind of the philosophic sceptic was embarrassed by the fact of the spread of Christianity.

\caps1 (5) t\caps0 he reception of the gospel demands an humble mind; Mar 10:15. People of good sense, of humble hearts, of childlike temper, embrace it; and they see its beauty, and are won by its loveliness, and controlled by its power. They give themselves to it; and find that it is suited to save their souls.

\caps1 (6) i\caps0 n this, Christianity is like all science. The discoveries in science are such as to confound the wise in their own conceits, and overthrow the opinions of the prudent, just as much as the gospel does, and thus show that both are from the same God - the God who delights to pour such a flood of truth on the mind as to overwhelm it in admiration of himself, and with the conviction of its own littleness. The profoundest theories in science, and the most subtle speculations of people of genius, in regard to the causes of things, are often overthrown by a few simple discoveries - and discoveries which are at first despised as much as the gospel is. The invention of the telescope by Galileo was to the theories of philosophers and astronomers, what the revelation of the gospel was to the systems of ancient learning, and the deductions of human wisdom. The one confounded the world as much as the other; and both were at first equally the object of opposition or contempt.

Barnes: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise? - Language similar to this occurs in Isa 33:18, "Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?"Without designing to quote these words as having an original reference to the subject now under consideration, Paul uses them as any man does language where he finds words with which he or his readers are familiar, that will convey his meaning. A man familiar with the Bible, will naturally often make use of Scripture expressions in conveying his ideas. In Isaiah, the passage refers to the deliverance of the people from the threatened invasion of Sennacherib. The 18th verse represents the people as meditating on the threatened terror of the invasion; and then in the language of exultation and thanksgiving at their deliverance, saying, "where is the wise man that laid the plan of destroying the nation? Where the Inspector General (see my note on the passage in Isaiah), employed in arranging the forces? Where the receiver (margin the "weigher"), the paymaster of the forces? Where the man that counted the towers of Jerusalem, and calculated on their speedy overthrow? All baffled and defeated; and their schemes have all come to nothing."So the apostle uses the same language in regard to the boasted wisdom, of the world in reference to salvation. It is all baffled, and is all shown to be of no value.

The wise - σοφός sophos . The sage. At first the Greek men of learning were called "wise men" σοφοί sophoi , like the magicians of the East. They afterward assumed a more modest appellation, and called themselves the "lovers of wisdom" φιλοσοφοι philosophoi , or "philosophers."This was the name by which they were commonly known in Greece in the time of Paul.

Where is the scribe? - γραμματεὺς grammateus . The scribe among the Jews was a learned man originally employed in transcribing the law, but subsequently the term came to denote a learned man in general. Among the Greeks the word was used to denote a public notary or a transcriber of the laws; or a secretary. It was a term, therefore nearly synonymous with a man of learning; and the apostle evidently uses it in this sense in this place. Some have supposed that he referred to the Jewish men of learning here; but he probably had reference to the Greeks.

Where is the disputer of this world? - The acute and subtle sophist of this age. The word "disputer" συζητητὴς suzētētēs , properly denotes one who "inquires"carefully into the causes and relations of things; one who is a subtle and abstruse investigator. It was applied to the ancient sophists and disputants in the Greek academics; and the apostle refers, doubtless, to them. The meaning is, that in all their professed investigations, in all their subtle and abstruse inquiries, they had failed of ascertaining the way in which man could be saved; and that God had devised a plan which had baffled all their wisdom, and in which their philosophy was disregarded. The term "world,"here αἰῶνος aiōnos , refers, probably, not to the world as a physical structure - though Grotius supposes that it does - but to that "age"- the disputer of that age, or generation - an age eminently wise and learned.

Hath not God made foolish ... - That is, has he not by the originality and superior efficacy of his plan of salvation, poured contempt on all the schemes of philosophers, and evinced their folly? Not only without the aid of those schemes of human beings, but in opposition to them, he has devised a plan for human salvation that evinces its efficacy and its wisdom in the conversion of sinners, and in destroying the power of wickedness. Paul here, possibly, had reference to the language in Isa 44:25. God "turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish."

Barnes: 1Co 1:21

For after that - ἐπειδὴ epeidē . Since, or seeing that it is true that the world by wisdom knew not God. After all the experience of the world it was ascertained that human beings would never by their own wisdom come to the true knowledge of God, and it pleased him to devise another plan for salvation.

In the wisdom of God - This phrase is susceptible of two interpretations:

(1) The first makes it refer to "the wisdom of God"evinced in the works of creation - the demonstration of his existence and attributes found there, and, according to that, the apostle means to say, that the world by a survey of the works of God did not know him; or were, notwithstanding those works, in deep darkness. This interpretation is adopted by most commentators - by Lightfoot, Rosenmuller, Grotius, Calvin, etc. According to this interpretation, the word ἐν en (in) is to be translated "by"or "through."

\caps1 (2) a\caps0 second interpretation makes it refer to the wise arrangement or government of God, by which this was permitted. "For when, by the wise arrangement or government of God; after a full and fair trial of the native, unaided powers of man, it was ascertained that the true knowledge of God would not be arrived at by man, it pleased him,"etc. This appears to be the correct interpretation, because it is the most obvious one, and because it suits the connection best. It is, according to this, a reason why God introduced a new method of saving people. This may be said to have been accomplished by a plan of God, which was wise, because:

(1) It was desirable that the powers of man should be fully tried before the new plan was introduced, in order to show that it was not dependent on human wisdom, that it was not originated by man, and that there was really need of such an interposition.

\caps1 (2) b\caps0 ecause sufficient time had been furnished to make the experiment. An opportunity had been given for four thousand years, and still it had failed.

\caps1 (3) b\caps0 ecause the experiment had been made in the most favorable circumstances. The human faculties had had time to ripen and expand; one generation had had an opportunity of profiting by the observation of its predecessor; and the most mighty minds had been brought to boar on the subject. If the sages of the east, and the profound philosophers of the west, had not been able to come to the true knowledge of God, it was in vain to hope that more profound minds could be brought to bear on it, or that more careful investigation would be bestowed on it. The experiment had been fairly made, and the result was before the world; see the notes at Rom. 1.

The world - The people of the world; particularly the philosophers of the world.

By wisdom - By their own wisdom, or by the united investigations of the works of nature.

Knew not God - Obtained not a true knowledge of him. Some denied his existence; some represented him under the false and abominable forms of idol worship; some ascribed to him horrid attributes; all showed that they had no true acquaintance with a God of purity, with a God who could pardon sin, or whose worship conduced to holiness of life; see the notes at Rom. 1.

It pleased God - God was disposed, or well pleased. The plan of salvation originated in his good pleasure, and was such as his wisdom approved. God chose this plan, so unlike all the plans of human beings.

By the foolishness of preaching - Not "by foolish preaching,"but by the preaching of the cross, which was regarded as foolish and absurd by the people of the world. The plan is wise, but it has been esteemed by the mass of people, and was particularly so esteemed by the Greek philosophers, to be egregiously foolish and ridiculous; see the note at 1Co 1:18.

To save them that believe - That believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; see the note at Mar 16:16. This was the speciality and essence of the plan of God, and this has appeared to the mass of people to be a plan devoid of wisdom and unworthy of God. The preaching of the cross which is thus esteemed foolishness, is made the means of saving them, because it sets forth God’ s only plan of mercy, and states the way in which lost sinners may become reconciled to God.

Barnes: 1Co 1:22

For the Jews require a sign - A miracle, a prodigy, an evidence of divine interposition. This was the characteristic of the Jewish people. God had manifested himself to them by miracles and wonders in a remarkable manner in past times, and they greatly prided themselves on that fact, and always demanded it when any new messenger came to them, professing to be sent from God. This propensity they often evinced in their contact with the Lord Jesus; Mat 12:38; Mat 16:1; Mar 8:11; Luk 11:16; Luk 12:54-56. Many mss., instead of "sign"here in the singular, read "signs"in the plural; and Griesbach has introduced that reading into the text. The sense is nearly the same, and it means that it was a characteristic of the Jews to demand the constant exhibition of miracles and wonders; and it is also implied here, I think, by the reasoning of the apostle, that they believed that the communication of such signs to them as a people, would secure their salvation, and they therefore despised the simple preaching of a crucified Messiah. They expected a Messiah that should come with the exhibition of some stupendous signs and wonders from heaven (Mat 12:38, etc., as above); they looked for the displays of amazing power in his coming, and they anticipated that he would deliver them from their enemies by mere power; and they, therefore, were greatly offended 1Co 1:23, by the simple doctrine of a crucified Messiah.

And the Greeks ... - Perhaps this means the pagan in general, in opposition to the Jews; see the note at Rom 1:16. It was, however, especially the characteristic of the Greek philosophers. They seek for schemes of philosophy and religion that shall depend on human wisdom, and they therefore despise the gospel.

Barnes: 1Co 1:23

But we - We who are Christian preachers make Christ crucified the grand subject of our instructions and our aims in contradistinction from the Jew and the Greek. They seek, the one miracles, the other wisdom, we glory only in the cross.

Christ crucified - The word Christ, the anointed, is the same as the Hebrew name Messiah. The emphasis in this expression is on the word "crucified."The Jews would make the Messiah whom they expected no less an object of glorifying than the apostles, but they spurned the doctrine that he was to be crucified. Yet in that the apostles boasted; proclaiming him crucified, or "having been crucified"as the only hope of man. This must mean more than that Christ was distinguished for moral worth, more than that he died as a martyr; because if that were all, no reason could be given why the cross should be made so prominent an object. It must mean that Christ was crucified for the sins of people, as an atoning sacrifice in the place of sinners. "We proclaim a crucified. Messiah as the only redeemer of lost people."

To the Jews a stumbling-block - The word "stumbling-block"( σκάνδαλον skandalon ) means properly anything in the way over which one may fall; then anything that gives offence, or that causes one to fall into sin. Here it means that to the Jews, the doctrine that the Messiah was to be crucified gave great offence; excited, irritated, and exasperated them; that they could not endure the doctrine, and treated it with scorn. Compare the Rom 9:33 note; 1Pe 2:8 note. It is well known that to the Jews no doctrine was more offensive than this, that the Messiah was to be put to death, and that there was to be salvation in no other way. It was so in the times of the apostles, and it has been so since. They have, therefore, usually called the Lord Jesus, by way of derision, " תלוי Tolwiy , the man that was hanged,"that is, on a cross; and Christians they have usually denominated, for the same reason, צבדי תלוי 'Abday Tolwiy , servants of the man that was hanged."The reasons of this feeling are obvious:

(1) They had looked for a magnificent temporal prince; but the doctrine that their Messiah was crucified, dashed all their expectations. And they regarded it with contempt and scorn, just in proportion as their hopes had been elevated, and these high expectations cherished.

\caps1 (2) t\caps0 hey had the common feelings of all people, the native feelings of pride, and self-righteousness, by which they rejected the doctrine that we are dependent for salvation on one who was crucified.

\caps1 (3) t\caps0 hey regarded Jesus as one given over by God for an enormous attempt at imposition, as having been justly put to death; and the object of the curse of the Almighty. Isa 53:4, "we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God."They endeavored to convince themselves that he was the object of the divine dereliction and abhorrence; and they, therefore, rejected the doctrine of the cross with the deepest feelings of detestation.

To the Greeks - To the Gentiles in general. So the Syriac, the Vulgate, the Arabic, and the Aethiopic versions all read it. The term "Greek"denotes all who were not Jews; thus the phrase, "the Jews and the Greeks"comprehended the whole human family, 1Co 1:22.

Foolishness - See the note at 1Co 1:18. They regarded it as folly:

(1)    Because they esteemed the whole account a fable, and an imposition;

(2)    It did not accord with their own views of the way of elevating the condition of man;

(3)    They saw no efficacy in the doctrine, no tendency in the statement that a man of humble birth was put to death in an ignominious manner in Judea, to make people better, or to receive pardon.

(4)\caps1     t\caps0 hey had the common feelings of unrenewed human nature; blind to the beauty of the character of Christ, and blind to the design of his death; and they therefore regarded the whole statement as folly.

We may remark here, that the feelings of the Jews and of the Greeks on this subject, are the common feelings of people. Everywhere sinners have the same views of the cross; and everywhere the human heart, if left to itself, rejects it, as either a stumbling-block or as folly. But the doctrine should be preached, though it is an offence, and though it appears to be folly. It is the only hope of man; and by the preaching of the cross alone can sinners be saved.

Barnes: 1Co 1:24

But unto them which are called - To all true Christians. See the note at 1Co 1:9.

Both Jews and Greeks - Whether originally of Jewish or Gentile extraction, they have here a common, similar view of the crucified Saviour.

Christ the power of God - Christ appears to them as the power of God; or it is through him that the power of salvation is communicated to them. See the note at 1Co 1:18.

And the wisdom of God - The way in which God evinces his wisdom in the salvation of people. They see the plan to be wise. They see that it is adapted to the end. They see it to be suited to procure pardon, and sanctification, and eternal life. It is God’ s wise plan for the salvation of people; and it is seen by those who are Christians, to be adapted to this end. They see that there is a beauty in his character; an excellency in his doctrines; and an efficacy in his atonement, to secure their salvation. - We may remark on this verse:

(1) That when people become Christians, their hearts are changed. The views of Christians are here represented as diametrically opposite to those of other people. To one class, Christ is a stumbling-block; to others, folly; to Christians he is full of beauty. But those views of the Christian, can be obtained only by a change of heart. And the change from regarding an object or being as foolishness to regarding it as full of beauty, must be a radical and a mighty change.

\caps1 (2) a\caps0 ll Christians have similar views of the Saviour. It matters not whether they were Jew or Greek; it matters not whether they were born in a northern or southern clime - "whether an Indian or an African sun has burned upon them;"whether they speak the same or different languages; whether they were born amidst the same or different denominations of Christians; whether in the same or different countries; or whether they are people in the same or different Christian communities, they have the same views of the Saviour. They see him to be the power and the wisdom of God. They are united in him, and therefore united to each other; and should regard themselves as belonging to the same family, and as bound to the same eternal home.

\caps1 (3) t\caps0 here is real efficacy in the plan of salvation. It is a scheme of power. It is adapted to the end, and is admirably suited to accomplish the great effects which God designs to accomplish. It is not a scheme intended to show its own imbecility, and the need of another and an independent agent to accomplish the work. All the effects which the Holy Spirit produces on the soul, are such, and only such, as the truth of the gospel is adapted to produce in the mind. The gospel is God’ s plan of putting forth power to save people. It seizes upon great elements in human nature; and is adapted to enlist them in the service of God. It is just suited to man as a being capable of reasoning and susceptible of emotion; as a being who maybe influenced by hope and fear; who may be excited and impelled to duty by conscience, and who may be roused from a state of lethargy and sin by the prospect of eternal life, and the apprehension of eternal death. "As such"it should always be preached - as a system "wise,"and "adapted"to the great end in view, as a system most powerful and "mighty to the pulling down of strong holds."

Barnes: 1Co 1:25

Because the foolishness of God - That which God appoints, requires, commands, does, etc., which appears to people to be foolish. The passage is not to be understood as affirming that it is really foolish or unwise; but that it appears so to people - Perhaps the apostle here refers to those parts of the divine administration where the wisdom of the plan is not seen; or where the reason of what God does is concealed.

Is wiser than men - Is better adapted to accomplish important ends, and more certainly effectual than the schemes of human wisdom. This is especially true of the plan of salvation - a plan apparently foolish to the mass of people - yet indubitably accomplishing more for the renewing of people, and for their purity and happiness, than all the schemes of human contrivance. They have accomplished nothing toward people’ s salvation; this accomplishes everything. They have always failed; this never fails.

The weakness of God - There is really no weakness in God, any more than there is folly. This must mean, therefore, the things of his appointment which appear weak and insufficient to accomplish the end. Such are these facts - that God should seek to save the world by Jesus of Nazareth, Who was supposed unable to save himself Mat 27:40-43; and that he should expect to save people by the gospel, by its being preached by people who were without learning, eloquence, wealth, fame, or power. The instruments were feeble; and people judged that this was owing to the weakness or lack of power in the God who appointed them.

Is stronger than men - Is able to accomplish more than the utmost might of man. The feeblest agency that God puts forth - so feeble as to be esteemed weakness - is able to effect more than the utmost might of man. The apostle here refers particularly to the work of redemption; but it is true everywhere. We may remark:

(1) That God often effects his mightiest plans by that which seems to men to be weak and even foolish. The most mighty revolutions arise often from the slightest causes; his most vast operations are often connected with very feeble means. The revolution of empires; the mighty effects of the pestilence; the advancement in the sciences, and arts, and the operations of nature, are often brought about by means apparently as little suited to accomplish the work as those which are employed in the plan of redemption.

(2) God is great. If his feeblest powers put forth, surpass the mightiest powers of man, how great must be his might. If the powers of man who rears works of art; who levels mountains and elevates vales; if the power which reared the pyramids, be as nothing when compared with the feeblest putting forth of divine power, how mighty must be his arm! How vast that strength which made, and which upholds the rolling worlds! How safe are his people in his hand! And how easy for him to crush all his foes in death!

Barnes: 1Co 1:26

For ye see your calling - You know the general character and condition of those who are Christians among you, that they have not been generally taken from the wise, the rich, and the learned, but from humble life. The design of the apostle here is, to show that the gospel did not depend for its success on human wisdom. His argument is, that "in fact"those who were blessed by it had not been of the elevated ranks of life mainly, but that God had shown his power by choosing those who were ignorant, and vicious, and abandoned, and by reforming and purifying their lives. The verb "ye see" βλέπετε blepete , is ambiguous, and may be either in the indicative mood, as our translators have rendered it, "ye do see; you are well apprised of it, and know it,"or it may be in the imperative, "see; contemplate your condition;"but the sense is substantially the same. "Your calling"( τὴν κλῆσιν tēn klēsin ) means "those who are called"1Co 1:9; as "the circumcision"means those who are circumcised. Rom 3:30. The sense is, "took upon the condition of those who are Christians."

Not many wise men - Not many who are regarded as wise; or who are ranked with philosophers. This supposes that there were some of that description, though the mass of Christians were then, as now, from more humble ranks of life. That there were some of high rank and wealth at Corinth who became Christians, is well known. Crispus and Sosthenes, rulers of the synagogue there (Act 28:8, Act 28:17; Compare 1Co 1:1); Gaius, a rich, hospitable man Rom 16:23; and Erastus the chancellor of the city of Corinth Rom 16:23, had been converted and were members of the church. Some have supposed ("Macknight") that this should be rendered "not many mighty, wise, etc. ‘ call you;’ that is, God has not employed the wise and the learned ‘ to call’ you into his kingdom."But the sense in our translation is evidently the correct interpretation. It is the obvious sense; and it agrees with the design of the apostle, which was to show that God had not consulted the wisdom, and power, and wealth of men in the establishment of his church. So the Syriac and the Vulgate render it.

According to the flesh - According to the maxims and principles of a sensual and worldly policy; according to the views of people when under the influence of those principles; that is, who are unrenewed. The flesh here stands opposed to the spirit; the views of the people of this world in contradistinction from the wisdom that is from above.

Not many mighty - Not many people of power; or men sustaining important "offices"in the state. Comp, Rev 6:15. The word may refer to those who wield power of any kind, whether derived from office, from rank, from wealth, etc.

Not many noble - Not many of illustrious birth, or descended from illustrious families - εὐγενεῖς eugeneis , "well-born."In respect to each of these classes, the apostle does not say that there were no men of wealth, and power, and birth, but that the mass or body of Christians was not composed of such. They were made up of those who were in humble life. There were a few, indeed, of rank and property, as there are now; but then, as now, the great mass was composed of those who were from the lower conditions of society. The reason why God had chosen his people from that rank is stated in 1Co 1:29. The character of many of those who composed the church at Corinth before the conversion, is stated in 1Co 6:10-11, which see.

Barnes: 1Co 1:27

But God hath chosen - The fact of their being in the church at all was the result of his choice. It was owing entirely to his grace.

The foolish things - The things esteemed foolish among people. The expression here refers to those who were destitute of learning, rank, wealth, and power, and who were esteemed as fools, and were despised by the rich and the great.

To confound - To bring to shame; or that he might make them ashamed; that is, humble them by showing them how little he regarded their wisdom; and how little their wisdom contributed to the success of his cause. By thus overlooking them, and bestowing his favors on the humble and the poor; by choosing his people from the ranks which they despised, and bestowing on them the exalted privilege of being called the sons of God, he had poured dishonor on the rich and the great, and overwhelmed them, and their schemes of wisdom, with shame. It is also true, that those who are regarded as fools by the wise men of the world are able often to confound those who boast of their wisdom; and that the arguments of plain people, though unlearned except in the school of Christ; of people of sound common sense under the influence of Christian principles, have a force which the learning and talent of the people of this world cannot gainsay or resist. They have truth on their side; and truth, though dressed in a humble garb, is more mighty than error, though clothed with the brilliancy of imagination, the pomp of declamation, and the cunning of sophistry.

And the weak things - Those esteemed weak by the people of the world.

The mighty - The great; the noble; the learned.

Barnes: 1Co 1:28

And base things of the world - Those things which by the world are esteemed ignoble. Literally, those which are not of noble, or illustrious birth τὰ ἀγειῆ ta ageiē .

Things which are despised - Those which the world regards as objects of contempt; compare Mar 9:12; Luk 18:19; Act 4:11.

Yea - The introduction of this word by the translators does nothing to illustrate the sense, but rather enfeebles it. The language here is a striking instance of Paul’ s manner of expressing himself with great strength. He desires to convey in the strongest terms, the fact, that God had illustrated his plan by choosing the objects of least esteem among people. He is willing to admit all that could be said on this point. He says, therefore, that he had chosen the things of ignoble birth and rank - the base things of the world; but this did not fully express his meaning. He had chosen objects of contempt among people; but this was not strong enough to express his idea. He adds, therefore, that he had chosen those things which were absolutely nothing, which had no existence; which could not be supposed to influence him in his choice.

And things which are not - τὰ μὴ ὄντα ta mē onta . That which is nothing; which is worthless; which has no existence; those flyings which were below contempt itself; and which, in the estimation of the world, were passed by as having no existence; as not having sufficient importance to be esteemed worthy even of the slight notice which is implied in contempt. For a man who despises a thing must at least notice it, and esteem it worth some attention. But the apostle here speaks of things beneath even that slight notice; as completely and totally disregarded, as having no existence. The language here is evidently that of hyperbole (compare the note at Joh 21:25). It was a figure of speech common in the East, and not unusual in the sacred writings; compare Isa 40:17.

All nations before him are as nothing.

And they are counted to him less than nothing and vanity.

See also Rom 4:17, "God, who - calleth those things which be not, as though they were."This language was strongly expressive of the estimate which the Jews fixed on the Gentiles, as being a despised people, as being in fact no people; a people without laws, and organization, and religion, and privileges; see Hos 1:10; Hos 2:23; Rom 9:25; 1Pe 2:10. "When a man of rank among the Hindus speaks of low-caste persons, of notorious profligates, or of those whom he despises, he calls them "alla -tha -varkal ,"that is, "those who are not."The term does not refer to life or existence, but to a quality or disposition, and is applied to those who are vile and abominable in all things. "My son, my son, go not among them ‘ who are not.’ ""Alas! alas! those people are all alla -tha -varkal ."When wicked men prosper, it is said, "this is the time for those ‘ who are not.’ ""Have you heard that those ‘ who are not’ are now acting righteously?"Vulgar and indecent expressions are also called, "words that are not.""To address men in the phrase ‘ are not,’ is provoking beyond measure"- Roberts, as quoted in Bush’ s Illustrations of Scripture .

To bring to naught - To humble and subdue. To show them how vain and impotent they were.

Things that are - Those who on account of their noble birth, high attainments, wealth, and rank placed a high estimate on themselves and despised others.

Barnes: 1Co 1:29

That no flesh - That no person; no class of people. The word "flesh"is often thus used to denote human beings. Mat 24:22; Luk 3:6; Joh 17:2; Act 2:17; 1Pe 1:24; etc.

Should glory - Should boast; Rom 3:27.

In his presence - Before him. That man should really have nothing of which to boast; but that the whole scheme should be adapted to humble and subdue him. On these verses we may observe:

(1) That it is to be expected that the great mass of Christian converts will be found among those who are of humble life - and it may be observed also, that true virtue and excellence; sincerity and amiableness; honesty and sincerity, are usually found there also.

\caps1 (2) t\caps0 hat while the mass of Christians are found there, there are also those of noble birth, and rank, and wealth, who become Christians. The aggregate of those who from elevated ranks and distinguished talents have become Christians, has not been small. It is sufficient to refer to such names as Pascal, and Bacon, and Boyle, and Newton, and Locke, and Hale, and Wilberforce, to show that religion can command the homage of the most illustrious genius and rank.

\caps1 (3) t\caps0 he reasons why those of rank and wealth do not become Christians, are many and obvious:

\tx720 \tx1080 (a)    They are beset with special temptations.

(b)    They are usually satisfied with rank, and wealth, and do not feel their need of a hope of heaven.

©    They are surrounded with objects which flatter their vanity, which minister to their pride, and which throw them into the circle of alluring and tempting pleasures.

(d)    They are drawn away from the means of grace and the places of prayer, by fashion, by business, by temptation.

(e)    There is something about the pride of learning and philosophy, which usually makes those who possess it unwilling to sit at the feet of Christ; to acknowledge their dependence on any power; and to confess that they are poor, and needy, and blind, and naked before God.

\caps1 (4) t\caps0 he gospel is designed to produce humility, and to place all people on a level in regard to salvation. There is no royal way to the favor of God. No monarch is saved because he is a monarch; no philosopher because he is a philosopher; no rich man because he is rich; no poor man because he is poor. All are placed on a level. All are to be saved in the same way. All are to become willing to give the entire glory to God. All are to acknowledge him as providing the plan, and as furnishing the grace that is needful for salvation. God’ s design is to bring down the pride of man, and to produce everywhere a willingness to acknowledge him as the fountain of blessings and the God of all.

Barnes: 1Co 1:30

But of him - That is, by his agency and power. It is not by philosophy; not from ourselves; but by his mercy. The apostle keeps it prominently in view, that it was not of their philosophy, wealth, or rank that they had been raised to these privileges, but of God as the author.

Are ye - Ye are what you are by the mercy of God. 1Co 15:10. You owe your hopes to him. The emphasis in this verse is to he placed on this expression, "are ye."You are Christians, not by the agency of man, but by the agency of God.

(See the supplementary note at Rom 8:10.)

In Christ Jesus - See the note at 1Co 1:4. By the medium, or through the work of Christ, this mercy has been conferred on you.

Who of God - From God ἀπὸ θεοῦ apo theou . Christ is given to us by God, or appointed by him to be our wisdom, etc. God originated the scheme, and God gave him for this end.

Wisdom - That is, he is to us the source of wisdom; it is by him that we are made wise. This cannot mean that his wisdom becomes strictly and properly ours; that it is set over to us, and reckoned as our own, for that is not true. But it must mean simply, that Christians have become "truly wise"by the agency, the teaching, and the work of Christ. Philosophers had attempted to become wise by their own investigations and inquiries. But Christians had become wise by the work of Christ; that is, it had been by his instructions that they had been made acquainted with the true character of God; with his law; with their own condition; and with the great truth that there was a glorious immortality beyond the grave. None of these truths had been obtained by the investigations of philosophers, but by the instructions of Christ. In like manner it was that through him they had been made practically wise unto salvation. Compare Col 2:3, "In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."He is the great agent by whom we become truly wise. Christ is often represented as eminently wise, and as the source of all true wisdom to his people. Isa 11:1; Mat 13:54; Luk 2:40, Luk 2:52; 1Co 1:24; 1Co 3:10. "Ye are wise in Christ."Many commentators have supposed that the beautiful description of wisdom, in Prov. 8 is applicable to the Messiah. Christ may be said to be made wisdom to us, or to communicate wisdom:

(1) Because he has in his own ministry instructed us in the true knowledge of God, and of those great truths which pertain to our salvation.

\caps1 (2) b\caps0 ecause he has by his word and spirit led us to see our true situation, and made us "wise unto salvation."He has turned us from the ways of folly, and inclined us to walk in the path of true wisdom.

\caps1 (3) b\caps0 ecause he is to his people now the source of wisdom. He enlightens their mind in the time of perplexity; guides them in the way of truth; and leads them in the path of real knowledge. It often happens that obscure and ignorant people, who have been taught in the school of Christ, have more true and real knowledge of that which concerns their welfare, and evince more real practical wisdom, than can be learned in all the schools of philosophy and learning on the earth. It is wise for a sinful and dying creature to prepare for eternity. But none but those who are instructed by the Son of God, become thus wise.

And righteousness - By whom we become righteous in the sight of God. This declaration simply affirms that we become righteous through him, as it is affirmed that we become wise, sanctified, and redeemed through him. But neither of the expressions determine anything as to the mode by which it is done. The leading idea of the apostle, which should never be lost sight of, is that the Greeks by their philosophy did not become truly wise, righteous, sanctified, and redeemed; but that this was accomplished through Jesus Christ. But "in what way"this was done, or by what process or mode, is not here stated; and it should be no more assumed from this text that we became righteous by the imputation of Christ’ s righteousness, than it should be that we became wise by the imputation of his wisdom, and sanctified by the imputation of his holiness. If this passage would prove one of these points, it would prove all. But as it is absurd to say that we became wise by the imputation of the personal wisdom of Christ, so this passage should not be brought to prove that we became righteous by the imputation of his righteousness. Whatever may be the truth of that doctrine, this passage does not prove it.

By turning to other parts of the New Testament to learn in what way we are made righteous through Christ, or in what way he is made unto us righteousness; we learn that it is in two modes:

(1) Because it is by his merits alone that our sins are pardoned, and we are justified, and treated as righteous (see the note at Rom 3:26-27); and,

(2) Because by his influence, and work, and Spirit, and truth, we are made personally holy in the sight of God.

The former is doubtless the thing intended here, as sanctification is specified after. The apostle here refers simply to the fact, without specifying the mode in which it is done. That is to be learned from other parts of the New Testament. Compare the note at Rom 4:25. The doctrine of justification is, that God regards and treats those as righteous who believe on his Son, and who are pardoned on account of what he has done and suffered. The several steps in the process may be thus stated:

(1) The sinner is by nature exposed to the wrath of God. He is lost and ruined. He has no merit of his own. He has violated a holy law, and that law condemns him, and he has no power to make an atonement or reparation. He can never be pronounced a "just"man on his own merits. He can never vindicate his conduct, as a man can do in a court of justice where he is unjustly accused, and so be pronounced just.

(2) Jesus Christ has taken the sinner’ s place, and died in his stead. He has honored a broken law; he has rendered it consistent for God to pardon. By his dreadful sufferings, endured in the sinner’ s place, God has shown his hatred of sin, and his willingness to forgive. His truth will be vindicated, and his law honored, and his government secured, if now he shall pardon the offender when penitent. As he endured these sorrows for others, and not for himself, they can be so reckoned, and are so judged by God. All the "benefits"or "results"of that atonement, therefore, as it was made for others, can be applied to them, and all the advantage of such substitution in their place, can be made over to them, as really as when a man pays a note of hand for a friend; or when he pays for another a ransom. The price is reckoned as paid for them, and the "benefits"flow to the debtor and the captive. It is not reckoned that they paid it, for that is not true; but that it was done for them, and the benefit may be theirs, which is true.

(3) God has been pleased to promise that these benefits may be conferred on him who believes in the Saviour. The sinner is "united"by faith to the Lord Jesus, and is so adjudged, or reckoned. God "esteems"or judges him to be a believer according to the promise. And so believing, and so repenting, he deems it consistent to pardon and justify him who is so united to his Son by faith. He is justified, not by the ACT of faith; not by any merits of his own, but by the merits of Christ. He has no other ground, and no other hope. Thus, he is in fact a pardoned and justified man; and God so reckons and judges. God’ s law is honored, and the sinner is pardoned and saved; and it is now as consistent for God to treat him as a righteous man, as it would be if he had never sinned - since there is as high honor shown to the law of God, as there would have been had he been personally obedient, or had he personally suffered its penalty. And as, through the death of Christ, the same "results"are secured in upholding God’ s moral government as would be by his condemnation, it is consistent and proper for God to forgive him and treat him as a righteous man; and to do so accords with the infinite benevolence of his heart.

And sanctification - By him we are sanctified or made holy. This does not mean, evidently, that his personal holiness is reckoned to us, but that by his work applied to our hearts, we become personally sanctified or holy. Compare Eph 4:24. This is done by the agency of his Spirit applying truth to the mind Joh 17:19, by the aid which he furnishes in trials, temptations, and conflicts, and by the influence of hope in sustaining, elevating and purifying the soul. All the truth that is employed to sanctify, was taught primarily by him; and all the means that may be used are the purchase of his death, and are under his direction; and the Spirit by whose agency Christians are sanctified, was sent into the world by him, and in answer to his prayers. Joh 14:16; Joh 15:26.

And redemption - ἀπολύτρωσις apolutrōsis . For the meaning of this word, see the note at Rom 3:24. Here it is evidently used in a larger sense than it is commonly in the New Testament. The things which are specified above, "justification and sanctification,"are a part of the work of redemption. Probably the word is used here in a wide sense, as denoting the whole "group,"or class of influences by which we are brought at last to heaven; so that the apostle refers not only to his atonement, but to the work by which we are in fact redeemed from death, and made happy in heaven. Thus, in Rom 8:23, the word is applied to the resurrection, "the ‘ redemption’ of the body."The sense is, "it is by Christ that we are redeemed; by him that an atonement is made; by him that we are pardoned; by him that we are delivered from the dominion of sin, and the power of our enemies; and by him that we shall be rescued from the grave, and raised up to everlasting life."Thus, the whole work depends on him; and no part of it is to be ascribed to the philosophy, the talent, or the wisdom of human beings. He does not merely aid us; he does not complete that which is imperfect; he does not come in to do a part of the work, or to supply our defects; but it is all to be traced to him. Col 2:10, "and ye are complete in him."

Barnes: 1Co 1:31

As it is written - This is evidently a quotation made from Jer 9:23-24. It is not made literally; but the apostle has "condensed"the sense of the prophet into a few words, and has retained essentially his idea.

He that glorieth - He that boasts or exults.

In the Lord - Not ascribing his salvation to human abilities, or learning, or rank, but entirely to God. And from this we see:

(1) That the design of the plan of salvation is to exalt God in view of the mind.

\caps1 (2) t\caps0 hat the design is to make us humble; and this is the design also of all his works no less than of the plan of salvation. All just views of the creation tend to produce true humility.

\caps1 (3) i\caps0 t is an evidence of piety when we are thus disposed to exalt God, and to be humble. It shows that the heart is changed; and that we are truly disposed to honor him.

\caps1 (4) w\caps0 e may rejoice in God. We have no strength, and no righteousness of which to boast; but we may rejoice in him. He is full of goodness and mercy. He is able to save us. He can redeem us out of the hand of all our enemies. And when we are conscious that we are poor, and feeble, and helpless; when oppressed with a sense of sin, we may rejoice in him as our God; and exult in him as our Saviour and Redeemer. True piety will delight to come and lay everything at his feet; and whatever may be our rank, or talent, or learning, we shall rejoice to come with the temper of the humblest child of poverty, and sorrow, and lack, and to say, "not unto us, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory for thy mercy, and for thy truth’ s sake,"Psa 115:1.

"Not to our names, thou only just and true,

Not to our worthless names is glory due;

Thy power and grace, thy truth and justice claim.

Immortal honours to thy sovereign name."

Watts.

Barnes: 1Co 2:1

And I, brethren - Keeping up the tender and affectionate style of address.

When I came unto you - When I came at first to preach the gospel at Corinth. Act 18:1 ff.

Came not with excellency of speech - Came not with graceful and attractive eloquence. The apostle here evidently alludes to that nice ant studied choice of language; to those gracefully formed sentences, and to that skill of arrangement in discourse and argument which was so much an object of regard with the Greek rhetoricians. It is probable that Paul was never much distinguished for these (compare 2Co 10:10), and it is certain he never made them an object of intense study and solicitude. Compare 1Co 2:4, 1Co 2:13.

Or of wisdom - Of the wisdom of this world; of that kind of wisdom which was sought and cultivated in Greece.

The testimony of God - The testimony or the witnessing which God has borne to the gospel of Christ by miracles, and by attending it everywhere with his presence and blessing. In 1Co 2:6, the gospel is called "the testimony of Christ;"and here it may either mean the witness which the gospel bears to the true character and plans of God; or the witnessing which God had borne to the gospel by miracles, etc. The gospel contains the testimony of God in regard to his own character and plans; especially in regard to the great plan of redemption through Jesus Christ. Several mss. instead of "testimony of God,"here read "the mystery of God."This would accord well with the scope of the argument; but the present reading is probably the correct one. See Mill. The Syriac version has also "mystery."

Barnes: 1Co 2:2

For I determined - I made a resolution. This was my fixed, deliberate purpose when I came there. It was not a matter of accident, or chance, that I made Christ my great and constant theme, but it was my deliberate purpose. It is to be recollected that Paul made this resolution, knowing the special fondness of the Greeks for subtle disquisitions, and for graceful and finished elocution; that he formed it when his own mind, as we may judge from his writings, was strongly inclined by nature to an abstruse and metaphysical kind of discussion, which could not have failed to attract the attention of the acute and subtle reasoners of Greece; and that he made it when he must have been fully aware that the theme which he had chosen to dwell upon would be certain to excite derision and contempt. Yet he formed, and adhered to this resolution, though it might expose him to contempt; and though they might reject and despise his message.

Not to know - The word "know"here εἰδέναι eidenai is used probably in the sense of "attend to, be engaged in, or regard."I resolved not to give my time and attention while among you to the laws and traditions of the Jews; to your orators, philosophers, and poets; to the beauty of your architecture or statuary; to a contemplation of your customs and laws, but to attend to this only - making known the cross of Christ. The word εἰδω eidō to know, is sometimes thus used. Paul says that he designed that this should be the only thing on which his mind should be fixed; the only object of his attention; the only object there upon which he sought that knowledge should be diffused. Doddridge renders it "appear to know."

Anything among you - Anything while I was with you. Or, anything that may exist; among you, and that may be objects of interest to you. I resolved to know nothing of it, whatever it might be. The former is probably the correct interpretation.

Save Jesus Christ - Except Jesus Christ. This is the only thing of which I purposed to have any knowledge among you.

And him crucified - Or, "even καί kai him that was crucified."He resolved not only to make the "Messiah"the grand object of his knowledge and attention there, but even a "crucified"Messiah; to maintain the doctrine that the Messiah was to be crucified for the sins of the world; and that he who had been crucified was in fact the Messiah. See the note at 1Co 1:23. We may remark here:

(1) That this should be the resolution of every minister of the gospel. This is his business. It is not to be a politician; not to engage in the strifes and controversies of people; it is not to be a good farmer, or scholar merely; not to mingle with his people in festive circles and enjoyments; not to be a man of taste and philosophy, and distinguished mainly for refinement of manners; not to be a profound philosopher or metaphysician, but to make Christ crucified the grand object of his attention, and seek always and everywhere to make him known.

\caps1 (2) h\caps0 e is not to be ashamed anywhere of the humbling doctrine that Christ was crucified. In this he is to glory. Though the world may ridicule; though philosophers may sneer; though the rich and the frivilous may deride it, yet this is to be the grand object of interest to him, and at no time, and "in no society"is he to be ashamed of it!

\caps1 (3) i\caps0 t matters not what are the amusements of society around him; that fields of science, of gain, or ambition, are open before him, the minister of Christ is to know Christ and him crucified alone. If he cultivates science, it is to be that he may the more successfully explain and vindicate the gospel. If he becomes in any manner familiar with the works of art, and of taste, it is that he may more successfully show to those who cultivate them, the superior beauty and excellency of the cross. If he studies the plans and the employments of people, it is that he may more successfully meet them in those plans, and more successfully speak to them of the great plan of redemption.

\caps1 (4) t\caps0 he preaching of the cross is the only kind of preaching that will be attended with success. That which has in it much respecting the divine mission, the dignity, the works, the doctrines, the person, and the atonement of Christ, will be successful. So it was in the time of the apostles; so it was in the Reformation; so it was in the Moravian missions; so it has been in all revivals of religion. There is a power about that kind of preaching which philosophy and human reason have not. "Christ is God’ s great ordinance"for the salvation of the world; and we meet the crimes and alleviate the woes of the world, just in proportion as we hold the cross up as appointed to overcome the one, and to pour the balm of consolation into the other.

Barnes: 1Co 2:3

And I was with you - Paul continued there at least a year and six months. Act 18:11.

In weakness - In conscious feebleness; diffident of my own powers, and not trusting to my own strength.

And in fear, and in much trembling - Paul was sensible that he had many enemies to encounter Act 18:6.; and he was sensible of his own natural disadvantages as a public speaker, 2Co 10:10. He knew too, how much the Greeks valued a manly and elegant species of oratory; and he, therefore, delivered his message with deep and anxious solicitude as to the success. It was at this time, and in view of these circumstances, that the Lord spoke to him by night in a vision, and said, "be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace; for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee; for I have much people in this city,"Act 18:9-10. If Paul was conscious of weakness, well may other ministers be; and if Paul sometimes trembled in deep solicitude about the result of his message, well may other ministers tremble also. It was in such circumstances, and with such feelings, that the Lord met him to encourage him - And it is when other ministers feel thus, that the promises of the gospel are inestimably precious. We may add, that it is then, and then only, that they are successful. Notwithstanding all Paul’ s fears, he was successful there. And it is commonly, perhaps always, when ministers go to their work conscious of their own weakness; burdened with the weight of their message; diffident of their own powers; and deeply solicitous about the result of their labors, that God sends down His Spirit, and converts sinners to God. The most successful ministers have been men who have evinced most of this feeling; and most of the revivals of religion have commenced, and continued, just as ministers have preached, conscious of their own feebleness, distrusting their own powers, and looking to God for aid and strength.

Barnes: 1Co 2:4

And my speech - The word "speech"here - if it is to be distinguished from "preaching"- refers, perhaps, to his more private reasonings; his preaching to his public discourses.

Not with enticing words - Not with the persuasive reasonings ( πειθοῖς λόγοις peithois logois ) of the wisdom of men. Not with that kind of oratory that was adapted to captivate and charm; and which the Greeks so much esteemed.

But in demonstration - In the showing ἀποδείξει apodeixei ; or in the testimony or evidence which the Spirit produced. The meaning is, that the Spirit furnished the evidence of the divine origin of the religion which he preached, and that it did not depend for its proof on his own reasonings or eloquence. The proof, the demonstration which the Spirit furnished was, undoubtedly, the miracles which were performed; the gift of tongues; and the remarkable conversions which attended the gospel - The word "Spirit"here refers, doubtless, to the Holy Spirit; and Paul says that this Spirit had furnished demonstration of the divine origin and nature of the gospel. This had been by the gift of tongues (1Co 1:5-7. Compare 1 Cor. 14), and by the effects of his agency in renewing and sanctifying the heart.

And of power - That is, of the power of God 1Co 2:5; the divine power and efficacy which attended the preaching of the gospel there. Compare 1Th 1:5 - The effect of the gospel is the evidence to which the apostle appeals for its truth. That effect was seen:

(1) In the conversion of sinners to God of all classes, ages, and conditions, when all human means of reforming them was vain.

\caps1 (2) i\caps0 n its giving them peace, joy, and happiness; and in its transforming their lives.

\caps1 (3) i\caps0 n making them different people - in making the drunkard sober; the thief honest; the licentious pure; the profane reverent; the indolent industrious; the harsh and unkind, gentle and kind; and the wretched happy.

\caps1 (4) i\caps0 n its diffusing a mild and pure influence over the laws and customs of society; and in promoting human happiness everywhere - And in regard to this evidence to which the apostle appeals, we may observe:

(1) That is a kind of evidence which anyone may examine, and which no one can deny. It does not need labored, abstruse argumentation, but it is everywhere in society. Every man has witnessed the effects of the gospel in reforming the vicious, and no one can deny that it has this power.

\caps1 (2) i\caps0 t is a mighty display of the power of God. There is no more striking exhibition of his power over mind than in a revival of religion. There is no where more manifest demonstration of his presence than when, in such a revival, the proud are humbled, the profane are awed, the blasphemer is silenced, and the profligate, the abandoned, and the moral are converted unto God, and are led as lost sinners to the same cross, and find the same peace.

\caps1 (3) t\caps0 he gospel has thus evidenced from age to age that it is from God. Every converted sinner furnishes such a demonstration; and every instance where it produces peace, hope, joy, shows that it is from heaven.

Barnes: 1Co 2:5

That your faith - That is, that your belief of the divine origin of the Christian religion.

Should not stand - Greek, "should not be;"that is, should not rest upon this; or be sustained by this. God intended to furnish you a firm and solid demonstration that the religion which you embraced was from Him; and this could not be if its preaching had been attended with the graces of eloquence, or the abstractions of refined metaphysical reasoning. It would then appear to rest upon human wisdom.

In the power of God - In the evidence of divine power accompanying the preaching of the gospel. The power of God would attend the exhibition of truth everywhere; and would be a demonstration that would be irresistible that the religion was not originated by man, but was from heaven. That power was seen in changing the heart; in overcoming the strong propensities of our nature to sin; in subduing the soul; and making the sinner a new creature in Christ Jesus. Every Christian has thus, in his own experience, furnished demonstration that the religion which he loves is from God, and not from man. man could not subdue these sins; and man could not so entirely transform the soul. And although the unlearned Christian may not be able to investigate all the evidences of religion; although he cannot meet all the objections of cunning and subtle infidels, although he may be greatly perplexed and embarrassed by them, yet he may have the fullest proof that he loves God, that he is different from what he once was; and that all this has been accomplished by the religion of the cross.

The blind man that was made to see by the Saviour John 10, might have been wholly unable to tell how his eyes were opened, and unable to meet all the cavils of those who might doubt it, or all the subtle and cunning objections of physiologists, but of one thing he certainly could not doubt, that "whereas he was blind, he then saw;"Joh 10:25. A man may have no doubt that the sun shines, that the wind blows, that the tides rise, that the blood flows in his veins, that the flowers bloom, and that this could not be except it was from God, while he may have no power to explain these facts; and no power to meet the objections and cavils of those who might choose to embarrass him. So people may know that their hearts are changed; and it is on this ground that no small part of the Christian world, as in everything else, depend for the most satisfactory evidence of their religion. On this ground humble and unlearned Christians have been often willing to go to the stake as martyrs - just as a humble and unlearned patriot is willing to die for his country. He loves it; and he is willing to die for it. A Christian loves his God and Saviour; and is willing to die for his sake.

Poole: 1Co 1:18

For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness: I know (saith the apostle) that plain discourses about a Christ crucified are to some persons foolish things, and accounted canting; but to whom are they so? To those who, if they be not some that shall perish eternally, yet are some of those who at present are in a perishing estate; these indeed count sermons of Christ silly, foolish things.

But unto us which are saved it is the power of God; but to those who shall be eternally saved, and are at present in the true road to eternal life and salvation, it is, that is, the preaching of the gospel is, that institution of God by which he showeth his power in the salvation of those who shall be saved. The apostle saith the same, Rom 1:16 .

Poole: 1Co 1:19

What Isaiah said of the wise men among the Jews in his time, is applicable to the wise men among the heathen, God will destroy their wisdom, and make their understanding appear to be no better than foolishness. So as it is not at all to be admired, if the philosophers of this world count the gospel, and the preaching of it, foolishness; the taking away the wisdom and understanding of men worldly wise, is but an ordinary dispensation of God’ s providence, no more than God threatened to do in Isaiah’ s time to the men of that generation.

Poole: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise? where is the scribe? He alludeth again to that, Isa 33:18 : Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? Where are the wise men amongst the heathens? Where are the scribes, the learned men in the law, amongst the Jews?

Where is the disputer of this world? Where are those amongst Jews or Gentiles that are the great inquirers into the reasons and natures of things, and manage debates and disputes about them? They understand nothing of the mysteries of the gospel, or the way of salvation, which God holds out to the world in and through Jesus Christ. Or, where are they? What have they done by all their philosophy and moral doctrine, as to the turning of men from sin unto God, from ways of iniquity unto ways of righteousness, in comparison of what we, the ministers of Christ, have done by preaching the doctrine of the gospel, and the cross of Christ?

Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? Do not you see how God hath fooled the wisdom of the world? Making it to appear vain and contemptible, and of no use, as to the saving of men’ s souls; making choice of none of their doctors and great rabbis, to carry that doctrine abroad in the world; and convincing men that, without faith in Christ, all that can be learned from them will be of no avail to the soul.

Poole: 1Co 1:21

For after that in the wisdom of God: some here, by the wisdom of God, understand Jesus Christ, and make the sense thus: When he who is the Wisdom of God came and preached to the world. Others understand the gospel, which is so called, 1Co 1:24 , and 1Co 2:7 . But I take the wisdom of God in this text to signify the wise administrations of Divine Providence in the government of the world to his wise ends.

The world by wisdom knew not God; the unregenerate part of the world would not come to a knowledge of and an acquaintance with God, in that way whereby he chose to reveal himself in and through Jesus Christ, as to which they were hindered by their own reasonings and knowledge, and apprehended skill in things, and capacity to comprehend them.

It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe; it pleased God to institute the great ordinance of preaching the gospel, which they count foolishness, as the sacred means by which he would bring all those that give credit to the revelation of it, and receive Christ held forth in it, to eternal life and salvation.

Poole: 1Co 1:22

The Jews were not without some true Divine revelation, and owned the true God, and only desired some miraculous operation from Christ, Mat 12:38 Joh 4:48 , to confirm them that Christ was sent from God: without signs and wonders they would not believe; giving no credit at all to the words of Christ. And the Greeks, (by whom the apostle understands the Gentiles), especially the more learned part of them, (for Greece was at this time very famous for human literature), they sought after the demonstration of all things from natural causes and rational arguments, and despised every thing which could not so be made out unto them.

Poole: 1Co 1:23

But we preach Christ crucified; we that are the ministers of Christ, come and preach to them, that there was one hanged upon a cross at Jerusalem, who is the Saviour of the world, and was not cut off for his own sins, but for the sins of his people.

Unto the Jews a stumblingblock; the Jews are stumbled at this, looking for a Messiah that should be a great temporal Prince; and besides, accounting it an ignominious thing to believe in one as their Saviour whom they had caused to be crucified.

And unto the Greeks foolishness; and the Greeks, the most learned among the Gentiles, look upon it as a foolish, idle story, that one who was and is God blessed for ever, should be crucified.

Poole: 1Co 1:24

Blessed be God, Christ is not to all the Jews a stmnblingblock, nor to all the Greeks is he foolishness; for to so many of them as are called, ( not by the external call of the gospel, but only by the internal call and effectual operation of the Spirit), let them be of one nation or another, by their country, Jews or pagans, Christ is so far from being foolishness, that Christ, and the doctrine of the gospel, appear to them the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

Poole: 1Co 1:25

The foolishness of God is wiser than men; the least things that are the products of the wisdom of God, or the contrivance of God for man’ s salvation, which the sinful and silly world calls foolishness, are infinitely more wise, and have more wisdom in them, than the wisest imaginations, counsels, and contrivances of men.

And the weakness of God is stronger than men; and those things and means which God hath instituted in order to an end, have in them more virtue, power, and efficacy in order to the production of God’ s intended effects, than any such means as appear to men’ s eyes of reason to have the greatest strength, virtue, and efficacy. Whence we may observe, that the efficacy of preaching for the changing and convering souls, dependeth upon the efficacy of God working in and by that holy institution, which usually attendeth the ministry of those who are not only called and sent out by men, but by God, being fitted for their work, and faithfully discharging of it.

Poole: 1Co 1:26

To prove that this is the method of Divine Providence, to make use of seemingly infirm and weak means to produce his great effects, you need not look further than yourselves; look upon the whole body of your church at Corinth, it is not made up of many that have a reputation for the wise men or the noble men of your city. Some indeed were such; Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, was converted, and Sosthenes; but the generality were men of very ordinary repute.

Poole: 1Co 1:27

God hath even amongst you chosen persons that are in the account of the world as foolish things, to put the wise to shame; and persons of weak esteem, to confound those that are mighty in the repute of the world.

Poole: 1Co 1:28

Things which are not in the world’ s account, to bring to nought things which are in high esteem.

Poole: 1Co 1:29

And God doth this in infinite wisdom, consulting his own honour and glory, that none might say, that God hath chosen them because they were nobler born, or in higher repute and esteem in the world, than others, but that the freeness of Divine grace might be seen in all God’ s acts of grace.

Poole: 1Co 1:30

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus; of his grace ye are implanted into Christ, and believe in him. You are of him, not by creation only, as all creatures are, but by redemption and regeneration, which is in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom; the principal means by which we come to the knowledge of God, and an acquaintance with his will; for he is the image of the invisible God, Col 1:15 . The brightness of his Father’ s glory, and the express image of his person, Heb 1:3 . God hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, 2Co 4:6 . So that he who hath seen him, hath seen the Father, Joh 14:9 . All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hid in him, Col 2:3 . And no man knoweth the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him, Mat 11:27 . Thus, though God destroyed the wisdom of the wise, yet the Corinthians were not without wisdom; for God had made Christ to them wisdom, both causally, being the author of wisdom to them; and objectively, their wisdom lay in their knowledge of him, and in a fellowship and conmmnion with him. And whereas they wanted a righteousness in which they might stand before God justified and accepted, God had also made Christ to them righteousness: Sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, Rom 8:3,4 .

And sanctification also, believers being renewed and sanctified by his Spirit.

And he is also made redemption: where by redemption is meant the redemption of the body, mentioned Rom 8:23 ; so as redemption here signifies the same with resurrection of the body. Christ is the resurrection, and the life, Joh 11:25 .

Poole: 1Co 1:31

God doth this, or hath done this, for this end, that man should have nothing to glory in, neither wisdom, nor righteousness, nor sanctification, nor redemption, but should glory in the Lord; acknowledging that whatsoever wisdom, righteousness, or holiness he hath, it is all from God, in and through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Poole: 1Co 2:1

1Co 2:1-5 Paul declareth that he used not human learning and

eloquence in preaching the gospel to his converts,

that their faith, being built on the testimony of the

Spirit, and on miracles, might be solely ascribed to God.

1Co 2:6-13 The gospel doth contain God’ s wise, but secret,

counsel for bringing men to glory; which no natural

abilities could discover, but the Spirit of God only,

by which it was revealed to the apostles.

1Co 2:14-16 Upon this account, both the doctrine and its teachers

are held in disesteem by the mere natural man, who is

not duly qualified to judge of and discern them.

It should seem by the apostle’ s so often declaring against that vanity, that even that age much admired a style, and ministers in sacred things delivering their minds, not in a mere decent, but in a lofty, high-flown phrase; and that they vilified St. Paul, because his phrase did not so tickle their ears. The apostle had declared against this, 1Co 1:17 ; there he called it the wisdom of words; here he calls it an excellency of speech: 1Co 1:4 , the enticing words of man’ s wisdom: 1Co 4:19 , the speech of them which are puffed up; puffed up with conceits of their own parts and abilities. St. Paul declares, that this was not his way of preaching, he came to declare to them the gospel, which he calleth the testimony of God: this needed no fine words, and excellent phrase and language, to set it forth.

Poole: 1Co 2:2

I did not value myself upon any piece of knowledge I had attained, saving only that of

Christ, and him crucified or, I determined with myself to carry myself amongst you, as if I knew nothing of arts, or sciences, or languages, but only Christ, and him crucified; not to make any thing else the subject of my public discourses. I was acquainted with the Jewish law, rites, and traditions, with the heathen poets and philosophers; I troubled you with none of these in my pulpit discourses; my whole business was to open to you the mysteries of the gospel, and to bring you to a knowledge of and an acquaintance with Jesus Christ; this was my end, and the means I used were proportionable to it.

Poole: 1Co 2:3

Either in a weakness of style, I used a plain, low, intelligible style, studying rather to be understood by all than admired by any. Or in weakness of state, in a mean and low condition; for we read, Act 18:3 , that he wrought with his hands at Corinth; so Act 20:34 . Or it may be, in a weak state of body; or it may be he means humbleness of mind and modesty, which to worldly eyes looks like a weakness of mind. And in much fear and trembling, either with respect to the Jews, and the danger he was exposed to from them, or with respect to the greatness of his work, lest they should refuse the grace of the gospel, by him brought and offered to them. So as (saith he) you might see that all the work was God’ s, I but a poor instrument, contemptible with respect to my outward quality, appearing poor and mean, in my phrase and style, and whole behaviour amongst you.

Poole: 1Co 2:4

Either here Paul’ s speech and preaching signify the same thing, (expressed by two words), or else speech referreth to his more private conferences and discourses with them, and preaching signifieth the more public acts of his ministry; neither of them was

with the persuasive or enticing words of man’ s wisdom What these persuasive words of man’ s wisdom are, will quickly appear to any that considers there are but two human arts that pretend to any thing of persuading; rhetoric, and logic, or the art of reasoning. Rhetoric persuadeth more weakly, working more upon the affections than upon the understanding and judgment. Logic, or the art of reasoning, more strongly, working upon the understanding and judgment, and teaching men to conclude from connate natural principles. Now, saith Paul, my preaching was neither of these ways, I neither studied neat and fine words and phrases, nor did I make it my work to demonstrate gospel propositions to you from principles of natural reason.

Object. Ought not then ministers now to use such words?

Answer. A learned popish writer saith, that "at that time it was the will of God that his ministers should use plain speech; but it is otherwise now; the using of words studiously composed and ordered, being now the ordinary way to persuade others." But:

1. After this rate any thing of the will of God may be evaded; it is but saying, that it was the will of God indeed then, but not now.

2. The thing is false. It was then, as much as now, the ordinary way of persuading to use rhetorical phrases and rational demonstrations.

3. Although now this be the ordinary method of persuading men of learning and capacities, yet for the generality of people it is not so.

4. The apostle’ s reason holds now as much as ever. It is the way to make Christians’ faith stand in the wisdom of men, not in the power of God.

Object. Ought then ministers to use no study, but talk whatever comes at their tongue’ s end, and to use no reason to prove what they say?

Answer. By no means.

1. It is one thing to study matter, another thing to study words.

2. Nay, it is one thing to study a decency in words, another to study a gaudery of phrase. It is an old and true saying, Verba sequuntur res : Words will follow matter, if the preacher be but of ordinary parts. In the study of words we have but two things to attend:

(1) That we speak intelligibly, so as all the people may understand.

(2) That we speak gravely and decently. All other study of words and phrases in a divine is but folly and vanity.

3. We ought to use our reason in our preaching; but reason works two ways:

(1) Either making conclusions from natural and philosophical principles;

(2) Or, from Scriptural principles. We ought to study to conclude as strongly as we can what we say from principles of revelation, comparing spiritual things with spiritual, but not from all natural and philosophical principles; for so we shall conclude, there is no Trinity in the Unity of the Divine Being, because, according to natural principles, three cannot be one, nor one three; and against the resurrection, because there can be no regress from a privation to a habit, &c.

4. Again, it is one thing to use our natural reason, ex abundanti, as an auxiliary help to illustrate and confirm what is first confirmed by Divine revelation; another thing to use it as a foundation upon which we build a spiritual conclusion, or as the main proof of it. Paul’ s preaching was in words intelligible to his hearers, and decent enough, and with reason enough, but not concluding upon natural principles, nor making any proofs of that nature the foundation upon which he built his gospel conclusions.

But in demonstration of the Spirit; by which Grotius and some others understand miracles, by which the doctrine of the gospel was at first confirmed; but Vorstius and many others better understand by it the Holy Ghost’ s powerful and inward persuasion of men’ s minds, of the truth of what was preached by Paul. All ministers’ preaching makes propositions of gospel truth appear no more than probable; the Spirit only demonstrates them, working in souls such a persuasion and confirmation of the truth of them, as the soul can no longer deny or dispute, or withstand the conviction of them.

And of power: by this term also some understand the power of working miracles; but it is much better by others interpreted of that authority, which the word of God preached by Paul had, and preached by faithful ministers still hath, upon the souls and consciences of those that hear it. As it is said, Mat 7:29 , Christ taught them as one having authority. And it is said of Stephen, Act 6:10 , They were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake. So the gospel preached by Paul came to people, not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance, 1Th 1:5 : and was quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, Heb 4:12 . And thus every faithful minister, with whose labours God goeth along in the conversion of souls, yet preacheth in the demonstration of the Spirit and of power. Nor indeed call those miracles, by which Christ and his apostles confirmed the truth of the doctrine of the gospel, though they were a mighty proof, be, in any propriety of speech, called a demonstration; which, properly, is a proof in which the mind fully acquiesceth, so that it no longer denieth or disputeth the thing so proved, but gives a firm and full assent to it: the miracles wrought by Christ himself never had that effect; the Pharisees and the generality of the Jews believed not that Christ was the true Messiah and the Son of God, not withstanding his miracles. Nothing but the inward powerful impression of the Spirit of God, persuading the heart of the truth of gospel principles, can possibly amount to a demonstration, bringing the minds of men, though never so judicious and prepared, to a certainty of the thing revealed, and a rest, so as they can no longer deny, resist, dispute, or contradict it. With this Paul’ s preaching was attended, not to every individual person to whom he preached, but to many, even as many as should be saved: he delivered the doctrine of the gospel freely, plainly, and boldly, not resting upon the force of his rhetoric and persuasive words, nor yet upon the natural force of his reasoning and argumentation; but leaving the demonstration and evidencing of the truth of what he said to the powerful internal impression and persuasion of the holy and blessed Spirit of God, who worketh powerfully.

Poole: 1Co 2:5

Faith properly signifieth our assent to a thing that is told us, and because it is told us. If the revelation be from man, it is no more than a human faith. If it be from God, and we believe the thing because God hath revealed it to us, this is a Divine faith. So as indeed it is impossible that a Divine faith should rest in the wisdom of men. If we could make gospel propositions evident to the outward senses, or evident to such principles of reason as are connatural to us, or upon such conclusions as we make upon such principles, yet no assent of this nature could be faith, which is an assent given to a Divine revelation purely because of such revelation. An assent other ways given may be sensible demonstration, or rational demonstration, or knowledge, or opinion; but Divine faith it cannot be, that must be bottomed in the power of God. Nor ought any thing more to be the care of the ministers of the gospel than this, as to call men to believe, so to endeavour that their faith may

not stand in the wisdom of men: nothing but a human faith can do so. This will show every conscientious minister the vanity of not proving what he saith from holy writ: all other preaching is but either dictating, as if men were to believe what the preacher saith upon his authority; or philosophizing, acting the part of a philosoplter or orator at Athens, not the part of a minister of the gospel.

PBC: 1Co 1:18

1Co 1:18 says, " For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved, it is the power of God." Again, this verse presents a contrast between two types of people, " them that perish," or the unregenerate, and " us which are saved," or the regenerate. According to this verse, what effect does the gospel have on the unregenerate? Is it " the power of God unto salvation" {Ro 1:16} to him? No, it is " foolishness" to him. It is only the power of God unto salvation unto the man who has already been saved. The gospel will save the saved man, if he keeps it in memory. {1Co 15:1-3} The salvation (or deliverance) the gospel effects in the life of the believer is not, however, new birth, but a salvation " from this untoward generation," {Ac 2:40} an escape from the " pollutions of the world through the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord." {2Pe 2:19-20} It is, if you please, sanctification, not regeneration: " Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth." {Joh 17:17} How we should rejoice in the truth of Ro 1:16! But we must not assign a meaning to this verse that contradicts 1Co 1:18. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to the believer, not the unregenerate. To the unregenerate, it is foolishness. But once an individual is given spiritual life, once he is saved, it is the power of God to transform his life. {Ro 12:2; 2Co 3:18}

303

PBC: 1Co 1:23

Thus it is with all the unregenerated world. They can see no beauties in Christ: nothing to draw their hearts to him, and cause them to love and worship him. To know him is to have eternal life, and this life is the gift of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah knew this, and said, " Who hath believed our report! And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" This knowledge can only be had by direct revelation from God, hence the preaching of Christ is to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness. To the unbelieving Jew Christ looked mean, contemptible, and despicable. They could see nothing in him that looked like a king, or a great deliverer. Christ was the " I AM," the JEHOVAH, the " brightness of the Father’s glory, and the express image of his person" yet the world knew him not, for they had no spiritual life, or understanding, or sight, by which they could know him, or see his beauties. Christ had the beauty of holiness, and good ness enough to make him the desire of all nations, but the far greater part of those among whom he lived, saw none of these beauties, for they were spiritually discerned, and they as natural men, could not know them. The men who seemed to hate him worst, and persecuted him with the greatest severity, were those who were educated in the religion of the Jews, had read and professed to believe the prophets, and were looking for Messiah, the Son of David, who was to sit upon David’s throne. But in the meek and unassuming Jesus, they could see nothing to love, or to make them desire him. They judged of men by the sight of the eye, and their natural appearance, and they could see nothing in him that they should desire him; therefore they despised and rejected him.

Eld. Gregg Thompson

PBC: 1Co 1:26

Who can read the New Testament, and learn the character of these witnesses, and not admire the wisdom of the Savior in the selection he made? Had he gone into the palaces of the rich, the learned, and influential, and made his selection, the whole story of the cross might have been treated as a cunningly devised fable, the invention and product of human wisdom. But he chooses the poor, the illiterate, and those who have no worldly influence, and the account given of them is that they were dull of understanding, not capable of making up and connecting a system of deception that would confound the wisdom of the world. In fact, worldly wisdom was not necessary; for it was not opinions, and scientific questions that they had to settle. It was facts, such as they could see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and handle with their hands:

Eld. Gregg Thompson

PBC: 1Co 1:30

See Philpot: BLESSINGS IMPUTED, AND MERCIES IMPARTED 

PBC: 1Co 2:1

" when I came to you"

Paul is referring back to the original time he came to Corinth {in Ac 18:1-28 I believe} and first preached to them. He comes to them right off the heels of a scathing rejection of his message on Mars Hill. The closing verses of Ac 17:1-34 identify that when he left pagan poets and talked about Jesus and the resurrection he was laughed to scorn and dismissed by the philosophers of the day on Mars Hill. He goes straight to Corinth and what does he preach? Jesus Christ, Him crucified and Him resurrected. He had nothing else to preach -he had no other message.   

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He made no effort toward a display of human learning, or the wisdom obtained from the schools, but in meekness, and in the earnestness of his soul declared unto them the gospel of the Son of God. And he assigns his reason for this in these words: " My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power. That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." The gospel is a mystery, and foolishness to the unregenerated, natural man. He cannot know it, and words and arguments can never reveal it to him, and beget faith in his heart in its truths; 1Co 2:7-8 This knowledge, and faith in Christ, only comes by direct revelation from God as he reveals them to us by his Spirit; 1Co 2:9-12 Words and arguments may today produce the same kind of faith in our minds that the miracles and mighty works of Christ begat in the minds of the Jews, for they believed that he was an extraordinary man, perhaps one of the prophets raised from the dead, for no man could do the works he did except God was with him. But when Christ would say, " I am the Son of God," they would call him a blasphemer, and pick up stones to stone him. This faith was rational, for the prophets had wrought miracles, and it was rational for them to conclude that be was a man, like them endowed with super-human powers to work miracles among them, but that he was the Son of God, they could not believe, and did not know, for had they known this, they would not have crucified him; 1Co 2:8. This knowledge could not be imparted by words and arguments, or by miracles wrought in their presence, but only by direct revelation, for Jesus so taught his disciples in these unmistakable words: " All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him;" Lu 10:22.  Eld. Gregg Thompson

PBC: 1Co 2:2

As Paul describes that first visit and now a follow-up letter aimed at course correction of great significance, why didn’t he say " I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him resurrected?" Why did he focus on Jesus Christ and Him CRUCIFIED -what’s the issue here? Think of all the aspects he could consider regarding Christ and a problematic church, a church that had lost it’s vision and lost it’s way as dramatically as any church in the New Testament. Yet he says this is the one thing that he will know and preach among them that will fix their problem. There’s a cultural and spiritual cesspool in this church. There’s a milieu of problems that have invaded the church and threatened their very existence as a church. Is Paul being simplistic when he says, " You’ve got all these problems but there’s one thing that will fix it all -Jesus and Him crucified?" Is he playing ostrich and sticking his head in the sand? You need only read the book to know that’s not the point. What is the issue? It is important to understand the cultural situation and the spiritual attitude of the Corinthian church so we know the depth and complexity of the problem Paul confronted and to which he said that Christ crucified is the answer.

The complexity of issues that confronted the Corinthian Church:

I’ve documented some 11 major problems that Paul confronted in the Corinthian letter. In 1Co 1:11-12 he deals with preacher jealously. People were dividing the church and the loyalty of the church over which preacher they favored. " I’m of Paul, I’m of Apollos, I’m of Peter, I’m of this person or that person." They were doing it to such an extent that Paul confronted and rebuked them by saying, " Is Christ divided? Did Paul die for you? Was Peter crucified for you?" That’s the attitude he raises to rebuke them. In 1Co 5:1-13 he confronts moral laxity in the fact that the church is reacting with pride rather than shame over their tolerance of moral laxity. A man is having an affair with his step-mother (my interpretation of his language) and rather than confronting and rebuking the sin they are actually bragging about the fact that they tolerate it. Not a healthy attitude toward such an obvious sin! In 1Co 6:1-20 members are so contentious with each other and so disrespectful of the institution of the church that rather than appealing to the common faith, they are taking each other to civil court to settle their differences. Mt 18:1-35 provides a better solution than civil lawsuits for Christians to settle their problems. 1Co 7:1-40 deals with confusion regarding marriage and it’s lifelong commitment on the part of those who enter into it to honor it before God.

By the way -if you look at 1Co 7:1 there’s an interesting form of language there " the things whereof you wrote unto me." This leads many Bible scholars to believe (I suspect probably with good cause) that a group of people in the Corinthian church (perhaps the leadership) wrote Paul a list of questions: " What do you think about this, how should we handle that, how should we deal with this issue?" The problem was that they weren’t entirely honest with the apostle; they asked him the questions they wanted answered. And in 1Co 1:11 Paul says, " I got the full scoop from the house of Chloe- they told me some things you didn’t mention in your list of questions." So, Paul says " I’ll not only address your questions, I’ll deal with the greater issue that haunts the church." It makes it an interesting read when you consider this possible scenario. Then in 1Co 8:1-13; 9:1-27; 10:1-33 Paul deals with how a group of Christians should integrate or stand apart from common, cultural norms -in this case the eating of meat offered to idols. In 1Co 9:1-27 he deals with their neglect of their obligation for the financial support of the ministry. He interprets this failure as an indication of spiritual weakness, not a neutral issue that can be given or taken, or an issue that can be neglected and then boasted about. Then in 1Co 11:1-16 he deals with more confusion about how Christians should interact with their culture- in this case, length of hair and head-coverings. The last half of 1Co 11:1-34 deals with confusion regarding the purpose of and activities involved in the Lord’s Supper. 1Co 12:1-31; 13:1-13; 14:1-40, a very large block of the entire letter of 1 Corinthians deals with confusion regarding spiritual gifts. 1Co 15:1-58 -confusion and error regarding the nature of the resurrection. 1Co 16:1-24 -neglect of general financial responsibility to their faith, specifically in this case, their obligation not only to care for the financial needs of the Corinthian church but actually to reach outside the walls of the Corinthian church and contribute to the financial necessity of the poor saints in Jerusalem. Now you think about all of these problems- the complexity, the diversity of all of these problems, and then you say, " Paul, what do you mean Jesus Christ and Him crucified fixes it all.?" How can that be? Why the cross and not the empty tomb to be used as the decisive issue here?   

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Paul would preach Jesus Christ, and him crucified. He would tell the story of the cross, and how Jesus put away our sin by the sacrifice of himself. Christ and the resurrection should be in every sermon, indeed there cannot be a gospel sermon without it, for it is the foundation upon which Christianity rests, and in which the hope of every Christian is anchored. Paul’s method of preaching was, first of all to deliver unto them that which he had received; how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures; 1Co 15:3-4.

Paul says that he had not received the gospel, or his knowledge of Christ, by the ministry of men, or any other instrumentality, but by direct revelation from God; Ga 1:12. Hence the apostle opens our text with a negative expression: " For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified." Others may preach to you philosophy, and tickle your ears with their worldly wisdom, but I will warn you to beware of them, lest they spoil you; Col 2:8 for their wisdom can never impart to you a true knowledge of God; 1Co 1:21. The success of the gospel does not depend upon the eloquence and subtlety of those who preach it, but alone upon the power of God, who quickens the dead, and opens the heart to receive and obey the things spoken by his servants, Ac 16:14. We, as the servants of God, have this treasure, as earthen vessels, but the power is alone in God to give life to the dead, and to open the eyes to see, the ears to hear, and the heart to understand the glorious gospel we preach; 2Co 4:7. If faith came by words and arguments falling from the lips of man, it would stand in the power of man, and not in the power of God; 1Co 2:4-5. Neither could it be the faith of the operation of God. Neither could it be the fruit of the Spirit of God, for it would be the fruit of the man who produces it, and would stand in his wisdom. This faith would be the work of man, and not the work of God, the fruit of the Spirit, or an evidence that the man had been born of God. Paul knew and taught that the preaching of Christ was to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks, foolishness, and that the natural man cannot know it; 1Co 1:23; 2:14. It is hid to them that are lost, but to the " saved." the " called," the " believer," it comes in all its strengthening, comforting power, and saves them from the delusions and vain speculations of the philosopher, and wise according to the flesh, but ignorant, dead, and blind to the things of the Spirit. The true minister of the gospel wants to know nothing but Jesus Christ, and him crucified; the humble, penitent believer wants to hear nothing else, for there is Salvation in none other. He is the only name given under heaven among men whereby he must be saved; Ac 4:12. This name is the sweetest ever sounded in the ears of the sinner who truly knows and feels his need of a Savior. It is his hiding place, his covert from the tempest; Isa 32:2; his hope on earth and joy in heaven. Paul knew and felt how precious that name is when he said, " This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief;" 1Ti 1:15.  Eld. Gregg Thompson

Haydock: 1Co 1:18

For the word of the cross. That is, the preaching that the Son of God, both God and man, died nailed to an infamous cross, is folly, is looked upon as ridiculous and incredible, by all obstinate unbelievers that perish: but it is received as the work of God, and an effect of his divine power, by such as are saved. (Witham)

Haydock: 1Co 1:19-20

I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will confound the false and mistaken wisdom of the great and wise philosophers, of the learned doctors or scribes, of the curious searchers of the secrets of nature. ---

Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world, by the means he hath made use of to convert, and save the world, particularly by sending his only Son to die upon a cross? the preaching of which seems a folly, &c. only they who are called, believe Christ, though crucified, to be the power and wisdom of God. (Witham)

Haydock: 1Co 1:21

For seeing that in the wisdom of God, &c. That is, by the works of the divine wisdom, by the visible creatures of this world, and the effects of his providence, the world had not wisdom, or was not wise enough, to know and worship God, as they might, and ought to have done: it pleased God to shew his power by the foolishness of preaching, by sending illiterate men to preach a God crucified, which to human wisdom seems a folly, and to save men by this belief. (Witham) ---

The gospel, which I announce to you, though it appears folly to the vain philosopher, is the wisdom of God; and whilst it exhibits the picture of a crucified God, and teaches us the mortification of our senses, promises a happiness in the next life, not to be found in this. (Vat. Grot. Tir. Just. [Vatable?; Grotius?; Tirinus?; St. Justin Martyr?])

Haydock: 1Co 1:22-25

The Jews, in the mean time, ask for miracles, such as God formerly wrought in their favour, and the Greeks, or the Gentiles, to be converted, expect from us, what they would look upon as the highest points of human wisdom and knowledge; for that which appeareth the foolishness of God, is wiser than men, and able to confound the highest human wisdom; and that which appeareth weakness of God, is stronger than men, who cannot hinder God from converting the world, by means and methods, that seem so disproportioned to this his design. (Witham) ---

Foolishness. That is to say, what appears foolish to the world in the ways of God, is indeed more wise: and what appears weakness, is indeed above all the strength and comprehension of man. (Challoner)

Haydock: 1Co 1:26-28

Vocation, is here used for the called, as Romans iii. 30. circumcision for the circumcised, (Romans xi. 7.) election for the elect. (Bible de Vence) ---

Consider you manner of being called; not many, hitherto, of those who have believed, or of those who have preached the gospel, are wise according to the flesh, or as to worldly wisdom; and in the esteem of men, not many mighty, not many noble. God hath chosen such as are looked upon as illiterate, without power, without riches, without human wisdom, to confound the great and wise men: He hath chosen the things that are not, that is, says St. John Chrysostom, men reputed as nothing, of no consideration, to confound, to destroy, to make subject to him, and to the gospel, men who had the greatest worldly advantages, that no flesh, no men how great, wise, rich, or powerful soever, might glory in his sight, or attribute their call, and their salvation to their own merits. ---

From him you are in Christ Jesus brought to believe in him, who is made to us wisdom, acknowledged to be the wisdom of his eternal Father, by whom we have been justified, sanctified, redeemed. We have nothing of ourselves to boast of, and can only glory in the Lord. (Witham) ---

And the mean things. In the beginning of Christianity, it was frequently objected to the Christians, that they had none but men of the basest extraction. The emperor Julian likewise made the Catholics the same reproach. (Grotius) ---

But this objection was not founded; for we find many persons of considerable mention in the Scriptures, who had embraced Christianity. Witness, ver. 1. of this chap. Sosthenes, the head of the synagogue at Corinth, and some in the very palace of Cæsar.

Haydock: 1Co 1:29

Glory in his sight. God wished it to be known, that the establishment of his Church was not the work of human wisdom or power, but of the omnipotent power of his divinity. (Calmet)

Haydock: 1Co 2:3

In weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. We must not think, says St. John Chrysostom, that this made the virtue of St. Paul less commendable. It is natural to every man to fear persecutions and torments. We admire the apostle, who amidst these fears, was always ready to expose himself, was always fighting, and always victorious. (Witham) ---

During the stay I made with you at Corinth, I saw myself daily exposed to injuries, affronts, and persecutions. I had then the opportunity of practising the lessons which our expiring Redeemer delivered to us from the wood on which he died, and the daily contradictions I met with obliged me to think of other things than fine discourses, and elegant harangues. (Theophylactus)

Haydock: 1Co 2:4

In the shewing of the spirit and power, &c. The gifts of the Holy Ghost bestowed on those that believed, and the miracles which God wrought by his apostles, were the means God made use of to convert the world, which were of much greater force than human eloquence. (Witham)

Haydock: 1Co 2:5

That your faith, &c. Had we employed the subtleties, the reasonings, and eloquence of men, some might perhaps be induced to believe that you had been seduced by artifice. But none can reasonably say so; your faith is founded on the force and evidence of truth, and upon the virtue and power of the Holy Ghost, who has bestowed upon you both the light of knowledge, and the fire of love. (Theod.)

Gill: 1Co 1:18

For the preaching of the cross,.... Not of the Christian's cross, which he is to take up and bear for the sake of Christ; though this is a doctrine taught by Christ, and his apostles, and found to be true by the saints in all ages; and is what is had in great aversion and contempt, being very disagreeable to the natural man: but of the cross of Christ, the doctrine of salvation by a crucified Christ; or the doctrine of peace and reconciliation by the blood of his cross, and of righteousness, pardon, atonement, and satisfaction by the offering up of himself upon it as a sacrifice for sin, is here intended; and which

is foolishness in the esteem of many; and that because man's wisdom has no hand either in forming the scheme of it, or in the discovery of it to the sons of men; and besides, being revealed, it is very disagreeable to the carnal reason of man. This way of preaching is very impolite and unfashionable, and therefore despised; it is a doctrine which is not received by the wise and learned, but has been in all ages loaded with reproach, stigmatized either as a novel or licentious doctrine, and attended with persecution; though the only doctrine God owns for conversion, which administers comfort to distressed souls, and is food for the faith of believers; yea, it is a display of the highest wisdom; is what angels approve of, and desire to look into; is wiser than the wisdom of men; it has made foolish the wisdom of this world, and is what is only able to make a man wise unto salvation; and yet this doctrine is accounted foolish, yea foolishness itself; but to whom is it so?

to them that perish. All mankind are in a lost and perishing condition, by reason of sin, and want of righteousness. There are some who shall not perish; the Father has chose them unto salvation, the Son has redeemed them, and the Spirit sanctifies them; but there are others who do perish in their sins; wicked and ungodly men, Carried away with their own lusts and blinded by Satan, the god of this world: these are they that are lost, to whom the Gospel is hid, and who judge it foolishness; but their judgment of it is not to be regarded, being no more capable to judge of the glory and wisdom of the Gospel, than a blind man is of colours: but unto us which are saved; who are chosen in Christ unto salvation; whose persons and grace are secured in Christ, and in the everlasting covenant; for whom Christ has wrought out salvation; and to whom it is applied by the Spirit of God; and who are kept unto the full enjoyment of it by divine grace: to thest is the power of God; organically or instrumentally; it being the means of quickening them when dead in sin, of enlightening their dark minds, of unstopping their deaf ears, of softening their hard hearts, and of enemies making them friends to God, Christ, and his people: and it is likewise so declaratively, there being a wonderful display of the power of God in the ministration of it; as may be seen when observed who were the first preachers of it, men of no figure in life, of no education, illiterate mechanics, very mean and abject; into these earthen vessels were put the treasure of the Gospel, that the excellency of the power might appear to be of God, and not man; as also the doctrine they preached, a crucified Christ, disagreeable to the wisdom of men; the manner in which they spread it, not by force of arms, by carnal weapons, but spiritual ones; moreover, the opposition they met with from rabbins, philosophers, princes, kings, and emperors, and all the states and powers of the world; and yet in how short a time, maugre all opposition, did they carry the Gospel throughout the whole world, to the conversion of millions of souls, and the planting of churches everywhere; and which Gospel has continued and increased, notwithstanding the efforts of persecutors and false teachers, and all the power and artifice of men and devils; all which can be attributed to nothing else but the mighty power of God: add to this, that the Gospel is the power of God in the esteem of the saints, who know it to be so by inward experience; they have felt the power of it on their hearts; it has wrought effectually in them, and therefore they are the best judges, and are capable of giving the best account of it.

Gill: 1Co 1:19

As it is written,.... The passage referred to is in Isa 29:14 where it is read, "the wisdom of their wise men shall perish; and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid"; and is rendered by the Septuagint, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will hide the understanding of the prudent": which is much the same with the apostle's version of it: and the sense of the prophecy is, that in the times of the Messiah, under the Gospel dispensation, the mysteries of grace should be hid from the wise rabbins among the Jews, the Scribes and Pharisees, who, with all their sagacity, parts, and learning, would not be able to comprehend the doctrines of the Gospel; by these their wisdom and understanding would be nonplussed, so that they would reject them as foolishness, because their carnal reason could not reach them; which shows what an infatuation they were given up to: and if this should be the case, as it was with the wise and learned philosophers among the Gentiles, it need not be wondered at; it was what was foretold in prophecy concerning the Jews, who had the oracles of God, and the advantage of a divine revelation; and therefore it need not be stumbling to them that are saved, that the Gospel should meet with so much scorn and contempt among them that perish in the Gentile world. These words are very pertinently cited by the apostle, since they are acknowledged by the Jews themselves to signify the departure of wisdom from the wise men of Israel, in the times of the destruction of the temple, as Jarchi on the place observes.

Gill: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise? where is the Scribe?.... These are the apostle's own words; though he may allude to Isa 33:18 where there are some phrases much like these, but the meaning is very different. Though they are interpreted by the Talmudists ^g in a sense pretty near the apostle's; for thus they remark upon them,

"where is the Scribe? he that counts all the letters which are in the law; "where is the receiver, or weigher?" who weighs all the light and heavy things in the law; "where is he that counted the towers?" he who counts, or teaches the three hundred traditions:

so that they understand these of their Scribes and Misnic doctors, and such that are curious searchers into the hidden senses of Scripture. The apostle also seems to allude to a distinction that obtained among the Jews, of wise men, Scribes, and mystical interpreters of the word. They had their חכמי, "wise men", which was a general name for men of learning and knowledge; and their סופרי, "Scribes", who interpreted the law in the literal and grammatical sense; and their דרשני, "preachers, or disputers", who diligently searched into the hidden meaning of the Scriptures, and sought for and delivered out the mystical and allegorical sense of them, and who used to dispute about them in their schools. These three are sometimes to be met with together, and as distinct from each other. They say ^h that "God showed to the first man every generation, ודורשיו, "and its expounders, or disputers"; and every generation, וחכמיו, "and its wise men"; and every generation, wyrpwow wowpryw, "and its Scribes."

And the apostle's sense is, "where is the wise?" the man that boasts of his superior wisdom and knowledge in the things of nature, whether among the Jews or Gentiles; "where is the Scribe?" the letter learned man, who takes upon him to give the literal sense of the law,

where is the disputer of this world? the Jewish world, who pretends to the knowledge of the more abstruse and secret senses of Scripture; where are these men? they are not to be found among those that God employs in the ministration of the Gospel; he has laid them aside, and chosen others, where are they? what use have they been of to men? are men under their instructions the better, either in principle or practice? where are the thousands that have been turned to God by their wisdom, as can be shown by the faithful ministers of the Gospel? where are they? let them come and produce their cause, and bring forth their strong reasons against the Gospel they account foolishness, and try if these will stand before its superior power and wisdom; where are they? are they not fools, with all their wisdom and learning? The words may be rendered, "where is the searcher, or inquirer of this world?" and may design the same sort of persons whom the Jews call חכמי המחקר, "the wise men of search, or inquiry" ⁱ, and sometimes אנשי המחקר, "the men of search, or inquiry" ^k; by whom they seem to intend such who search into the nature of things, who study natural philosophy,

Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? by bringing in the Gospel scheme, which the men of the world, the greatest wits in it, are not able to understand; by laying their wisdom aside as useless in the business of salvation; by showing it to be vain and empty, and of no service in things spiritual and divine; by detecting, through the ministration of the Gospel, the sophisms of men, and showing that the schemes both Jews and Gentiles give into abound with folly, with stupid notions, and are full of gross errors and fatal mistakes,

Gill: 1Co 1:21

For after that in the wisdom of God,.... These words contain a reason proving the infatuation of men, with respect to "the wisdom of God"; by which may be meant either Christ, who is the wisdom of God, was in the world, and yet the world of the Jews, and their chief Rabbins among them, with all their wisdom, neither knew him, nor God his Father; or the Gospel, which is also so called, and though this was come, both into the Jewish and Gentile world, yet neither of them, by their natural wisdom, knew the God of grace, so manifestly revealed in it; or rather the works of creation, in which there is such a visible display of the wisdom of God: yet "the world by wisdom knew not God"; the author of them: the Gentiles knew him not in any spiritual and saving manner, as in Christ, or the God of all grace; yea, they knew him not as the God of nature to be the one, only, true God; they knew him not so as to glorify him as God, or to worship him in a right way and manner: wherefore,

it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe; it was his purpose and decree within himself; it was his sovereign good will and pleasure; it was what he, without any motion from, or merit in the creature, resolved of himself from all eternity that he would "save", not the wise man, the Scribe, the disputer of this world, the rationalist, the talker, nor the worker, but "them that believe" in his Son; that look unto him, venture on him, and commit the care and keeping of their souls to him, however weak, mean, and despicable they may otherwise be; or whether they believe with a weak, or a strong faith, so be it, it is but true: the Ethiopic version reads, "that believe in this foolish doctrine"; and this he determined to do, and did, "by the foolishness of preaching"; or by that sort of preaching, which both for the matter of it, Christ, that itself, and the manner of it, the world reckons foolishness; and which are the things of the Father's grace in election, of the Son's grace in redemption, and the Spirit's in regeneration: so the wise men of the world, with all their wisdom, are left ignorant of God, and perish in their sins, whilst the Gospel they despise is the power of God unto salvation to all that believe in Christ; this, through efficacious grace, becomes the means of regenerating and quickening men, showing them their need of salvation, and where it is, and of working faith in them to look to Christ for it.

Gill: 1Co 1:22

For the Jews require a sign,.... The Jews had always been used to miracles, in confirmation of the mission of the prophets sent unto them, and therefore insisted on a sign proving Jesus to be the true Messiah; except signs and wonders were wrought, they would not believe; and though miracles were wrought in great numbers, and such as never man did, they remained incredulous, and persisted in demanding a sign from heaven, and in their own way; and it was told them that no other sign should be given them, but that of the prophet Jonah, by which was signified the resurrection of Christ from the dead; this was given them, and yet they believed not, but went on to require a sign still; nothing but miracles would do with them, and they must be such as they themselves pleased: the Alexandrian copy, and some others, and the Vulgate Latin version, read "signs", in the plural number:

and the Greeks seek after wisdom; the wisdom of the world, natural wisdom, philosophy, the reason of things, the flowers of rhetoric, the ornaments of speech, the beauties of oratory, the justness of style and diction; as for doctrines they regarded none, but such as they could comprehend with, and account for by their carnal reason, everything else they despised and exploded. Hence we often read ^l of חכמת יוונית, "the Grecian wisdom", or wisdom of the Greeks; which, the Jews say ^m, lay in metaphors and dark sayings, which were not understood but by them that were used to it; the study of it was forbidden by them, though some of their Rabbins were conversant with it ⁿ,

Gill: 1Co 1:23

But we preach Christ crucified,.... Regardless of the sentiments and opinions of Jews and Gentiles, of what the one required and the other sought after; and in opposition to all their senseless and groundless cavils, the apostle and his fellow ministers continued preaching the doctrine of salvation by a crucified Christ, and him only; though it was

unto the Jews a stumblingblock; as was prophesied it should be, and as it came to pass; for they not only stumbled at the meanness of his birth, parentage, and education, at his ministry, miracles, company and audience; but especially at his sufferings and death: it was a stumbling to them that he should die at all, for they understood out of their law, that Christ should abide for ever; and it was more so that he should die the death of the cross, by which, according to their law, he appeared to be accursed; and most of all this was stumbling to them, because they expected a temporal kingdom to be set up by him:

and unto the Greeks foolishness; as that the Son of God should be crucified; that riches should come through his poverty, and men be brought to a kingdom and glory through one so mean and abject; that there should be life for men in his death, and salvation through his crucifixion, or the shameful death of the cross; that blessings should come through his being made a curse; and that his death should be an expiatory sacrifice for the sins of men; and that justification should be by one that was condemned; and peace and pardon should be by his blood; and that he should be raised again from the dead. These things were the subject of their ridicule and banter, and, in their opinion, deserved rather to be laughed at than credited. The Alexandrian copy, and others, and the Vulgate and all the Oriental versions, read, "unto the Gentiles".

Gill: 1Co 1:24

But unto them which are called,.... Effectually, by the grace of God, not merely externally, but internally; these have other sentiments of Christ, and the doctrine of salvation by him; for being called out of darkness, and savingly illuminated by the Spirit of God, they see wisdom, beauty, glory, excellency, and suitableness in Christ, and in his Gospel; and having felt the power of it upon their souls, with them,

both Jews and Greeks, of whatsoever nation they be, and whatsoever their prejudices have been, Christ, to them is,

the power of God, and the wisdom of God: he is "the power of God"; this is opposed to the Jews who stumbled at his weakness, his sufferings and death, even the death of the cross; and is to be understood of him, not as God, in which sense he is Mighty, yea, the Almighty, and which appears by his works of creation and providence; but as Mediator, and of him in his low and mean estate, and even when he was crucified through weakness; in respect to that very thing in which he was weakness, and so stumbling, to others, he is to them that are called the power of God; as is clear by his bearing all the sins of his people in his own body, on the tree, the cross whereon he was crucified, and all the punishment due thereunto; and yet he failed not, nor was he discouraged, nor did he give out, till he had satisfied law and justice perfectly, and made a full end of sin, and an entire reconciliation for iniquity; as also by destroying, by his death, the devil, who had the power of death, and spoiling all his principalities and powers, triumphing over them on his cross; by redeeming his people from all their sins, and the curse of the law, and from him that was stronger than they; by abolishing death, and at last raising himself from the dead; all which show him, even when and "though" crucified, to be the power of God, or to be possessed of Almighty power; for these are things which a mere creature could never have done: and he is "the wisdom of God", also, in the account of these persons; and which likewise is to be understood, it being opposed to the opinions the Greeks had of him, not of him as the essential wisdom of God, as he is the wise Creator and Governor of the universe; but of him as Mediator, and in respect to that for which the Greeks accounted him foolishness: for in redemption and salvation by a crucified Christ, God hath abounded towards us in all wisdom and prudence: there is in this article a high display of the wisdom of God; for hereby justice was satisfied in that nature which sinned, and Satan destroyed in that nature which he himself had been the ruin of; hereby sin was condemned, and yet the sinner saved; pardon and justification came to be in a way of grace, and yet of strict justice; all the divine perfections harmonize, and are glorified, and God has hereby executed his wise designs and counsels of old; yea, even the wisdom of God is seen in Christ's dying the death of the cross, whereby he appeared to be made a curse for us, that he might redeem us from the curse of the law, and that the blessing of Abraham might come upon us.

Gill: 1Co 1:25

Because the foolishness of God,.... Not that there is any such thing as "foolishness" in God, nor the least degree of weakness in him; but the apostle means that which the men of the world esteem so, and therefore, by an ironical concession, calls it by those names; by which is intended either Christ, who, as crucified, is counted foolishness; yet he "is wiser than men": yea, even than Solomon, who was wiser than all men besides; Christ is greater than he in wisdom, having all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in him; yea, in redemption by the blood of his cross, which is accounted such an egregious instance of folly, there is such a display of wisdom as surpasses all the wisdom of men and angels: and though he is, as crucified, esteemed as

the weakness of God, yet in this respect,

is stronger than men; stronger than the strong man armed; and has done that by his own arm, has brought salvation for his people, which neither men nor angels could ever have done: or all this may be understood of the Gospel of Christ, which is condemned as folly and weakness, and yet has infinitely more wisdom in it, than is to be found in the best concerted schemes of the wisest philosophers; and has had a greater influence on the minds and manners of men than theirs ever had; it is the manifold wisdom of God, and the power of God unto salvation. Moreover, these words may be applied to the saints, called in 1Co 1:27.

the foolish and weak things of the world; and yet even these, in the business of salvation, how foolish soever they may be in other respects, are wiser than the wisest of men destitute of the grace of God; and however weak they are in themselves, in their own esteem, and in the account of others, they are able to do and suffer such things, through the strength of Christ that no other men in the world are able to perform or endure. The phrases here used seem to be a sort of proverbial ones; and the sense of them is, that whatever, in things divine and spiritual, has the appearance of folly and weakness, or is judged to be so by carnal men, is wiser and stronger not only than the wisdom and strength of men, but than men themselves with all their wisdom and strength. It is very likely, that proverbial expressions of this kind, with a little alteration, were used by the Jews. The advice the young men gave to Rehoboam is thus paraphrased by the Targumist ^o, חלשותי תקיפא מן גבורתיה דאבא , "my weakness is stronger than the strength of my father"; which is very near the same with the last clause of this verse,

Gill: 1Co 1:26

For ye see your calling, brethren,.... That is, those that were called by the grace of God among them; for as circumcision and uncircumcision stand for circumcised and uncircumcised persons, and election for elect persons, and righteousness for righteous persons, Rom 3:30 so here "calling" designs men called by grace; the manner of whose calling, and what sort of persons they were, the apostle signifies, they did or might, or ought, to see, observe, and consider; for respect is here had, not, as some have thought, to the first preachers of the Gospel, who were mechanics, fishermen, illiterate persons, very mean and despicable; but to the members of the church at Corinth, whether public preachers, or private members. The city of Corinth had in it many noble families, of high birth and quality, abounded with learned philosophers and rich merchants; and yet it was easy to be seen,

how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. The apostle does not say that there were none of the wise, the mighty, and noble called; for there were Crispus, and Sosthenes, rulers of the synagogue, and Gains a rich hospitable man, and Erastus the chamberlain of the city, and it may be some others of a like or better figure in life; but there were not many of them; instances of this kind are but few recorded in the Scripture; as Joseph of Arimathea a rich counsellor, Paulus Sergius a Roman deputy, Dionysius the Areopagite, and some in Caesar's palace; which show that nobility, riches, and learning, as they do not at all contribute towards a man's salvation, so neither can they hinder it where grace takes place; but, generally speaking, God has thought fit, for wise reasons, to choose and call persons of different characters.

Gill: 1Co 1:27

But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world,.... So the Jews, in distinction from their wise Rabbins and doctors, call others, טפשין דעלמא, "the fools of the world" ^p; the persons whom God made choice of from all eternity, as appears by his calling them in time, are such who with respect to the wisdom of the world are foolish; have not those natural parts and abilities, that sagacity and penetration in things natural and civil, that knowledge and learning which many others have; and are therefore esteemed foolish by the men of the world, in comparison of whom; who are the wise and prudent, they are but babes: and God's end in his choice of them, and calling them, is

to confound the wise; who sooner or later will be brought to shame and confusion, to see such idiots, as they took them to be, wiser than they in the business of salvation; having been directed and influenced by divine grace to choose that good part, which shall never be taken from them, when they will be stripped of their nobility, wealth, and wisdom; to see these men go into the kingdom of heaven, and they themselves shut out:

and God hath chosen the weak things of the world; who cannot boast of their birth and pedigree, of their ancient and illustrious families; have no titles of honour to aggrandize them, nor estates, possessions, and worldly substance to support themselves with; and this he has done,

to confound the things which are mighty; as Haman was by the advancement of Mordecai. It will be to the utter confusion of the rich and mighty, to see persons of the lowest class in life made kings and priests by Christ, set among princes, and upon the throne of glory; and they themselves fleeing, and calling to the mountains to fall upon them, and cover them from the sight of him that sits on the throne, and the Lamb,

Gill: 1Co 1:28

And base things of the world,.... Who are reckoned the filth of the world, and the offscouring of all things; men of mean birth, education, and business of life:

and things that are despised; and set at nought, as poor persons generally are; yet God

hath chosen them; even the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of a kingdom:

yea, and things which are not; some think the Gentiles are here intended, who by the Jews are called "things that are not": as in the apocryphal books:

"O Lord, give not thy sceptre unto "them that be nothing", and let them not laugh at our fall; but turn their device upon themselves, and make him an example, that hath begun this against us.'' Est 14:11

"56 As for the other people, which also come of Adam, thou hast said that "they are nothing", but be like unto spittle: and hast likened the abundance of them unto a drop that falleth from a vessel. 57 And now, O Lord, behold, these heathen, which have ever been "reputed as nothing", have begun to be lords over us, and to devour us.'' (2 Esdras 6)

See Gill on Rom 4:17 for note on non-entities, or such who are not in being, are meant; but who are not accounted of, or are reckoned as nothing; and these the Lord calls by his grace, as a fruit and evidence of electing love:

to bring to nought things that are; who, on the account of their noble birth, large possessions, and high attainments in knowledge and learning, thought themselves something; all which will one day be abolished, and will stand them in no stead with regard to future happiness and glory. The Jews ^q have a saying quite contrary to all this, that "the Shekinah, or presence of God, does not dwell on any but upon a wise man, a mighty man, and a rich man.

Gill: 1Co 1:29

That no flesh should glory in his presence. That is, "in the presence of God", as some copies, and the Arabic and Ethiopic versions read; not in their blood, birth, families, lineage, and natural descent; nor in their might, power, and dominion; nor in their riches, wealth, and substance; nor in their wisdom, learning, and parts: for however these may be gloried in before men, yet not before God. These are of no account with him, nor will they be regarded by him, or men on account of them; and he has taken a method in choosing and calling the reverse of these, to stain the glory of all flesh, that no man may attribute his salvation to any thing of the creature, but wholly to the sovereign grace and good pleasure of God.

Gill: 1Co 1:30

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus,.... These words, as they direct to the proper object of glorying, Christ, so they show the high honour the called ones are brought to in and through Christ, and are opposed to their outward meanness, folly, weakness, poverty, and contempt. They are first of God the Father, of his own rich free grace and goodness, without any regard to any motive, merit, or desert of theirs, put into Christ by electing grace, in whom they are preserved and blessed; and which is their original secret being in him; and is made manifest by regenerating grace, by their being made new creatures; which also is not owing to their blood, or to the will of the flesh, or to the will of man, but to God and his free favour in Christ: and in consequence of their being in Christ, as their head and representative, he becomes all to them, which is here expressed,

who of God is made unto us wisdom. Though they are foolish creatures in their own and the world's esteem, yet Christ is their wisdom; he is so "efficiently", the author and cause of all that spiritual wisdom and understanding in divine things they are possessed of; he is so "objectively", their highest wisdom lying in the knowledge of his person, blood, and righteousness, of interest in him, and salvation by him; with which knowledge eternal life is connected: and he is so "representatively"; he is their head, in whom all their wisdom lies; he acts for them as their wisdom to God, he is their Counsellor, their Advocate, who pleads and intercedes for them, and as their wisdom to men, and gives them a mouth and wisdom which their adversaries are not able to gainsay; and having the tongue of the learned, he speaks a word in season to themselves, when weary, distressed, and disconsolate, and for them in the court of heaven; he is their wisdom, to direct their paths, to guide them with his counsel, in the way they should go, safe to his kingdom and glory:

and righteousness. He is the "author" of righteousness; he has wrought out and brought in one for them, which is well pleasing to God, satisfying to his justice, by which his law is magnified and made honourable; which justifies from all sin, and discharges from all condemnation, is everlasting, and will answer for them in a time to come; this he has brought in by the holiness of his nature, the obedience of his life, and by his sufferings and death: and which is "subjectively" in him, not in themselves; nor does it lie in any thing wrought in them, or done by them; but in him as their head and representative, who by "imputation" is made righteousness to them; and they the same way are made the righteousness of God in him; or in other words, this righteousness, by an act of the Father's grace, is imputed, reckoned, and accounted to them as their justifying righteousness:

and sanctification; Christ is the sanctification of his people, through the constitution of God, the imputation of the holiness of his nature, the merits of his blood, and the efficacy of his grace, he is so "federally" and "representatively"; he is their covenant head, and has all covenant grace in his hands for them, and so the whole stock and fund of holiness, which is communicated to them in all ages, until the perfection of it in every saint: this is sanctification in Christ, which differs from sanctification in them in these things; in him it is as the cause, in them as the effect; in him as its fountain, in them as the stream; in him it is complete, in them it is imperfect for the present: and they have it by virtue of union to him; sanctification in Christ can be of no avail to any, unless it is derived from him to them; so that this sanctification in Christ does not render the sanctification of the Spirit unnecessary, but includes it, and secures it: likewise Christ is the sanctification of his people "by imputation", as the holiness of his human nature is, together with his obedience and sufferings, imputed to them for their justification; Christ assumed an holy human nature, the holiness of it was not merely a qualification for his office as a Saviour, or what made his actions and sufferings in that nature significant and useful, or is exemplary to men; but is a branch of the saints justification before God: the law required an holy nature, theirs is not holy; Christ has assumed one not for, himself, but for them, and so is the end of the law in all respects: and this may be greatly designed in the whole of this passage; "wisdom" may stand in general for the wise scheme of justification, as it is laid in Christ; "sanctification" may intend the holiness of his nature; "righteousness" the obedience of his life; and "redemption" his sufferings and death, by which it is obtained: but then justification and sanctification are not to be confounded; they are two distinct things, and have their proper uses and effects; sanctification in the saints does not justify, or justification sanctify; the one respects the power and being of sin, the other the guilt of it. Moreover, Christ is the sanctification of his people "meritoriously"; through the shedding of his blood, whereby he has sanctified them, that is, expiated their sins, and made full atonement for them; see Heb 10:10. Once more, he is their sanctification "efficiently"; by his Spirit, as the author, and by his word, as the means; he is the source of all holiness, it all comes from him, and is wrought by his Spirit in the heart; which lies in filling the understanding with spiritual light and knowledge; the mind with a sense of sin, and a detestation of it; the heart with the fear of God; the affections with love to divine objects and things; the will with submission and resignation to the will of God in all respects; and is exercised in living a life of faith on Christ, and in living soberly, righteously, and godly, before God and man: and this, though imperfect now, will be perfected from and by Christ, without which it is impossible to see the Lord:

and redemption; which he is by the appointment of his Father, being foreordained to it before the foundation of the world; and this sense of the word made will agree with every clause in the text; and he is so efficiently, having obtained eternal redemption from sin, Satan, the law, and this present evil world, for his people; and "subjectively", it being in him, and every other blessing which is either a part of it, and comes through it, or is dependent on it, as justification, adoption, and remission of sins. Moreover, this may have respect not only to redemption past, which is obtained by Christ; but to that which draws near, the saints are waiting for, and to which they are sealed up by the Spirit of God; even their redemption and deliverance from very being of sin, from all sorrow and sufferings, from death and the grave, and everything that is afflicting and distressing.

Gill: 1Co 1:31

That, according as it is written,.... Jer 9:23.

He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord; not in his own wisdom, riches, and strength; but in Christ, as his wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.

Gill: 1Co 2:1

And I, brethren, when I came to you,.... This account the apostle gives of himself is occasioned, either by what he had said in the latter part of the preceding chapter, concerning the choice God has made of the foolish, weak, base, and despicable things of the world, and of his calling them by his grace both to fellowship with the saints in common, and therefore he accommodated his ministry unto them, and in particular to the ministry of the word, of which he himself was a like instance and an example; or else by what he had declared in 1Co 1:17 of the same chapter, that he was sent to preach the Gospel,

not with wisdom of words; which he here reassumes, and affirms agreeably, that when he first came to Corinth, he

came not with excellency of speech, or of wisdom; for though he was not only versed in Jewish learning, being brought up at the feet of Gamaliel; but had also a good share of Grecian literature, and was capable, upon proper occasions, to cite the Greek poets, as he does Aratus, Act 17:28 and Menander, Tit 1:12 and so could, had he thought fit, have adorned his discourses with pompous language, with the flowers of rhetoric, and the eloquence of the Grecians; yet he chose not such a high and florid style, and which savoured so much of human wisdom and art; for the subject he treated of required no such dress, nor any great swelling words of vanity, or a bombast style to set it off, and gain the applause and assent of men: for what he delivered were plain matters of fact, attested by God himself,

declaring unto you the testimony of God; that is, the Gospel, which bears a testimony to the love, grace, and mercy of God, his kindness and good will to the sons of men, in giving and sending his only begotten Son to be the Saviour and Redeemer of them; and in which God bears a testimony of his Son, of his sonship, deity, mediation, incarnation, obedience, sufferings, and death, of his resurrection, ascension to heaven, session at his right hand, intercession for his people, and his second coming to judgment, and of eternal life and salvation by him. All which being matter of fact, and depending upon the witness of God, which is greater than that of men, needed no art nor oratory of men to recommend it: it was enough in plain words, and easy language, to declare it, with the evidence by which it was supported. The Alexandrian copy, and some others, read, "the mystery" of God: and so the Syriac version רזא דאלהא, "the mystery of God" one of Stephens's copies reads, "the mystery of Christ"; and the Vulgate Latin version, "the testimony of Christ".

Gill: 1Co 2:2

For I determined not to know anything among you,.... This was a resolution the apostle entered into before he came among them, that though he was well versed in human literature, and had a large compass of knowledge in the things of nature, yet would make known nothing else unto them, or make anything else the subject of his ministry,

save Christ, and him crucified: he had a spiritual and experimental knowledge of Christ himself, and which he valued above all things else; and this qualified him to make him known to others; and which knowledge he was very willing and ready to communicate by preaching the Gospel, which is the means of making known Christ as God's salvation to the souls of men; and on this subject he chiefly insisted, and in which he took great delight and pleasure; he made known the things respecting the person of Christ, as that he was God, the Son of God, and truly man. God and man in one person; the things respecting his office, as that he was the Messiah, the mediator, prophet, priest, and King, the head, husband, Saviour, and Redeemer of his church and people; and the things respecting his work as such, and the blessings of grace procured by him; as that justification is by his righteousness, pardon by his blood, peace, reconciliation, and atonement by his sacrifice, and salvation alone and entirely by him. His determination was to preach none but Christ; not himself, nor man; nor the power and purity of human nature, the free will and works of the creature, but to exclude all and everything from being partners with Christ in the business of salvation. This was the doctrine he chose in the first place, and principally, to insist upon, even salvation by Christ, and him, as

crucified: that which was the greatest offence to others was the most delightful to him, because salvation comes through and by the cross of Christ; and he dwelt upon this, and determined to do so; it being most for the glory of Christ, and what was owned for the conversion of sinners, the comfort of distressed minds, and is suitable food for faith, as he knew by his own experience.

Gill: 1Co 2:3

And I was with you in weakness,.... Meaning either the weakness of his bodily presence, the contemptibleness of his voice, and the mean figure he made as a preacher among them, both with respect to the matter and manner of his ministry in the eyes of many; or his lowly and humble deportment among them, not exerting the power and authority Christ had given him as an apostle; but choosing rather to work with his own hands, as he did at Corinth, to minister to his own necessities, and those of others; or the many persecutions which he endured there for the sake of preaching a crucified Christ; and which he sometimes calls "infirmities"; see 2Co 12:9 wherefore it is added,

and in fear, and in much trembling: not only on account of the greatness and awfulness of the work in which he was engaged, and lest the souls he ministered unto should be drawn aside from the truth, and into a sinful compliance; but because of the violence of men against him, threatening his life, and lying in wait for it: hence, the Lord, to encourage him, spake in a vision to him, and bid him not be afraid, but boldly preach his Gospel, and not be silent; assuring him of his presence, and that no man should set on him to hurt him, for he had many chosen vessels there to call by his grace through his ministry, Act 18:9 which no doubt greatly served to remove the fears and tremor that attended him.

Gill: 1Co 2:4

And my speech, and my preaching,.... As he determined, so he acted. As the subject matter of his ministry was not any of the liberal arts and sciences, or the philosophy and dry morality of the Gentiles, but salvation by a crucified Christ; so his style, his diction, his language used in preaching,

was not with enticing words of man's wisdom; with technical words, words of art, contrived by human wisdom to captivate the affections; and with bare probable arguments only, a show of reason to persuade the mind to an assent, when nothing solid and substantial is advanced, only a run of words artfully put together, without any strength of argument in them; a method used by the false teachers, and which the apostle here strikes at, and tacitly condemns:

but in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power; partly by making use of solid proofs out of the writings of the Old Testament, indited by the Spirit of God, and which amounted to a demonstration of the truths he delivered; and partly by signs, and wonders, and miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, those extraordinary instances of divine power, which greatly confirmed the doctrines he preached: and besides all these, the Spirit of God wonderfully assisted him in his work, both as to words and matter; directing him, what to say, and in what form, in words, not which human wisdom taught, but which the Holy Ghost taught; and accompanying his ministry with his power, to the conversion, comfort, edification, and salvation of many.

Gill: 1Co 2:5

That your faith should not stand,.... "Or be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God". The Spirit of God directed him, and he under his influence chose, and by his assistance pursued this way of preaching, with this view, and for this reason, that faith in Christ, and in the doctrines of his Gospel, which comes by hearing, might not be attributed to the force of human eloquence and oratory; or stand upon so sandy a foundation, as that which might, if that was the case, be puffed away by a superior flow and force of words; but that it might be ascribed, as it ought to be, to almighty power, stand in it, be supported by it, and at last be finished and fulfilled with it.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 1Co 1:19

¹ sn A quotation from Isa 29:14.

NET Notes: 1Co 1:20

¹ tn Grk “the scribe.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateu") as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the Mosaic law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.

NET Notes: 1Co 1:23

¹ tn Or “Messiah”; Grk “preach Christ [Messiah] crucified,” giving the content of the message.

NET Notes: 1Co 1:25

¹ tn Grk “than men.”

² tn Grk “than men.”

NET Notes: 1Co 1:26

¹ tn Grk “Think about your calling.” “Calling” in Paul’s writings usually refers to God’s work of drawing people to faith in Christ. The following verses show that “calling” here stands by metonymy for their circumstances when they became Christians, leading to the translation “the circumstances of your call.”

² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

³ tn Grk “according to the flesh.”

⁴ tn The Greek word ευγενής (eugenh") refers to the status of being born into nobility, wealth, or power with an emphasis on the privileges and benefits that come with that position.

NET Notes: 1Co 1:28

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

NET Notes: 1Co 1:30

¹ tn Grk “of him you are in Christ Jesus.”

NET Notes: 1Co 1:31

¹ sn A quotation from Jer 9:24. The themes of Jer 9 have influenced Paul’s presentation in vv. 26-31. Jeremiah calls upon the wise, the strong, and the wealthy not to trust in their resources but in their knowledge of the true God – and so to boast in the Lord. Paul addresses the same three areas of human pride.

NET Notes: 1Co 2:1

¹ tn Grk “and I, when I came.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, κἀγώ (kagw) has not been translated here.

² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

³ tc ‡ A few important mss (Ì^46vid א* A C pc as well as some versions and fathers) read μυστήριον (musthrion, “mystery”) instead of μαρτύριον (marturion, “testimony”). But the latter has wider ms support (א² B D F G Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï and some versions), though not quite as impressive. μαρτύριον may have been changed by scribes in anticipation of Paul’s words in 2:7, or conversely, μυστήριον may have been changed to conform to 1:6. Transcriptionally, since “the mystery of God/Christ” is a well-worn expression in the corpus Paulinum (1 Cor 2:7; 4:1; Eph 3:4; Col 2:2; 4:3), while “testimony of Christ” occurs in Paul only once (1 Cor 1:6, though “testimony of the Lord” appears in 2 Tim 1:8), and “testimony of God” never, it is likely that scribes changed the text to the more usual expression. A decision is difficult in this instance, but a slight preference should be given to μαρτύριον.

NET Notes: 1Co 2:2

¹ tn Grk “to know nothing.”

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:18

For the ^{( m )} preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the ^{( n )} power of God.

^{( m )} The preaching of Christ crucified, or the type of speech which we use.

^{( n )} It is that in which he declares his marvellous power in saving his elect, which would not so evidently appear if it depended upon any help of man, for if it did man might attribute that to himself which is to be attributed only to the cross of Christ.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:19

^{( 22 )} For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

^{( 22 )} The apostle proves that this should not seem strange, seeing that it was foretold so long before, and declares further that God often punishes the pride of the world in such a way, which so pleases itself in its own wisdom: and therefore that it is vain, indeed a thing of no value, and such as God rejects as unprofitable, which they so carefully laboured for, and considered to be so important.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:20

Where [is] the wise? where [is] the ^{( o )} scribe? where [is] the ^{( p )} disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

^{( o )} Where are you, O you learned fellow, and you that spend your days in turning your books?

^{( p )} You that spend all your time in seeking out the secret things of this world, and in expounding all hard questions: and thus he triumphs against all the men of this world, for there was not one of them that could so much as dream of this secret and hidden mystery.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:21

^{( 23 )} For after that in the ^{( q )} wisdom of God the ^{( r )} world by wisdom knew not God, ^{( 24 )} it pleased God by the ^{( s )} foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

^{( 23 )} He shows that the pride of men was worthily punished by God, because they could not behold God, as they properly should have, in the most clear mirror of the wisdom of the world, and this wisdom is the workmanship of the world.

^{( q )} By the world he means all men who are not born again, but remain as they were, when they were first born.

^{( r )} In the workmanship of this world, which has the marvellous wisdom of God engraved on it, so that every man may behold it.

^{( 24 )} The goodness of God is wonderful, for while he goes about to punish the pride of this world, he is very provident and careful for the salvation of it, and teaches men to become fools, so that they may be wise to God.

^{( s )} So he calls the preaching of the Gospel, as the enemies supposed it to be: but in the mean time he taunts those very sharply who had rather charge God with folly than acknowledge their own, and crave pardon for it.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:22

^{( 25 )} For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

^{( 25 )} A declaration of that which he said: that the preaching of the Gospel is foolish. It is foolish, he says, to those whom God has not endued with new light, that is to say, to all men being considered in themselves: for the Jews require miracles, and the Greeks arguments, which they may comprehend by their intellect and wisdom: and therefore they do not believe the Gospel, and also mock it. Nonetheless, in this foolish preaching there is the great power and wisdom of God, but such that only those who are called perceive: God showing most plainly, that even then when mad men think him most foolish, he is far wiser than they are, and that he surmounts all their might and power, when he uses most vile and abject things, as it has appeared in the fruit of the preaching of the Gospel.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:26

^{( 26 )} For ye see your ^{( t )} calling, brethren, how that not many wise men ^{( u )} after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, [are called]:

^{( 26 )} A confirmation taken from those things which came to pass at Corinth, where the church especially consisted of the lowly and common people, insomuch that the philosophers of Greece were driven to shame when they saw that they could do nothing with their wisdom and eloquence in comparison with the apostles, whom nonetheless they called idiots and unlearned. And in this he beats down their pride: for God did not prefer them before those noble and wise men so that they should be proud, but that they might be constrained, whether they wished to or not, to rejoice in the Lord, by whose mercy, although they were the most abject of all, they had obtained in Christ both this wisdom as well as all things necessary to salvation.

^{( t )} What way the Lord has taken in calling you.

^{( u )} After that type of wisdom which men consider to be important, as though there were none else: but because they are carnal, they do not know spiritual wisdom.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:28

And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, [yea], and things which ^{( x )} are not, to bring to ^{( y )} nought things that are:

^{( x )} Which in man's judgment are almost nothing.

^{( y )} To show that they are vain and unprofitable, and worth nothing. See Rom 3:31

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:29

That no ^{( z )} flesh should glory in his presence.

^{( z )} "Flesh" is often, as we see, taken for the whole man: and he uses this word "flesh" very well, to contrast the weak and miserable condition of man with the majesty of God.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:30

But ^{( a )} of him are ye in Christ Jesus, ^{( 27 )} who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

^{( a )} Whom he cast down before, now he lifts up, indeed, higher than all men: yet in such a way that he shows them that all their worthiness is outside of themselves, that is, it stands in Christ, and that of God.

^{( 27 )} He teaches that especially and above all things, the Gospel ought not to be condemned, seeing that it contains the principal things that are to be desired, that is, true wisdom, the true way to obtain righteousness, the true way to live honestly and godly, and the true deliverance from all miseries and calamities.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 1:31

That, according as it is written, ^{( b )} He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

^{( b )} Let him yield all to God and give him thanks: and so by this place is man's free will beaten down, which the papists so dream about.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 2:1

And ^{( 1 )} I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the ^{( a )} testimony of God.

^{( 1 )} He returns to (1Co 1:17), that is to say, to his own example: confessing that he did not use among them either excellency of words or enticing speech of man's wisdom, but with great simplicity of speech both knew and preached Jesus Christ crucified, humbled and abject, with regard to the flesh.

^{( a )} The Gospel.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 2:2

For I ^{( b )} determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

^{( b )} I did not profess any knowledge but the knowledge of Christ and him crucified.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 2:3

And I was with you in ^{( c )} weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

^{( c )} He contrasts weakness with excellency of words, and therefore joins with it fear and trembling, which are companions of true modesty, not such fear and trembling as terrify the conscience, but such as are contrary to vanity and pride.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 2:4

And my speech and my preaching [was] not with enticing words of man's wisdom, ^{( 2 )} but in ^{( d )} demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

^{( 2 )} He turns now to the commendation of his ministry, which he had granted to his adversaries: for his strength and power, which they knew well enough, was so much the more excellent because it had no worldly help behind it.

^{( d )} By "demonstration" he means such a proof as is made by reasons both certain and necessary.

Geneva Bible: 1Co 2:5

^{( 3 )} That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

^{( 3 )} And he tells the Corinthians that he did it for their great profit, because they might by this know manifestly that the Gospel was from heaven. Therefore he privately rebukes them, because in vainly seeking to be noticed, they willingly deprived themselves of the greatest help of their faith.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: 1Co 1:1-31

1 After his salutation and thanksgiving,

10 he exhorts them to unity,

12 and reproves their dissensions.

18 God destroys the wisdom of the wise,

21 by the foolishness of preaching;

26 and calls not the wise, mighty, and noble,

28 but the foolish, weak, and men of no account.

TSK Synopsis: 1Co 2:1-16

1 He declares that his preaching, though it bring not excellency of speech, or of human wisdom, yet consists in the power of God;

6 and so far excels the wisdom of this world, and human sense, that the natural man cannot understand it.

Maclaren: 1Co 1:18

Perishing Or Being Saved

For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.'--1 Cor. 1:18.

THE starting-point of my remarks is the observation that a slight variation of rendering, which will be found in the Revised Version, brings out the true meaning of these words. Instead of reading them that perish' and' us which are saved,' we ought to read them that are perishing,' and us which are being saved.' That is to say, the Apostle represents the two contrasted conditions, not so much as fixed states, either present or future, but rather as processes which are going on, and are manifestly, in the present, incomplete. That opens some very solemn and intensely practical considerations.

Then I may further note that this antithesis includes the whole of the persons to whom the Gospel is preached. In one or other of these two classes they all stand. Further, we have to observe that the consideration which determines the class to which men belong, is the attitude which they respectively take to the preaching of the Cross. If it be, and because it is, foolishness' to some, they belong to the catalogue of the perishing. If it be, and because it is, the power of God' to others, they belong to the class of those who are in process of being saved.

So, then, we have the ground cleared for two or three very simple, but, as it seems to me, very important thoughts.

I. I Desire, First, To Look At The Two Contrasted Conditions, Perishing' And Being Saved.'

Now we shall best, I think, understand the force of the darker of these two terms if we first ask what is the force of the brighter and more radiant. If we understand what the Apostle means by saving' and salvation' we shall understand also what he means by perishing.'

If, then, we turn for a moment to Scripture analogy and teaching, we find that that threadbare word salvation,' which we all take it- for granted that we understand, and which, like a well-worn coin, has been so passed from hand to hand that it scarcely remains legible--that well-worn word salvation' starts from a double metaphorical meaning. It means either--and is used for both--being healed or being made safe. In the one sense it is often employed in the Gospel narratives of our Lord's miracles, and it involves the metaphor of a sick man and his cure; in the other it involves the metaphor of a man in peril and his deliverance and security. The negative side, then, of the Gospel idea of salvation is the making whole from a disease, and the making safe from a danger. Negatively, it is the removal from each of us of the one sickness, which is sin; and the one danger, which is the reaping of the fruits and consequences of sin, in their variety as guilt, remorse, habit, and slavery under it, perverted relation to God, a fearful apprehension of penal consequences here, and, if there be a hereafter, there, too. The sickness of soul and the perils that threaten life, flow from the central fact of sin, and salvation consists, negatively, in the sweeping away of all of these, whether the sin itself, or the fatal facility with which we yield to it, or the desolation and perversion which it brings into all the faculties and susceptibilities, or the perversion of relation to God, and the consequent evils, here and hereafter, which throng around the evil-doer. The sick man is healed, and the man in peril is set in safety.

But, besides that, there is a great deal more. The cure is incomplete till the full tide of health follows convalescence. When God saves, He does not only bar up the iron gate through which the hosts of evil rush out upon the defenceless soul, but He flings wide the golden gate through which the glad troops of blessings and of graces flock around the delivered spirit, and enrich it with all joys and with all beauties. So the positive side of salvation is the investiture of the saved man with throbbing health through all his veins, and the strength that comes from a divine life. It is the bestowal upon the delivered man of everything that he needs for blessedness and for duty. All good conferred, and every evil banned back into its dark den, such is the Christian conception of salvation. It is much that the negative should be accomplished, but it is little in comparison with the rich fulness of positive endowments, of happiness, and of holiness which make an integral part of the salvation of God.

This, then, being the one side, what about the other If this be salvation, its precise opposite is the Scriptural idea of perishing.' Utter ruin lies in the word, the entire failure to be what God meant a man to be. That is in it, and no contortions of arbitrary interpretation can knock that solemn significance out of the dreadful expression. If salvation be the cure of the sickness, perishing is the fatal end of the unchecked disease. If salvation be the deliverance from the outstretched claws of the harpy evils that crowd about the trembling soul, then perishing is the fixing of their poisoned talons into their prey, and their rending of it into fragments.

Of course that is metaphor, but no metaphor can be half so dreadful as the plain, prosaic fact that the exact opposite of the salvation, which consists in the healing from sin and the deliverance from danger, and in the endowment with all gifts good and beautiful, is the Christian idea of the alternative perishing.' Then it means the disease running its course. It means the dangers laying hold of the man in peril. It means the withdrawal, or the non-bestowal, of all which is good, whether it be good of holiness or good of happiness. It does not mean, as it seems to me, the cessation of conscious existence, any more than salvation means the bestowal of conscious existence. But he who perishes knows that he has perished, even as he knows the process while he is in the process of perishing. Therefore, we have to think of the gradual fading away from consciousness, and dying out of a life, of many things beautiful and sweet and gracious, of the gradual increase of distance from Him, union with whom is the condition of true life, of the gradual sinking into the pit of utter ruin, of the gradual increase of that awful death in life and life in death in which living consciousness makes the conscious subject aware that he is lost; lost to God, lost to himself.

Brethren, it is no part of my business to enlarge upon such awful thoughts, but the brighter the light of salvation, the darker the eclipse of ruin which rings it round. This, then, is the first contrast.

II. Now Note, Secondly, The Progressiveness Of Both Members Of The Alternative.

All states of heart or mind tend to increase, by the very fact of continuance. Life is a process, and every part of a spiritual being is in living motion and continuous action in a given direction. So the law for the world, and for every man in it, in all regions of his life, quite as much as in the religious, is To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance.'

Look, then, at this thought of the process by which these two conditions become more and more confirmed, consolidated, and complete. Salvation is a progressive fact. In the New Testament we have that great idea looked at from three points of view. Sometimes it is spoken of as having been accomplished in the past in the case of every believing soul--Ye have been saved' is said more than once. Sometimes it is spoken of as being accomplished in the present--Ye are saved' is said more than once. And sometimes it is relegated to the future--Now is our salvation nearer than when we believed,' and the like. But there are a number of New Testament passages which coincide with this text in regarding salvation as, not the work of any one moment, but as a continuous operation running through life, not a point either in the past, present, or future, but a continued life. As, for instance,' The Lord added to the Church daily those that were being saved.' By one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are being sanctified. And in a passage in the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, which, in some respects, is an exact parallel to that of my text, we read of the preaching of the Gospel as being a savour of Christ in them that are being saved, and in them that are perishing.'

So the process of being saved is going on as long as a Christian man lives in this world; and every one who professes to be Christ's follower ought, day by day, to be growing more and more saved, more fully filled with that Divine Spirit, more entirely the conqueror of his own lusts and passions and evil, more and more invested with all the gifts of holiness and of blessedness which Jesus Christ is ready to bestow upon him.

Ah, brethren! that notion of a progressive salvation at work in all true Christians has all but faded away out of the beliefs, as it has all but disappeared from the experience, of hosts of you that call yourselves Christ's followers, and are not a bit further on than you were ten years ago; are no more healed of your corruptions (perhaps less so, for relapses are dangerous)than you were then--have not advanced any further into the depths of God than when you first got a glimpse of Him as loving, and your Father, in Jesus Christ--are contented to linger, like some weak band of invaders in a strange land, on the borders and coasts, instead of pressing inwards and making it all your own. Growing Christians--may I venture to say?--are not the majority of professing Christians.

And, on the other side, as certainly, there are progressive deterioration and approximation to disintegration and ruin. How many men there are listening to me now who were far nearer being delivered from their sins when they were lads than they have ever been since! How many in whom the sensibility to the message of salvation has disappeared, in whom the world has ossified their consciences and their hearts, in whom there is a more entire and unstruggling submission to low things and selfish things and worldly things and wicked things, than there used to be! I am sure that there are not a few among us now who were far better, and far happier, when they were poor and young, and could still thrill with generous emotion and tremble at the Word of God, than they are to-day. Why! there are some of you that could no more bring back your former loftier impulses, and compunction of spirit and throbs of desire towards Christ and His salvation, than you could bring back the birds' nests or the snows of your youthful years. You are perishing, in the very process of going down and down into the dark.

Now, notice, that the Apostle treats these two classes as covering the whole ground of the hearers of the Word, and as alternatives. If not in the one class we are in the other. Ah, brethren I life is no level plane, but a steep incline, on which there is no standing still, and if you try to stand still, down you go. Either up or down must be the motion. If you are not more of a Christian than you were a year ago, you are less. If you are not more saved--for there is a degree of comparison if you are not more saved, you are less saved.

Now, do not let that go over your head as pulpit thunder, meaning nothing. It means you, and, whether you feel or think it or not, one or other of these two solemn developments is at this moment going on in you. And that is not a thought to be put lightly on one side.

Further, note what a light such considerations as these, that salvation and perishing are vital processes going on all the time,' as the Americans say--throw upon the future. Clearly the two processes are incomplete here. You get the direction of the line, but not its natural termination. And thus a heaven and a hell are demanded by the phenomena of growing goodness and of growing badness which we see round about us. The arc of the circle is partially swept. Are the compasses going to stop at the point where the grave comes in? By no means. Round they will go, and will complete the circle. But that is not all. The necessity for progress will persist after death; and all through the duration of immortal being, goodness, blessedness, holiness, Godlikeness, will, on the one hand, grow in brighter lustre; and on the other, alienation from God, loss of the noble elements of the nature, and all the other doleful darknesses which attend that conception of a lost man, will increase likewise. And so, two people, sitting side by side here now, may start from the same level, and by the operation of the one principle the one may rise, and rise, and rise, till he is lost in God, and so finds himself, and the other sink, and sink, and sink, into the obscurity of woe and evil that lies beneath every human life as a possibility.

III. And Now, Lastly, Notice The Determining Attitude To The Cross Which Settles The Class To Which We Belong.

Paul, in my text, is explaining his reason for not preaching the Gospel with what he calls' the words of man's wisdom,' and he says, in effect, It would be of no use if I did, because what settles whether the Cross shall look "foolishness" to a man or not is the man's whole moral condition, and what settles whether a man shall find it to be "the power of God" or not is whether he has passed into the region of those that are being saved.'

So there are two thoughts suggested which sound as if they were illogically combined, but which yet are both true. It is true that men perish, or are saved, because the Cross is to them respectively foolishness' or the power of God'; and the other thing is also true, that the Cross is to them foolishness,' or the power of God' because, respectively, they are perishing or being saved. That is not putting the cart before the horse, but both aspects of the truth are true.

If you see nothing in Jesus Christ, and His death for us all, except foolishness,' something unfit to do you any good, and unnecessary to be taken into account in your lives--oh, my friends! that is the condemnation of your eyes, and not of the thing you look at. If a man, gazing on the sun at twelve o'clock on a June day, says to me, It is not bright,' the only thing I have to say to him is, Friend, you had better go to an oculist.' And if to us the Cross is foolishness,' it is because already a process of perishing' has gone so far that it has attacked our capacity of recognising the wisdom and love of God when we see them.

But, on the other hand, if we clasp that Cross in simple trust, we find that it is the power which saves us out of all sins, sorrows, and dangers, and shall save us' at last into His heavenly kingdom.'

Dear friends, that message leaves no man exactly as it found him. My words, I feel, in this sermon, have been very poor, set by the side of the greatness of the theme; but, poor as they have been, you will not be exactly the same man after them, if you have listened to them, as you were before. The difference may be very imperceptible, but it will be real. One more, almost invisible, film, over the eyeball; one more thin layer of wax in the ear; one more fold of insensibility round heart and conscience--or else some yielding to the love; some finger put out to take the salvation; some lightening of the pressure of the sickness; some removal of the peril and the danger. The same sun hurts diseased eyes, and gladdens sound ones. The same fire melts wax and hardens clay. This Child is set for the rise and fall of many in Israel.' To the one He is the savour of life unto life; to the other He is the savour of death unto death.' Which is He, for He is one of them, to you?

Maclaren: 1Co 2:2

The Apostle's Theme

I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.'--1 Cor. 2:2.

MANY of you are aware that to-day I close forty years of ministry in this city--I cannot say to this congregation, for there are very, very few that can go back with me in memory to the beginning of these years. You will bear me witness that I seldom intrude personal references into the pulpit, but perhaps it would be affectation not to do so now. Looking back over these long years, many thoughts arise which cannot be spoken in public. But one thing I may say, and that is, that I am grateful to God and to you, dear friends, for the unbroken harmony, confidence, affection, and forbearance which have brightened and lightened my work. Of its worth I cannot judge; its imperfections I know better than the most unfavourable critic; but I can humbly take the words of this text as expressive, not, indeed, of my attainments, but of my aims. One of my texts, on my first Sunday in Manchester, was We preach Christ and Him crucified,' and I look back, and venture to say that the noble words of this text have been, however imperfectly followed, my guiding star.

Now, I wish to say a word or two, less personal perhaps, and yet, as you can well suppose, not without a personal reference in my own consciousness.

I. Note Here First, Then, The Apostolic Theme, Jesus Christ And Him Crucified.

Now, the Apostle, in this context, gives us a little autobiographical glimpse which is singularly and interestingly confirmed by some slight incidental notices in the Book of the Acts. He says, in the context, that he was with the Corinthians in weakness and in fear and in much trembling,' and, if we turn to the narrative, we find that a singular period of silence, apparent abandonment of his work and dejection, seems to have synchronised with his coming to the great city of Corinth. The reasons were very plain. He had recently come into Europe for the first time and had had to front a new condition of things, very different from what he had found in Palestine or in Asia Minor. His experience had not been encouraging. He had been imprisoned in Philippi; he had been smuggled away by night from Thessalonica; he had been hounded from Berea; he had all but wholly failed to make any impression in Athens, and in his solitude he came to Corinth, and lay quiet, and took stock of his adversaries. He came to the conclusion which he records in my text; he felt that it was not for him to argue with philosophers, or to attempt to vie with Sophists and professional orators, but that his only way to meet Greek civilisation, Greek philosophy, Greek eloquence, Greek self-conceit, was to preach Christ and Him crucified.' The determination was not come to in ignorance of the conditions that were fronting him. He knew Corinth, its wealth, its wickedness, its culture, and knowing these he said, I have made up my mind that I will know nothing amongst you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.'

So, then, this Apostle's conception of his theme was --the biography of a Man, with especial emphasis laid on one act in His history--His death. Christianity is Christ, and Christ is Christianity. His relation to the truth that He proclaimed, and to the truths that may be deducible from the story of His life and death, is altogether different from the relation of any other founder of a religion to the truths that he has proclaimed. For in these you can accept the teaching, and ignore the teacher. But you cannot do that with Christianity; I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life'; and in that revealing biography, which is the preacher's theme, the palpitating heart and centre is the death upon the Cross. So, whatever else Christianity comes to be--and it comes to be a great deal else--the principle of its growth, and the germ which must vitalise the whole, lie in the personality and the death of Jesus Christ.

That is not all. The history of the life and the death want something more to make them a gospel. The fact, I was going to say, is the least part of the fact; as in some vegetable growths, there is far more underground than above. For, unless along with, involved in, and deducible from, but capable of being stated separately from, the external facts, there is a certain commentary or explanation of them: the history is a history, the biography is a biography, the story of the Cross is a touching narrative, but it is no gospel.

And what was Paul's commentary which lifted the bare facts up into the loftier region? This--as for the person, Jesus Christ declared to be the son of God with power'--as for the fact of the death, died for our sins according to the Scriptures.' Let in these two conceptions into the facts--and they are the necessary explanation and presupposition of the facts --the Incarnation and the Sacrifice, and then you get what Paul calls my gospel: not because it was his invention, but because it was the trust committed to him. That is the Gospel which alone answers to the facts which he deals with; and that is the Gospel which, God helping me, I have for forty years tried to preach.

We hear a great deal at present, or we did a few years ago, about this generation having recovered Jesus Christ, and about the necessity of going back to the Christ of the Gospels.' By all means, I say, if in the process you do not lose the Christ of the Epistles, who is the Christ of the Gospels, too. I am free to admit that a past generation has wrapped theological cobwebs round the gracious figure of Christ with disastrous results. For it is perfectly possible to know the things that are said about Him, and not to know Him about whom these things are said. But the mistake into which the present generation is far more likely to fall than that of substituting theology for Christ, is the converse one--that of substituting an undefined Christ for the Christ of the Gospels and the Epistles, the Incarnate Son of God, who died for our salvation. And that is a more disastrous mistake than the other, for you can know nothing about Him and He can be nothing to you, except as you grasp the Apostolic explanation of the bare facts--seeing in Him the Word who became flesh, the Son who died that we might receive the adoption of sons.

I would further point out that a clear conception of what the theme is, goes a long way to determine the method in which it shall be proclaimed. The Apostle says, in the passage which is parallel to the present one, in the previous chapter, We preach Christ crucified'; with strong emphasis on the word preach.' The Jew required a sign'; he wanted a man who would do something. The Greek sought after wisdom; he wanted a man who would perorate and argue and dissertate. Paul says, No!' We have nothing to do. We do not come to philosophise and to argue. We come with a message of fact that has occurred, of a Person that has lived.' And, as most of you know, the word which he uses means in its full signification,' to proclaim as a herald does.'

Of course, if my business were to establish a set of principles, theological or otherwise, then argumentation would be my weapon, proofs would be my means, and my success would be that I should win your credence, your intellectual consent, and conviction. If I were here to proclaim simply a morality, then the thing that I would aim to secure would be obedience, and the method of securing it would be to enforce the authority and reasonableness of the command. But, seeing that my task is to proclaim a living Person and a historical fact, then the way to do that is to do as the herald does when in the market-place he stands, trumpet in one hand and the King's message in the other--proclaim it loudly, confidently, not with bated breath and whispering humbleness,' as if apologising, nor too much concerned to buttress it up with argumentation out of his own head, but to say, Thus saith the Lord,' and to what the Lord saith conscience says, Amen.' Brethren, we need far more, in all our pulpits, of that unhesitating confidence in the plain, simple proclamation, stripped, as far as possible, of human additions and accretions, of the great fact and the great Person on whom all our salvation depends.

II. So Let Me Ask You To Notice The Exclusiveness Which This Theme Demands.

Nothing but,' says Paul. I might venture to say--though perhaps the tone of the personal allusions in this sermon may seem to contradict it--that this exclusiveness is to be manifested in one very difficult direction, and that that is, the herald shall efface himself. We have to hold up the picture; and if I might take such a metaphor, like a man in a gallery who is displaying some masterpiece to the eyes of the beholders, we have to keep ourselves well behind it; and it will be wise if not even a finger-tip is allowed to steal in front and come into sight. One condition, I believe, of real power in the ministration of the Gospel, is that people shall be convinced that the preacher is thinking not at all about himself, but altogether about his message. You remember that wonderfully pathetic utterance from John the Baptist's stern lips, which derives much additional pathos and tenderness from the character of the man from whom it came, when they asked him, Who art thou?' and his answer was, I am a Voice.' I am a Voice; that is all! Ah, that is the example I We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord. We must efface ourselves if we would proclaim Christ.

But I turn to another direction in which this theme demands exclusiveness, and I revert to the previous chapter where in the parallel portion to the words of my text, we find the Apostle very clearly conscious of the two great streams of expectation and wish which he deliberately thwarted and set at nought. The Jews require a sign-but we preach Christ crucified. The Greeks seek after wisdom,' but again, we preach Christ crucified.' Now, take these two. They are representations, in a very emphatic way, of two sets of desires and mental characteristics, which divide the world between them.

On the one hand, there is the sensuous tendency that wants something done for it, something to see, something that sense can grasp at; and so, as it fancies, work itself upwards into a higher region. The Jew requires a sign'--that is, not merely a miracle, but something to look at. He wants a visible sacrifice; he wants a priest. He wants religion to consist largely in the doing of certain acts which may be supposed to bring, in some magical fashion, spiritual blessings. And Paul opposes to that, We preach Christ crucified.' Brethren, the tendency is strong to-day, not only in those parts of the Anglican communion where sacramentarian theories are in favour, but amongst all sections of the Christian Church, in which there is obvious a drift towards more ornate ritual, and aesthetic services, as means of attracting to church or chapel, and as more important than proclaiming Christ. I am free to confess that possibly some of us, with our Puritan upbringing and tendency, too much disregard that side of human nature. Possibly it is so. But for all that I profoundly believe that if religion is to be strong it must have a very, very small infusion of these external aids to spiritual worship, and that few things more weaken the power of the Gospel that Paul preached than the lowering of the flag in conformity with the desires of men of sense, and substituting for the simple glory of the preached Word the meretricious, and in time impotent, and always corrupting, attractions of a sensuous worship.

Further, The Greeks seek after wisdom.' They wanted demonstration, abstract principles, systematised philosophies, and the like. Paul comes again with his We preach Christ and Him crucified.' The wisdom is there, as I shall have to say in a moment, but the form that it takes is directly antagonistic to the wishes of these wisdom-seeking Greeks. The same thing in modern guise besets us to-day. We are called upon, on all sides, to bring into the pulpit what they call an ethical gospel; putting it into plain English, to preach morality, and to leave out Christ. We are called upon, on all sides, to preach an applied Christianity, a social gospel--that is to say, largely to turn the pulpit into a Sunday supplement to the daily newspaper. We are asked to deal with the intellectual difficulties which spring from the collision of science, true or false, with religion, and the like. All that is right enough. But I believe from my heart that the thing to do is to copy Paul's example, and to preach Christ and Him crucified. You may think me right or you may think me wrong, but here and now, at the end of forty years, I should like to say that I have for the most part ignored that class of subjects deliberately, and of set purpose, and with a profound conviction, be it erroneous or not, that a ministry which listens much to the cry for wisdom' in its modern forms, has departed from the true perspective of Christian teaching, and will weaken the churches which depend upon it. Let who will turn the pulpit into a professor's chair, or a lecturer's platform, or a concert-room stage or a politician's rostrum, I for one determine to know nothing among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

III. Lastly, Observe The All-Sufficient Comprehensiveness Which This Theme Secures.

Paul says nothing but'; he might have said everything in.' For Jesus Christ and Him crucified' covers all the ground of men's needs. No doubt many of you will have been saying to yourselves whilst you have been listening, if you have been listening, to what I have been saying, Ah! old-fashioned narrowness; quite out of date in this generation.' Brethren, there are two ways of adapting one's ministry to the times. One is falling in with the requirements of the times, and the other is going dead against them, and both of these methods have to be pursued by us.

But the exclusiveness of which I have been speaking, is no narrow exclusiveness. Paul felt that, if he was to give the Corinthians what they needed, he must refuse to give them what they wanted, and that whilst he crossed their wishes he was consulting their necessities. That is true yet, for the preaching that bases itself upon the life and death of Jesus Christ, conceived as Paul had learned from Jesus Christ to conceive them, that Gospel, whilst it brushes aside men's superficial wishes, goes straight to the heart of their deep-lying universal necessities, for what the Jew needs most is not a sign, and what the Greek needs most is not wisdom, but what they both need most is deliverance from the guilt and power of sin. And we all, scholars and fools, poets and common-place people, artists and ploughmen, all of us, in all conditions of life, in all varieties of culture, in all stages of intellectual development, in all diversities of occupation and of mental bias, what we all have in common is that human heart in which sin abides, and what we all need most to have is that evil drop squeezed out of it, and our souls delivered from the burden and the bondage. Therefore, any man that comes with a sign, and does not deal with the sin of the human heart, and any man that comes with a philosophical system of wisdom, and does not deal with sin, does not bring a Gospel that will meet the necessities even of the people to whose cravings he has been aiming to adapt his message.

But, beyond that, in this message of Christ and Him crucified, there lies in germ the satisfaction of all that is legitimate in these desires that at first sight it seems to thwart. A sign?' Yes, and where is there power like the power that dwells in Him who is the Incarnate might of omnipotence? Wisdom?' Yes, and where is there wisdom, except in Him in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge'? Let the Jew come to the Cross, and in the weak Man hanging there, he will find a mightier revelation of the power of God than anywhere else. Let the Greek come to the Cross, and there he will find wisdom and righteousness, sanctification and redemption. The bases of all social, economical, political reform and well-being, lie in the understanding and the application to social and national life, of the principles that are wrapped in, and are deduced from, the Incarnation and the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ. We have not learned them all yet. They have not all been applied to national and individual life yet. I plead for no narrow exclusiveness, but for one consistent with the widest application of Christian principles to all life. Paul determined to know nothing but Jesus, and to know everything in Jesus, and Jesus in everything. Do not begin your building at the second-floor windows. Put in your foundations first, and be sure that they are well laid. Let the Sacrifice of Christ, in its application to the individual and his sins, be ever the basis of all that you say. And then, when that foundation is laid, exhibit, to your heart's content, the applications of Christianity and its social aspects. But be sure that the beginning of them all is the work of Christ for the individual sinful soul, and the acceptance of that work by personal faith.

Dear friends, ours has been a long and happy union but it is a very solemn one. My responsibilities are great; yours are not small. Let me beseech you to ask yourselves if, with all your kindness to the messenger, you have given heed to the message. Have you passed beyond the voice that speaks, to Him of whom it speaks? Have you taken the truth--veiled and weakened as I know it has been by my words, but yet in them--for what it is, the word of the living God? My occupancy of this pulpit must in the nature of things, before long, come to a close, but the message which I have brought to you will survive all changes in the voice that speaks here. All flesh is grass … the Word of the Lord endureth for ever.' And, closing these forty years, during a long part of which some of you have listened most lovingly and most forbearingly, I leave with you this, which I venture to quote, though it is my Master's word about Himself, I judge you not; the word which I have spoken unto you, the same shall judge you in the last day.'

MHCC: 1Co 1:17-25

Paul had been bred up in Jewish learning; but the plain preaching of a crucified Jesus, was more powerful than all the oratory and philosophy of the heathen world. This is the sum and substance of the gospel. Christ crucified is the foundation of all our hopes, the fountain of all our joys. And by his death we live. The preaching of salvation for lost sinners by the sufferings and death of the Son of God, if explained and faithfully applied, appears foolishness to those in the way to destruction. The sensual, the covetous, the proud, and ambitious, alike see that the gospel opposes their favourite pursuits. But those who receive the gospel, and are enlightened by the Spirit of God, see more of God's wisdom and power in the doctrine of Christ crucified, than in all his other works. God left a great part of the world to follow the dictates of man's boasted reason, and the event has shown that human wisdom is folly, and is unable to find or retain the knowledge of God as the Creator. It pleased him, by the foolishness of preaching, to save them that believe. By the foolishness of preaching; not by what could justly be called foolish preaching. But the thing preached was foolishness to wordly-wise men. The gospel ever was, and ever will be, foolishness to all in the road to destruction. The message of Christ, plainly delivered, ever has been a sure touchstone by which men may learn what road they are travelling. But the despised doctrine of salvation by faith in a crucified Saviour, God in human nature, purchasing the church with his own blood, to save multitudes, even all that believe, from ignorance, delusion, and vice, has been blessed in every age. And the weakest instruments God uses, are stronger in their effects, than the strongest men can use. Not that there is foolishness or weakness in God, but what men consider as such, overcomes all their admired wisdom and strength.

MHCC: 1Co 1:26-31

God did not choose philosophers, nor orators, nor statesmen, nor men of wealth, and power, and interest in the world, to publish the gospel of grace and peace. He best judges what men and what measures serve the purposes of his glory. Though not many noble are usually called by Divine grace, there have been some such in every age, who have not been ashamed of the gospel of Christ; and persons of every rank stand in need of pardoning grace. Often, a humble Christian, though poor as to this world, has more true knowledge of the gospel, than those who have made the letter of Scripture the study of their lives, but who have studied it rather as the witness of men, than as the word of God. And even young children have gained such knowledge of Divine truth as to silence infidels. The reason is, they are taught of God; the design is, that no flesh should glory in his presence. That distinction, in which alone they might glory, was not of themselves. It was by the sovereign choice and regenerating grace of God, that they were in Jesus Christ by faith. He is made of God to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption; all we need, or can desire. And he is made wisdom to us, that by his word and Spirit, and from his fulness and treasures of wisdom and knowledge, we may receive all that will make us wise unto salvation, and fit for every service to which we are called. We are guilty, liable to just punishment; and he is made righteousness, our great atonement and sacrifice. We are depraved and corrupt, and he is made sanctification, that he may in the end be made complete redemption; may free the soul from the being of sin, and loose the body from the bonds of the grave. And this is, that all flesh, according to the prophecy by Jeremiah, Jer 9:23-24, may glory in the special favour, all-sufficient grace, and precious salvation of Jehovah.

MHCC: 1Co 2:1-5

Christ, in his person, and offices, and sufferings, is the sum and substance of the gospel, and ought to be the great subject of a gospel minister's preaching, but not so as to leave out other parts of God's revealed truth and will. Paul preached the whole counsel of God. Few know the fear and trembling of faithful ministers, from a deep sense of their own weakness They know how insufficient they are, and are fearful for themselves. When nothing but Christ crucified is plainly preached, the success must be entirely from Divine power accompanying the word, and thus men are brought to believe, to the salvation of their souls.

Matthew Henry: 1Co 1:17-31

We have here,

I. The manner in which Paul preached the gospel, and the cross of Christ: Not with the wisdom of words (1Co 1:17), the enticing words of man's wisdom (1Co 2:4), the flourish of oratory, or the accuracies of philosophical language, upon which the Greeks so much prided themselves, and which seem to have been the peculiar recommendations of some of the heads of the faction in this church that most opposed this apostle. He did not preach the gospel in this manner, lest the cross of Christ should be of no effect, lest the success should be ascribed to the force of art, and not of truth; not to the plain doctrine of a crucified Jesus, but to the powerful oratory of those who spread it, and hereby the honour of the cross be diminished or eclipsed. Paul had been bred up himself in Jewish learning at the feet of Gamaliel, but in preaching the cross of Christ he laid his learning aside. He preached a crucified Jesus in plain language, and told the people that that Jesus who was crucified at Jerusalem was the Son of God and Saviour of men, and that all who would be saved must repent of their sins, and believe in him, and submit to his government and laws. This truth needed no artificial dress; it shone out with the greatest majesty in its own light, and prevailed in the world by its divine authority, and the demonstration of the Spirit, without any human helps. The plain preaching of a crucified Jesus was more powerful than all the oratory and philosophy of the heathen world.

II. We have the different effects of this preaching: To those who perish it is foolishness, but to those who are saved it is the power of God, 1Co 1:18. It is to the Jews a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks foolishness; but unto those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God, 1Co 1:23, 1Co 1:24. 1. Christ crucified is a stumbling-block to the Jews. They could not get over it. They had a conceit that their expected Messiah was to be a great temporal prince, and therefore would never own one who made so mean an appearance in life, and died so accursed a death, for their deliverer and king. They despised him, and looked upon him as execrable, because he was hanged on a tree, and because he did not gratify them with a sign to their mind, though his divine power shone out in innumerable miracles. The Jews require a sign, 1Co 1:22. See Mat 12:38. 2. He was to the Greeks foolishness. They laughed at the story of a crucified Saviour, and despised the apostles' way of telling it. They sought for wisdom. They were men of wit and reading, men that had cultivated arts and sciences, and had, for some ages, been in a manner the very mint of knowledge and learning. There was nothing in the plain doctrine of the cross to suit their taste, nor humour their vanity, nor gratify a curious and wrangling temper: they entertained it therefore with scorn and contempt. What, hope to be saved by one that could not save himself! And trust in one who was condemned and crucified as a malefactor, a man of mean birth and poor condition in life, and cut off by so vile and opprobrious a death! This was what the pride of human reason and learning could not relish. The Greeks thought it little better than stupidity to receive such a doctrine, and pay this high regard to such a person: and thus were they justly left to perish in their pride and obstinacy. Note, It is just with God to leave those to themselves who pour such proud contempt on divine wisdom and grace. 3. To those who are called and saved he is the wisdom of God, and the power of God. Those who are called and sanctified, who receive the gospel, and are enlightened by the Spirit of God, discern more glorious discoveries of God's wisdom and power in the doctrine of Christ crucified than in all his other works. Note, Those who are saved are reconciled to the doctrine of the cross, and led into an experimental acquaintance with the mysteries of Christ crucified.

III. We have here the triumphs of the cross over human wisdom, according to the ancient prophecy (Isa 29:14): I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 1Co 1:19, 1Co 1:20, All the valued learning of this world was confounded, baffled, and eclipsed, by the Christian revelation and the glorious triumphs of the cross. The heathen politicians and philosophers, the Jewish rabbis and doctors, the curious searchers into the secrets of nature, were all posed and put to a nonplus. This scheme lay out of the reach of the deepest statesmen and philosophers, and the greatest pretenders to learning both among the Jews and Greeks. When God would save the world, he took a way by himself; and good reason, for the world by wisdom knew not God, 1Co 1:21. All the boasted science of the heathen world did not, could not, effectually bring home the world to God. In spite of all their wisdom, ignorance still prevailed, iniquity still abounded. Men were puffed up by their imaginary knowledge, and rather further alienated from God; and therefore it pleased him, by the foolishness of preaching, to save those that believe. By the foolishness of preaching - not such in truth, but in vulgar reckoning.

1. The thing preached was foolishness in the eyes of worldly-wise men. Our living through one who died, our being blessed by one who was made a curse, our being justified by one who was himself condemned, was all folly and inconsistency to men blinded with self-conceit and wedded to their own prejudices and the boasted discoveries of their reason and philosophy.

2. The manner of preaching the gospel was foolishness to them too. None of the famous men for wisdom or eloquence were employed to plant the church or propagate the gospel. A few fishermen were called out, and sent upon this errand. These were commissioned to disciple the nations: these vessels chosen to convey the treasure of saving knowledge to the world. There was nothing in them that at first view looked grand or august enough to come from God; and the proud pretenders to learning and wisdom despised the doctrine for the sake of those who dispensed it. And yet the foolishness of God is wiser than men, 1Co 1:25. Those methods of divine conduct that vain men are apt to censure as unwise and weak have more true, solid, and successful wisdom in them, than all the learning and wisdom that are among men: " You see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called, 1Co 1:26, etc. You see the state of Christianity; not many men of learning, or authority, or honourable extraction, are called."There is a great deal of meanness and weakness in the outward appearance of our religion. For, (1.) Few of distinguished character in any of these respects were chosen for the work of the ministry. God did not choose philosophers, nor orators, nor statesmen, nor men of wealth and power and interest in the world, to publish the gospel of grace and peace. Not the wise men after the flesh, though men would apt to think that a reputation for wisdom and learning might have contributed much to the success of the gospel. Not the mighty and noble, however men might be apt to imagine that secular pomp and power would make way for its reception in the world. But God seeth not as man seeth. He hath chosen the foolish things of the world, the weak things of the world, the base and despicable things of the world, men of mean birth, of low rank, of no liberal education, to be the preachers of the gospel and planters of the church. His thoughts are not as our thoughts, nor his ways as our ways. He is a better judge than we what instruments and measures will best serve the purposes of his glory. (2.) Few of distinguished rank and character were called to be Christians. As the teachers were poor and mean, so generally were the converts. Few of the wise, and mighty, and noble, embraced the doctrine of the cross. The first Christians, both among Jews and Greeks, were weak, and foolish, and base; men of mean furniture as to their mental improvements, and very mean rank and condition as to their outward estate; and yet what glorious discoveries are there of divine wisdom in the whole scheme of the gospel, and in this particular circumstance of its success!

IV. We have an account how admirably all is fitted, 1. To beat down the pride and vanity of men. God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise - men of no learning to confound the most learned; the weak things of the world to confound the might - men of mean rank and circumstances to confound and prevail against all the power and authority of earthly kings; and base things, and things which are despised - things which men have in the lowest esteem, or in the utmost contempt, to pour contempt and disgrace on all they value and have in veneration; and things which are not, to bring to nought ( to abolish ) things that are - the conversion of the Gentiles (of whom the Jews had the most contemptuous and vilifying thoughts) was to open a way to the abolishing of that constitution of which they were so fond, and upon which they valued themselves so much as for the sake of it to despise the rest of the world. It is common for the Jews to speak of the Gentiles under this character, as things that are not. Thus, in the apocryphal book of Esther, she is brought in praying that God would not give his sceptre to those who are not, Esth. 14:11. Esdras, in one of the apocryphal books under his name, speaks to God of the heathen as those who are reputed as nothing, 2 Esdras 6:56, 57. And the apostle Paul seems to have this common language of the Jews in his view when he calls Abraham the father of us all before him whom he believed, God, who calleth those things that are not as though they were, Rom 4:17. The gospel is fitted to bring down the pride of both Jews and Greeks, to shame the boasted science and learning of the Greeks, and to take down that constitution on which the Jews valued themselves and despised all the world besides, that no flesh should glory in his presence (1Co 1:29), that there might be no pretence for boasting. Divine wisdom alone had the contrivance of the method of redemption; divine grace alone revealed it, and made it known. It lay, in both respects, out of human reach. And the doctrine and discovery prevailed, in spite of all the opposition it met with from human art or authority: so effectually did God veil the glory and disgrace the pride of man in all. The gospel dispensation is a contrivance to humble man. But, 2. It is as admirably fitted to glorify God. There is a great deal of power and glory in the substance and life of Christianity. Though the ministers were poor and unlearned, and the converts generally of the meanest rank, yet the hand of the Lord went along with the preachers, and was mighty in the hearts of the hearers; and Jesus Christ was made both to ministers and Christians what was truly great and honourable. All we have we have from God as the fountain, and in and through Christ as the channel of conveyance. He is made of God to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1Co 1:30): all we need, or can desire. We are foolishness, ignorant and blind in the things of God, with all our boasted knowledge; and he is made wisdom to us. We are guilty, obnoxious to justice; and he is made righteousness, our great atonement and sacrifice. We are depraved and corrupt; and he is made sanctification, the spring of our spiritual life; from him, the head, it is communicated to all the members of his mystical body by his Holy Spirit. We are in bonds, and he is made redemption to us, our Saviour and deliverer. Observe, Where Christ is made righteousness to any soul, he is also made sanctification. He never discharges from the guilt of sin, without delivering from the power of it; and he is made righteousness and sanctification, that he may in the end be made complete redemption, may free the soul from the very being of sin, and loose the body from the bonds of the grave: and what is designed in all is that all flesh may glory in the Lord, 1Co 1:31. Observe, It is the will of God that all our glorifying should be in the Lord: and, our salvation being only through Christ, it is thereby effectually provided that it should be so. Man is humbled, and God glorified and exalted, by the whole scheme.

Matthew Henry: 1Co 2:1-5

In this passage the apostle pursues his design, and reminds the Corinthians how he acted when he first preached the gospel among them.

I. As to the matter or subject he tell us (1Co 2:2), He determined to know nothing among them but Jesus Christ and him crucified - to make a show of no other knowledge than this, to preach nothing, to discover the knowledge of nothing, but Jesus Christ, and him crucified. Note, Christ, in his person and offices, is the sum and substance of the gospel, and ought to be the great subject of a gospel minister's preaching. His business is to display the banner of the cross, and invite people under it. Any one that heard Paul preach found him to harp so continually on this string that he would say he knew nothing but Christ and him crucified. Whatever other knowledge he had, this was the only knowledge he discovered, and showed himself concerned to propagate among his hearers.

II. The manner wherein he preached Christ is here also observable. 1. Negatively. He came not among them with excellency of speech or wisdom, 1Co 2:1. His speech and preaching were not with enticing words of man's wisdom, 1Co 2:4. He did not affect to appear a fine orator or a deep philosopher; nor did he insinuate himself into their minds, by a flourish of words, or a pompous show of deep reason and extraordinary science and skill. He did not set himself to captivate the ear by fine turns and eloquent expressions, nor to please and entertain the fancy with lofty flights of sublime notions. Neither his speech, nor the wisdom he taught, savoured of human skill: he learnt both in another school. Divine wisdom needed not to be set off with such human ornaments. 2. Positively. He came among them declaring the testimony of God, 1Co 2:1. He published a divine revelation, and gave in sufficient vouchers for the authority of it, both by its consonancy to ancient predictions and by present miraculous operations; and there he left the matter. Ornaments of speech and philosophical skill and argument could add no weight to what came recommended by such authority. He was also among them in weakness and fear, and in much trembling; and yet his speech and preaching were in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 1Co 2:3, 1Co 2:4. His enemies in the church of Corinth spoke very contemptuously of him: His bodily presence, say they, is weak, and his speech contemptible, 2Co 10:10. Possibly he had a little body, and a low voice; but, though he had not so good an elocution as some, it is plain that he was no mean speaker. The men of Lystra looked on him to be the heathen god Mercury, come down to them in the form of a man, because he was the chief speaker, Act 14:12. Nor did he want courage nor resolution to go through his work; he was in nothing terrified by his adversaries. Yet he was no boaster. He did not proudly vaunt himself, like his opposers. He acted in his office with much modesty, concern, and care. He behaved with great humility among them; not as one grown vain with the honour and authority conferred on him, but as one concerned to approve himself faithful, and fearful of himself, lest he should mismanage in his trust. Observe, None know the fear and trembling of faithful ministers, who are zealous over souls with a godly jealousy; and a deep sense of their own weakness is the occasion of this fear and trembling. They know how insufficient they are, and are therefore fearful for themselves. But, though Paul managed with this modesty and concern, yet he spoke with authority: In the demonstration of the Spirit and of power. He preached the truths of Christ in their native dress, with plainness of speech. He laid down the doctrine as the Spirit delivered it; and left the Spirit, by his external operation in signs and miracles, and his internal influences on the hearts of men, to demonstrate the truth of it, and procure its reception.

III. Here is the end mentioned for which he preached Christ crucified in this manner: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of man, but the power of God (1Co 2:5) - that they might not be drawn by human motives, nor overcome by mere human arguments, lest it should be said that either rhetoric or logic had made them Christians. But, when nothing but Christ crucified was plainly preached, the success must be founded, not on human wisdom, but divine evidence and operation. The gospel was so preached that God might appear and be glorified in all.

Barclay: 1Co 1:18-25

Both to the cultured Greek and to the pious Jew the story that Christianity had to tell sounded like the sheerest folly. Paul begins by making free use of two quotations from Isaiah (Isa 29:14; Isa 33:18) to show how mere human wisdom is bound to fail. He cites the undeniable fact that for all its wisdom the world had never found God and was still blindly and gropingly seeking him. That very search was designed by God to show men their own helplessness and so to prepare the way for the acceptance of him who is the one true way:

What then was this Christian message? If we study the four great sermons in the Book of Acts (Act 2:14-39; Act 3:12-26; Act 4:8-12; Act 10:36-43) we find that there are certain constant elements in the Christian preaching. (i) There is the claim that the great promised time of God has come. (ii) There is a summary of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. (iii) There is a claim that all this was the fulfilment of prophecy. (iv) There is the assertion that Jesus will come again. (v) There is an urgent invitation to men to repent and receive the promised gift of the Holy Spirit.

(i) To the Jews that message was a stumbling-block. There were two reasons.

(a) To them it was incredible that one who had ended life upon a cross could possibly be God's Chosen One. They pointed to their own law which unmistakably said, "He that is hanged is accursed by God." (Deu 21:23). To the Jew the fact of the crucifixion, so far from proving that Jesus was the Son of God, disproved it finally. It may seem extraordinary, but even with Isa 53 before their eyes, the Jews had never dreamed of a suffering Messiah. The Cross to the Jew was and is an insuperable barrier to belief in Jesus.

(b) The Jew sought for signs. When the golden age of God came he looked for startling happenings. This very time during which Paul was writing produced a crop of false Messiahs, and all of them had beguiled the people into accepting them by the promise of wonders. In A.D. 45 a man called Theudas had emerged. He had persuaded thousands of the people to abandon their homes and follow him out to the Jordan, by promising that, at his word of command, the Jordan would divide and he would lead them dryshod across. In A.D. 54 a man from Egypt arrived in Jerusalem, claiming to be the Prophet. He persuaded thirty thousand people to follow him out to the Mount of Olives by promising that at his word of command the walls of Jerusalem would fall down. That was the kind of thing that the Jews were looking for. In Jesus they saw one who was meek and lowly, one who deliberately avoided the spectacular, one who served and who ended on a Cross--and it seemed to them an impossible picture of the Chosen One of God.

(ii) To the Greeks the message was foolishness. Again there were two reasons.

(a) To the Greek idea the first characteristic of God was apatheia (compare 3806). That word means more than apathy; it means total inability to feel. The Greeks argued that if God can feel joy or sorrow or anger or grief it means that some man has for that moment influenced God and is therefore greater than he. So, they went on to argue, it follows that God must be incapable of all feeling so that none may ever affect him. A God who suffered was to the Greeks a contradiction in terms.

They went further. Plutarch declared that it was an insult to God to involve him in human affairs. God of necessity was utterly detached. The very idea of incarnation, of God becoming a man, was revolting to the Greek mind. Augustine, who was a very great scholar long before he became a Christian, could say that in the Greek philosophers he found a parallel to almost all the teaching of Christianity; but one thing, he said, he never found, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Celsus, who attacked the Christians with such vigour towards the end of the second century A.D., wrote, "God is good and beautiful and happy and is in that which is most beautiful and best. If then 'He descends to men' it involves change for him, and change from good to bad, from beautiful to ugly, from happiness to unhappiness, from what is best to what is worst. Who would choose such a change? For mortality it is only nature to alter and be changed; but for the immortal to abide the same forever. God would never accept such a change." To the thinking Greek the incarnation was a total impossibility. To people who thought like that it was incredible that one who had suffered as Jesus had suffered could possibly be the Son of God.

(b) The Greek sought wisdom. Originally the Greek word sophist (compare 4678) meant a wise man in the good sense; but it came to mean a man with a clever mind and cunning tongue, a mental acrobat, a man who with glittering and persuasive rhetoric could make the worse appear the better reason. It meant a man who would spend endless hours discussing hair-splitting trifles, a man who had no real interest in solutions but who simply gloried in the stimulus of "the mental hike." Dio Chrysostom describes the Greek wise men. "They croak like frogs in a marsh; they are the most wretched of men, because, though ignorant, they think themselves wise; they are like peacocks, showing off their reputation and the number of their pupils as peacocks do their tails."

It is impossible to exaggerate the almost fantastic mastery that the silver-tongued rhetorician held in Greece. Plutarch says, "They made their voices sweet with musical cadences and modulations of tone and echoed resonances." They thought not of what they were saying, but of how they were saying it. Their thought might be poisonous so long as it was enveloped in honeyed words. Philostratus tells us that Adrian, the sophist, had such a reputation in Rome, that when his messenger appeared with a notice that he was to lecture, the senate emptied and even the people at the games abandoned them to flock to hear him.

Dio Chrysostom draws a picture of these so-called wise men and their competitions in Corinth itself at the Isthmian games. "You might hear many poor wretches of sophists, shouting and abusing each other, and their disciples, as they call them, squabbling; and many writers of books reading their stupid compositions, and many poets singing their poems, and many jugglers exhibiting their marvels, and many sooth-sayers giving the meaning of prodigies, and ten thousand rhetoricians twisting lawsuits, and no small number of traders driving their several trades." The Greeks were intoxicated with fine words; and to them the Christian preacher with his blunt message seemed a crude and uncultured figure, to be laughed at and ridiculed rather than to be listened to and respected.

It looked as if the Christian message had little chance of success against the background of Jewish or Greek life; but, as Paul said, "What looks like God's foolishness is wiser than men's wisdom; and what looks like God's weakness is stronger than men's strength."

Barclay: 1Co 1:26-31

Paul glories in the fact that, for the most part, the Church was composed of the simplest and the humblest people. We must never think that the early Church was entirely composed of slaves. Even in the New Testament we see that people from the highest ranks of society were becoming Christians. There was Dionysius at Athens (Act 17:34); Sergius Paulus, the proconsul of Crete (Act 13:6-12); the noble ladies at Thessalonica and Beroea (Act 17:4, Act 17:12); Erastus, the city treasurer, probably of Corinth (Rom 16:23). In the time of Nero, Pomponia Graecina, the wife of Plautius, the conqueror of Britain, was martyred for her Christianity. In the time of Domitian, in the latter half of the first century, Flavius Clemens, the cousin of the Emperor himself, was martyred as a Christian. Towards the end of the second century Pliny, the governor of Bithynia, wrote to Trajan the Emperor, saying that the Christians came from every rank in society. But it remains true that the great mass of Christians were simple and humble folk.

Somewhere about the year A.D. 178 Celsus wrote one of the bitterest attacks upon Christianity that was ever written. It was precisely this appeal of Christianity to the common people that he ridiculed. He declared that the Christian point of view was, "Let no cultured person draw near, none wise, none sensible; for all that kind of thing we count evil; but if any man is ignorant, if any is wanting in sense and culture, if any is a fool let him come boldly." Of the Christians he wrote, "We see them in their own houses, wool dressers, cobblers and fullers, the most uneducated and vulgar persons." He said that the Christians were "like a swarm of bats--or ants creeping out of their nests--or frogs holding a symposium round a swamp--or worms in conventicle in a corner of mud."

It was precisely this that was the glory of Christianity. In the Empire there were sixty million slaves. In the eyes of the law a slave was a "living tool," a thing and not a person at all. A master could fling out an old slave as he could fling out an old spade or hoe. He could amuse himself by torturing his slaves; he could even kill them. For them there was no such thing as marriage; even their children belonged to the master, as the lambs of the fold belonged not to the sheep but to the shepherd. Christianity made people who were things into real men and women, more, into sons and daughters of God; it gave those who had no respect, their self-respect; it gave those who had no life, life eternal; it told men that, even if they did not matter to other men, they still mattered intensely to God. It told men who, in the eyes of the world were worthless, that, in the eyes of God they were worth the death of his only Son. Christianity was, and still is, the most uplifting thing in the whole universe.

The quotation with which Paul finishes this passage is from Jer 9:23-24. As Bultmann put it, the one basic sin is self-assertion, or the desire for recognition. It is only when we realize that we can do nothing and that God can and will do everything that real religion begins. It is the amazing fact of life that it is the people who realize their own weakness and their own lack of wisdom, who in the end are strong and wise. It is the fact of experience that the man who thinks that he can take on life all by himself is certain in the end to make shipwreck.

We must note the four great things which Paul insists Christ is for us.

(i) He is wisdom. It is only in following him that we walk aright and only in listening to him that we hear the truth. He is the expert in life.

(ii) He is righteousness. In the writings of Paul righteousness always means a right relationship with God. Of our own efforts we can never achieve that. It is ours only by realizing through Jesus Christ that it comes not from what we can do for God, but from what he has done for us.

(iii) He is consecration. It is only in the presence of Christ that life can be what it ought to be. Epicurus used to tell his disciples, "Live as if Epicurus always saw you." There is no "as if" about our relationship to Christ. The Christian walks with him and only in that company can a man keep his garments unspotted from the world.

(iv) He is deliverance. Diogenes used to complain that men flocked to the oculist and to the dentist but never to the man (he meant the philosopher) who could cure their souls. Jesus Christ can deliver a man from past sin, from present helplessness, and from future fear. He is the emancipator from slavery to self and to sin.

Barclay: 1Co 2:1-5

Paul remembers back to the time when first he came to Corinth, and three things stand out.

(i) He came speaking in simplicity. It is worth noting that Paul had come to Corinth from Athens. It was at Athens that, for the only time in his life, as far as we know, he had attempted to reduce Christianity to philosophic terms. There, on Mars' Hill, he had met the philosophers and had tried to speak in their own language (Act 17:22-31); and it was there that he had one of his very few failures. His sermon in terms of philosophy had had very little effect (Act 17:32-34). It would almost seem that he had said to himself, "Never again! From henceforth I will tell the story of Jesus in utter simplicity. I will never again try to wrap it up in human categories. I will know nothing but Jesus Christ, and him upon his Cross."

It is true that the sheer unadorned story of the life of Jesus has in it a unique power to move the hearts of men. Dr. James Stewart quotes an example. The Christian missionaries had come to the court of Clovis, the king of the Franks. They told the story of the Cross, and, as they did, the hand of the old king stole to his sword hilt. "If I and my Franks had been there," he said, "we would have stormed Calvary and rescued him from his enemies." When we deal with ordinary, untechnical people, a vivid, factual picture has a power that a close knit argument lacks. For most people, the way to the recesses of a man's inmost being lies, not through his mind, but through his heart.

(ii) He came speaking in fear. Here we have to be careful to understand. It was not fear for his own safety; still less was it that he was ashamed of the gospel that he was preaching. It was what has been called "the trembling anxiety to perform a duty." The very phrase which he uses here of himself Paul also uses of the way in which conscientious slaves should serve and obey their masters. (Eph 6:5). It is not the man who approaches a great task without a tremor who does it really well. The really great actor is he who is wrought up before the performance; the really effective preacher is he whose heart beats faster while he waits to speak. The man who has no nervousness, no tension, in any task, may give an efficient performance; but it is the man who has this trembling anxiety who can produce an effect which artistry alone can never achieve.

(iii) He came with results and not with words alone. The result of Paul's preaching was that things happened. He says that his preaching was unanswerably demonstrated to be true by the Spirit and by power. The word he uses is the word for the most stringent possible proof, the kind against which there can be no argument. What was it? It was the proof of changed lives. Something re-creating had entered into the polluted society of Corinth.

John Hutton used to tell a story with gusto. A man who had been a reprobate and a drunkard was captured by Christ. His workmates used to try to shake him and say, "Surely a sensible man like you cannot believe in the miracles that the Bible tells about. You cannot, for instance, believe that this Jesus of yours turned water into wine." "Whether he turned water into wine or not," said the man, "I do not know; but in my own house I have seen him turn beer into furniture."

No one can argue against the proof of a changed life. It is our weakness that too often we have tried to talk men into Christianity instead of, in our own lives, showing them Christ. "A saint," as someone said, "is someone in whom Christ lives again."

Constable: 1Co 1:10--7:1

II. Conditions reported to Paul 1:10--6:20

The warm introduction to the epistle (1:1-9) led Paul to give a strong exhortation to unity. In it he expressed his reaction to reports of serious problems in this church that had reached his ears.

"Because Paul primarily, and in seriatim fashion, addresses behavioral issues, it is easy to miss the intensely theological nature of 1 Corinthians. Here Paul's understanding of the gospel and its ethical demands--his theology, if you will--is getting its full workout.

". . . the central issue in 1 Corinthians is salvation in Christ as that manifests itself in the behavior of those "who are being saved." This is what the Corinthians' misguided spirituality is effectively destroying.

"Thus three phenomena must be reckoned with in attempting a theology of this Letter: (1) Behavioral issues ( = ethical concerns) predominate. . . . (2) Even though Paul is clearly after behavioral change, his greater concern is with the theological distortions that have allowed, or perhaps even promoted, their behavior. This alone accounts for the unusual nature of so much of the argumentation. . . . (3) In every case but two (11:2-16; chaps. 12-14), Paul's basic theological appeal for right behavior is the work of Christ in their behalf."¹⁸

Constable: 1Co 1:10--5:1

A. Divisions in the church 1:10-4:21

The first major problem was the divisions that were fragmenting the assembly.

". . . this opening issue is the most crucial in the letter, not because their quarrels' were the most significant error in the church, but because the nature of this particular strife had as its root cause their false theology, which had exchanged the theology of the cross for a false triumphalism that went beyond, or excluded, the cross."¹⁹

Constable: 1Co 1:18--2:6

2. The gospel as a contradiction to human wisdom 1:18-2:5

Paul set up a contrast between cleverness of speech and the Cross in verse 17. Next he developed this contrast with a series of arguments. Boasting in men impacts the nature of the gospel. He pointed out that the gospel is not a form of sophia (human wisdom). Its message of a crucified Messiah does not appeal to human wisdom (1:18-25). Second, its recipients are not specially wise in the eyes of humanity (1:26-31). Third, Paul's preaching was not impressive in its human wisdom, but it bore powerful results (2:1-5).

"There are . . . three particularly important expository passages in 1 Corinthians. They may be regarded as the letter's principal theological discourses and as such deserve special attention.

"These three key discourses deal, respectively, with the wisdom of the cross (1:18-2:16), the nature of Christian community (12:4-13:13), and the resurrection of the dead (chap. 15). In each instance Paul's reflections on the topic are deliberate and focused, and lead him to develop a more or less extended and coherent argument. Moreover, each of these passages occurs at an important point within the overall structure of the letter. The discourse on wisdom, situated prominently at the beginning of the letter, supports the apostle's urgent appeals for unity (1:10-4:21). It can be argued that the discourse on Christian community undergirds, directly or indirectly, all of the counsels and instructions in chaps. 8 through 14. And the discourse on resurrection, a response to those who claim that there is no resurrection of the dead' (15:12), is located prominently at the end of the letter."²⁷

"In this part of the [first] discourse [i.e., 1:18-2:5] the argument proceeds in three steps: Paul makes his main point in 1:18-25, confirms it in 1:26-31 with an appeal to the Corinthians' own situation, and then further confirms it in 2:1-5 with reference to what and how he had preached in Corinth.

"The apostle's thesis is registered first in 1:18 and then twice restated (in 1:21 and 1:23-24).²⁸

Superficial displays of oratory that to them appeared to be demonstrations of wisdom impressed the Corinthian Christians excessively. Paul pointed out that the wisdom of God, the gospel of Christ, had power that mere worldly wisdom lacked.

Constable: 1Co 1:18-25

The folly of a crucified Messiah 1:18-25

"This paragraph is crucial not only to the present argument (1:10-4:21) but to the entire letter as well. Indeed, it is one of the truly great moments in the apostle Paul. Here he argues, with OT support, that what God had always intended and had foretold in the prophets, he has now accomplished through the crucifixion: He has brought an end to human self-sufficiency as it is evidenced through human wisdom and devices."²⁹

1:18 The message (logos) of the Cross, in contrast to the speech (logos) of human wisdom (v. 17), has the Cross as its central theme. When people hear it, it produces opposite effects in those who are on the way to perdition and in those on the way to glory. Paul contrasted foolishness and weakness with wisdom and power (cf. Rom. 1:16).

"What would you think if a woman came to work wearing earrings stamped with an image of the mushroom cloud of the atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima?

"What would you think of a church building adorned with a fresco of the massed graves at Auschwitz? . . .

"The same sort of shocking horror was associated with cross and crucifixion in the first century."³⁰

1:19 Paul's quotation of Isaiah 29:14 shows that it has always been God's method to show the folly of merely human wisdom.

1:20 The first three questions in this verse recall similar questions that Isaiah voiced when the Assyrians' plans to destroy Jerusalem fell through (Isa. 33:18; cf. Job 12:17; Isa. 19:12). Paul's references to the age (Gr. aion) and the world (kosmos) clarify that he was speaking of purely natural wisdom in contrast to the wisdom that God has revealed. God's wisdom centers on the Cross.

"In first-century Corinth, wisdom' was not understood to be practical skill in living under the fear of the Lord (as it frequently is in Proverbs), nor was it perceived to be some combination of intuition, insight, and people smarts (as it frequently is today in the West). Rather, wisdom was a public philosophy, a well-articulated world-view that made sense of life and ordered the choices, values, and priorities of those who adopted it. The wise man,' then, was someone who adopted and defended one of the many competing public world-views. Those who were wise' in this sense might have been Epicureans or Stoics or Sophists or Platonists, but they had this in common: they claimed to be able to make sense' out of life and death and the universe."³¹

1:21 Human reasoning does not enable people to get to know God nor does it deliver them from their sins. These benefits come only through the "foolishness" (in the eyes of the natural man) of the message preached (Gr. kerygma), namely the gospel. The true estimation of things, therefore, is that human reasoning is folly.

Paul was not saying that all the wisdom that unbelievers have produced is worthless. However in comparison with what the wisdom that God has revealed about Himself can accomplish human wisdom is of little value.

"Not every human knowledge about any given topic--physics or medicine, for instance--is under debate in our text (at least not primarily). Paul has something more specific in mind . . . Paul aims specifically at the human wisdom about God as wisdom of the world,' at theo-logy' as wisdom of the world.'"³²

1:22 The Jews characteristically asked for signs as demonstrations of God's power (cf. Matt. 16:1-4; Mark 8:11-12; John 2:18). In contrast, the message of the Cross seemed to be a demonstration of weakness, namely Jesus' inability to save Himself from death.

Likewise the Greeks typically respected wisdom, an explanation of things that was reasonable and made sense. However the message of the Cross did not appear to make sense. How could anyone believe in and submit to One who was apparently not smart enough to save Himself from suffering execution as a criminal when He was not one? Furthermore how could anyone look to such an One as a teacher of wisdom?

". . . the Jews' and Greeks' here illustrate the basic idolatries of humanity. God must function as the all-powerful or the all-wise, but always in terms of our best interests--power in our behalf, wisdom like ours! For both the ultimate idolatry is that of insisting that God conform to our own prior views as to how the God who makes sense' ought to do things."³³

1:23 A crucified Messiah was a stumbling block to the Jews because they regarded Messiah as the Person on whom God's blessing rested to the greatest degree (Isa. 11:2). However, Jesus' executioners hung Him on a tree, the sure proof that God had cursed Him (Deut. 21:23; Gal. 3:13).

Paul used the terms "Greeks" (v. 22) and "Gentiles" (v. 23) interchangeably.

"It is hard for those in the christianized West, where the cross for almost nineteen centuries has been the primary symbol of the faith, to appreciate how utterly mad the message of a God who got himself crucified by his enemies must have seemed to the first-century Greek or Roman. But it is precisely the depth of this scandal and folly that we must appreciate if we are to understand both why the Corinthians were moving away from it toward wisdom and why it was well over a century before the cross appears among Christians as a symbol of their faith."³⁴

1:24 The "called" contrast with the unsaved among both Jews and Gentiles (1:2; Rom. 8:28, 30). Christ is the instrument of God's power in conquering the forces of evil and delivering people from their control. Moreover He is the instrument of God's wisdom in solving the problem human reasoning could not unravel, namely how people can know God and come to God. The wisdom literature of the Old Testament personified wisdom as God's agent in revelation, creation, and redemption. Jesus Christ personally is that wisdom because He is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes (Rom. 1:16; cf. v. 30).

"This is Paul's most brilliant epigrammatic description of the world in which the Gospel is preached, and of the Gospel itself."³⁵

1:25 The "foolishness" of God, the gospel of the Cross, is wiser than human wisdom, and the "weakness" of God, in the eyes of unbelievers, is stronger than human strength.

At the moment, books are pouring off the presses telling us how to plan for success, how vision' consists in clearly articulated ministry goals,' how the knowledge of detailed profiles of our communities constitutes the key to successful outreach. I am not for a moment suggesting that there is nothing to be learned from such studies. But after a while one may perhaps be excused for marveling how many churches were planted by Paul and Whitefield and Wesley and Stanway and Judson without enjoying these advantages. Of course all of us need to understand the people to whom we minister, and all of us can benefit from small doses of such literature. But massive doses sooner or later dilute the gospel. Ever so subtly, we start to think that success more critically depends on thoughtful sociological analysis than on the gospel; Barna becomes more important than the Bible. We depend on plans, programs, vision statements--but somewhere along the way we have succumbed to the temptation to displace the foolishness of the cross with the wisdom of strategic planning. Again, I insist, my position is not a thinly veiled plea for obscurantism, for seat-of-the-pants ministry that plans nothing. Rather, I fear that the cross, without ever being disowned, is constantly in danger of being dismissed from the central place it must enjoy, by relatively peripheral insights that take on far too much weight. Whenever the periphery is in danger of displacing the center, we are not far removed from idolatry."³⁶

In these verses (18-25) Paul sought to raise the Corinthians' regard for the gospel message by showing its superiority over anything humans can devise through reasoning and philosophizing. His purpose in doing so was to encourage them to value the content of the message more highly than the "wisdom" evident in styles of those who delivered it.

"One can scarcely conceive a more important--and more difficult--passage for the church today than this one. It is difficult, for the very reason it was in Corinth. We simply cannot abide the scandal of God's doing things his way, without our help. And to do it by means of such weakness and folly! But we have often succeeded in blunting the scandal by symbol, or creed, or propositions. God will not be so easily tamed, and, freed from its shackles, the preaching of the cross alone has the power to set people free."³⁷

Constable: 1Co 1:26-31

The folly of the Corinthian believers 1:26-31

Paul turned from the content of the gospel to the Corinthian believers to strengthen his argument that the gospel he preached contradicted human expectations. God had chosen "nobodies" rather than the "beautiful people" of Corinth. They themselves were evidence that God's "foolishness" confounds the wise. Jeremiah 9:23-24, with its emphasis on boasting in one proper thing or another improper thing, lies behind this pericope.

1:26 This verse reflects that there were few in the Corinthian assembly who came from the higher intellectual and influential levels of their society. This characteristic has marked most local churches throughout history.

1:27-28 The Old Testament is full of illustrations of God choosing less than promising material for His instruments. His method did not change with the coming of Christ nor has it changed since then.

"Things that are not" are things that are nothing. They are non-entities in the eyes of the world. The "things that are" are those things and individuals that the world values highly. Paul did not mean that God cannot or will not save the affluent, but the glory of the gospel is that God's mercy extends to those whom the affluent tend to write off.

1:29 God has chosen this method so the glory might be His and His alone. How wrong then to glorify His messengers! Glorying here has the idea of putting one's full confidence in some inappropriate object to secure ourselves.

1:30 God is the source of the believer's life in Christ (cf. v. 2). Righteousness, sanctification, and redemption are metaphors of salvation, the result of the wisdom we find in Christ (cf. 6:11). Righteousness focuses on our right standing in the sight of God, sanctification on His making us more holy, and redemption on our liberation from sin.

1:31 This loose quotation from Jeremiah 9:24 summarizes Paul's point. Instead of emphasizing the Lord's servants and what they have done we should focus on what the Lord Himself has done in providing wisdom and power in Christ.

God's purpose was not to make a superficial splash but to transform lives, something the Corinthians could see in their own experience.

"The issue of election is particularly strong in 1 Corinthians. Paul opens the letter by affirming not only his call (called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God') but also that of the Corinthians (called to be saints,' 1:2). This conviction reappears in the final verse of the thanksgiving, functioning there as part of the ultimate ground for Paul's confidence (1:9): God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.' When the issue surfaces again a few verses later with renewed rhetorical emphasis (1:24, 26-30), it becomes clear that the concept of election or call no longer merely undergirds Paul's argument; it has instead become the focus of this argument. The Corinthians, it seems, have not grasped what election means."³⁸

Constable: 1Co 2:1-5

The folly of Paul's preaching 2:1-5

Paul offered the example of his preaching among the Corinthians as a further illustration of what the wisdom of God can do in contrast to what the words that humans regard as wisdom can do.

"The matters of literary context and the continuity of the argument are all important in understanding I Corinthians 2. Otherwise, much of the chapter reads like pure gnosticism, and Paul is made the advocate of a private religion reserved for the spiritual elite (2:6-16)."³⁹

2:1 The apostle's preaching in Corinth was "not in excellence of rhetorical display or of philosophical subtlety."⁴⁰

Some early texts have "mystery" (Gr. mysterion) instead of "testimony" (martyrion). The difference is not significant. The gospel was both the message God had previously not revealed that the apostles made known and the message to which they bore witness.

2:2 As far as his preaching went, Paul only spoke about Christ crucified. This was his regular practice (Gal. 3:1). He left all other knowledge aside.

"According to Acts xviii. 1 Paul moved on to Corinth from Athens, and it is often supposed that after an attempt to marry the Gospel to Greek philosophy in his Areopagus speech (Acts xvii. 22-31), which was attended with indifferent success (Acts xvii. 32 ff.), he determined to change his tactics and preach nothing but the cross.⁴¹ For this imaginative picture there is no evidence whatever."⁴²

". . . 1 Corinthians is more than a practical letter aimed at telling the readers what to do and what not to do. The letter in fact primarily seeks to influence the minds, dispositions, intuitions of the audience in line with the message Paul had initially preached in the community (2:2), to confront readers with the critical nature of God's saving action in the crucified Christ in such a fashion that it becomes the glasses to refocus their vision of God, their own community, and the future. The advancing of such an epistemology gives the letter a theological purpose that unifies its otherwise unconnected structure."⁴³

Centering his preaching on Christ crucified was not a new tack Paul took in Corinth because of previous lack of response (cf. Acts 17:22-31).

"What Paul avoided was artificial communication that won plaudits for the speaker but distracted from the message. Lazy preachers have no right to appeal to 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 to justify indolence in the study and careless delivery in the pulpit. These verses do not prohibit diligent preparation, passion, clear articulation, and persuasive presentation. Rather, they warn against any method that leads people to say, What a marvelous preacher!' rather than, What a marvelous Savior!'"⁴⁴

2:3 The reason Paul felt weak, fearful, and trembling was probably his sense of personal inadequacy in the face of the spiritual needs he faced when he entered Corinth (cf. Acts 18:9-10).

"If this was epilepsy, or malarial fever (Ramsay), it might well be the recurrent trouble which he calls a thorn for the flesh' (2 Cor. xii. 7)."⁴⁵

2:4 Paul did not design his content ("message," logos) and or his delivery ("preaching," kerygma) to impress his hearers with his eloquence or wisdom. Rather he emphasized the simple message he announced. Conviction came as a result of the Holy Spirit's power, not the "wisdom" of the preacher. We should not interpret this verse as deprecating persuasion but as a warning that conviction does not come as a result of persuasive arguments. It comes as the Holy Spirit opens blind eyes when we herald the gospel. The warning is against self-reliance in the preacher.

"Mere human sophia may dazzle and overwhelm and seem to be unanswerable, but . . . it does not penetrate to those depths of the soul which are the seat of the decisions of a lifetime."⁴⁶

"It is possible for arguments to be logically irrefutable, yet totally unconvincing."⁴⁷

2:5 Paul's reason for this approach was so his converts would recognize that their faith rested on a supernatural rather than a natural foundation, namely the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit (cf. Matt. 16:15-17).

The apostle's conviction concerning the importance of the superior power of the gospel message was clear in his own preaching.

College: 1Co 1:1-31

1 CORINTHIANS 1

I. INTRODUCTION (1:1-9)

A. SALUTATION (1:1-3)

¹ Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes,

² To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ - their Lord and ours:

³ Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes.

Even though it is normal for Paul to use the self-designation "apostle" in his letters, the function and significance of the term apostle have deeper roots in 1 Corinthians than in most of Paul's other letters. This concept plays an important role in the issue of division in chapters 1-4, a role in the Pauline directives regarding the treatment of the weak by the strong in chapters 8-10, a tangential role in the discussion of spiritual matters, chapters 12-14, and an important part of the argument for the resurrection in 1 Cor 15. It is noteworthy that 1 Corinthians is a good example of a letter in which ambiguity exists about the exact meaning of the Greek term ajpovstolo", apostolos . While Paul obviously regards himself as an apostle, it is not always clear that he regarded himself as an Apostle in the same way as he regarded the Twelve (see 15:7, where "apostles" is used in a wider sense than the Twelve).

First Corinthians makes it clear that the term "called" (klhtov", klçtos) was not reserved for a select group of believers. While different believers were called to different tasks by God, all believers had received a call (1 Cor 1:2, 24). Quite naturally, Paul testified again and again in his letters that his call was by the will of God, an early hint that Paul's self-definition was rooted in a theocentric experience.

The name Sosthenes is found only twice in the New Testament, here and at Acts 18:17. Since Sosthenes is depicted as the co-sender of the letter he must have been with Paul in Ephesus. There is no firm evidence that this was the same individual, a non-Christian synagogue leader in Corinth, mentioned in Acts 18:17. Homiletical needs have tended to identify the two individuals, but there is nothing in their respective circumstances or the text of Scripture which requires this identification. It is noteworthy that the place of Sosthenes in 1 Corinthians recedes markedly after 1:1.

1:2 To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ - their Lord and ours:

Evidence for the beginning of the church of God in Corinth is given in Acts 18. The closeness of the concepts sanctified (from aJgiavzw, hagiazô) and holy (a{gio", hagios ) is not as clear in English as it is in Greek, where the two words are cognates.

The use of the phrase "church of God" for believers is one of several in the New Testament. This particular phrase reflects the Old Testament concept of the assembly of God. It is worth noting that many of the texts of 1 Corinthians that relate to what would be called Pauline ecclesiology reveal a distinctive theocentric perspective.

The term "everywhere" (Greek reads "in every place") need not be a reference to a public or formal assembly of believers. While the phrase "call on the name of the Lord" is often associated with initial salvation in the New Testament (Acts 2:21; 22:16; Rom 10:13) the text of 1 Cor 1:2, like 2 Tim 2:19 and numerous Old Testament texts (Gen 13:4; 21:33; 26:25; 1 Kings 18:24-25; 1 Chron 16:8; Ps 63:4; 99:6; 116:13, 17; Isa 12:4; Lam 3:55; Zeph 3:9), refers to those who are seeking God in prayer and pious devotion.

1:3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The salutation of grace and peace is found in numerous Pauline letters (Rom 1:7; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4; Phlm 1:3) and usually with the dual reference to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

B. THANKSGIVING (1:4-9)

⁴ I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. ⁵ For in him you have been enriched in every way - in all your speaking and in all your knowledge - ⁶ because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. ⁷ Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. ⁸ He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

1:4 I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.

As in many of his letters (Col 1:3; 1 Thess 1:2; 2 Thess 1:3; 2 Thess 2:13; Phlm 1:4), Paul here refers to his constant practice of thanking God in regard to his converts. The spiritual realities expressed in this verse follow the normal Pauline pattern of theocentric piety by making God the object of praise and thanksgiving, while Christ is seen as the agency or locus in which God has acted. Paul's own piety, in stark contrast to many later Protestant pietists, was centered on the primacy of God the Father. Trinitarian piety with its adoration of the Spirit was the result of Catholic orthodoxy established in the needs of later Councils. It is also important to observe, moreover, that Paul is not simply thanking God for the Corinthians, as though in spite of their many problems and sins, he was still patting them on the back. The NIV obfuscates what Paul made clear - his thanksgiving was concerning (periv, peri ) the Corinthians, not for the Corinthians. As O'Brien rightly observed, "In this thanksgiving there was no attention paid to the achievements of the Corinthians - and with good reason!"

What is clear throughout this thanksgiving summary is that Paul expresses thanks to God for what God has done and will do on behalf of the Corinthians. Verses 4-9 provide no evidence that Paul had in fact discovered some virtuous behavior among the Corinthians or that he was going to congratulate, to affirm, or to empower them on the basis of some ostensible goodness he found among their deeds. This summary of 1:4-9 is clearly focused on the actions of God the Father on behalf of the Corinthians, and it is God alone who is acknowledged as faithful (1:9).

In addition, there is a theme established in this summary which is not only an important perspective addressed to the Corinthians, but which is a frequent theme in the Pauline letters generally. This particular theme, highlighted by verbal links in Greek, is that gifts (cavrisma, charisma ) of God flow from the grace (cavri", charis ) of God.

Some English translations obscure Paul's point by breaking down his one Greek sentence of 1:4-8 and making it into four English sentences. One of the effects of this translation decision is that it blurs the grammatical and theological relationship between the grace ( charis ) given in 1:4 and the gifts ( charisma ) mentioned in 1:8. The Greek word w{ste (hôste, "therefore") in 1:7 begins a result clause and, in my judgment, is intended to highlight that the presence of gifts is a result of God's grace.

1:5 For in him you have been enriched in every way - in all your speaking and in all your knowledge -

The point Paul wants to make here is to express why he is so involved in always giving thanks to God (1:4); it is because (o{ti, hoti ) they have been enriched by God in all divine knowledge and in every proclamation. Interpreters vary in their judgment about whether Paul's intended focus in the reference to the enrichment of the Corinthians was the enrichment they experienced at the time of their conversion or later. Paul explicitly states that this enrichment took place "in him," which requires that it was at least available to the Corinthians since the time of their conversion to Christ. Moreover, the typical Pauline pattern in an epistolary thanksgiving section is to have a present tense "I/we give thanks" statement followed by verbs and participles in the present tense indicating contemporaneous activity (e.g., Rom 1:8; Phil 1:3; Col 1:3; 1 Thess 1:2; 2 Thess 1:3). In this light, we should be more sensitive to the significance of the aorist tense used by Paul in 1:5 as we wrestle with the event Paul had in mind. The two terms "speaking" (lovgo", logos ) and "knowledge" (gnw'si", gnôsis) have a variety of meanings not only in the Pauline corpus, but even within 1 Corinthians. The specific meaning Paul has for these two words in 1:5 will be found most likely by looking at 1:6 where he seems to continue his train of thought.

1:6 because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you.

Paul clearly taught that the testimony about Christ preached by himself and others was verified and "confirmed" (from bebaiovw, bebaiôo and cognates, cf. Rom 4:16; 15:8; 1 Cor 1:6, 8; 2 Cor 1:21; Phil 1:7; Heb 2:3; 6:16; 13:9) in and among the Corinthians at Corinth. Paul here seems to be saying that the effect of this divine enrichment in Christ (Gr. aor. pass.) is similar to and especially evident in the past confirmation (Gr. aor. pass.) of the testimony about Christ among the Corinthians. Pentecostal and Charismatic interpreters, among others, tend to have the meaning of this verse supplemented by the reference to (spiritual) gifts in 1:7, so that Paul is interpreted as teaching that the spiritual gifts, as presented most clearly in 12-14, are the source of enrichment and confirmation of the message of Christ. Other scholars infer a non-charismatic reading of 1:7 by looking more at the evidence regarding the confirmation of the testimony about Christ in: (1) the conversion stories from Corinth in Acts 18, (2) Pauline use of Scripture as confirmation, (3) Christian proclamation, and, (4) Paul's references to the Spirit of sonship as providing confirming testimony. Since it seems that 1:6-7 refer to the reasons (o{ti, hoti ) for Paul's thanksgiving in 1:4 and that 1:7 (w{ste, hôste) refers to the intended results of receiving God's grace (1:4), I do not find convincing Fee's judgment that, "the clause (1:6) says that God himself confirmed Paul's witness to Christ among them by giving them these spiritual gifts, which is exactly what v. 7 will go on to reaffirm."

1:7 Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.

God's grace always supplies the needs (not to be confused with the wants) of the saints that are necessary for them to implement God's agenda. The occurrence of the English phrase "spiritual gift" in 1:7 is potentially misleading since it reflects an embellishment of the Greek of 1:7. While admittedly all translations require the addition of words that were not in the original Greek text, translations do sometimes promote a particular doctrinal perspective not evident in the Greek text. With the charismatic domination of so much of contemporary Christian piety, it is important to point out that the use of the phrase "spiritual gift(s)" here, as often in 1 Corinthians, is not a translation of a corresponding Greek phrase. The following chart displays the translation tendency of the NIV in comparison with the evidence of the Greek text.

NIV Greek text

1:7 any spiritual gift gift charisma (lacks Greek word for spiritual)

12:1 about spiritual gifts spiritual pneumatikos (lacks Greek word for gift)

14:1 desire spiritual gifts spiritual pneumatikos (lacks Greek word for gift)

14:12 to have spiritual gifts spirit pneuma (lacks Greek word for gift and spiritual)

14:37 spiritually gifted spiritual pneumatikos (lacks Greek word for gift)

Verse 7 contains only the word gift (cavrisma, charisma ). Commentators such as John Calvin and Gordon Fee note that this use of gift in 1:7 may refer to the gift(s) of God associated with our salvation, rather than gifts as conventionally understood in chapters 12-14.

Situated on a spectrum of interpretations somewhere between the popular charismatic interpretation of gifts and the redemptive interpretation of gift, I would suggest that "gift" in 1:7 refers to gifts given by God to his people to facilitate their calling, but that Paul's definition, as demonstrated by his use of charisma in 1 Cor 7:7, would be broader than those stereotypical Pentecostal items such as tongues.

Verse 7 concludes on an eschatological note, with expectant language reminiscent of Rom 8:18-25; Phil 3:20; and Gal 5:5, and makes it clear that the giftedness of the Corinthian church would not cease prior to the return and revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul can hardly be faulted for not knowing that the church of God at Corinth would itself cease to exist (along with its gifts) long before the return of Christ. The quintessential giftedness of the church expressed here fits with other statements of Paul about the church. The reference to Christ's return also anticipates the significant role played by eschatological perspectives in the close of this thanksgiving section (1:8-9) as well as in the remainder of 1 Corinthians.

1:8 He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The same disposition of God that confirmed the testimony about Christ among the saints (1:6) will also confirm the blamelessness of the saints themselves until the time of Christ's return.

The phrase "to the end" is a clarion reference to the return of Jesus Christ and implies that some of the original readers would remain "until the end." The vitality and pervasiveness of such eschatological conviction flow naturally from the pen of one who prays "Maranatha" (1 Cor 16:22). The doctrine of the blamelessness of believers (cf. Col 1:22) arises from the forensic imagery of accusations in the courtroom of God's justice and the culpability of his saints. This doctrinal concept is evident in the scenes of the judgment of God's priest in Zech 3, in the accusation against the saints in Rev 12, and in the accusation theme depicted in the rhetorical questions of Rom 8:33-34.

1:9 God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

Paul concludes the thanksgiving with two affirmations about the character and work of God. The faithfulness of God, a frequent doctrine in the Old Testament as well as in the Pauline Corpus, (cf. 10:13) is mentioned here by Paul to undergird the prior statement about the blamelessness of the saints. Calvin may have been correct when he observed that "it was important for Paul to write this to prevent them from being dejected when they came face to face with all the faults, that he will reveal to them later on [in 1 Corinthians]." In Paul's thinking the promise of the eschatological blamelessness of the saints rests securely on the conviction of God's steadfast loyalty (2 Tim 2:12-13).

Second, Paul reminds them that it was God who called them and who was the author of their spiritual standing, described by Paul as fellowship with his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. The primary function of 1:9 in the literary unit of his thanksgiving was to underscore the foundation of their eschatological security. Paul may well have hoped, however, that this reference to God as the author of fellowship with Christ would have also reduced some of the boasting about human agents such as Cephas and Paul. Paul wanted to diminish the role attributed to them in facilitating the establishment of fellowship which the Corinthians had with the Lord Jesus Christ.

II. DISUNITY AND COMMUNITY FRAGMENTATION (1:10-4:21)

A. As we approach the first major problem at Corinth, 1:10-4:21, it is appropriate to summarize what the general issues are in this section and what may have been their source. Fragmentation and schism are the issues that Paul is addressing in this first major block of instruction. In particular, the point of strife seems to be group loyalties to various Christian leaders within the Corinthian fellowship. It is anachronistic as well as counterproductive to the goals of exegesis to suggest that the division troubling the Corinthian church was similar to later ecclesiastical fragmentation which has characterized much of church history. Similarly, it is equally unfounded to impose a doctrinal framework of orthodoxy/heresy upon this division. All the evidence we have from the text suggests that the disunity is based upon a polarization of loyalties centering upon, but not necessarily engendered by, influential Christian leaders.

An attendant issue interwoven in these four chapters of the epistle is the matter of Corinthian disregard for Paul's own authority. Any interpretation of the first four chapters of 1 Corinthians must include this attendant issue. A natural consequence of party loyalties to Apollos and Cephas is that not everyone at Corinth will have an appropriate loyalty to Paul. Accordingly, a strategy that begins by attacking all party loyalty, even loyalty for Paul (1:12-16), shifts its focus first to an apology for Paul, then moves to a counterattack against Paul's detractors (4:1-13) and culminates with a demand for explicit loyalty to Paul over against other leaders at Corinth (4:14-21). This overview provides the best explanation for the fact that Paul employs the "I appeal" (parakalevw, parakalço) rhetorical device to address both divisions (1:10) and disloyalty to him (4:16). The recognition of this second facet of Paul's argument, namely its desire to solidify his apostolic authority rooted in God's calling rather than worldly preferences, clearly helps explain the dramatic shift in tone between 1:10-3:23 and 4:1-21.

B. The most natural explanation for the origin of this party loyalty problem comes directly from the urban context of Roman Corinth. Specifically, the fabric of Greco-Roman city life supplied the threads of strife and dissension woven into the life of the Corinthian church. Three realities of city life that could well have contributed are: (1) personal patronage - house churches, (2) philosopher-student loyalty, and (3) urban party loyalties. The social and economic infrastructure of this city, like all major Greco-Roman cities, was held together by a system of personal patronage and group loyalties. Every culture is based upon accepted social structures, group interaction and personal loyalties. Party spirit was a common fact of ancient city life and it was commented upon and lamented by more than one pagan author contemporary with early Christianity.

Thus, the phenomenon of divisions within the Christian community at Corinth arose quite organically from the social matrix of group interaction, social stratification, and urban alienation which existed in Corinth long before the arrival of the Gospel. The human soil from which the church of God at Corinth grew had been watered and cultivated for generations with party strife and loyalties.

A. DIVISIONS IN THE CHURCH (1:10-17)

1. Report Received by Paul (1:10-12)

¹⁰ I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. ¹¹ My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. ¹² What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas ^a"; still another, "I follow Christ."

^a 12 That is, Peter

1:10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.

Paul's use of the term "appeal" (parakalevw, parakalço) is striking for it was a term often used in ancient Greek documents to underscore the focal point and seriousness of a request. Paul's urgent petition to the Corinthians contains three points:

1. all of you agree with one another

2. there be no divisions among you

3. you be united in the same mind and same thought.

The insertion of the phrase "so that" by the NIV translation at 1:10 sounds a bit more like modern ecumenism than Paul's Greek text reads. Paul urgently petitions for the three conditions listed above, but never directly states that any one of them is predicated upon the other. Paul's statement is taken by some interpreters to teach that unity (no divisions among you) stems from uniformity (agree with one another), but that view of intrachurch relations is not taught explicitly in this text. Furthermore, while Paul is no stranger to making a doctrinal plea on the basis of the universal practice of the church (1 Cor 4:17), that type of appeal is interestingly absent in this part of Paul's argumentation.

The wording of 1:10 is sufficiently vague, but it is reasonable to assume that the first readers of his letter would have known quite well what particular manifestations of strife Paul had in mind. Generally speaking it is clear that the issues of uniform thought, judgment and agreement must have pertained to the divisiveness and polarization mentioned in 1:11-17. It is unfortunate that the NIV chose to leave untranslated the Greek word "for" (gavr, gar ) which occurs in 1:11, since this would make the logical connection between the petition of 1:10 and the evidence of 1:11 patent. Accordingly, the specific doctrinal content concerning which Paul was arguing for sameness was the centrality of Christ. The uniformity for which Paul is so earnestly arguing is a common loyalty to Christ which brings with it a dissolution of intrachurch strife. Even though strife and division were culturally acceptable consequences of patronage and personal loyalties, they were unacceptable to Paul and his theology of the corporate fellowship which they had in the Lord Jesus Christ.

1:11 My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.

Paul identifies certain unnamed individuals from the household of Chloe as the source of his information concerning the quarrels and strife occurring among the Corinthian believers. Fee is of the opinion that Chloe and her household were Asian Christians and not members of the church in Corinth. Given this reconstruction, Chloe (a Christian woman) had sent some of her financial agents on business to Corinth and when they were there they discovered this problem of division and reported it to Paul on their return home to Ephesus. While it is true that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus were representatives from the Corinthian church (16:15-18), this need not preclude there being others from Corinth, who were not leaders, who traveled to Ephesus from Corinth on occasion and could report to Paul. The brevity of the reference to Chloe suggests that all the Corinthian saints would have recognized sister Chloe, a more difficult scenario to imagine if she lived in Ephesus rather than Corinth.

1:12 What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ."

This one verse is as replete with exegetical and historical problems as any other single verse in 1 Corinthians. The following points, though admittedly not problem free, seem to rest upon the firmest evidence and most plausible historical reconstruction.

A. In light of the flow of Paul's argument which follows in 1:13-4:21 and the fact that this is a response to a secondhand summary, I regard it as clear that these believers were not intentionally choosing Paul or Apollos or Cephas as replacements for their devotion to God or Christ. Carnal decisions by Christians are rarely so self-evident. Rather, within the context of their intentional loyalty to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, they were expressing personal loyalty to different leaders which, perhaps intentionally on their part, was leading to division and quarrels within the Christian fellowship at Corinth.

B. While the assumption of a fourth party at Corinth, namely a Christ party, has served well as fodder in antisectarian sermons, it seems historically unimaginable that any group at Corinth really thought that they, in contrast to the rest of the Corinthian brethren, gave their allegiance to Christ. Moreover, if there were a Christ party, it is hard to explain why it drops from discussion after 1:12 since Paul continues with references to those who maintain loyalty to Paul (3:4-5, 22; 4:6) to Cephas (3:22) and to Apollos (3:4-5, 22; 4:6). I take the fourth slogan to represent Paul's own response and corrective to the first three slogans. It is hard to believe that Paul would belittle a slogan which pledged loyalty to Christ.

C. In light of the positive and supporting comments from Paul throughout the rest of 1 Corinthians it seems improbable that Paul regards Apollos or Cephas as supportive of these party loyalists. There is no criticism in the letter, in either this subunit or elsewhere, of the practices of either Cephas or Apollos, but rather only of those who divide Christ because of misplaced loyalty to either Paul or Apollos or Cephas.

D. In spite of recent trends reacting against previous scholarly excesses in describing these Corinthians parties, it does seem that parties is still a useful term to describe the phenomenon Paul is combating in 1:10-4:21. To be sure, there were no parties whose central element was an elaborate theology. Paul is certainly not fighting, for example, against a Petrine school of theology. However, once it is recognized that in the Greco-Roman world one could have party advocacy which formed around leadership/ patronage as well as student/devotee loyalty to a teacher/philosopher, then a similar situation among some new Christians in Corinth is not difficult to imagine.

2. Christ Undivided (1:13-17)

¹³ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into ^a the name of Paul? ¹⁴ I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵ so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. ¹⁶ (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.) ¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel - not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

^a 13 Or in ; also in verse 15

1:13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?

All three of these questions anticipate a negative answer. The first questions calls upon the readers to reflect upon their beliefs about Christ, while the last two questions lead them to contemplate their understanding of Paul and his significance. Paul begins to use at this juncture a significant strategy which will run through 4:13. This strategy consists of destroying party loyalty by undermining the inflated significance attributed to the three personalities of Paul, Cephas, and Apollos. Sometimes this process involves a candid assessment of the various leaders, while at other times it includes denigration of himself and others. What better way for one of the principals in this issue to defuse the strife than by acknowledging his own insignificance and his personal ineptitude?

The fragmentation of unity which was epitomized by the slogans of 1:12 is challenged by Paul with the reference to the implied dividedness of Christ. If Christ is not divided, then how could his followers be? The linkage of crucifixion and baptism was already part and parcel of Paul's doctrinal teaching prior to this peculiar application in 1 Corinthians. In a few short months he will have employed this linkage in his letter to the church in Rome (Rom 6) and assumes that they, though not evangelized by him, are themselves familiar with it already. The passing reference to the vicarious nature (for you) of the crucifixion is noteworthy, though it will not be the dominant motif associated with crucifixion in this chapter.

As with the question of crucifixion, so with the issue of baptism, Paul expects the Corinthians to realize that the name of Christ, rather than Paul, belongs in the correct understanding of this act. Much has been written about the misunderstanding(s) of baptism held by at least some of the Corinthians (see comments on 10:1-5 and 15:29). I do not regard this verse as providing evidence for any bizarre theology of baptism held by the Corinthians any more than this verse supports the idea that there were Corinthians who literally believed in some bizarre way that Paul had undergone crucifixion for them. Verse 13 does attest that Paul's doctrine of baptism at Corinth and Ephesus included the idea of baptism "into the name of Christ" (cf. Rom 6), an idea also well attested in the Lukan picture of early Christianity (Acts 2:38; 8:16; 10:48; 19:5). Apparently the act of baptism was seen by some of those involved in factionalism as being so important that they thought that personal loyalty should be given to the baptizer. It is not difficult to imagine how this act of immersion, so essential to Christian conversion, would have been caught up and interpreted in a social world in which patron and client relationships were the norm and all benefactors, financial or spiritual, were the object of loyalty. Another part of the historical puzzle that helps us understand the origin of the baptism/personal loyalty pattern is that converts were often made by households. The mixture of baptisms of households, the home as the locus of family loyalty as well as the architectural setting for patronage, and the matter of house assemblies readily engenders and exacerbates the Corinthian problem of loyalty on the basis of the one who performed the baptism.

1:14 I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,

With some overstatement, Paul asserts that he baptized only Crispus and Gaius at Corinth; the conversion of a certain Crispus is known from Acts 18:8, while a Pauline co-worker Gaius who is mentioned in Acts 19:29 is called a Macedonian. The Gaius referred to in Rom 16:23 was probably the same individual as mentioned in 1 Cor 1:14. If the two individuals mentioned in this verse are identified with the converted synagogue ruler of Corinth in Acts 18:8 and the host of the entire church at Corinth mentioned in Rom 16:23, then it is obvious that Paul was personally responsible for the baptism and conversion of two of the socially elite and wealthy individuals within the church of God at Corinth. Paul apparently left the baptism of the Corinthians of lower social status, who would have comprised the majority of the church members, to co-workers.

1:15 so no one can say that you were baptized into my name.

It is unclear whether Paul is, in hindsight, thankful that he baptized so few of the Corinthians, or whether he is writing that he intentionally did not baptize many of them so that the very problem that he is having to deal with would not occur. The idea in verse 15 of being baptized into Paul's name continues the issue raised about this in 1:13b. While we cannot know whether the Corinthians were explicitly stating, "I was baptized into the name of Paul," "I was baptized into the name of Apollos," etc., it is reasonable to conclude that it was not merely a matter of one following after Paul, Cephas, or Apollos, but one expressing loyalty on the basis of who performed (or perhaps authorized) the baptism.

1:16 (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.)

This verse clarifies that there were individuals besides Gaius and Crispus whom Paul baptized during his ministry at Corinth. In addition to acknowledging the baptism of Stephanas and his household (e.g., family members, slaves) Paul also confesses to a bit of amnesia in the matter of his baptizing activity in Corinth. It should not be overlooked that Stephanas probably shares with Crispus and Gaius the fact that he comes from the upper stratum of Corinthian city life, for not only did he have a household (rather than belonging to one), but he was also able to travel as one of the representatives of the Corinthian church to visit Paul in Ephesus (1 Cor 16:15-18). The use of parentheses at 1:16 in the NIV is somewhat misleading. Not only is 1:16 not disjointed or an afterthought in the argument of 1:14-17, it is conceptually and rhetorically connected to 1:17 by the linking word "for" (gavr, gar ) in 1:17a.

1:17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel - not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Paul begins this verse with an explanation of his comment about his faulty memory in the matter of the number of baptisms he performed at Corinth. He couldn't remember because (for, gar ) God hadn't commissioned him to baptize, but to preach the gospel. Had he been commissioned to baptize, Paul would have remembered names and head count; since he wasn't, he didn't.

Paul's statement here serves both to conclude his argument about how one should view his apostolic ministry given by God and the rite of baptism, and to serve as a transition to the next component in this urgent appeal to the readers. This verse has been a favorite of those interpreters who have a view of religion that disdains ceremony. In his observations on this verse Gordon Fee noted, "Paul does not intend to minimize Christian baptism; his use of this imagery in Rom 6:3-7 would forever rule that out. The reason for expressing his own calling in this negative way has been dictated by the nature of the argument." This is one of scores of examples in 1 Corinthians where it is imperative to interpret Paul's thoughts and words in the literary and rhetorical setting of a unit of thought.

It seems to me that Paul's statement here is no different in kind from Old Testament prophets who on occasion, for reasons of context and rhetorical effect, minimized God-ordained ceremonies and institutions (Isa 1:11-15; Jer 7:1-11) or Jesus who criticized pious acts such as prayer and fasting (Matt 6:1-18) or Paul who, in 1 Cor 13:1-3, denigrates for contextual reasons acts of piety which are normally admirable.

Paul knew that baptism had become one of the elements at the root of the quarreling in Corinth, and he wanted no part in leaving the Corinthians with the idea that he was supportive of their doctrine of a divisive baptism stemming from personal loyalty to the one who performed the baptism. The counterpoint to Paul's denial of the centrality of baptizing in his ministry is his affirmation that the focus of his commission by Christ was the proclamation of the gospel. This brief summary agrees completely with the picture of Paul's apostolic appointment as sketched in Acts and mentioned in his own letters.

In its function to provide a transition to 1:18-31 this verse introduces central terms such as gospel, cross, and wisdom. In order to understand the rhetoric and the flow of Paul's theological thought and reasoning in this literary unit of 1:10-4:21, it is imperative to acknowledge the single focus of this entire section. Even though there is an amazing variety in the rhetoric, in the illustrations, in the subarguments, and in the tenor of the material stretching from 1:18-4:21, one must not lose sight of the fact that all this is Paul's argument against the dissensions and quarreling mentioned in 1:10-12. The reason that this point must be made explicitly here is that sometimes interpreters use portions of Paul's arguments in this section as though they were directed to outsiders, to the lost of the world.

While admittedly 1:18-31 describes the unsaved world of Paul's day, both Jew and Greek, it is unacceptable to stop with that mere observation since it is clear that this section of Paul's argument was intended by Paul both to address and to ameliorate the problem of party strife among believers at Corinth. Proper interpretation of this section must discern the flow of Paul's thought by which he adapted this description of the attitudes of a world alienated from God into his argument designed to undermine the divisions among believers based upon personal loyalty.

To miss this point is to miss the Pauline intention behind all the variety in this section and it runs the great risk of misusing material from this section to make points and doctrinal affirmations which Paul had no intention of making. In light of the problem of a noncontextual reading of these verses, it is worthwhile to point out that there are two major internal textual indicators that the material set forth in 1:18-4:21 was written by Paul as a unified response to the congregational problem described in 1:10-17:

1. References to the slogans of party loyalty first mentioned in 1:12 are reintroduced later at 3:4-5, 3:21-22, and 4:6 by means of the names of Paul, Cephas and Apollos. This is the clearest proof that Paul is continuing to address the same problem.

2. The clustering of key terms associated with the division and quarrels at Corinth are evident throughout this epistolary section.

Word and cognates Occurrences in Letter Occurrences in 1:18-4:21 Wise/wisdom (sofiva, sophia ) 28 26 Cross/crucified (staurov", stauros ) 6 5 Fools/foolishness (mwrov", môros) 10 10 World (kovsmo", kosmos ) 17 10 Age/world (aiJwvn, aiôn) 8 6 Paul's statement at the end of 1:17 makes it clear that the cross of Christ and human wisdom are antithetical to one another. All attempts, Paul argues, to force the message of Christ crucified through the mold of human wisdom can only destroy the gospel he preaches. Even though the cross of Christ is central to Paul's gospel, it would be a mistake to reduce the multifaceted view Paul holds about the cross of Christ into a single oversimplified doctrine. Paul's utilization of his doctrine of the cross for the congregational problems he addressed throughout his letters reveals that this doctrine can be as diverse as the congregations themselves. When viewed in the setting of the congregational problems at Corinth, the point of irreconcilable difference between the cross and human wisdom in 1 Corinthians should not be viewed as Paul's desire to be obscure. Even more untenable is the view that Paul's disdain for human wisdom at Corinth was a result of his failure in his ostensible mishandling of human wisdom in Athens at the Areopagus (Acts 17). Finally, there is not sufficient internal evidence to demonstrate the existence of, let alone reconstruct, a "wisdom party" at Corinth. At times scholars have posited various wisdom emphases in the Corinthian church. It has even been suggested that Paul's pejorative use of wisdom terminology was directed against a single particular party, perhaps some group associated with the eloquent Apollos. None of these attempts seem to fit explicit evidence of 1 Corinthians.

B. CHRIST THE WISDOM AND POWER OF GOD (1:18-2:5)

1. The Message of the Cross (1:18-19)

¹⁸ For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. ¹⁹ For it is written:

"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;

the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate." ^a

^a 19 Isaiah 29:14

The only contextual explanation for Paul's broad attack, beginning in 1:17, upon wisdom is the issue of divisive personal loyalties which lead to a fragmented fellowship. There is simply no contextual or internal evidence that Paul is attacking some format of speculative wisdom or metaphysics being promoted by Gnostics, Hellenized Judaism, or Stoic-Cynic popular philosophy. As Margaret Mitchell noted in this regard, "The wisdom of the world is the set of values and norms which divide persons of higher and lower status into separate groups, a wisdom which prefers dissension to unity, superiority to cooperation." It is in particular the societally accepted criteria for the evaluation of leaders and the direct impact that this worldly wisdom has on the disunity (is Christ divided? 1:13) of the church of God that leads Paul to construct this clear and stern antithesis.

It is really no secret why so many Corinthians would embrace this type of worldly wisdom. Plato's works contain a dialogue in which an Athenian sets forth principles by which societies should rule themselves. The discussion includes the views that "the wellborn have a title to rule the worse-born," that "the stronger should rule the weaker," and that "it is for the ignorant to follow and for the wise men to take over the lead and to rule."

1:18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Paul turns now directly to his strategy of bringing the believers to their spiritual senses by reminding them that the cross of Christ, on which their salvation rests, is disdained by the world. Paul is attempting to alienate the Corinthians' affections for worldly values and cultural acceptability, while at the same time rekindling their loyalty for the centrality of Christ crucified and the explicit foolishness attached thereto. There are many ways that Paul constructs his admonitions about unity among believers, both in this letter as well as in others. But at this juncture in 1 Corinthians other Pauline techniques and strategies for promoting unity and mutual acceptance (e.g., the one body theme) are neither germane nor effectual. At this point Paul must utilize some facet of fundamental Christian doctrine that will decimate the particular foundation upon which the divisions are erected and maintained. Given the origin of the struggle at hand, Paul's strategy requires a straightforward counter-culture argument. Accordingly, the cross aptly serves the theological needs of the moment, since it points to the bedrock of the Christian faith and also serves as an obvious point of disjuncture between the gospel on the one hand and urban respectability, status, and values of individualistic loyalty on the other.

1:19 For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."

Paul provides scriptural support for his observations in 1:18, highlighted by the phrase "for it is written," with a citation from Isa 29:14. The linking term between the observations of 1:18 and the Scripture of 1:19 is the common Greek word ajpovllumi ( apollymi ). It is not as evident in the English translation that a single Greek term is used in both verses since in the NIV the word is rendered perishing in 1:18 and destroy in 1:19. This text from Isaiah basically follows the LXX and is the first of numerous examples of Paul's pattern of addressing the problems and issues in this pagan setting by the citation of Scripture.

2. Both Jews and Gentiles Offended (1:20-25)

²⁰ Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? ²¹ For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. ²² Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, ²³ but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, ²⁴ but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. ²⁵ For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

1:20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

The specific references in this rapid set of rhetorical questions has led to several interpretations. The general point of the questions is clear and there is little doubt about the function of these questions in the flow of Paul's argument. The major issue, and one for which there is not enough clear evidence, is, "do these three groups of people represent types of individuals from pagan Corinthian society or from ancient Judaism or from both?" Fee suggests that the wise man and philosopher would represent the pagan world while the scholar (grammateuv", grammateus ) should be understood as a Jewish scribe, thereby anticipating the Jew and Gentile vocabulary of 1:22-23.

There is a consensus among scholars that Paul's phrase "of this age" points to a widespread eschatological understanding among Jews which depicts history in terms of two dispensations, this age and the age to come. This brief phrase serves as a window into Paul's eschatological thinking and reveals how naturally it flowed from his piety and theology into the various pastoral issues he dealt with among these Gentile converts. The notion of "this age" usually has pejorative connotations in an eschatological paradigm because it stands for contemporary history yet unredeemed and would have seemed to some of the Corinthians as "Paul's Dogmatic Imposition." Paul declares that in fact God has looked upon the greatest wisdom and cultural acumen available in prosperous urban centers like Corinth and still regards it all as foolishness.

1:21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.

In verse 21a the Apostle makes two points. The current situation (1:18-20), namely the world's inability to embrace God's wisdom, was set into place by God himself, in his own wisdom. Specifically, God so arranged matters that it would be impossible for humans to know God through and on the basis of their own wisdom. The Apostle's declaration that God did what pleased him finds its theological roots in the Old Testament idea of the sovereign will of God. Ps 115:3 and 135:6 contain the verbal antecedents of Paul's thoughts at this point in the affirmation that God does what pleases him. Even though Paul does not spell out here why God did it in this way, there are an abundant number of Scriptures which make clear God's disdain and hatred for boasting, pride and self-righteousness stemming from humanity's sense of self-determination and self-actualization, all of which would eventuate had mankind through its wisdom come to know God. In Calvin's commentary he responds to those of his day who would disagree with Paul, and who argued that knowledge of God through philosophical inquiry was possible. Regarding philosophers Calvin wrote, "For you cannot find one of them who has not constantly fallen away from that principle of knowledge which I have already mentioned, to wanderings and misleading speculations. They are mostly sillier than old wives!"

It must be pointed out that Paul makes no mention here of creation or general revelation of God in nature, and it would be questionable to transfer the issues and arguments of Romans 1 into this Corinthian setting where the contingent setting of the theological formulation is so distant from those of Jew-Gentile ethnicity expressed in the letter to the Romans.

Second, it was God's good pleasure to make the object of saving faith, Christ crucified, foolish by human standards. The meaning of the phrase "the foolishness of what was preached" can be best appreciated only when one understands the shame, humiliation and sense of denigration associated with crucifixion in Roman antiquity.

In verse 21b Paul makes reference to three items of Christian doctrine which anticipate material found in his later letter to the Romans:

1. The act of preaching is an essential component in the process of bringing individuals to faith.

2. Salvation is a unique act of God.

3. Active trust and faith is a precondition for salvation.

1:22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,

The assertion that "The Jewish mind was matter of fact and crudely concrete" (while) "The Greek restlessly felt after something which could dazzle his ingenuous speculative turn, and he passed by anything which failed to satisfy intellectual curiosity" is surely an overstatement. Admittedly the Greeks were well known for, and wanted to be well known for, a love of wisdom, philosophy . Paul's comments about the Jews probably contain an autobiographical element from his years of opposition to God's Anointed. It also reflects an outlook similar to early Christian Gospel traditions which focused on this characteristic of certain Jews (Matt 12:38-39; 16:1-4; 24:3, 24). The purpose of this Pauline generalization is to show that the entire cultural environment consisted of those who were at odds with God's wisdom.

1:23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,

Quite often God does not offer to individuals what they want, especially as incentives to faith. It is especially clear in the death of God's Anointed, that the desire to root faith in the soil of human understanding of how and when God should act has to be abandoned. Accordingly, Paul reaffirms that his message does not takes its cue from the religious passion of his contemporaries for signs and wisdom; rather, he offers a crucified Messiah. The Pauline gospel is a stumbling block (skavndalon, skandalon ) to the unbelieving Jews for the very reason that it fails, in their preconceived theology, to reflect an understanding of God and his kingdom that has any attraction to them. The Gentiles likewise regard the message of Paul as foolishness because it is so antithetical to the supposedly enlightened wisdom they have developed and taught for centuries.

1:24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Because of Paul's deeply rooted conviction about the sovereignty of God and the prevenient nature of grace, he may well have in mind an intentional contrast between lost mankind who "demand" and "look for" (1:22) and the saints who are called and can only respond to God's initiative. Paul was never bothered by retaining ethnic and cultural labels such as "Jews" and "Gentiles" for individuals, whether they were outsiders (cf. 9:20; 10:32; 12:13) or insiders. We see then in this verse that the saints at Corinth are still referred to by the terms appropriate for their culture and ethnicity.

In contrast to the foolishness ascribed by unbelievers to the crucified Christ, the saved at Corinth know God's Anointed as the wisdom and power of God. This verse makes it clear that Paul has no problem with Christians possessing wisdom, as long as their definition of wisdom flows from Golgotha rather than the agoras, temples, lecture halls, and offices of civic administration at Corinth.

It is difficult to know precisely what Paul meant by power in this context. The immediate temptation is to go to the ostensible parallel text of Rom 1:16 and affirm that Paul has in mind the power of God for salvation, primarily salvation from wrath and sin (cf. Rom 1:18; 3:9). However, Paul's use of the term "power" cannot be fully understood apart from his use of the term weakness in the following verse. The characteristics and ideas associated with these two terms "power" (duvnami", dynamis ) and "weakness" (ajsqenev", asthenes ) in the literary unit 1:10-4:21 provide important clues for determining the meaning of power in this issue of divisions in Corinth. These words occur in subunits at 1:24-27; 2:3-5; 4:10. They highlight the fact that God's ways are not mankind's ways and that, in particular, God chose peoples and events that would be regarded as low status or substandard by the unsaved in contemporary Roman society. Thus, this term "weakness" interplays more with the socially derived matrix of the issue of church quarrels and divisions in Roman Corinth than it does with a soteriological affirmation about God's ability and method of saving lost sinners.

1:25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

In this statement Paul takes the terms of derision (i.e., foolishness and weakness) which originate in the setting of the perishing world and shows how he can embrace them from his own cross-forged perspectives. Paul accomplishes this on the basis of the fundamental contrast between God and mankind. Paul is saying that while the cross may look foolish to mankind, even the most foolish thing God has done is wiser than any and all the wisdom of mankind. Granted that the cross may connote weakness to the perishing, but even the weakest act of God is stronger than the strongest act performed by mankind.

3. God's Choice of Foolish Things (1:26-31)

²⁶ Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. ²⁸ He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are, ²⁹ so that no one may boast before him. ³⁰ It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. ³¹ Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord." ^a

^a 31 Jer. 9:24

1:26 Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.

Paul now moves his argument to the sphere of personal experience and social standing of the church at Corinth. The Corinthians are told to look at themselves and others in the church of God at Corinth and discern from that whether God works with and through the weak and foolish things of the world. By the term "calling" Paul here is referring to the status or station in life that characterizes the Corinthians. The phrase "not many" (ouj polloiv, ou polloi ) is used three times to underscore the social standing of the majority of the Corinthian believers. Paul's statement, however, surely allows the modern reader to assume that there were at least some Corinthians who would be regarded by human standards as wise, influential, and of noble birth. That there were certain Corinthian believers of high status, can also be demonstrated from other evidence in 1 Corinthians. Pauline congregations, like many religions of the Greco-Roman world whose membership was drawn from a Greco-Roman society with a negligible middle class, would have found most of their members in the lower classes.

One would be gravely mistaken to think that 1:26 contained the doctrinal seed needed to promote Christianity as a religion of the proletariat. All the evidence points to the fact that Paul's urban churches contained wealthy members. This Corinthian church contained people of wealth who served as host not only to Paul, but to the entire congregation (Rom 16), people who owned homes in which they could eat (1 Cor 11:22), and at least one of the influential members, namely Erastus (Rom 16:23), was an administrator in the Roman colony of Corinth.

1:27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.

The religious perspective of this verse is one which runs throughout the Scriptures, and Paul's choice of ideas here was influenced and inspired by the long history of God expressing his sovereign will through his choice of foolish and weak individuals to carry out his agenda. Whether one considers God's choice of Israel, or of Moses, or of Gideon, or of David, or of Mary the mother of Jesus, the Scripture is clear in its depiction of a God whose list of friends portrays a lot of foolishness and weakness by human standards.

Verses 27-28 are clearly linked together by the three occurrences of the phrase "God chose the ______________ of the world in order to (i{na, hina ) . . ." Each of these three phrases is a direct expansion upon the threefold reference to the social standing given in 1:26. The verbal and conceptual links between the threefold social references of 1:26 and the theology of 1:27-28 is somewhat obscured in English translations. The following chart of the links will help make Paul's correlation of the ideas of 1:26 with 1:27-28 clearer.

Corinthian Status God's Choice God's Purpose

Not many wise ( sophos ) Foolish things To shame the wise

( sophos )

Not many influential Weak things To shame the strong

Not many of noble birth Lowly things To nullify existing

( eugenes ) ( agenes ) things

The concept of God shaming the strong and boastful is a rich and pervasive theme of Scripture, typified by the verse which reads, "The Lord Almighty planned it, to bring low the pride of all glory and to humble all who are renowned on the earth" (Isa 23:9).

1:28 He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are,

1:29 so that no one may boast before him.

This verse provides the results and rationale of God's queer choices throughout history. The upshot of Paul's point is that God's intention was to remove all possibility of mankind's boasting. The term boast is used here because it specifically represents one of the fundamental causes of the quarreling and division at Corinth. Unlike the sin of boasting that is referred to in other Scriptures and is rooted in ritual or moralistic self-righteousness, Paul here mentions a type of boasting that is rooted in party loyalty and worldly evaluation. In the presence of God and in light of the divine modus operandi highlighted in 1:27-28, every form of human boasting is precluded once for all, especially a boasting in human status (cf. 3:21).

1:30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.

Paul has explicitly mentioned the term God thirteen times in the section 1:18-29 and has thereby maintained a visible theocentric focus. In verse 30 Paul gives attention to Christ, though still in the framework of a theocentric Godhead. This theocentricity is evident in the phrase "it is because of him (God) that you are in Christ." This attention to the work of Christ, or rather God's work (from God) in Christ is intended to prepare the way for the Scripture quotation in 1:31 which clearly points to Christ. Paul reaffirms a Christ-centered focus for God's wisdom given to Christians. The Apostle then explains what God's wisdom consists of for those in Christ Jesus. The three concepts of righteousness (dikaiosuvnh, dikaiosynç), holiness (aJgiasmov", hagiasmos ) and redemption (ajpoluvvtrwsi", apolytrôsis) are all well known doctrinal concepts in the Pauline corpus. Fee captures Paul's sense here in these words, "[God's] wisdom does not have to do with 'getting smart,' nor with status or rhetoric. God's wisdom - the real thing - has to do with salvation through Christ Jesus."

1:31 Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

Because the Christian stands before God in Christ Jesus and because the benefits of righteousness, holiness, and redemption come through Christ, Christ is the only one in whom the believer should boast. To a church whose fragmentation arose as a result of boasting, Paul gives the exhortation that boasting is only acceptable if it is boasting in the Lord. It is only from the immediate context that one can identify the term Lord with Jesus Christ.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

College: 1Co 2:1-16

1 CORINTHIANS 2

4. Paul's Message Not Based on Eloquence (2:1-5)

¹ When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. ^{a 2} For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. ³ I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. ⁴ My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, ⁵ so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

^a 1 Some manuscripts as I proclaimed to you God's mystery

2:1 When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.

This is the second time Paul turns to autobiography (cf. 1:14-17) to address the issue at hand. His purpose in this is to put distance between himself and any possible association with the strife at Corinth stemming from human boasting and human wisdom. In addition it allows Paul to remind them of the continuity, at least implicit, between the circumstances of their initial faith and acceptance of Paul and the perspectives which he is now advocating. On a later occasion Paul's detractors would agree with him that his speech was unimpressive (2 Cor 10:9-10; 11:6).

There is much debate about the wording at 2:1 because of the variant readings in the Greek papyri and Greek manuscripts at that location. One body of evidence supports the reading that Paul proclaimed the "mystery" (musthvrion, mystçrion) of God, while another equally important body of evidence supports the reading that Paul proclaimed the "testimony" (martuvrion, martyrion ) of God. Those who favor "mystery of God" point to the use of the term mystery in 2:7, while those favoring "testimony of God" point back to the use of the term testimony in 1:6 and what they believe are the points of discontinuity between 2:1 and 2:7.

2:2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

This verse cannot be taken at face value as though it were not part of a well crafted and contextually responsive argument filled with passion and rhetorical devices. The facts of the Gospel traditions (e.g., Mark 8:31), the evidence of the book of Acts (e.g., Acts 13:26-37), the explicit references in the Pauline Corpus (e.g., 1 Thess 1:9-10) to Pauline preaching, and the internal statements of 1 Corinthians regarding the essence of the gospel (15:3-5) all militate against a historical reconstruction which affirms that "Christ crucified" was the simple credo for the ministry of Paul. If the present focus on the ignominious death of the Christ were the simple and quintessential credo for Paul, it is difficult to explain why he withdrew it from his argumentation in the epistle after his treatment of strife and division.

Since the United States forbids, by law, the use of "cruel and unusual punishment" in its treatment of criminals, and since modern Western civilization has little firsthand experience with blood sacrifices, it has been possible for the Western Christian community to combine, perhaps unwittingly, two distinct emphases of the early church regarding the death of Jesus. One emphasis (which pervades Paul's writings) was the vicarious atonement brought about by the shedding of Jesus' blood at the time of his crucifixion. A different emphasis, seen primarily in 1 Corinthians 1-4, is the counter cultureness of the cross due to the shame, brutality, lower classness, and criminality associated with it, particularly in a Roman colony like Corinth.

2:3 I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.

The phrase rendered "I came to you" in the NIV can also be translated "I was with you." Since 2:1 points clearly to Paul's initial work with the church at Corinth, it seems preferable to understand 2:3 as a reference to his continuing work with them. Not only did Paul have an embarrassing message and an unimpressive delivery of that message when he came to the Roman capital of Achaia, but his 18 months with the Corinthians were also characterized by a less than impressive demeanor. Paul uses three prepositional phrases to describe his time with the Corinthians: (1) in weakness, (2) in fear, and (3) with much trembling. The exact meaning of all three of these is vague, and Fee rightly comments on the impossibility of knowing exactly what Paul had in mind.

Regarding Paul being with the Corinthians in weakness, some interpreters have projected the narrative of Acts onto Paul's possible emotional condition at the time of Acts 18 when he arrived at Corinth. Archibald Robertson and Alfred Plummer, for example, give these comments in suggesting that Paul may have experienced

shyness in venturing unaccompanied into strange surroundings (cf. Acts XVII.15, XVIII. 5), coupled with anxiety as to the tidings which Timothy and Silvanus might bring (cf. II Cor. XI.13. There was also the thought of the appalling wickedness of Corinth, of his poor success at Athens, and of the deadly hostility of the Jews to the infant Church of Thessalonica (Acts XVII.5, 13).

Other writers have viewed this weakness as a reference to some illness, perhaps the enigmatic "thorn in the flesh" of 2 Cor 12:7. While admittedly the reference to the "thorn in the flesh" is surrounded by occurrences of the term weakness(es) (2 Cor 12:5, 9, 10), in my judgment 1 Cor 1-4 is a more logical place to begin the interpretive task of this obscure verse.

In the unified argument of 1:10-4:21 the word weak and its cognates occur four times (1:25, 27; 2:3; 4:10). In each of the other three cases the term is used to reflect the world's negative appraisal of God's work. It is because of the implementation of human standards that God's choice of the crucified Christ appeared as weakness (1:24-25), that God's choice of the low status Corinthian brethren indicated his proclivity for the weak (1:26-27), and that before the watching world the apostles, unlike the high status Christians at Corinth, have a job description characterized by weakness (4:9-10). In light of these facts, 2:3 seems to be Paul's affirmation that the nature of his ministry with the Corinthians fit snugly into the pattern of God's modus operandi , namely God's exercise of his sovereign power in spite of the surrounding culture's disdain and ridicule of his ways.

The terms fear and trembling, unfortunately separated by the NIV translation, belong together. Based upon the meaning of these two words in Phil 2:12 and Eph 6:5, Paul is pointing in 2:3 to his deeply rooted sense of responsibility and wholeheartedness, as well as the awesomeness of the task given him.

2:4a My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words,

Paul's twofold concern with the idea of his message (lovgo", logos ) and his preaching (khvrugma, kçrygma) continues a distinction already highlighted in his argumentation. The Apostle had already argued for the cruciform nature of both the content of his message and the related issue of how it was communicated. Here Paul asserts that neither the content nor the style of the communication of his gospel had caved in to culturally accepted paradigms of persuasion.

Paul attacks in this verse (anticipating the wisdom of men in 2:5) persuasion based upon human wisdom. Anyone familiar with the use of logic in Paul's own letters as well as the Lukan summary of Pauline preaching in Acts realizes that all of the extant testimony indicates that Paul was not opposed to human reasoning and logical thinking. Paul's theology and training as a Jew would have included an appreciation of the wisdom literature in Scripture, and he himself acknowledges the importance of wisdom in the individual and corporate lives of believers (cf. 1 Cor 12:8; Rom 11:33; Eph 1:8, 17; 3:10; Col 1:9, 28, 2:3; 4:5). Rather, Paul's concern is with believers being persuaded by a style and type of wisdom which does not originate with God.

2:4b but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power,

The cogency of Paul's message and preaching is manifested by the Spirit and God's power. Paul's thrust is to contrast the impotence of human wisdom to persuade people to embrace a crucified Christ with divine power which proves the veracity of the testimony of God proclaimed in the message and preaching of Paul.

1 Cor 2:4b bristles with grammatical, exegetical, and theological issues. In the matter of grammar one must wrestle with what to do with the two words, both in the dative case, Spirit and power. This is the first occurrence of the term Spirit or its cognates in 1 Corinthians, but it is a term which beginning at 2:4b is going to play an important role in the argument(s) of 2:6-3:4. The term power was first introduced at 1:18 and seems to have a conceptual life of its own. Since both of these concepts of Spirit(ual) and power have distinct functions to play in carrying the weight of Paul's argumentation in 1:10-4:21, it seems unwise to follow the NIV wording which blurs the Pauline phrasing when it reads "with a demonstration of the Spirit's power."

To be sure, all the exegetical questions about the phrases "in the Spirit" and "in power" at 2:4b cannot be fully settled in this space. It is important, nevertheless, to note what Paul does and does not say. Paul writes here, as he does in other places such as 1 Thess 1:5, that his apostolic proclamation of the gospel was attended by the working of God's Spirit and God's power. The two-pronged question this text leaves us with is, "Is Paul referring to the reception of the Holy Spirit at conversion" and "Does Paul refer to miracles with the term power?"

For the reasons listed below, it seems to me that Paul is referring to the work of the Spirit in the conversion of the Corinthians and not to conversions "probably evidenced by spiritual gifts, especially tongues" or conversions which "would automatically have recalled the visible evidences of the Spirit's presence."

(1) There is no textual evidence in Acts in general or in Acts 18:1-18 in particular about Paul's mission that closely associates conversion with accompanying evidence of spiritual gifts, especially tongues.

(2) There is no cogent textual evidence that necessarily equates the working of the Spirit in Christians with miracles. There are Pauline texts which portray the giving of the Spirit to Christians and the working of the Spirit in Christians as an activity distinct from God performing miracles in their lives (Gal 3:5; Rom 15:15-19). Accordingly one must exercise caution when attempting to correlate the two separate activities of God, namely God performing miracles and God providing the Spirit to people.

(3) While all of the Corinthian believers had equally imbibed one Spirit and been immersed in one Spirit, not all of them spoke in tongues, or ever probably spoke in tongues (12:13,30).

(4) While the doctrine of the working of the power of God as seen in the arguments of 1:10-4:21 would include spiritual experiences of the saved (1:18,24; 4:20), this is quite different from Fee's statement that the proof of Paul's Gospel was in the accompanying visible evidence of the Spirit's power.

2:5 so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

In this verse Paul completes the sentence started in 2:4 by giving a purpose clause (i{na, hina ) in 2:5. As the Corinthian recipients had learned by Paul's frequent use of purpose clauses ( hina ) in 1:18-2:5, the Apostle did not intend to leave the impression that God's choices were capricious. Not only were God's choices methodical, they were intended, according to the argument of 2:5, to establish and secure the Corinthian's faith in God's power rather than the thoughts, values, and wisdom of mankind. The function of this point in the larger context is to underscore the solidarity of Paul's message and preaching with a faith in Christ crucified as the power of God. This meant contextually a repudiation of the enticements of cultural sophistries and the attendant boasting and pride that engendered party strife.

C. WISDOM AND SPIRITUAL MATURITY (2:6-3:4)

1. God's Secret Wisdom (2:6-9)

⁶ We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. ⁷ No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹ However, as it is written:

"No eye has seen,

no ear has heard,

no mind has conceived

what God has prepared for those who love him" ^a -

^a 9 Isaiah 64:4

2:6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

This verse introduces a large block of thought which runs from 2:6-3:4. The understanding of this subunit is important since one's decision whether 2:6-3:4 forms one unit of thought or whether 2:6-16 forms one unit, with 3:1-4 functioning as a transition to a second unit of thought in 3:5-17, may well impact one's exegetical conclusions.

The vocabulary and imagery of 2:6-3:4 refer to historically controversial issues such as mature Christians and baby Christians; the spiritual, natural, and fleshly man; spiritual revelation and the deep things of God; and the rulers of this age. Fee rightly observed that these verses have "endured a most unfortunate history of application in the church."

This section has seemed to some scholars to be a digression by Paul from his central concerns. There are others who never label it a digression, but, based upon the variety of doctrines they isolate in these verses, must either regard it as a doctrinal potpourri or are unconvinced that Paul's thought here is coherent.

It is clear that Paul believes that he is still focused on the same concern that he raised in 1:10ff. The presence in 3:4 of the slogans of strife and party loyalty found already at 1:12 seems to establish this beyond question. It follows then that the apostle will be attempting to address the same concerns he had in chapter 1, though of course with additional terms and images.

Even though 2:5 contained the pejorative idea of wisdom with its expression "men's wisdom," in 2:6 Paul reverts to a positive sense of wisdom which was used earlier at 1:21, 24, 30. The prepositional phrase "among the mature" has evoked varied, heated, and sometimes confused responses from later interpreters of Paul. One recent writer, for example, responded by stating, "First, New Testament writers present no evidence that distinguishes between two types of Christians: mature and immature, spiritual and natural, superior and inferior." While few, if any, would try to find New Testament evidence for a doctrine of superior and inferior Christians, we cannot so quickly dismiss the possibility of a Pauline teaching about mature and immature Christians, since Paul himself introduces the word "mature" (tevleio", teleios ).

In an era of church life characterized by the ascendency of the "judge not" verse and equally afflicted with a severe case of spiritual entitlements syndrome, it is hard for some to conceive of the apostle Paul as judging, labeling and evaluating fellow Christians. The best approach is to seek an answer in Paul's own practices and recorded attitudes.

The Apostle apparently had no reservations in labeling believers with discriminating and value-laden terms such as: weak and strong Christians, spiritual and transgressing Christians, Christians with and without God's approval, legitimate Christians and bastard Christians, brethren and false brethren, mature and immature Christians, and carnal Christians and spiritual Christians. Admittedly the categorization of individuals among the people of God has been abused, but it is difficult to imagine a historical reading of Scripture that could totally miss this phenomenon since it is so prevalent in the Old Testament (e.g., Isa 1), the Gospels (e.g., Matt 23), and the remainder of the non-Pauline portions of the New Testament (e.g., Rev 1-3).

Paul's wisdom is neither derived from nor compatible with the mores and cultural values dominant in Roman Corinth. Paul is not, of course, revealing an obscurantist attitude or latent convictions about the need for believers to withdraw from Corinthian society. The Apostle will clarify this point in 5:9-10 and make clear that he does not want to be interpreted as fostering the concept of an insular Christian community.

In the context of 1:10-4:21, Paul is disavowing only those cultural perspectives that have engendered strife, promoted community fragmentation, and brought about disharmony in the church of God at Corinth. It is no coincidence that when Paul reverts to a positive use of the term wisdom, that he contrasts it with the worldview of a Roman colony. Notwithstanding Paul's own Roman citizenship, the rhetorical and doctrinal function of Christ crucified in 1 Corinthians requires him to juxtapose God's wisdom in the cross with the blind and inexcusable ignorance of State authorities, the rulers of this age. The strategy behind this juxtaposition is to show the Corinthians that they, by implication, hold a wisdom similar to those who crucified Christ.

It would be only natural for some of the Corinthian believers, particularly high status ones, to have been seduced into a party loyalty mindset by the mores of their workplace. It may well have been the same believers who saw no conflict of interest or spiritual problem with imposing the Roman court system on the issue of grievances among believers (cf. 6:1-8).

2:7 No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.

In stark contrast (ajllav, alla ) to the ephemeral nature of the civic and political establishment, God's wisdom given through Paul was predestined before time began. This secret wisdom was not manifested in esoteric formulae or arcane philosophical speculation as one might find in pagan mystery cults or philosophic speculation. For the apostle Paul, God's secret wisdom was made known in the public execution of an ostensibly seditious Jewish teacher by the Roman occupation forces in Palestine at the behest of Jewish leaders. In harmony with texts such as Acts 2:23; 4:27-28 and Eph 3:7-11, Paul tells the Corinthians that this action leading to Jesus' execution was predestined by God. While it is well known that Paul's theological perspectives were profoundly influenced by his doctrine of the last things, his eschatology, it is noteworthy in 2:7 that his doctrine of first things is also prominent. That is, to fully appreciate Paul's own perspective in 1 Corinthians, the interpreter needs to dwell not only on Paul's doctrine of God's activity at the ends of the ages (e.g., 10:11), but also God's activity before the outset of the ages.

By his use of the pregnant eschatological term "glory" (dovxa, doxa ) (cf. 1 Cor 15:43; 2 Cor 4:16-5:10; Rom 8:18-30), Paul reveals to the Corinthians the importance of both first things and final things, the Alpha and the Omega, in his message of the cross.

2:8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

The Apostle's castigation of Roman rulers, and perhaps other rulers under Roman sway, needs to be understood in the rhetorical and argumentative setting of 2:6-3:4. Keeping in mind, as Fee so persuasively argues, that these rulers are human individuals and not spiritual or demonic rulers, one should not over generalize Paul's statement about "none of the rulers of this age." The life and execution of Jesus (as Corinthian believers would have known) took place within the administrative sphere of only a handful of the hundreds of Roman rulers and administrators who were in office during the early Julio-Claudian period. In 2:8 Paul makes it clear that he is only discussing those who, in some way, participated in the public execution of God's Christ and thereby manifested their human wisdom. Accordingly, one should not go down the interpretive path of S. Kistemaker when he concluded, "The Jewish and Gentile leaders who crucified Jesus are representative of all the rulers of the world. Whoever ignores the cause of Christ takes his place with the rulers who put Jesus to death."

In 2:8 Paul inextricably links, it seems, the possession of God's wisdom with the acceptance of Christ. In 2:8b Paul uses a Greek construction known as a contrary-to-fact conditional sentence. The emphasis and purpose of this type of conditional sentence is to say "Had they only known (but they clearly didn't), they would not have crucified Christ."

As the original readers begin to digest Paul's point in 2:6-8, it is clear that they are being given a choice of self-determination. They can either align themselves with the Pauline message of Christ crucified as the wisdom of God (and the implications of that for their factious boasting and pride) or they can reject Paul's message and ipso facto embrace the wisdom of the current age that led to the rejection of the Lord of glory (and which continues to produce community fragmentation in the Corinthian congregation).

2:9 However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" -

The apostle Paul here brings forward a quotation to undergird his preceding ideas. Even though it is not clear which portion of Scripture Paul cites, the wording "as it is written" can hardly be anything other than a formulaic introduction to a Scripture quotation (cf. Rom 15:9). The apostle's Scripture quotation appears to be primarily a combination of material from the Greek text of Isa 64:4 and 65:16 rather than a quotation from the lost Apocalypse of Elijah , a view first proposed by Origen but later refuted by Jerome.

The wording of the quotation in Greek makes Paul's ideas relatively obvious, but regrettably the wording of the NIV obscures Paul's ideas and in one instance "misses the point altogether." The intent of the citation is to highlight the radical dichotomy between the world's inability to grasp God's revelation and the church's privilege of receiving it. On the one hand Paul lists how the world forms its opinions: eyes, ears, mind. In Paul's phrase, "the mind (kardiva, kardia ) of man," the term man (omitted by the NIV), is meant to be understood pejoratively, as it also is in 1:25; 2:5; 3:3,4,21; 4:1.

The dominant epistemology of urban Roman culture cannot grasp, according to Paul, the very things that God has prepared for those who love him.

2. The Teaching of the Spirit (2:10-16)

¹⁰ but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. ¹¹ For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. ¹² We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. ¹³ This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. ^{a 14} The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. ¹⁵ The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment:

¹⁶ "For who has known the mind of the Lord

that he may instruct him?" ^b

But we have the mind of Christ.

^a 13 Or Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to spiritual men ^b 16 Isaiah 40:13

2:10 but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

If 2:9 is written to scripturally document the dichotomy mentioned in 2:6-8, then 2:10a is given to introduce the dichotomy in the epistemologies between those who receive the word of the cross and those who do not. As we begin this section, it is important to make three comments, one historical and two exegetical, about this and the following verses.

(1) Some interpreters have understood these verses in such a way that they become the basis for condemnations and harangues against secular culture in ancient Corinth. Since it is sometimes necessary to state the obvious, we must point out that Roman Corinth was not secular. In fact, a majority of the problems Paul had to address in 1 Corinthians can only be explained by looking to the religiosity of the city.

(2) These verses have often played a central role in theologies of conversion and evangelism. Since the purpose of this section is fundamentally to redirect the thinking and behavior of members of the church of God at Corinth, Paul's teaching here is more germane to how the Spirit should be working in their lives than how it works in the process of evangelism and conversion.

(3) Commentators must wrestle with the issue in the verses of whom Paul includes in his use of the first person plural verbs and pronouns. One view is that the pronoun "we" includes only Paul and the apostles. Thus, this section is viewed as an apology for Paul's apostolic authority based on the teaching about the revelation and mind of Christ that he and the other Apostles have. In some camps of thought 2:13 is interpreted as supporting a very literalistic view of the inspiration of the words of the Apostles. Others view these verses as applying equally to all (mature) Christians. A third view, which seems the best interpretation of the evidence, regards the plural pronouns as references to the Corinthian readership (2:10, 12, 16) while the few occurrences of the Greek word lalevw (lalço) (2:6, 7, 13 - "we speak"; 3:1 - "address") point to Paul's more distinctive work as an apostle. One of the strengths of this third view is that it preserves the significance of 2:10ff for the Corinthian readership while also allowing Paul to begin to formulate an apology for this authority against judgmental detractors (see notes on 2:15).

Paul's doctrinal system as well as his personal piety were, in light of later ecclesiastical developments, astonishingly theocentric. God the Father was at the center of Paul's faith and preaching and vv. 2:6-3:4 is no exception. Notwithstanding the treatment of this section in modern piety, Paul's treatment of the Spirit in this section is primarily on the Spirit as the means or agent by which God gives revelation. The Spirit accomplishes this since (gavr, gar ) it knows the deep things of God. In light of the use of deep/depth imagery in Rev 2:24 (deep things of Satan) and Rom 11:33 (the depth of the riches, wisdom, and knowledge of God), Paul here teaches that the Spirit has full knowledge of God.

2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Paul offers here an illustration, some would call it a proof, to show how the Spirit is the means through which (2:10) God is accessible. Paul sets forth an illustration of the working of the human spirit that all would agree upon and then transfers ("in the same way") the point of the illustration to the divine sphere. The force of this illustration within the contextual argument rests squarely upon Paul's use of the same word spirit (pneu'ma, pneuma ) in both the human and divine side of the illustration. Just as the human spirit serves as the window into a person's inner thoughts, convictions and values, so God's Spirit, and only God's Spirit, serves as a window into the deep and inner thoughts of God.

2:12 We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us.

Having illustrated how God's Spirit alone knows the thoughts of God, Paul then declares that the Corinthian believers themselves have received this same Spirit from God. By this argument Paul is able to maintain both the otherness of God from the point of view of epistemology, while at the same time affirming that believers can understand what God has freely given us.

In 2:11-12 Paul uses the Greek word pneuma (= spirit) three times, each time with the Greek article tov ( to ). In 2:11 it referred to a man's spirit, while in 2:12 it refers both to God's Spirit and to the convictions and ethos of the contemporary fallen culture (= wisdom of the world, 1:20). This is but one of many instances in this letter where it is clear that the particular meaning of the word "spirit" cannot be determined merely by the criterion of the presence or absence of the Greek article.

Paul has reminded the recipients that what they received (at conversion from God) was not the prevailing worldview but access to God's wisdom. With ideas which sound quite similar to Eph 1:17-19, Paul states that the purpose of this divine revelation was to facilitate the believer's understanding of "what God has freely given" to the believer. With this wording, Paul is making a direct connection with the last part of 2:9 where he mentioned the things which God had prepared for believers.

2:13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.

The apostle is slowly but inexorably beginning to engage the topic of his defense against detractors. In a two-pronged approach Paul uses the material in 2:13 to enhance his apostolic authority. It may not be as clear in the NIV as in Paul's Greek that the antecedent of "this is what we speak" is the closing idea of 2:12. With this grammatical connection in mind, we see that Paul is correlating the things he speaks (2:13a) with the God-given pneumatic understanding of "what God has freely given us" (2:12b). The Apostle's strategy at this juncture is to make a correlation that begins to solidify the authority of his teaching. To disagree with Paul's instruction would clearly set one in opposition to the Spirit of God, an understanding clearly stated elsewhere in this epistle (e.g., 14:37-38).

The second prong of Paul's defensive strategy reflected in this verse is his explicit importation of the dichotomy "human wisdom against spiritual wisdom" into the issue of his own effort to correct the problem of party factions. This Pauline strategy was implicit from the outset. Paul's claim in 2:13 is clearly no longer a description of when he came to Corinth (2:1-5). The apostle now writes about the present time, as he has from 2:6ff, a time when "words taught by the Spirit" are directed to the church and not the outsider in Roman Corinth.

2:14 The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Since Paul is the agent through whom the Spirit of God speaks, the only explanation for Corinthian resistance to his apostolic teaching in this section is that these detractors are natural men (yucikoÉ" a[nqrwpo", psychikos anthrôpos), men seemingly without the Spirit. To the degree that those who foster community faction follow the guiding light of Corinthian mores and cultural values, the admonitions and judgments of Paul will appear foolish (mwriva aujtw/', môria autô).

There is an inevitability about the rejection of Paul's ideas by those without the Spirit. Paul writes that these types of people are unable to understand because (o{ti, hoti ) they lack the essential ability provided by the Spirit. Some of the apostle's Christian readership at Corinth are manifesting this problem to such an extent that he cannot address them as though they had the Spirit (esp. 3:1-3). Since he is dealing with a problem of carnality among the saints in this Roman city, it is misleading to suppose, as Kistemaker does, that the apostle is talking contextually about the "agnostic or atheist."

2:15 The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment:

To follow Paul's point as closely as possible, the reader needs to be aware that the same Greek verb ajnakrivnw (anakrinô) lies behind the translation "discerned" (2:14), "makes judgments" (2:15), and "subject to any man's judgments" (2:15). In the polemical rhetorical setting of chapters 1-4, Paul is teaching that he (and others) has the essential characteristic required for spiritual discernment (2:10,12, 13). Consequently, he is enabled to make judgments about all things (pavnta, panta ).

It is especially important not to remove 2:15b from its rhetorical context and exchange it into a broad generalization. Paul is obviously not teaching here that Spirit-filled people are granted some permanent immunity from the need for either self-examination or evaluation by fellow believers. Contextually he is asserting that the spiritual believer (pneumatikov", pneumatikos ) is not subject to the perspectives and judgments of the ill-equipped fellow believer who operates from the sphere of the natural ( psychikos ) and fleshly (sarkikov", sarkikos ) individual (3:1-3). The term "any man's" in 2:15 should be read and interpreted in the light of the historical and contextual issues of this subsection of 1 Corinthians. When this is done, it seems unlikely that Paul is teaching that "the believer cannot be judged by the unbelievers."

2:16 "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.

In this verse the apostle brings his immediate thoughts to a conclusion. This conclusion is based upon the correlation of the spiritual condition of Paul and a citation of Scripture (Isa 40:13, LXX ; cf. Rom 11:34). The verbal link between the Scripture text from Isaiah and Paul's observation is the term "mind" (nou'", nous ). The thrust of his argument here is to buttress the assertion of 2:15.

The reasons Paul's detractors cannot successfully scrutinize him and find fault is that, according to Scripture, the mind of the Lord (nou'n kurivou, noun kyriou ) is in no need of examination and improvement, and Paul asserts that he indeed has the mind of Christ (nou'n Cristou', noun Christou ). This, then, demonstrates why he and others who are spiritual cannot be subject to the human judgment of his detractors.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

McGarvey: 1Co 1:18

For the word of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us who are saved it is the power of God . [From this point Paul proceeds to contrast the "words," or message of the cross, with the "wisdom of words," or worldly wisdom, i. e., the philosophical messages or schemes of men, of which he has just spoken; having particularly in mind those of the two leading classes; viz.: Greeks and Jews. He first notes that the word of the cross is differently viewed by two different classes; those who, whether as disciples of Greek philosophers or of Jewish scribes, have dulled their moral perception by following worldly wisdom, and leading a worldly, perishing life, look upon it as foolishness; while those who have quickened their apprehension by leading a godly life, look upon it as God's saving power.]

McGarvey: 1Co 1:19

For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And the discernment of the discerning will I bring to nought .

McGarvey: 1Co 1:20

Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? [triumphant questions, as at Isa 36:19] hath not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

McGarvey: 1Co 1:21

For seeing that in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom knew not God, it was God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save them that believe . [Here Paul quotes Isa 24:14 to show that God had foretold how he would make foolish and useless all kinds of worldly wisdom, Grecian or Jewish, by making the gospel the only means of salvation, and how he had carried out the prophecy; for in his wisdom, or plan of operation, he had frustrated the efforts of wise men to find or know him by their coldblooded, philosophical research, or speculative reasoning (Act 17:23), and showed that it was his good pleasure to reveal himself and his salvation through this (to them) foolish preaching, and save them who believe the preaching. Where, then, asked the apostle in triumph, are these men of worldly wisdom, be they scribes or philosophical dialecticians? What have they done in comparison with that gospel which reveals their efforts as foolish and useless? What place, then, has a wise Paul or a disputing Apollos in the church, which, having the gospel, has this superior, saving wisdom of God? and why should the Corinthians leave the leadership of God in Christ and return to fools?]

McGarvey: 1Co 1:22

Seeing that Jews ask for signs, and Greeks seek after wisdom:

McGarvey: 1Co 1:23

but we preach Christ crucified, unto Jews a stumblingblock, and unto Gentiles foolishness ;

McGarvey: 1Co 1:24

but unto them that are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God .

McGarvey: 1Co 1:25

Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men . [The apostle here enlarges the thought of 1Co 1:18 ; and describes the two methods by which worldly wisdom sought to be led to God, or to know him when he revealed himself as he did in Christ. The Jews looked for him to prove his claims by miracles of power, such as signs from heaven (Mat 12:38 ; Mat 16:1 ; Joh 2:18 ; Joh 4:48); and the Greeks required that he transcend all their philosophers before they gave him their allegiance. But God revealed himself in his crucified Son, and so was rejected by both classes of wiseacres, the one stumbling at a crucified Messiah, whom they regarded as an accursed one (Deu 21:23 ; Gal 3:13), when they expected a regal and victorious Messiah (Rom 9:33 ; comp. Isa 8:4); the other, looking upon crucifixion as a slave's death, regarded salvation by such a one as absurd. But believing Jews saw in Jesus a power of God far transcending all their dreams of an earthly Messiah, and believing Greeks found in him a divine wisdom higher than all their ideals of truth, goodness and holiness. Thus God vindicated his so-called foolishness as wiser than all man's wisdom, and his so-called weakness in Christ as stronger than all the conceptions of an earthly Messiah -- yet the Corinthians were leaving this transcendent sign and incarnate truth to return to their old worldly wisdom with its human leaders.]

McGarvey: 1Co 1:26

For behold your calling [the "principle God has followed in calling you" -- Beza; a principle whereby "God," as Augustine says, "caught orators by fishermen, not fishermen by orators"], brethren, that not many wise after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called [The wise were moved by conceit to reject the gospel invitation: see the case of Gallio (Act 18:12-17). The corruptness of Roman politics kept the mighty aloof from the purity of Christianity, and the pride of noble birth felt repugnance at the lowly fellowship of the early church. A brief catalogue will record all the distinguished names brought into the church during its first thirty years, viz.: Joseph of Arimathea, perhaps Nicodemus, Saul of Tarsus, Sergius Paulus and Dionysius the Areopagite]:

McGarvey: 1Co 1:27

but God chose the foolish things of the world, that he might put to shame them that are wise; and God chose the weak things of the world [Psa 8:2 ; Joh 2:5], that he might put to shame the things that are strong ;

McGarvey: 1Co 1:28

and the base things of the world, and the things that are despised, did God choose, yea and the things that are not [the people whom the world called "nobodies"] , that he might bring to nought the things that are :

McGarvey: 1Co 1:29

that no flesh [no minister or other instrument of his] should glory [take pride in himself, and aspire to be head of a faction] before God . [The Corinthians in endeavoring to exalt their leaders were running counter to the counsels of God, who had rejected as his instruments all those who had worldly wisdom and power, and had chosen those utterly deficient in those things, that the triumph of his gospel might be manifestly due to his own power, and not to any excellency residing in the instruments or ministers whom he chanced to employ -- 2Co 4:7]

McGarvey: 1Co 1:30

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who was made unto us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption :

McGarvey: 1Co 1:31

that, according as it is written [Jer 9:24], He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord . [By the power of God, therefore, and not by the human wisdom of preachers, were the Corinthians brought into Christ, in whom they had found a wisdom of God superior to all worldly wisdom, and also the blessings of righteousness and sanctification and redemption, which no philosophy could obtain for them; so that every one who gloried in being a Christian was properly directed by the Scripture to glory in the Author of his salvation, and not in the humble nobody whom God had used as a messenger of grace. Glorying in men is even more sinful in us than it was in the Corinthians, for we have more light.]

McGarvey: 1Co 2:1

[In chapter 1 Paul showed that it was God's plan to overthrow the vain wisdom of the world by those weak and lowly ones whom the world despised. He now proceeds to show that the church at Corinth was founded by him as a weak and lowly one, in accordance with God's plan.] And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of speech [as an orator] or of wisdom [as a philosopher], proclaiming to you the testimony of [about] God . [Though Paul was educated at Tarsus, which Strabo preferred as a school of learning to Athens or Alexandria, yet he made no display of his learning, and hence his enemies spoke of his speech as contemptible or no account (2Co 10:10). He quotes from Aratus at Act 17:28 ; and Epimenides at Tit 1:12; and Menander at 1 Cor 15:33 . But Paul counted all such polite learning as mere dross in comparison with the excellency of the knowledge of Christ -- Phi 3:8]

McGarvey: 1Co 2:2

For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified . [Paul here asserts that the subject-matter of his preaching was selected from choice, or fixed design. He does not mean to say that every sermon was a description of the crucifixion of our Lord, but that all his teaching and preaching related to the atonement wrought by Christ upon the cross. This atonement, through the sacrifice of our Lord, was recognized by Paul as the foundation of the Christian system, and he here means to say that he handled no doctrine or theme at Corinth without remembering and recognizing its relation to that foundation.]

McGarvey: 1Co 2:3

And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling . [Paul frequently asserts his tendency to physical weakness and depression (1Co 4:7-12 ; Gal 4:13 ; 2Co 10:1 ; 2Co 10:10 ; 2Co 12:7). This sense of weakness was accentuated by his recent semi-failure at Athens, by frequent persecution, and by the absence of his companions, Silas and Timothy, till Paul's sense of timidity amounted to actual fear (Act 18:9). He was also out of money and had to work for Aquila. The slight admixture of philosophy which he had used in addressing the Athenians (Act 17:22-34) had thoroughly convinced the apostle that it was of no use, or benefit, in the presentation of the gospel.]

McGarvey: 1Co 2:4

And my speech [discourse on doctrine] and my preaching [announcement of facts] were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power [1Co 1:5 . He relied upon the divine aid, rather than upon the aid of human learning]:

McGarvey: 1Co 2:5

that your faith should not stand in [should not be based upon] the wisdom of men, but in the power of God .

Lapide: 1Co 1:1-31

RANSLATED AND EDITED

BY W. F. COBB, D.D.

EDINBURGH: JOHN GRANT

31 George IV. Bridge

1908

SAINT PAUL's

FIRST EPISTLE TO THE

CORINTHIANS

EDITORS PREFACE

In translating the Comments of Cornelius à Lapide on the First Epistle to the Corinthians, the Translator has endeavoured, next to accuracy, to secure a reproduction of the spirit of the Commentator.

The Translator, accordingly, has limited his efforts to a reproduction of the matter, and as far as possible of the form and spirit off the original, believing that most readers would prefer to see for themselves what Cornelius à Lapide believed to be the plain meaning of Holy Scripture, and to appreciate the piety which he brought to its elucidation. The only liberties taken with the original consist in an attempt to shorten a little its terrible prolixity, and in the correction of a few obvious mistakes on matters of fact.

W. F. C.

November 1895.

CHAPTER I.

CONTENTS

Achaia, or the peninsula commonly called the Morea, had in olden times several famous cities. The metropolis of these was the celebrated emporium of Corinth, famed, says Chrysostom, for its two ports, of which Lechæum stood on the Ionian and Schonus on the Ægean Sea. Hence poets, as, e.g., Ovid ( Fasti iv.), frequently called it bimaros.

Corinth is said to have had its foundation from Sisyphus, the robber son of Æolus, and to have been called Corcyra (Strabo, lib. 8.), and afterwards Ephyre. Having been destroyed, it was rebuilt by Corinth, son of Marithon, or of Pelops, according to Suidas, or according to others of Orestes, and was called after his name. Cicero, in his speech pro lege Maniliâ, calls this city the light of the whole of Greece. Its natural position was so strong that the Romans found great difficulty in reducing it.

1 Corinth abounded in wealth, in merchandise of all kinds, and in metals, especially brass or copper. This Corinthian copper was well known and in great request; so much so that Pliny ( lib. iv., c. 2) says that it was reckoned equal to gold or silver. From this wealth were derived the pride, gluttony, self-indulgence, lust and ostentatious living of the Corinthians, and it became a proverbial saying that it was not every man's luck to go to Corinth. Demosthenes replied to a harlot who asked for eight talents of gold as her hire that he did not give so high a price for repentance. For the same reason the Apostle is called upon to rebuke their vices, and especially in ch. vi.

2 At Corinth flourished a large number of orators and philosophers, amongst whom was Periander, one of the Seven Men of Greece. Paul, we can see, went to Corinth because it gave him so excellent an opportunity for spreading the Gospel. There he converted many to Christ, by the of the Lord who appeared to him in a vision at Corinth and said, "Be not afraid but speak, and hold not thy peace, for I am with thee and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee; for I have much people in thus city." Under Paul's preaching the Corinthian Christians made such progress that Paul himself speaks (i. 5; xiv. 26) of their wisdom, prudence, gift of prophecy, and other gifts bestowed on them by God.

3 From this there arose among the Corinthians pride, self-seeking, and strife, and especially after the arrival of Apollos. Some then came to prefer him to Paul, as a more polished and eloquent speaker. Thence came schisms; whole one party would boast, "I am of Paul," and another, "I am of Apollos." This caused Paul to write to them this Epistle, in which, through the first four chapters, he tries to lead them away from pride in human wisdom and eloquence, and from all contentious support of their teachers, Paul and Apollos, and to bring them to the humility of the Cross, to the doctrine of the faith in Christ.

4 The Corinthians had written to Paul, asking him to resolve certain difficulties they felt (vii. 1), which he does in this letter. After dealing in the first four chapters with their schisms and striving after empty wisdom, he proceeds in ch. v. to order the fornicator to be excommunicated, and in ch. vi., to rebuke them for this sin of fornication, and for going to law before heathen judges. In ch. vii. he answers their first question about matrimony and virginity, and lays down the laws of Christian marriage, putting over against it and before it the evangelical counsel of virginity and celibacy. Then in chs. viii. and x., he deals with the question of eating of things offered to idols, and lays down that such eating was lawful bot needed caution, lest the weaker brethren should be offended. In ch. xi., he replies to their third question, one concerning the veiling of women, as well as their fourth about the Eucharist and Agapæ. In ch. xii., he discourses of the gifts of the Spirit, pointing out that different gifts were distributed by the Holy Spirit to different people. Ch. xiii. dwells on the pre-eminent place among the gifts and graces of the Spirit occupied by charity. Ch. xiv. is an answer to the fifth question of the Corinthians, as to whether the gift of tongues was superior to the gift of prophecy. He answers in the negative. Ch.xv. resolves their sixth doubt, and gives manifold proofs of the resurrection, and describes its gifts, its mode, and order. In ch. xvi. he orders a collection to be made for the poor saints at Jerusalem, and he closes all with salutations.

5 Both this and the Second Epistle were written before that to the Romans; for, as Chrysostom points out, the collection which he orders here (1 Cor. xvi. 2), he speaks of in Rom. xv. 25, 26, as having already taken place. The Greek MSS. say that thus Epistle was written at Philippi and sent by Timotheus, and in this they are supported by the Syriac and the Regia Latina. But it seems more likely from xvi. 8, and other passages, that it was written at Ephesus (Acts xix. 1 ), in A.D. 57 (Baronius and Œcumenius).

Ver. 1.— Sosthenes. He was chief ruler of the synagogue at Corinth; having been converted to Christ by Paul, he was severely beaten for his faith before Gallio, the Proconsul (Act 18:17), and after his death was placed among the Saints.—November 28th.

Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints [supply, Paul writes and salutes in praying], grace be unto you and peace from God. For called to be saints the Syriac translates, called and saints. For in the Greek it is not the participle λεγόμενος or κεκλημένος, i.e., summoned, named, called; but, κλητὸς a word which denotes having a call to holiness, or holy by way of call, called to holiness.

Note first, that Paul throughout this chapter and everywhere else holds up to admiration this benefit of calling. Secondly, that this and all other benefits he humbly and devoutly ascribes to the Divine benevolence and to the power of humility. Chrysostom has here a noteworthy passage in the moral part of his first homily.

Thirdly, it is plain from this, in opposition to Pelagius, that, not for our merits, but by the mere grace of God, have we been called to the faith and the grace of Christ. Again, that all Christians were formally called Saints: not because they were really so, but by way of call, profession, duty.

Fourthly, he calls them saints in Christ, that is sanctified through the merits of Christ, namely, in Baptism and its consequent gifts.

Fifthly: " the church," and the " called to be saints " are the same thing. For the latter is in opposition and is explanatory of the former: so that if you ask, What is the Church? I shall answer from this passage of S. Paul: It consists of those called to be saints, or it is a congregation and assembly of the faithful, who have been called to holiness.

Whence, sixthly, it is evident from here that the Church is visible; for Paul writes these things not to an abstract idea, but "to the church which is at Corinth," which was able to read and see his letters, as is plain.

Seventhly, from this place it is evident that there is the same Church everywhere, a part of which was the Church at Corinth. Whence he says: " With all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours;" i.e., all Christians, wherever they exist: whether with me in this place of ours, or in any other place you please. Theirs, then, viz., of the Corinthians, and ours, viz., of me and Sosthenes. He adds this, that no one might suppose when he said Jesus Christ our Lord, that he meant to say that Christ is the Lord of Paul and Sosthenes alone, So Chrysostom says: "By this Paul tacitly enjoins the Corinthians that they ought to lay aside contentions and to be of one mind, as being members of the same Church, and of the sane Head, Christ." Next, he reminds them that he writes this letter specially indeed to the Corinthians, but, nevertheless, that he wishes it to be a circular letter to all Christians, in the same way that the letters of the other Apostles and of the Bishops in those first ages were circular letters.

Cajetan's interpretation of " ours," that it means, "Our jurisdiction extends itself to Corinth and to the Corinthians, so that the city and district of Corinth is both theirs and ours," is forced. Lastly, why that is called the Church, or the summoning, or the assemvly of those called to the faith, which formerly was called the synagogue, that is, the congregation; and what it is, its nature and its marks, see in Bellarmine in his sound and learned dissertation on the Church ( lib. i ., c 1, 2 et seq.)

Ver. 4.— I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ. "For the grace," in Greek, ε̉πὶ τὴ χάριτι, that is, on account of the grace of God, which is given you in Christ, i.e., through Christ. See Can. 25. "The source," says S. Bernard ( Serm. 13 in Song ), "of all the springs and rivers is the sea: but the source of all virtue and knowledge is the Lord Jesus Christ: the continence of the flesh, the energy of the heart, the rectitude of the will, all flow from that spring: let the heavenly stream be given back to its source" (by thanksgiving), "so that the farthest parts of the earth may be replenished ; 'I will not give my glory to another,' saith God" (Isa 48:11).

Ver. 5.— That in everything ye are enriched by Him (by Christ), in all utterances (of the preaching of the Gospel), and in all knowledge, that is, in spiritual understanding of Him. In other words, I give thanks to God, because by me and Apollos He put before you, richly, the preaching and doctrine of the Gospel and a perception and understanding of it.

Ver. 6.— Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you—i.e., by which, as by two testimonies, the Christian faith was founded and established in you. For the Greeks interpret the Greek καθώς, i.e., even as, by enallage, δι ών, through which, that is, the word and knowledge. Others interpret, Even as the testimony, thus: by which things, viz., by the preaching of the Gospel, and by the knowledge of it, as by a sure testimony, it is known that you are faithful and disciples of Christ.

Ver. 7.— Waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His second Advent, when you will receive from Christ an abundant supply of all graces, and your consummation in heavenly glory.

Ver. 8.— Who shall also confirm you, so far as His part is; i.e., shall give grace which can confirm you, and shall confirm you indeed, if you are willing to receive it, to use it, and to confirm yourselves in the faith and love of Christ: shall confirm you, I say, for this, that ye may be, and may persevere unto the end (of life) blameless; that is, unaccused, whom no one can charge with having committed anything against the faith and love of Christ. The Apostle speaks to the whole Church, in which the greater number were holy and blameless, although some few were sowing schisms, and these in the following verse he reproves and condemns.

In the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is an ellipse common with the Apostle: for we must supply, that ye may be and may appear, blameless in that day of the advent and judgment of Christ.

Ver. 9.— God is faithful, by whom ye were called into the of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Note, faithful with S. Paul is the same as constant, truthful, as I shall show on 1 Tim i. 15; not, according to Calvin, as though God saves those only who have been effectually called by Him, and all of them; and as though He bids and makes each one of them believe with a firm faith that he will be saved. For if so, why, in the next verse, anxious about the salvation of the Corinthians, does he condemn their divisions? Had not the Corinthians believed?—and yet, having lapsed into schisms, they had incurred the danger of damnation, and, therefore, Paul endeavours to avert it from them. The faithful, therefore, can lapse into sin and be damned. God, then, is said to be faithful, because, not without cause, will He, O Corinthians, withdraw His help from you which He began to give, and afterwards promised that He would give, in order that you might persevere and be confirmed in the faith and fellowship of Jesus; nor will He desert you unless He be first deserted by you; as the Council of Trent teaches (following S. Augustine). Sess. vi. c. 11 and 13, where it lays down the same three things which the Apostle does here: (1.) That God gives the grace of Christ to all the justified: because, if they are willing, they are able to persevere in righteousness. (2.) That they by their own will can fall from it. (3.) That no one knows whether he will persevere, and whether he is of the number of the elect, unless he has a special revelation of it from God.

Note secondly. Paul here calls the communion of the faith, grace and glory of Christ which is enjoyed in the Church of Christ, the fellowship of His Son ; or that partaking of Christ in which we gave a fellowship of sonship, inheritance, the Sacraments, and all the benefits of Christ. In other words: Ye are called to be sons of God, fellows, members, brothers, and co-heirs of Christ: so Anselm, Ambrose, Theophylact and Chrysostom (whom see), and 1Jo 1:3. And here notice: although, as the Apostle says, all faithful Christians are of the fellowship of Christ, yet some are more so than others: that is to say, those who share more largely of the life and grace of Christ: as those who follow, not only the precepts, but also the counsels of Christ; even as the Apostles were more of the fellowship of Christ than other Christians.

Ver. 10.— I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, into whose one and the same fellowship, family, house, and Church we are all called, as many as are faithful and Christians, that ye all speak the same thing— that is to say, that, like brothers, ye agree in words and in speech, and that ye all say at the same time "I am of Christ;" but let not one say, "I am of Paul," another, "I of Apollos." And, again, that ye agree not only in speech, but also in mind: otherwise your verbal confession would be feigned and false. Whence he adds as the root of concord:—

That ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment, that ye think the same think the same thing and agree among yourselves in Christ, that ye be fitly united to each other in one mind and spirit in Christ. For the Greek signifies, aptly and harmoniously to join and cement anything, so that the parts agree with each other and with the whole. And because a thing is then perfect and complete when it has in this way been neatly and harmoniously united, hence the word signifies also to perfect, as Psa 8:2;  2Co 8:11. Be perfect, i.e., mutually agree amongst yourselves and with your Head; and Psa 40:6 (Sept.).

Ver. 11.— For it hath been declared unto me by them of Chloë. Some think that Chloë is the name of a place, but this place is nowhere else mentioned; nor does the Greek well allow Chloë to be a place. Whence more truly Chrysostom and the Syriac suppose it to be the name of a family or of a woman, and then the meaning is, I have heard from the family of Chloë. By a similar Greek idiom it is said, Rom 16:10-11: "Salute them which are of Aristobulus, of Narcissus," viz., of the house and family.

Ver. 12.— That every one of you; i.e., Whoever of you contend with one another, and foment any part of schism. (For there were among the Corinthians many others well-disposed and peaceful, unconnected with schism, and consequently with the following words): says, in turn, alternately or respectively; for not each one was saying, I am of Paul, I of Apollos, I of Cephas, but in turn; since one would say, I am of Paul, another, I of Apollos, a third, I of Cephas. In the words "every one," therefore, there is a distributive and disjunctive force familiar to the Hebrews; for every one ambitiously and contentiously was saying, "I am of Paul," &c., I am of Paul, viz., a disciple, a catechumen; I of Cephas, that is to say, taught or baptized by the Blessed Pontiff Peter at Antiôch, at Rome, or elsewhere. For Peter had not yet been at Corinth, as is deduced from ch. iv. 15. Whence Baronius thinks that these are the words of those who were avoiding divisions, which had properly arisen because of Paul and Apollos, as appears in ch. iii. 4, and that, to escape from them, while others were boasting of their teachers, they would declare they were the disciples neither of Paul, nor of Apollos but of Peter, the head of the Church; as though they should say, "This man says and boasts that he is the disciple of Paul, that man of Apollos; but I say that I am of Cephas, that is, that I am a disciple of Peter, who is the head of the Church, and the Vicar of Christ: for to him I cling, in him I glory; he converted and baptized me by Paul or Apollos or some other." Whence another rising higher would say: " I am of Christ, who is the supreme Head of Apostles and of the Church, whose Vicar Peter is, whose ministers are Paul and Apollos." For it is to be noted that he adds I am of Christ as the words of those who speak not amiss but rightly, if there is no contention and contempt of the Apostles and the Vicars of Christ, as the Anabaptists now despise Prelates; for it became all to say, "We are of Christ," viz., Christians; whereas some called themselves disciples of Paul, or of Apollos, or of Cephas. So Ambrose, Theophylact, S. Thomas. The occasion of the schism seems to have been that Apollos, who was eloquent, acute, and learned in the Scriptures, was then teaching at Corinth (Act 18:27), and compared to him S. Paul seemed to some cold and bald, because he avoided in his preaching all display of knowledge or of rhetorical ornament, as he says himself (ch. 1Co 2:4.)

Lastly, S. Jerome (on Tit. i.) gathers from this passage that Bishops were given jurisdiction over presbyters, so as to remove all scandals, and that the Church before this was governed by the Presbyters in common to the Epistles to Titus.

Ver. 13.— Were ye baptized in the name of Paul? Christ is one, and in His name all were alike baptized. In vain then, he says, do ye contend for us, which of us is to be the greatest, when we are but the ministers of baptism. Hence, theologians teach that the validity of Baptism and the other Sacraments depends not on the disposition of the receiver, or of the minister, but flows from the Sacrament itself.

Note  1. that to be baptized in the name of Christ is the same as to be baptized in the invocation, profession, power, merit, and baptism of Christ, and so to have a right to the name of Christ. Therefore we are called Christians from Christ, and not Paulians, or Apollinians. For the power of excellency which Christ has in Baptism and the other Sacraments, see S. Thomas.

2. S. Thomas and others, as well as the history of the Greek Church, show that that Church uses as its form of Baptism, not "I baptize thee," but "Let the servant of Christ be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost," so that no one can say, "I am of Paul," or "I am of Apollos."

3. Erasmus, Faber, and other innovators, wrongly argue that by parity of reasoning it is wrong to say, "I am of Scotus," and "I of Thomas;" "I am a pupil and follower of Francis," "I of Dominic;" because the Apostle is only censuring contentions for the pre–eminence, and the schisms of which some at Corinth boasted, and which divided the Church into hostile factions: so that they attributed the power and excellence of Baptism and of the faith not to Christ, but to Paul or Apollos. But this is no condemnation of monastic institutions, or of the schools and academies of the philosophers and theologians; for though they differ from one another in their customs, their rites, and opinions, yet they are joined together in the same faith, the same Christian charity and humility. If any one does otherwise, his religion will be vain, and we will hand over his vanity and contentiousness to be corrected by S. Paul with that of the Corinthians. This is the sin of the individual, not of the Order; as in this chapter it is the sin of individual Corinthians that is dealt with, not that of the Church. Far more truly and suitably may we use this passage against the schisms of modern innovators. For they say, "I am of Calvin," or "I of Luther," or "I of Menno," and this in matters of faith and religion. For Calvin teaches one faith, Luther another, Menno another. But the diversity of Religious Orders makes for the greater beauty, strength, and unity of the Church; just as a camp is beautified, strengthened and united by the due distribution of its legions. For without this distribution it would be in confusion.

The religious of the various Orders are united not only under one head, the Supreme Pontiff, in the one Church, but also by their living under the same Order, whether their state be lay or cleric. For the Religious Orders make, as it were, one legion in the Church, and that its strongest one. As, then, the members of the same body are joined in one, and as the soldiers of the same legion are more united to one another than the soldiers of different legions, so the Religious who are aspiring to the height of perfection are bound together more closely than all others by the bond of religion and of prayer to God.

If there is amongst them who calumniates, envies, opposes another Order that man's religion is vain; he is not a Religious, nay, he is not a Christian, but a heathen; he is not led by the spirit of God, but by that of the devil. For the true Religious says with S. Bernard in his Apology, " For one Order I work; to all others I show charity. " In work, I am a Franciscan, in charity a Dominican, an Augustinian, a Benedictine, &c. And therefore I am a religious of all Orders; I have work for one, charity for all. Therefore I rejoice in the good of all Orders: I am pleased at the prosperity of all, I envy none. For all are mine, and I belong to all. Is Christ divided in the different orders? God forbid. For the same Christ is the Institutor, Author, and Governor of all Religious Orders, and that makes for their greater concord. Let not then that which ought to be the cause of greater harmony be the cause of the most disgraceful division, which is hateful to God, lest we hear the words, "Whereas there is among you envying and strife and divisions, are ye not carnal?" And again, "Is thine eye evil because I am good?" If it has pleased God to add Order to Order, to raise up new ones to supplement the old, to give them fresh supplies of His grace and of His Spirit, who can find fault with God? who can envy the new Orders? who deprive the Church of such workmen? Suppose that they do carry off the prize; I will rejoice that God is honoured through them, and that more souls are saved; and may I be a sharer of their labours, for I seek not mine own glory, but that of God.

Ver. 16.— And I baptized also the house of Stephanas. Stephanas, says Theophylact, was a well–known inhabitant of Corinth, whose faith and charity are praised by S. Paul ch. 1Co 16:17).

Ver. 17.— For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel. Preaching and the administration of the Sacraments are the two duties of Pastors, but especially the former. And therefore the chief work of Bishops, Archbishops, and Primates is to preach the Gospel: and this they are bound to do themselves, unless lawfully hindered (Council of Trent, Sess. v. c. 2, and Sess. iv. c. 4). But they may with Paul intrust the administration of Baptism and the other Sacraments to Parish Priests and their assistants.

Not with wisdom of words. I.e., with eloquence and rhetorical adornment, not according to the Gospel. The Greek word for wisdom gives us Sophists, the Greek orators who particularly pleaded in the law courts. Of this are modern innovators in religion, who rightly style themselves "ministers of the word." Not so did Paul, " lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect," i.e., should become emptied of its force, by men supposing that they had obtained salvation, and their belief in the faith through human eloquence, instead of by the power of the Passion of Christ. This was the origin of the schism of those who said, "I am of Paul," "I of Apollos," because the eloquence of Apollos was pleasing to some of the more fastidious Corinthians, and to those who loved eloquence; while on the other, Paul pleased those who sought for the spirit rather than the words, inasmuch as he was unskilled indeed in rhetoric but not in knowledge. And thence it is that S. Paul here and in the next three chapters attacks and abases in different ways eloquence and worldly wisdom. The "wisdom of words" can be taken for natural philosophy, of the wisdom of human reason; for it is opposed to the Cross in ver.18; and again, in verses 19, 20–27, he explains it as philosophy and human reason and prudence. (Maldonatus.)

Ver. 18.— For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness. Any declaration about the salvation bestowed by the Cross, or about our redemption by the Cross and Passion of Christ, seems foolishness to men who are sceptical and perverse, and therefore ready to perish. Isaiah, too, says this in the person of Christ: "Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel" (Isa 8:18). See also Heb 2:13.

Ver. 19.— For it is written. This is from Isa 29:14, where, following the Hebrew, the verbs are transitive, but the sense is the same. Note that Paul refers to the whole circle of worldly wisdom what the Prophet said of the wisdom of the Jews alone, which was Pharisaic. For both are alike in this connection, and the meaning is, "I will make men unwilling to use worldly wisdom for their salvation, but only the Gospel and the Cross of Christ."

Ver. 20.— Where is the wise? The Gentile philosopher.

Where is the scribe? The Jewish doctor.  S. Paul is quoting Isa 33:18.

Note, as the Greeks called their wise men philosophers, and the Chaldeans theirs magi, so the Jews called theirs sopharim, "scribes." "Scribes" is from the same root as "Scripture," and implies that they were occupied with the Holy Scriptures. Their duty, in fact, was to preserve the Holy Scriptures in their integrity, to carefully correct all transcripts, to interpret them by writing and by word of mouth, and to write out or state the answers they gave to questions about the Law. (Epiphan. hæres. 16).

Where is the disputer of this world? The student of physical science who narrowly investigates the secrets of nature and the world. In other words, philosophers and scribes have been cast aside, and all the wise of this world thrown down and put to confusion by the preaching of the Apostles, by the glory of the Gospel. (So S. Chrysostom.)

Paul here and in the following verses is aiming at philosophers both ancient and modern, and not at such Christians as Dionysius the Areopagite, Hierotheus, Paul himself, Clement of Rome, Nathanael, Gamaliel, Apollos, as the Anabaptists seem to think. He has in his mind the Gentile teachers who at this very time were going round the world, like rivals to the Apostles, and under the garb of piety, wisdom, and eloquence were attempting to attract to themselves, and away from the Apostles, the various nations, as though they alone taught true wisdom, and the way to virtue, righteousness, and salvation; as, e.g., Musonius, Dio, Epictetus, Damys, Diogenes Minor, Apollonius of Tyana, who was greatly looked up to by the Greeks at that time because of his mystic powers, and was given a statue at Ephesus, and placed among the gods. (Baronius, Annals, A.D. 75.)

Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? I.e., has shown to be foolish: a manifestation of its true nature is described as if it were a change of its essence. It is foolish, he says, seen in the light of the Cross and of Christ and of salvation. The light of this knowledge requires faith, not subtlely.  S. Ambrose says, " The knowledge of fishermen has made foolish the knowledge of philosophers," since it has surpassed their limits, and the limits of nature.

So, too, did God by His creative work show the folly of the saying of the philosophers, that "Out of nothing nothing comes," and that in consequence the universe was uncreate and eternal. So in His Incarnation did He show the folly of the saying, "God cannot be contained by a body, time, and place;" and in His Passion the saying, "God cannot suffer and die." So in the Eucharist He shows the foolishness of their principles and of those of our modern innovators who say, "An accident cannot exist without a subject; a body cannot be in a point; two bodies cannot be in the same place at the same time." For though these things are out of Nature's reach, yet they are not impossible to God, who is Omnipotent, and transcends all nature.

S. Paulinus quotes this passage of S. Paul's in a letter (27) to Aper, who had been a lawyer and then had embraced the monastic life, and was, therefore, exposed to ridicule. From this he confirms him in his purpose, and shows him how to despise the laughter and sneers of men. " I congratulate you," he says, " on having scorned that wisdom which is rejected of God, and on having preferred to have fellowship rather with Christ's little ones than with the wise of the world. It is from this that you have merited the grace from God of the hatred of men; this would not be had you not begun to be a true follower of Christ. " And a little lower, in showing the fruit and dignity of his purpose, he says, " Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven; for it is not you that they hate, but Him who has begun to be in you, whose work is in you, whose humility they despise, whose holiness they loathe. Joyfully recognise yourself to be a sharer in this good with Prophets and Apostles. From the beginning of the world Christ has ever suffered and triumphed in His own: in Abel He was killed by His brother; in Noah He was mocked by His son; in Abraham He was a pilgrim; in Isaac He was offered up; in Jacob He served; in Joseph He was sold; in Moses exposed and forced to flee; in the Prophets stoned and persecuted; in the apostles tossed about on sea and land; in His Martyrs often slain and in different ways. In you, too, He suffers reproaches, and thus world hates Him in you; but thanks be to Him that He overcomes when He is judged and triumphs in us." Again, praising and admiring his change of life, he says, " Where now is the once feared advocate and judge? Would that I had wings to fly to you, to see you no longer yourself, but changed from a lion to a calf—to see Christ in Aper, who has now laid aside his ferocity and strength, and become a lamb unto God instead of a wild boar of this world. For you are a boar, but of the corn-field, not of the forest; you are rich in the good fruit of the holy discipline, and have fed yourself with the fruit of virtues. "

Ver. 21.— For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Mark the phrase, "in the wisdom of God," God shows His wisdom in the marvellous structure and government of the world, as S. Thomas says. In other words, the world in its foolishness knew not God practically in His wisdom stamped on His Creation, as the Author of its salvation, and Leader to a life of bliss; nor yet speculatively, because philosophers regarded God as powerless to create; they thought Him to act under necessity, and to be void of providence, &c.

Hence it is that God has revealed Himself and His salvation to the world in a way which seems to the world foolishness, viz., by the Cross. He has thus stooped to men, and become as or were foolish among them; just as a teacher will sometimes act as a boy, and talk as a boy, amongst boys. So Christ, because He was not understood as God, revealed Himself to men, as a man, and one liable to suffering. This is wisdom unspeakable. See S, Thomas, Anselm, and others.

Ver. 22.— For the Jews require a sign . . . but we preach Christ crucified. A Theban, when asked what he thought of the Romans, said that "the Romans boasted themselves in their spears, the Greeks on their eloquence, the Thebans in their virtues." But the Apostle says that he and other Christians boast themselves in Christ crucified. This is our spear, our eloquence, and our virtue.

Ver. 23.— Into the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks foolishness. Notice here, with S. Chrysostom ( Hom. iv. moral in loco, and above on ver.17), that the power of the Cross shines forth not only in itself but also in its preaching: (1.) In the fact that the Apostles, few in number, simple fishermen, poor, unlearned, unknown, and Jews, in all these respects hateful to the world, yet brought the world into subjection to the Cross. (2.) In the fact that they subdued most bitter enemies, demons, sin, death, hell, kings, princes, philosophers, orators, Greeks, barbarians, laws, judgments. Long-existing religions, and time-honoured traditions. (3.) In that they persuaded men by simple preaching, and not by arms, wisdom, or eloquence. (4.) In that in so short a time they spread the faith of Christ over the whole world. (5.) In that by the grace of Christ they overcame most cheerfully and courageously what is hardest to be borne by the natural strength of man, the threats of tyrants, scourgings, deaths, and tortures. (6.) In that they preached a doctrine not about a glorious God, but a crucified One, and Him their Saviour to be believed in and adored; and a law of Christ displeasing to nature and flesh. Wherefore Tertullian ( lib. contra Jud.) beautifully and fitly compares the Kingdom of Christ with the kingdoms of all kings and people, and prefers it before them all: " Solomon," he says, " reigned, but only in the borders of Judæa from Dan to Beersheba : Darius reigned over the Babylonians and Parthians, but not further; Pharaoh reigned over the Egyptians, but over them only. The kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar stretched only from India to Ethiopia. Alexander of Macedon, after subduing all Asia and other countries, could not keep what he had conquered. So have the Germans, Britons, Moors, and Romans bounds set to their dominions. But the kingdom of Christ has reached to all parts, His name is believed on everywhere, is worshipped by all nations, everywhere reigns, is everywhere adored; He is equal to all, King over all, Judge over all, God and Lord of all. "

Ver. 25.— Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. That is, say Ambrose and Anselm, the foolishness and weakness of God, or what men think is the foolishness and weakness in God and in Christ incarnate and suffering, as e.g., His humanity, morality, Passion and Cross, was just that by which Christ, when seemingly conquered, yet most wisely and most powerfully conquered men, Satan, and the whole world. In other words, God's wisdom and strength by what was foolish and weak, viz., the Cross. And therefore Jerome and S. Augustine explain the passage of Habakkuk (iii. 4) " He had horns coming out of His hands," thus: The strength and weapons by which, as by horns, Christ slew His foes were the arms of the Cross to which the hands of Christ ere nailed. Hence it is that the cross in the sky appeared to Constantine the Great as he was going to battle against Maxentius, with the inscription, "In this sign thou shalt conquer" (Euseb., Life of Constantine, lib. i. c. 22).

Literally and morally the power and wisdom of the Cross are seen (1.) in that on the Cross God showed His supreme love to us, that so He might draw us to Him; for God, under no necessity, with no prospect of advantage to Himself, of His own will stooped to the Cross from love of man, solely. This He yet did with such wisdom that no damage was dine by it to the loftiness and glory of His Godhead; for the Godhead in Him suffered nothing, but He bore all His suffering in the Manhood which He had assumed. (2.) In that on the Cross He redeemed man, not by the power of His Godhead, but through the righteousness and humility of His Passion, as S. Augustine says. (3.) In that on the Cross He set before us a most perfect example of obedience, constancy, endurance of punishment, patience, fortitude, and all virtues, as well as mortification of vices. (4.) In that on the Cross He condemned the wisdom and pride of the world, and gave to man, who had fallen through pride and self–indulgence, a mirror of life, viz., a mode of recovery through humility and the Cross. (See also S. Thomas. 3, p. qu. 46, art. 3 and 4, and S. Augustine, De Trin. lib. xiii. c. 12.)

S. Bernard, in his exhortation to the Soldiers of the Temple (c. 11), says: " The weakness of Christ was no less beneficial to us than His majesty; for although the power of His Godhead ordered the removal of the yoke of sin, yet the weakness of His flesh destroyed by death the rights of death over man. And therefore the Apostle beautifully says: 'The weakness of God is stronger than men.' But His foolishness by which He was pleased to save the world, so as to confound the wise; which made Him, though He was in the form of God and equal to God, empty Himself, and take upon Him the form of a servant; by which, though he was rich, He yet for our sake became poor, though He was great He became little, though he was high yet He became humbled, though He was powerful He became weak; through which He hungered, thirsted, and was weary on the journey, and suffered all that His own will and no necessity laid upon Him; this foolishness of His, was it not to us the way of prudence, the form of righteousness, the example of holiness? Therefore the Apostle also adds, 'The foolishness of God is wiser than men.' Death then set us free from death, life from error, grace from sin. And truly His death won the victory through His righteousness; because the Just One, by paying what he never took, rightly recovered all that He had lost."

Hence it is that Francis and the greatest Saints have sought to be considered foolish by the world, in order that they might the rather please God. Some religious Orders, indeed, so regard this as the height of perfection and Christian wisdom that they enjoin their members to love, desire, and embrace contempt, ridicule, insults, and injuries, and to long to be considered fools, just as eagerly as worldly men seek for a reputation for wisdom, for honour, and renown. They do this to teach them in this way (1.) to utterly despise the world; (2.) to humiliate themselves and uproot their innate desire of honour, praise, glory, and high position; (3.) to be more like Christ, and to clothe themselves with His garments and His marks, who for our sakes, and to give us an example of virtue and perfection, chose these things Himself, willed to be considered foolish, and became a scorn of men, and the outcast of the people, They say, therefore, with S. Paul, "God forbid that I should glory save in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified to me and I to the world."

All this does the Cross of Christ teach if you often meditate on it; nay, the Cross is the fount of wisdom. S. Bonaventura, when asked where he had drunk in so much wisdom, showed a crucifix almost worn away by kisses.  S. Jacoponus, a man of good birth and of great learning, after having learned from the Cross of Christ to become foolish to the world, was asked by Christ, who appeared to him in a friendly and familiar way, why he was so enamoured of this foolishness, and he answered with his customary pious pleasantry, "Because Thou, Lord, hast been more foolish than I." In short, S. Chrysostom ( Hom. 4 on the Cross and the Robber ) sums up the power and praise of the Cross as follows: " If you to know the power of the Cross, and what I have to say in its praise, listen: The Cross is the hope of Christians, the resurrection of the dead, the way of them that despair, the staff of the lame, the consolation of the poor, the curb of the rich, the destruction of the proud, the punishment of them that live badly, victory over the demons, subjection of the devil, the instructor of the young, nourishment of the needy, hope of the hopeless, the rudder of seafarers, haven to the storm–tossed, wall to the besieged, father to the fatherless, defender of widows, counsellor of the just, rest to the weary, guardian of little ones, head of men, end of the aged, light to them that sit in darkness, the magnificence of kings, an everlasting shield, wisdom of the foolish, liberty to the slaves, a philosophy for kings. law ro the lawless, the boast of martyrs, the self-denial monks, the chastity of virgins, the joy of priests, the foundation of the Church, the destruction of temples, the rejection of idols, a stumbling-block to the Jews, perdition to the ungodly, strength to the weak, physician to the sick, bread to the hungry, water to the thirsty, clothing to the naked. "

Ver. 26.— For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. The for gives the reason of what had gone before. This verse contains another proof of what was said in ver. 21, " It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. " For this is proved in two ways: (1.) in ver. 23, from the object of preaching, viz., the Cross, by which God was pleased to save the world, but which to the world seems foolishness; (2.) from the ministers of preaching, viz., the Apostles, whose duty it was to preach salvation through the Cross, and who were men of no account, unpolished, despised, and foolish in the eyes of the world.

Again, the particle for fitly joins this verse to the preceding; ver. 25 gives an indefinite and general statement which is true, not only of the Cross, but also of the preachers of the Cross, as Athanasius points out ( Ad Antiochum, qu. 129).

This particle, then, declares the likeness of the Apostles to the Cross that they preached. It is as if S. Paul had said: God willed to use the foolishness and weakness of the Cross, and with it to overcome and subdue to Himself the wisdom and power of all men; and we see this, not only in the Cross itself, and its victory, but also in the Apostles who preach the Cross: for God has not chosen the wise and powerful of this world, but the Apostles, who are poor, simple, and foolish in the eyes of the world, that they might carry the banner of the Cross on high throughout the whole world, and bring all men into obedience to the faith of the Cross, and that they all might believe and hope for their righteousness and salvation through the Cross of Christ.

It is a reason drawn from likeness or analogy. For such as the Cross was—worthless, despicable, and foolish before the world—such should be all preachers of the Cross. For God in His wonderful wisdom has so well adapted everything to the Cross, which is the burden of all preaching, that not only the preachers but believers too should be like the Cross; for the first who were called to the faith were men of low birth, of no reputation, unknown, sinners, publicans, and harlots.

Ye see your calling. The reason and mode of your calling. Because the Apostles who called you are not wise, according to this wisdom, which knows not that which is spiritual and Divine. So S, Thomas applies the words to the Apostles, who called others. S. Chrysostom, however, applies them and rightly (from ver. 2) to those who had been called and converted; for many unlearned gad been converted to Christ, and but few who were learned and nobly born. The words, then, mean: Ye see of what kind are both caller and called.

Some wise and powerful, of course, as, e.g., Dionysius the Areopagite, Paulus the Proconsul, Nicodemus, S. Paul himself, but they were few. Moreover, the Apostle is speaking mainly of the Apostles, who were the first called, though they were poor and of no reputation. And therefore S. Ambrose (on S. Luk 6:13), says: " See the counsel of God. He chose not the wise, the rich, the noble, but fishermen and publicans to train, that He might not be thought to have drawn any to His grace by His wisdom, to have redeemed us by His riches, to have won us to Him by the influence of power or birth; and that so, not love of disputation, but truth by its reaonableness might prevail. " S. Augustine (vol. x. Serm. 59) says, "Great is the mercy of our Maker. He knew that if the Senator were chosen, he would say, 'I was chosen because of my rank.' If the rich man were chosen, he would say, 'I was chosen for my wealth.' If a king, he would put it down to his power; if an orator, to his eloquence; if a philosopher, to his wisdom. 'For the present,' says the Lord, 'those proud men must be rejected: they are too haughty. Give Me first that fisherman. Come, poor men. You have nothing, you know nothing; follow Me. The empty vessel must be brought to the plentiful stream.' The fisherman let down his nets; he received grace, and became a Divine orator. Now while the words of the fishermen are read, orators bow their heads in reverence." It seems, therefore, that what some fable about the royal birth and renown of the Apostle Bartholomew is groundless.

Ver. 27.— But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. The words "foolish, weak, base," form a climax, and are used by S. Paul to describe the faithful who had been called to Christ, or rather the Apostles themselves, who had called them. He contrasts them as uncultivated, poor, base, and hence foolish in the eyes of the world, and the world's laughing-stock, with the wise, strong, and powerful of the world.

Things which are not. This is applied to the same persons as being contemptible and reckoned of no account. In other words, God chose the despised Apostles, who were thought nothing of, that He might destroy, and, as it were, bring to nought things that are, i.e., which are highly esteemed, as e.g., the wise and mighty of the world.

Observe that three things which the world is wont to admire, viz., wisdom, power, and birth, were passed over by God when He called men to faith, righteousness, and salvation; and on the other hand that three things opposite to these were chosen by Him, viz., want of wisdom, of power, and of birth. This was done to show that the work was from God, and that this calling as to be ascribed to the grace of God, and not to human excellence. Thus, in the second century after the Apostles, He chose Agnes, a maiden of thirteen years, who amazed and confounded her judges and all the heathen who saw her by her wonderful fortitude. Well, therefore, does the Collect for her day run: " Almighty and everlasting God, who choosest the weak things of the world to confound the strong, mercifully grant that we who keep the feast of Thy Virgin and Martyr S. Agnes, may receive the fruit of her prayers. " Such too were SS. Agatha, Lucy, Dorothy, Barbara, and a countless number of others whom God seems to have raised up to show the power of His grace in their weakness. Therefore in their Collect the Church prays: " O God, who, amongst other marvels of Thy power, hast also conferred upon feeble women the victory of martyrdom, mercifully grant that we, who keep the 'birthday' of Thy blessed Virgin and Martyr, N., may by her example come to Thee, "

Ver. 30.— But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus. By the gift of God Himself, by His grace, were ye called to believe in Christ. So Anselm. To be in Christ is to have been incorporated with Him in Baptism, or to be in the Church of Christ, and in Christianity.

Who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. This righteousness, say our modern innovators, is imputed, because it is ours, not substantially and inherently, but is merely the external righteousness of Christ imputed to us; before God we seem righteous. But I reply: If this be true, then in the same way the active redemption wrought by Christ, which S. Paul here joins with righteousness, will be imputed to us, and consequently we shell be redeemers of ourselves, which is absurd. In the second place, wisdom is infused into us, and so is faith, and so therefore is righteousness; for the Apostle classes together the righteousness and wisdom of Christ as both alike ours.

I say, then, with Chrysostom, Theophylact, Anselm, Ambrose, and S. Thomas, that the sense of this passage is this: Christ is made unto us the author and cause of real Christian wisdom, redemption, sanctification, and righteousness.

1. By way of satisfaction and meritoriously; and this is what the Apostle specially has in his mind here: because Christ paid man's debt with the most precious price of His own Blood, and so made sanctification for man, and merited for us righteousness, wisdom, and sanctification. In this way He was made for us righteousness, because the righteousness, i.e., the satisfaction of Christ, is ours, just as much as if we had ourselves made satisfaction to God. And hence it is that theologians teach that the satisfaction of Christ is applied to us in justification through the Sacraments, as if naturally first, and that then as a natural consequence our sins are forgiven through that satisfaction, and grace is infused. This condemns the error of Peter Abélard, in which he is followed by the Socinians, who teach that Christ was the teacher of the world, not its redeemer—nay more, that He was sent by the Father to give to man an example of perfect virtue, but not to free him from sin or to redeem him. S. Bernard refutes this in Ep. 190, to Pope Innocent, where he says: " Christ is the end of the law to every one that believeth. In short, S. Paul says that He was made to us righteousness by God the Father. Is not then that righteousness mine which was made for me? If my guilt is brought against me, why am I not given the benefit of my righteousness? And indeed what is given me is safer than what is innate. For this has whereof it may glory, but not before God. But the former, since it is effectual to salvation, has no ground of glorying, except in the Lord. 'For if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head,' says Job, lest the answer come, 'What hast thou that thou didst not receive? But if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory as if thou hast not received it?' This is the righteousness of man in the blood of his Redeemer, which Abélard, that man of perdition, scoffs and sneers at, and so tries to empty of its force, that he holds and argues that all that the Lord of Glory did in emptying Himself . . . in suffering indignities . . . is to be reduced to this, that it was all done that He might by His life and teaching give to man a rule of life, and by His suffering and death set up a goal of charity." Abélard's argument was fallacious and frivolous: the devil, he said, had no right over man; therefore man needed no liberator. The premiss is doubtless true when understood of lawful right, but not of usurped right, under which man through sin by his own free will had submitted himself to the power of the devil, of sin, and of hell.

2. By way of example; because the righteousness of Christ os the most perfect example, to which all our righteousness ought to be conformed. In this sense S. Paul's meaning is, Christ is an example and mirror of righteousness.

3. Efficiently; because Christ effects and produces this righteousness in us through His Sacraments, and because He teaches the Saints true wisdom and understanding; as, e.g., how to live a good and Christian life, by what road to attain to heaven, and how we must strive after bliss.

4. As our end; because Christ Himself and His glory are the end of our righteousness and sanctification. S. Bernard, in his 22nd Sermon on the Canticles, deals with these four, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, redemption, symbolically. In the first place, he adapts them to the four works of Christ. He says, " Christ was made for us wisdom in His preaching, righteousness in the forgiveness of our sins, sanctification in the life that He spent with sinners, redemption in the sufferings that He bore for sinners. " And again further on he says, " Christ was made for us by God wisdom by teaching prudence, righteousness by forgiving our trespasses, sanctification by the example He set of temperance and of chaste life, redemption by the example He left of patience and of fortitude in dying. Where, I ask, is true wisdom, except in the teaching of Christ? Whence comes true righteousness but from the mercy of Christ? Where is there true temperance but in the life of Christ? Where true fortitude save in the Passion of Christ? "

In the second place, S. Bernard naturally adapts these four to the four virtues, prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude, which Christ imparts to us. He goes in to say: " Only those, then, who have been imbued with His doctrine are to be called prudent; only those, who by His mercy have obtained forgiveness of their sins, are to be called righteous; only those are to be called temperate who strive to imitate His life; only those are to be called brave who bravely bear adversity and show patience like His. In vain surely does any one strive to acquire virtues, if he thinks that they are to be obtained from any other source but the Lord of virtues, whose teaching is the school of prudence, whose mercy the working of righteousness, whose life the mirror of temperance, whose death the pattern of fortitude. "

Ver. 31.— That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. He is quoting not the words but the sense of Jer 9:23. So Ambrose, Theophylact, Anselm, St, Thomas. In Jeremiah the passage runs: "Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me." This it is to glory in the Lord. Jeremiah is speaking of liberation from the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, and from the slaughter of the Chaldeans, which were then threatening the Jews. In other words, then, he says: The Jews glory in counsels of their wise men, in the strength of their soldiers, in the riches of Jerusalem, as though these would make them secure against the Chaldeans; but they err, for their true glory is to know and understand God, that is, His Providence, an that it is He alone who worketh mercy, and mercifully sets free whom He will, and not the wisdom, might, or riches of man. Moreover, He alone inflicts just punishment on whom He will, and no wise, mighty, or rich man can set free from this—even as, O Jews, He will inflict it on you, and will bring it to pass, that death (that is, the Chaldeans, shall bring death upon you) shall climb up into your houses, though your windows, and slay all your little ones.

The Apostles rightly adapts this passage to those who were calling others, or who had been called to Christianity, that no one may attribute the grace of Christ to himself, his virtues, or the gifts of nature, but only to Christ, and consequently his tacit exhortation is: "Do not, O Corinthians, glory in yourselves, or in Paul, or in Apollos, your teachers, but in the Lord alone." For this is what in the beginning he proposed to prove, and therefore all that is here said must be referred to it. Anselm says: " That man glories in the Lord only who knows that it is not of himself, but of Him, not only that he is, but also that it is well with him. " Again that glories in the Lord who, if he has anything which makes him pleasing to God, holds that he has received it, not because of his own wisdom, power, good works, talent, or merits, but merely through the grace of God. Thirdly, he who in all that he does seeks not his own glory, but that of the Lord.

S. Bernard wrote a noteworthy sermon on these words of the Apostle; see also Sermon 25 on Canticles. He says: " Moreover, the whole glorying of the Saints is within and not without, that is, not in the flower of grass, or the mouth of the vulgar, but in the Lord; for God alone is the sole judge of their conscience, Him alone they desire to please, and to please Him is their only real and chief glory. " And Sermon 13 on Canticles: " Brothers, let none of you desire to be praised in this life. For whatever favour you gain for yourselves here which you do not refer to Him, you steal from Him. For whence, thou dust that perishest, whence comes thy glory? " And in his Sentences: " The Apostles knew that glory properly belongs to the Creator, and not to the creature. But he also knew that the rational creature so seeks after glory that it can scarcely or perhaps never overcome this desire, just because it was made in the image of the Creator. Therefore he gave the most wholesome advice when he said: ' Since you cannot be persuaded not to glory, let him that glorieth glory in the Lord. '" Let us, too, say in company with the Psalmist, "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give the praise," and with the four and twenty elders who cast their crowns before the throne, "Blessing and honour and glory and power be unto Him that sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb for ever and ever" (Rev 5:13).

Lapide: 1Co 2:1-16

CHAPTER II.

SYNOPSIS OF THE CHAPTER

He proceeds to exalt the spiritual wisdom of Christ above all natural and animal wisdom. Therefore he says:—

i. That he knew and preached nothing but Christ crucified; and that not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.

ii. Nevertheless in ver. 5 he says that he speaks wisdom among them that are perfect, wisdom hidden from the world, which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, but which the Spirit of God alone has revealed.

iii. He shows in ver. 14 that the natural man does not perceive the things which are of God, but the spiritual man perceives and judges all things.

Ver. 1.— And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom. The Apostle here descends from the general to the particular. In other words: I said in the preceding chapter that God in preaching the Gospel willed not to use the wisdom of the wise in this world, but rejected it and scorned it, but willed by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe; and therefore He chose not many noble or wise to spread the Gospel, but the low-born and untaught Apostles. From this I infer and say " And I " i.e., and so I as one of the number of the Apostles, who, according to the election and will of God, did not use eloquence and worldly wisdom, was unwilling to use those means, and I came to you not in excellency but in simplicity of speech and wisdom.

Ver. 2.— For I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Mark the word determined: it is as if he said, I did not think of, I did not value any knowledge save that which is of Jesus crucified, our Saviour, and, therefore, I so bore myself among you, as if I knew nothing of human wisdom, although I have much acquaintance with it, for on other occasions I can quote the Greek poets; but with you I kept it back, that like the others I might merely preach with all simplicity Christ crucified. Not that I did not preach the other mysteries of the faith, but I especially taught you and impressed on you that we must glory in the Cross of Christ only, and hope from it for our righteousness and salvation, and, as Anselm says, must imitate the cross and crucify our vices. For in Christ crucified it is easy to see, besides other things, that Christ chose and embraced these three, viz., utmost pain, the greatest poverty or nakedness, and the lowest depths of shame. Christ by His pains crucified and taught us to crucify the lust of the flesh; by His poverty He crucified the lust of the eyes or avarice; and by His shame He crucified the pride of life. These are the three heads of the world's sin, and the sources of all sins. (See 1 S. John ii. 16, and what was said about the Cross in c. i. 23).

Ver. 3.— And I was with you in weakness : that is, in anxieties, tribulation, and persecution; and in fear and much trembling, because of the hostility of the persecuting Jews and Gentiles.  S. Chrysostom and Anselm remark that the Apostle in his Second Epistle (xi. 30 and xii. 5, 9, 10), and elsewhere, gives the name of weakness to the anxiety he suffered from dangers, plots, exile, daily terrors, calumnies, and hatreds. And also, that Paul suffered great anxieties and persecutions at Corinth, is evident in that he needed to be strengthened against them by Christ in a vision (Acts xviii. 9). Moreover, shortly afterwards the Jews there stirred up a tumult against Paul, and dragged him to the judgment–seat of Gallio, the deputy of Achaia, and publicly beat Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, before him.

Ver. 4.— And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom,, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. Speech (λόγος ) denotes his private and familiar conversation as contrasted with his public preaching.  S. Thomas and the Glossa distinguished the two words in this way; so does Seneca, who, in Ep. 38, says: " Conversation, because it makes an impression on the mind by little and little, is of immense force. Speeches prepared and delivered to a large assembly have more vehemence but less familiarity." S. Paul's conversation, then, as well as his preaching, was not with enticing words ( i.e., apt to persuade) of man's wisdom. In such the orators and philosophers at Corinth surpassed Paul. Paul, however, had to make the Corinthians believe a new philosophy by a new mode of speech and action, and in this he excelled all orators and philosophers, viz., in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. So Sulpicius testifies that S. Martin once said that "the kingdom is not founded on eloquence but on faith." S, Augustine, too, in his Sermon 1, about those coming to grace, says: " We do not try to persuade you with thundering words and flowery phrases, nor by any rhetorical skill, nor by eloquence darkened by set speeches such as the world uses, but we preach Christ crucified." And in lib. ii. c. ii., against Felicianus, he says: " I will never rely on wisdom of words, lest the Cross of Christ be shorn of its power; but I am content to rely on the authority of the Scriptures, and I am more anxious to obey simplicity than presumption."

This, then, was the demonstration of the Apostles, viz., to show (1.) burning zeal and a spirit giving forth wisdom and revealing secrets, not human but Divine, so that the hearers might perceive plainly that the Holy Spirit was speaking by their mouth; (2.) great powers, that is prodigies and miracles. Therefore Origen ( lib. i. contra Celsum ) says: " Our mode of teaching has its own proper demonstration, which is more Divine than that of the Greeks, and which is called by the Apostle, 'the demonstration of the Spirit and of power.' The Spirit lends faith to those things which are said about Christ in the Prophets; and the power is seen in the miracles which we believe to have been wrought." Origen here understands the work of the Spirit somewhat differently, but his explanation is not so much to the point as the one given above. For, as Œcumenius says, " The demonstration which comes by works and signs is surer than that which depends on words." This was the Apostolical mode of preaching, and a far more effectual way than that which modern preachers put before themselves for imitation. Their style was not adorned, clouded over, and tainted with enticing words of man's wisdom, but was in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. So will Apostolic men go forth, and their words, like fiery arrows, will pierce men's hearts, and like hammers break in pieces the rocks. Listen to S. Jerome ( Ep. ii. to Nepotianus ): " Let not the applause of the congregation be aroused by your teaching in church, but their groanings. Let the tears of the hearers be the proofs of your success." This spirit, as well as the fruit of preaching, must be obtained by prayer to God. Hence Origen ( contra Celsum, lib. vi.), in quoting these same words of the Apostle, says " What else is the meaning of these words but that it is not enough that what we say is true and fit to stir the hearts of men? the teacher must have a certain power given him from above, and his words require the energy of Divine grace, as David says, 'The Lord shall give the word to those that preach with much power '" (Ps. lxvii. Vulg.).

Ver. 5.— That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. Our preaching is to be of the kind just mentioned, so that your faith, i.e., your conversion to the faith of Christ, may not be attributed to human wisdom and eloquence but to the power and working of God. Your faith must be based on God's wisdom not on man's. (Anselm and others.)

Ver. 6.— Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect. This wisdom that he speaks among the perfect, that is, the faithful, is Christian wisdom, and is concerned with the Cross of Christ, with grace, salvation, and the eternal glory won for us by Christ. And although the "faithful" are simple, yet in the things which belong to salvation they are wiser than Aristotle or any other philosopher. So S. Chrysostom and Anselm. Moreover, those who have not only been born again by baptism, but also confirmed by the Sacrament of Confirmation, have obtained the Christian perfection, and are perfectly made Christians. For this reason S. Dionysius and others call the Sacrament of Confirmation "the perfecting," and they call those confirmed "the perfected." Irenæus implies the same ( lib. v. c. 6), when he says: " We speak wisdom among them that are perfect, that is, those who have received the Holy Spirit, and by that Spirit speak all tongues just as S. Paul did."

Secondly and more simply, wisdom here denotes the more hidden and deeper mysteries of the faith, such as the Resurrection, Anti-Christ, Reprobation, Predestination; or a more profound and thorough explanation of the things of faith, such as the mode, counsel, and end of the Incarnation, Passion, and Redemption of Christ; for so S. Paul explains wisdom in the verses immediately following. He does not speak and discourse of this wisdom to beginners, but to those who have advanced and are perfected. Hence in ver. 15, he calls the perfect "spiritual," and contrasts them with the natural man, with children and carnal men. He is here impressing on them that, though he may seem to have no human wisdom, yet he has Divine; that although he has given to them, as to children, milk, that is, simple and easy teaching (iii. 2), yet amongst the perfect he speaks of hidden and Divine wisdom.

The Apostle by these words defends his authority over the Corinthians, who, after hearing Apollos, an eloquent and learned speaker, seemed to hold S. Paul in little esteem, as a speaker without eloquence or skill.

Yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world. Anselm, Ambrose, Cajetan, and others understand the devils by the princes of this world, inasmuch as they have their power over the air, the ungodly, and the children of this world. And they prove from here that the devil, before the Passion of Christ, although he knew that Christ was God, yet did not know that by His death his own empire was to be destroyed, and men redeemed (ver. 8). This is true, but it is truer still when understood of men.

Secondly, S. Chrysostom, Theophylact, Anselm, Tertullian ( contra Marcion, lib. iii. c. 6), Origen ( Song Nom. 2) understand by the princes of this world the leaders who excel their fellows in wisdom, wealth, or power. And therefore S. Paul adds, that come to nought, i.e., are done away with, pass by, disappear. These, too, crucified Christ (ver. 8). Such were Pilate, Herod, Annas, Caiaphas, and other princes of the Jews and Gentiles.

Ver. 7.— But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. (1.) This is a Hebraism for "the wisdom of the mystery." that great secret of the Divine counsel, about the Incarnation of the Word, and the redemption of man by Christ, which cannot be attained to by man by any effort of reason—no, nor yet by the angels, as is clear from Eph. v. 4, 5. Hence, in 1 Tim. iii. 16, this wisdom of the mystery is called the great mystery of godliness. So Theophylact, Ambrose, Œcumenius, commenting on this verse, and Jerome and Leo Castrius on Isa. lxiv; also S. Leo. (2.) We may understand this wisdom to be concerned with the greatness of the glory of the Blessed, for this was the end of the Incarnation and suffering of the Word.

Secondly, it is simpler to connect the words "in a mystery" with "we speak" rather than with "wisdom." Then the meaning is, we speak secretly and to a few, viz., those who are perfect, the spiritual, of this deeper and more hidden wisdom. Hence Ephrem and Tertullian render the passage: "We speak of the wisdom of God in secret." Hence also S. Dionysius and others have written books on mystic theology.

Ver. 8.— Which none of the princes of this world knew. The pronoun is better referred to glory than to wisdom, and the sense is: if this wisdom, or rather this glory and its being predestined in Christ, had been known by Pilate, Annas, Caiaphas, and the other princes of the world, they would never have crucified the Lord of Glory, viz., Christ, by whose merits this eternal glory was predestined and prepared for us from eternity. Gabriel Vasquez comments well on this passage ( lib. i. disp. 2, c. 3). The Apostle tacitly implies that none other of the princes of this world knew this glory and wisdom of Christ. For, à fortiori, the Jews were wiser than the Gentiles, especially in Divine things; if, therefore, they did not know it, much more were the others ignorant of it.

Ver. 9.— But, as it is written, eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. After "but" there is an ecthlipsis, and we must supply, "this wisdom and the glory which was its end were hidden from them," as it is written, &c. He then quotes Isa 64:4.

1. Isaiah, in the passage quoted, is speaking of the Incarnation of Christ and of this present life. And hence Chrysostom, Ambrose, Theophylact, Œcumenius take this verse of the miracles of Christ, and of the wisdom, virtues, and grace which Christ by living here on earth has imparted to us.

2. It is more agreeable to the context to say that Isaiah seems to fly away in admiration from the Incarnation and manhood of Christ to the celestial glory, which is the fruit and end of the Incarnation of Christ; for such flights and sudden changes are common with the Prophets, because of the sublime and ample light if prophecy which they enjoyed.

This appears from the words used; as, e.g., " Him that waiteth for him," and " Thou meetest him that worketh righteousness." He is speaking then of the fruit of the works of the just, viz., the eternal life which we wait for; for the fruit of the Incarnation and faith does not meet them that work righteousness, but those that are sitting in darkness and sin. So says S. Jerome (in Isa. lxiv.), S. Dionysius ( De Cælest. Hierarch. 12), and Vasquez, in the passage above quoted. Hence S. Bernard ( Serm. 4 on the Vigil of the Nativity ) says: " Eye hath not seen that unapproachable light, ear hath not heard that incomprehensible peace . . . And why is it that it has not ascended into the heart of man? Surely because it is a spring and cannot ascend. For we know that the nature of springs is to seek the rivers in the valleys, and to shun the tops of the mountains; for God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble."

S. Augustine, in his "Meditations," ch. 22 et seqq., and "Soliloquies," ch. 35 and 36, discourses most beautifully about the greatness of this bliss. The author too of the book on "The Spirit and the Soul" (which is found in vol. iii. ch. 36 of S. Augustine's works), very appropriately says on this passage of the Apostle: " As the outward man is affected by temporal things through his five senses, so the inward man, in the life of bliss, is affected by the five ineffable attributes of God through his ineffable love for Him. For when he shall love his God, He will know him as a certain light, a voice, a sweet odour, a food, and an inward embrace. For there shines the light which no place can contain; there sounds the music which no time steals away; there is the sweet odour which no wind can scatter; there is the food which is eaten and yet undiminished; there clings to us the good which knows no satiety; there is God seen without intermission, known without error, loved without disgust, and praised without wearying."

These words of the Apostle were once the occasion of the conversion of S. Adrian, and made him a martyr. He was a soldier and in the flower of his age, viz., twenty eight yeas old, and when he beheld the constancy of the Christian martyrs in the tortures they had to endure for the faith of Christ, he asked them what they expected in return for such sufferings, what enabled them to overcome such tortures. They replied, "We hope for those good things which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, which God hath prepared for them that love Him." By these words Adrian was touched and converted, and he hastened to get himself enrolled in the list of martyrs, and eagerly bore a cruel death at Nicomedia, with his wife Natalia looking on and encouraging him. This was A.D. 306, under Diocletian.

3. The meaning of this passage will be complete if you combine the two interpretations given above thus: Those good things which Thou, God, through Christ, hast prepared for them that wait for Thee, surpass all our senses, experience, natural understanding, and all human desire, not only in this life in the case of those who have already caught some sounds of Thee, but also chiefly and most properly in the future glory. There will God, who is Himself all that good is, give Himself to the blessed, and will be as all in all, as Anselm says. For by these words of Isaiah, the Apostle proves what he has said, viz., that the wisdom as well as the glory of Christ was secret and hidden, as we saw above.

Neither have entered into the heart of man. Has not come into the mind of man: no man can by nature think of or understand them. The heart with the Hebrews stands for the mind. For what the heart is to the body—its chief and noblest part, the source and principle of life—that is the mind to the soul. Moreover, the heart supplies the brain with its vigour, and so is a kind of handmaid to the imagination and consequently the understanding. Hence Aristotle, though against Galen and all other physicians, placed the apprehension of external objects not in the brain but in the heart. He distinguished the vital organs of man by their functions on these verses:

"The heart gives wisdom, the lung speech, and anger comes from the bile,

  The spleen is the cause of laughter, and live comes from the liver."

Where Isaiah has "them that wait for Thee," S. Paul has "them that love Thee." The sense is the same, for love is one cause of expectation.

Ver. 10.— But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit. S. Paul here anticipates an objection. It might be said, "If eye hath not seen, neither have entered into the heart of man, the wisdom and the glory that Christ has prepared for His friends, how is it that you boast yourself of its possession?" Paul replies that he knows them not by sight, sensation, or by the understanding, but by the inspiration and revelation of God. Hence, Clement of Alexandria ( Pædag. lib. i. c. 6) interprets the phrase, "ear hath not heard," by adding, "except that ear which was taken up into the third heaven," viz., Paul's, who heard with the ear in Paradise mystic words which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Paul means, then, that God has revealed these things to us His Apostles and Prophets filled with His Spirit, in order that we may teach you and others. It appears from this that not only is our longing for bliss and glory supernatural, but that our knowledge of them is also, whether that knowledge be of them in their essence, or merely the obscure and fragmentary knowledge of the Apostles and of all others who are still "in the way." Consequently there is not naturally in man any perfect and effectual desire, or appetite, for this bliss.

The Spirit searcheth all things, the deep things of God. That is, penetrates into and perceives everything. For when men want to learn something of which they are ignorant, they are wont to search and inquire about it. But God, without any such searching, knows everything at a glance, and as it were by a single application of His mind. (S. Thomas, Theodoret, Theophylact.)

The deep things of God are all the most secret and inward counsels of God. Amongst them the chiefest is this mystery of man's glory and redemption by Christ. All these the Holy Spirit penetrates into and clearly views, because He is of one essence and knowledge with God, and therefore He so "searches the deep things of God," that nothing in God remains unknown t Him. His knowledge and sight equal their object, and He knows God as he can be known; i.e., the Holy Spirit, because He is God, comprehends God and His Divinity as completely as He comprehends Himself. (Molina part i. qu. 14, a. 3, Theodoret, S. Thomas.) From this passage Ambrose and other Fathers prove the Godhead of the Holy Ghost against the Macedonians. To sum up S. Paul's meaning: The Holy Spirit has revealed to us these mysteries and secrets of God: He knows all the secrets of God, and therefore He searches and clearly views the deep things of God.

Ver. 11.— What man knoweth the things of a man? Those in the inner recesses if his being, which are buried in his heart and mind, as, e.g., his thoughts, resolutions, and intentions, and the foundation of the character itself.

Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit knows them as well as Himself. For the Holy Spirit is internal to God, just as the spirit of a man is internal to him; and as the spirit of a man is a sharer of his humanity, so the Spirit of God is a partaker of Godhead, and of the Divine omni-science and power. "The things of God" are those which are hidden in the mind of God—the thoughts, counsels and determinations of the Divine Will.

After "knoweth no man, but the Spirit" must be understood, "and He to whom the Spirit has willed to reveal them, as to me and the other Apostles," as was said in ver. 10.

"No man, but the Spirit" foes not exclude the Son. For since He is he Word, he knows the deep things of God. For in Divine things, when as exclusive or exceptive word is applied to one Person in respect of the Divine attributes, it does not exclude the other Divine Persons, but only all other essences from the Divine, i.e., it only excludes those whose nature differs from that of God. The meaning then is: No one knows the secret things of God, save the Spirit of God, and they who have the dame nature with the Spirit, the same intellectual and cognitive powers, viz., the Father and the Son. These alone know the deep things of God.

Ver. 12.— Now we have received not the spirit of the world but the Spirit which is of God. He contrasts the spirit of the world with the Spirit which is of God, claims the latter for himself and the Apostles, and assigns the other to the wise men of this world. The spirit of the world, therefore, is that which id infused by the world, by worldly and carnal wisdom, which aspires after worldly, earthly, and carnal goods, and makes men worldly and carnal. In the other hand the Spirit of God is that which is infused by God and Divine Wisdom, which makes us pursue heavenly and Divine goods, and makes men spiritual and heavenly. Therefore the Apostle adds—

That we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. On this passage the heretics found their peculiar belief that each Christian knows for a certainty that he ought by heavenly faith to believe that he has through Christ had given to him by God the forgiveness of his sins, with grace and righteousness, and as Calvin says, that he has been chosen to eternal glory. But this is not faith, but a foolish and false presumption, not to say blindness; because we do not certainly know that we have been duly disposed for righteousness, and whether we surely believe, and as we ought; nor is it anywhere said or revealed in Holy Scripture that I believe as I ought to do, or that I am righteous or one of the elect. The best answer to them is the sense of the passage, which is this: The Holy Spirit shows and reveals to us what and how great are the gifts given to us, the Apostles, by God, and to others who love God—so great indeed that eye has not seen them, nor have they entered into the heart of man; for the Apostle looks back to ver. 9.

I say, then, that the Apostle is speaking in general terms of the gifts which were given to the Apostles and the Church, and of those gifts alone. He says in effect: "We received this Spirit that we, i.e., the Apostles, might know with what gifts and good things in general Christ has enriched us, i.e., His Church, viz., with what grace of the Spirit, what redemption, what virtues, and especially with how great glory;" for these were the things alluded to in ver. 9; and these things are, as he says in ver. 11, in God, i.e., by the free-will and predestination of God. "We know, too, through the Holy Spirit the Revelation, that these things have been given by God to the Church; for we speak of and teach these things as part of the faith. But that I am possessed of them, or a sharer in them, is not a matter of faith, but of conjecture: it is not to be publicly preached, but secretly hoped for."

Again, the word know may be taken in a twofold sense: (1.) Objectively; (2.) Subjectively.

1. Objectively, the Apostle knew, and all the faithful knew, from the prophecies, miracles, and from other signs from God, that He had promised to His congregation ( i.e., His Church, which had been called together by the Apostles, and was afterwards to be called together), and that, according to His promises, He had given His grace, and lastly a sure hope of eternal life. But all this was to His Church in common, not to this or that individual in it; for we cannot know in a particular case whether this one or that us faithful. In this sense the word know is the same as believe. For we believe that the Catholic Church is holy, and that in her there is forgiveness of sins and everlasting life. God, therefore, has only revealed that His Church is holy, but not that I am holy. For although he has revealed and has promised to all in the Church, who rightly believe and repent, forgiveness of sins and righteousness, yet He has not revealed that I believe truly repent; and therefore He has not revealed that my sins are forgiven, and that I am justified.

2. The word know may be taken subjectively: we Apostles know by experience what wisdom and grace God has given us; and in this way the word know is the same as experience. For no one of the Apostles believed by faith from above that he had wisdom and grace; but he experienced the acts and effects of grace in himself so vehemently frequently, clearly, and surely, that he felt morally certain that he had true wisdom, and it behoved them to teach others the same, and wholly to long to bring the world to Christ. Although, then, the Apostles knew by experience that they had been justified and sanctified, still the rest of the faithful did not know it, nor do they know it now. They can only hope so, and conjecture it from the signs of an upright and good life. Yet neither the Apostles, nor they, believe it on the testimony of infused faith; for experience of every kind merely generates human faith, not Divine: that springs from and depends on the revelation of God alone.

Ver. 13.— Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth. I.e., not in words taught by Cicero, Demosthenes, or Aristotle, such as human wisdom teaches, but in words inspired by the Holy Ghost.

Comparing spiritual things with spiritual. In other words, we teach this spiritual wisdom from the Scriptures and other spiritual writings, and do not base it on philosophical, rhetorical, or earthly reasons, ideas, or speeches, as S. Chrysostom says. Œcumenius says: " If we are asked whether Christ rose on the third day, we bring forward testimony and proofs from Jonah. If we are asked whether the Lord was born of a Virgin, we compare His mother in her virginity to Anna and Elizabeth in their sterility, and thence rove it." The Apostle here gives à priori the cause and reason why, at God's command, he refrained from using eloquence and human wisdom in his preaching. The reason is that Divine and human wisdom so widely differ. Since, then, speech should be fitted to the subject—matter, it was evidently right that that speech, by which Divine wisdom was published, should be adapted to it, and should differ from the words of human wisdom—that is to say, that it should be simple, grave, efficacious, and Divine, as proceeding from the Holy Spirit, who would reject all rhetorical ornamentation. In this matter we are bidden to learn, forbidden to use ornament. For as words of human wisdom carry with them the wisdom and the spirit of the speaker, so do the words of the Holy Spirit bring into the soul the wisdom of God, and of his Spirit speaking by the Apostles.

Ver. 14.— The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. Natural or animal is here applied to one who is concerned with this life only, and thinks after the way of this life, who follows the objects of his sensations and the thoughts of his heart. Such were the Apostles before they received the Holy Spirit, and such were the Corinthians at this time, as they sought after eloquence. Now, too, there are many of the faithful, not bad men, who do not seek after higher things.

The word animal here comes from "anima," and has a threefold application. (1.) It is applied to one who grows, takes nourishment, and needs food, as all animals do. So Adam, though created in grace, is called animal [natural] (1Co 15:45-46).  (2.) Secondly, to one who follows his nature, i.e., his lusts and desires. So the Jews are called animal or natural, as not having the Spirit. (3.) To one who follows after knowledge that is not spiritual and sublime, but open and easy to the mind and senses. This is the meaning here. Bernard, or whoever is the author of the treatise on the solitary life, says, a little after the beginning of it: " The natural state is a mode of life subservient to the senses of the body, viz., when the soul, as though going outside herself, pursues, by means of the bodily senses, the pleasure she finds in the bodies she loves, feeds on the enjoyment they give, and nourishes her own sensual disposition; or when, as though returning to herself, on finding that she is unable to bring to the place where her incorporeal nature is the bodies to which she has joined herself by the powerful bonds of love and habit, she brings with her images of them, and holds friendly conversation with them. And when she has accustomed herself to them, she thinks that there is nothing save what she left behind her without, or herself brought within. Thenceforward, as long as she remains here, she finds her pleasure in living according to the pleasures of the body; but when she is prevented from enjoying them, she has no thought but such as are images of bodily things."

So he is called spiritual who lives in the Spirit:

1. As a spirit not needing food, so Christ lived after His resurrection (1Co 15:45).

2. As following the inspiration, direction, and movements of the Spirit.

3. As drinking in the heavenly teaching of the Spirit. Such a one is called spiritual by S. Chrysostom, S. Thomas, and others. S. Bernard, in the place just quoted, writes: " The state of beginners may be called natural, of those who are advancing rational, of those who are perfect spiritual. For they are natural who by themselves are neither led by reason nor drawn by affection, and yet are influenced by authority, or touched by doctrine, or provoked by example to approve, and strive to imitate the good. They are rational who through the judgment of reason have some knowledge and desire of good, but have not yet any love of it. They are perfect who are led by the Spirit, who are illuminated by the Holy Spirit more fully, and derive their name of 'the spiritual' from this. And since they know the taste of the good, and are led by their love for it, they are called the wise, or those who know. " Then in comparing these three, and forming of them steps, and a ladder of virtues, he goes on to say: " The first state has to do with the body, the second with the soul, the third finds no rest but in God. The beginning of good in conversion is perfect obedience, its advancement is the subjection of the body, its perfection is to have turned through continued good actions custom into love. The beginning of the rational is to understand those things which are put before it in the teaching of faith, its advancement is marked by the providing of those things which are enjoined, its perfection is seen in the judgment of the reason becoming the live of the heart. The perfection of the rational is the beginning of the spiritual; its advancement consists in seeing the glory of God with unveiled face; its perfection is to be changed into the same image from glory to glory as by the Spirit of the Lord."

Because they are spiritually discerned, i.e., according to the rules given by the Holy Spirit and the canons of faith. Some read, he is spiritually discerned, which would mean that he is invited, by being examined, to spiritual and heavenly wisdom. When he is being instructed in spiritual matters, or when spiritual things are put before the natural man, and when the natural man is questioned about spiritual things, he cannot understand them.

Ver. 15.— But he that is spiritual judgeth all things. He is called spiritual, as we have seen, who follows faith and wisdom and the teaching of the Holy Spirit, who has the Holy Spirit as the ruler of his soul. So Chrysostom, Anselm, S. Thomas.

Judgeth all things. 1. Hence Calvin and the Anabaptists make the private and fanatical spirit of each spiritual man, i.e., each one of the faithful, the arbiter of controversies of faith, and the interpreter of Scripture; but wrongly, for all Christians are not spiritual, but only the perfect, as was said at ver. 14.

2. Others cannot know whether a man has this spirit, whether he is spiritual, nay, whether he is even faithful. Therefore this private and secret spirit cannot be the public judge of all things; but this is the province of Councils and the Pope. For it is known that these are spiritual, that they are governed by the Holy See, who appointed them teachers, and by them governs and teaches the Church.

3. The Fathers were spiritual to a high degree, and yet they sometimes erred.

4. It is evident that the simple need the pastors and teachers whom God has placed in the Church to teach others (Eph 4:11).

I answer, then, that this passage means that the spiritual man judges things in general, spiritual things, Divine and heavenly things, natural, earthly, and easy things; while the natural man judges natural things only. This is that there may be a distribution proportioned to classes of individuals, and not to individuals of different classes. So we say, "I live on every kind of food," i.e., on any kind.

In the second place, to "judge all things" is to examine, confute, and sift questions, according to the rules of the faith, and of the Divine wisdom which the spiritual man has. Of course this is in questions in which he has been sufficiently instructed from above, as, e.g., in clear and ascertained matters of faith he judges everything according to the articles of the faith. But if any new question in faith or morals should arise, and it is obscure or doubtful, wisdom itself dictated to the spiritual man, who in this question is not yet spiritual, or sufficiently taught by the Spirit, to have recourse to his superiors, as the same Spirit teaches him, to the doctors, to his mother, the Roman Church, that she may decide and define this question for him. For she, according to the teaching of the Apostle, is plainly spiritual, and judges all things by the direction and assistance of the Spirit. For Christ promised this to Peter, and in him to his successors (S. Matt. xviii. 18; S. Luke xxii. 32). They, then, are highly spiritual, and they judge all things, It is different with those beneath them, who, though they be spiritual, yet should often seek the judgment of their superiors. Otherwise he who is spiritual would never have to obey the decision of his father, or his teacher or his bishop. In so far, then, as the spiritual man follows the leading of the Spirit, either teaching him directly, or sending him to the doctors of the Church, he cannot err. In the same way S. John says that he that is born of God cannot sin (1Jo 3:9); i.e., so far as he that is born of God abides in Him. So S. Thomas, Ambrose, Anselm, Theophylact, Chrysostom. S. Paul's meaning, then, is that the spiritual man judges well about the hidden mysteries of the faith, and about things in general, and if he doubts, he knows what to do, whom he ought to consult, so as to receive instruction. So Aristotle ( Ethics iii. 4) says. " A good man rightly judges in all cases, and the virtuous man is the rule and measure of all human things, " i.e., says S. Thomas, because he has a will ordered judgment and good desires, obedient to law and reason, Still, in difficult cases he ought to consult those who are wiser and more skilled in the law.

Yet he himself is judged of no man, i.e., is confuted or condemned by to one, in so far as he judges spiritually, as S. Chrysostom says. For if otherwise, he is reproved as S. Peter was by S. Paul (Gal 2:11). On the other hand the natural man is spiritually examined and judged by the spiritual, even though he does not know it or understand it. For in this passage the whole endeavour of the Apostle is to exclude human and worldly wisdom by spiritual, and to contrast the spiritual with the natural, and to put it first, since the Corinthians did the opposite and therefore put Apollos before Paul. He implies, therefore, that the Corinthians are natural, because they sought after "enticing words of man's wisdom," such as they admired in the eloquence of Apollos; and he says that they cannot judge about spiritual things, and the spiritual wisdom of Paul, but that he and men like him ought to judge both spiritual and natural wisdom. This and nothing else is what the Apostle is aiming at.

Ver. 16.— Who hath known the mind of the Lord? Since the spiritual man has been taught by God and follows His rules, so far as he is such, he can be judged by no one; for one who should judge him ought to be wiser or greater than the Spirit of God, so as to be able to penetrate and measure that Spirit. But who can do this? So Chrysostom. Nevertheless, the spiritual man often can be and ought to be judged, because he is not known to be spiritual in a given matter. Hence, in cxiv. 29, he says, "Let the others speak two or three, and let the others judge." Moreover, many boast themselves to be spiritual who are merely natural, as, e.g., the Anabaptists. But S. Paul was confessedly spiritual, hence he adds, We have the mind of Christ— the wisdom of Christ which is spiritual and Divine, not natural and human. Our wisdom is not that of Plato or Pythagoras, but of Christ, who has infused His truths into our minds. So Chrysostom.

Commentary -- Other

Evidence: 1Co 1:18

" To convince the world of the truth of Christianity, it must first be convinced of sin. It is only sin that renders Christ intelligible." Andrew Murray, The Spirit of Christ

SPRINGBOARDS FOR PREACHING AND WITNESSING

The Sinking Ship

Imagine for a moment that you are standing on the seashore gazing at a large ocean liner. The sun is shining. There is no wind and the sea is calm. To your amazement, about thirty people suddenly dive off the end of the ship and cling to a lifeboat.

You shake your head in disbelief at their foolishness. Then without warning, the great ocean liner strikes an iceberg and suddenly sinks, taking all on board with it.

Those who looked like fools in abandoning the ship were actually wise, and those who seemed wise by staying on board were, in truth, fools.

The world scoffs at those who abandon the ship of this world and cling to the lifeboat of the Savior. But Christians know that this great pleasure-cruiser will eventually come into contact with the immovable iceberg of the Law of God, sink into hell...and take all those on board with it.

Evidence: 1Co 1:23

There were some in John Wesley’s day who refused to preach the Law to bring the knowledge of sin. They justified their method by saying that they preached " Christ and Him crucified." So Wesley points to Paul’s method of preaching Christ crucified:

" ...when Felix sent for Paul, on purpose that he might ‘hear him concerning the faith in Christ;’ instead of preaching Christ in your sense (which would probably have caused the Governor, either to mock or to contradict and blaspheme,) ‘he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come,’ till Felix (hardened as he was) ‘trembled,’ ( Act 24:24-25 ). Go thou and tread in his steps. Preach Christ to the careless sinner, by reasoning ‘of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come!’" John Wesley

Evidence: 1Co 1:25

" Everything that can be invented has been invented." Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. Office of Patents, 1899

Evidence: 1Co 1:27

Many years ago, I ran a children’s club. At the end of the club I told about one hundred kids to line up for some candy. There was an immediate rush, and the line sorted itself into what I saw as being a line of greed. The big and selfish kids were at the front, and the quiet and sickly ones were at the back. I then did something that gave me great satisfaction. I told them to turn about face. Everyone did. Then I said to stay where they were, and I took great delight in going to the other end of the line and giving the candy to the quiet, sickly kids first.

In a world where the rich get richer and the poor get stomped on, we are informed that God has gone to the other end of the line with the message of everlasting life. How has He done that? Simply by choosing that which is weak, base, and despised. You can see this by asking a skeptic, " Do you believe that the following biblical accounts actually happened?"

Adam and Eve, Noah’s ark, Jonah and the whale, Joshua and the walls of Jericho, Samson and his long hair, Daniel and the lion’s den, Moses and the Red Sea

Of course he doesn’t. To say that he believed such fantastic stories would mean that he would have to surrender his intellectual dignity. Who in their right mind would ever do that? The answer is simply those who understand that God has chosen foolish, base, weak, and despised things of the world to confound those who think they are wise.

Evidence: 1Co 2:1

Qualifications for Evangelism :

1. A witness need not have " excellency of speech or of wisdom." He should simply declare what he has seen and heard.

2. He must not get sidetracked with unnecessary details, but focus on the essentials of Christ’s death on the cross.

3. He must have " weakness" (not trusting in his own strength or ability).

4. He must have " fear" (in Greek, phobos, " that which is caused by being scared" ).

5. He must have " much trembling" (awareness of his insufficiency).

Do you meet these qualifications?

Evidence: 1Co 2:4

POINTS FOR OPEN AIR PREACHING

Watch for " Red Herrings" or " Rabbit Trails"

The Bible warns us to avoid foolish questions because they start arguments ( 2Ti 2:23 ). Most of us have fallen into the trap of jumping at every objection to the gospel. However, these questions can often be arguments in disguise to sidetrack you from the " weightier matters of the Law." While apologetics (arguments for God’s existence, creation vs. evolution, etc.) are legitimate in evangelism, they should merely be " bait," with the Law of God being the " hook" that brings the conviction of sin. Those who witness solely in the realm of apologetical argument may just get an intellectual decision rather than a repentant conversion. The sinner may come to a point of acknowledging that the Bible is the Word of God, and Jesus is Lord—but even the devil knows that.

Always pull the sinner back to his responsibility before God on Judgment Day, as Jesus did in Luk 13:1-5 . Whenever you are in an open-air situation, be wary of so-called Christians who are intent on distracting workers from witnessing. They argue about prophecy, of how much water one should baptize with, or in whose name they should be baptized. It is grievous to see five or six Christians standing around arguing with some sectarian nitpicker, while sinners are sinking into hell. See Act 21:30 footnote.

Evidence: 1Co 2:5

If someone has been converted to the Christian faith by the wisdom of men, all it would take is the wisdom of unconverted men to talk him out of his faith. However, if he is transformed by the power of God, he is not solely motivated to Christianity by his intellect. The Holy Spirit has convicted him of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The motivation is the Law of God working upon his conscience. That has given him the knowledge that he has offended a holy God. His repentance is therefore directed at God, who responds in mercy. Those who are converted by God cannot be talked out of their faith because they were not talked into it.

Introduction / Outline

Robertson: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

First Corinthians

From Ephesus a.d. 54 Or 55

By Way of Introduction

It would be a hard-boiled critic today who would dare deny the genuineness of I Corinthians. The Dutch wild man, Van Manen, did indeed argue that Paul wrote no epistles if indeed he ever lived. Such intellectual banality is well answered by Whateley’s Historic Doubts about Napolean Bonaparte which was so cleverly done that some readers were actually convinced that no such man ever existed, but is the product of myth and legend. Even Baur was compelled to acknowledge the genuineness of I and II Corinthians, Galatians and Romans (the Big Four of Pauline criticism). It is a waste of time now to prove what all admit to be true. Paul of Tarsus, the Apostle to the Gentiles, wrote I Corinthians.

We know where Paul was when he wrote the letter for he tells us in 1Co_16:8 : " But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost." That was, indeed, his plan, but the uproar in Ephesus at the hands of Demetrius caused his departure sooner than he expected (Acts 18:21-20:1; 2Co_2:12.). But he is in Ephesus when he writes.

We know also the time of the year when he writes, in the spring before pentecost. Unfortunately we do not know the precise year, though it was at the close of his stay of three years (in round numbers) at Ephesus (Act_20:31). Like all the years in Paul’s ministry we have to allow a sliding scale in relation to his other engagements. One may guess the early spring of a.d. 54 or 55.

The occasion of the Epistle is made plain by numerous allusions personal and otherwise. Paul had arrived in Ephesus from Antioch shortly after the departure of Apollos for Corinth with letters of commendation from Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18:28-19:1). It is not clear how long Apollos remained in Corinth, but he is back in Ephesus when Paul writes the letter and he has declined Paul’s request to go back to Corinth (1Co_16:12). Some of the household of Chloe had heard or come from Corinth with full details of the factions in the church over Apollos and Paul, clearly the reason why Apollos left (1Co_1:10-12). Even Cephas nominally was drawn into it, though there is no evidence that Peter himself had come to Corinth. Paul had sent Timothy over to Corinth to put an end to the factions (1Co_4:17), though he was uneasy over the outcome (1Co_16:10.). This disturbance was enough of itself to call forth a letter from Paul. But it was by no means the whole story. Paul had already written a letter, now lost to us, concerning a peculiarly disgusting case of incest in the membership (1Co_5:9). They were having lawsuits with one another before heathen judges. Members of the church had written Paul a letter about marriage whether any or all should marry (1Co_7:1). They were troubled also whether it was right to eat meat that had been offered to idols in the heathen temples (1Co_8:1). Spiritual gifts of an unusual nature were manifested in Corinth and these were the occasion of a deal of trouble (1Co_12:1). The doctrine of the resurrection gave much trouble in Corinth (1Co_15:12). Paul was interested in the collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem (1Co_16:1) and in their share in it. The church in Corinth had sent a committee (Stephanas, Fortunatus, Achaicus) to Paul in Ephesus. He hopes to come himself after passing through Macedonia (1Co_16:5.). It is possible that he had made a short visit before this letter (2Co_13:1), though not certain as he may have intended to go one time without going as he certainly once changed his plans on the subject (2Co_1:15-22). Whether Titus took the letter on his visit or it was sent on after the return of Timothy is not perfectly clear. Probably Timothy returned to Ephesus from Corinth shortly after the epistle was sent on, possibly by the committee who returned to Corinth (1Co_16:17), for Timothy and Erastus were sent on from Ephesus to Macedonia before the outbreak at the hands of Demetrius (Act_19:22). Apparently Timothy had not fully succeeded in reconciling the factions in Corinth for Paul dispatched Titus who was to meet him at Troas as he went on to Macedonia. Paul’s hurried departure from Ephesus (Act_20:1) took him to Troas before Titus arrived and Paul’s impatience there brought him to Macedonia where he did meet Titus on his return from Corinth (2Co_2:12.).

It is clear therefore that Paul wrote what we call I Corinthians in a disturbed state of mind. He had founded the church there, had spent two years there (Acts 18), and took pardonable pride in his work there as a wise architect (1Co_3:10) for he had built the church on Christ as the foundation. He was anxious that his work should abide. It is plain that the disturbances in the church in Corinth were fomented from without by the Judaizers whom Paul had defeated at the Jerusalem Conference (Acts 15:1-35; Gal_2:1-10). They were overwhelmed there, but renewed their attacks in Antioch (Gal_2:11-21). Henceforth throughout the second mission tour they are a disturbing element in Galatia, in Corinth, in Jerusalem. While Paul is winning the Gentiles in the Roman Empire to Christ, these Judaizers are trying to win Paul’s converts to Judaism. Nowhere do we see the conflict at so white a heat as in Corinth. Paul finally will expose them with withering sarcasm (2 Corinthians 10-13) as Jesus did the Pharisees in Matthew 23 on that last day in the temple. Factional strife, immorality, perverted ideas about marriage, spiritual gifts, and the resurrection, these complicated problems are a vivid picture of church life in our cities today. The discussion of them shows Paul’s many-sidedness and also the powerful grasp that he has upon the realities of the gospel. Questions of casuistry are faced fairly and serious ethical issues are met squarely. But along with the treatment of these vexed matters Paul sings the noblest song of the ages on love (chapter 1Co_13:1-13) and writes the classic discussion on the resurrection (chapter 1 Corinthians 15). If one knows clearly and fully the Corinthian Epistles and Paul’s dealings with Corinth, he has an understanding of a large section of his life and ministry. No church caused him more anxiety than did Corinth (2Co_11:28).

JFB: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

The AUTHENTICITY of this Epistle is attested by CLEMENT OF ROME [First Epistle to the Corinthians, 47], POLYCARP [Epistle to the Philippians, 11], and IRENÆUS [Against Heresies, 4.27.3]. The city to which it was sent was famed for its wealth and commerce, which were chiefly due to its situation between the Ionian and Ægean Seas on the isthmus connecting the Peloponese with Greece. In Paul's time it was the capital of the province Achaia and the seat of the Roman proconsul (Act 18:12). The state of morals in it was notorious for debauchery, even in the profligate heathen world; so much so that "to Corinthianize" was a proverbial phrase for "to play the wanton"; hence arose dangers to the purity of the Christian Church at Corinth. That Church was founded by Paul on his first visit (Acts 18:1-17).

He had been the instrument of converting many Gentiles (1Co 12:2), and some Jews (Act 18:8), notwithstanding the vehement opposition of the countrymen of the latter (Act 18:5), during the year and a half in which he sojourned there. The converts were chiefly of the humbler classes (1Co 1:26, &c.). Crispus (1Co 1:14; Act 18:8), Erastus, and Gaius (Caius) were, however, men of rank (Rom 16:23). A variety of classes is also implied in 1Co 11:22. The risk of contamination by contact with the surrounding corruptions, and the temptation to a craving for Greek philosophy and rhetoric (which Apollos' eloquent style rather tended to foster, Act 18:24, &c.) in contrast to Paul's simple preaching of Christ crucified (1Co 2:1, &c.), as well as the opposition of certain teachers to him, naturally caused him anxiety. Emissaries from the Judaizers of Palestine boasted of "letters of commendation" from Jerusalem, the metropolis of the faith. They did not, it is true, insist on circumcision in refined Corinth, where the attempt would have been hopeless, as they did among the simpler people of Galatia; but they attacked the apostolic authority of Paul (1Co 9:1-2; 2Co 10:1, 2Co 10:7-8), some of them declaring themselves followers of Cephas, the chief apostle, others boasting that they belonged to Christ Himself (1Co 1:12; 2Co 10:7), while they haughtily repudiated all subordinate teaching. Those persons gave out themselves for apostles (2Co 11:5, 2Co 11:13). The ground taken by them was that Paul was not one of the Twelve, and not an eye-witness of the Gospel facts, and durst not prove his apostleship by claiming sustenance from the Christian Church. Another section avowed themselves followers of Paul himself, but did so in a party spirit, exalting the minister rather than Christ. The followers of Apollos, again, unduly prized his Alexandrian learning and eloquence, to the disparagement of the apostle, who studiously avoided any deviation from Christian simplicity (1Co 2:1-5). In some of this last philosophizing party there may have arisen the Antinomian tendency which tried to defend theoretically their own practical immorality: hence their denial of the future resurrection, and their adoption of the Epicurean motto, prevalent in heathen Corinth, "Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die" (1Co 15:32). Hence, perhaps, arose their connivance at the incestuous intercourse kept up by one of the so-called Christian body with his stepmother during his father's life. The household of Chloe informed Paul of many other evils: such as contentions, divisions, and lawsuits brought against brethren in heathen law courts by professing Christians; the abuse of their spiritual gifts into occasions of display and fanaticism; the interruption of public worship by simultaneous and disorderly ministrations, and decorum violated by women speaking unveiled (contrary to Oriental usage), and so usurping the office of men, and even the holy communion desecrated by greediness and revelling on the part of the communicants. Other messengers, also, came from Corinth, consulting him on the subject of (1) the controversy about meats offered to idols; (2) the disputes about celibacy and marriage; (3) the due exercise of spiritual gifts in public worship; (4) the best mode of making the collection which he had requested for the saints at Jerusalem (1Co 16:1, &c.). Such were the circumstances which called forth the First Epistle to the Corinthians, the most varied in its topics of all the Epistles.

In 1Co 5:9, "I wrote unto you in an Epistle not to company with fornicators," it is implied that Paul had written a previous letter to the Corinthians (now lost). Probably in it he had also enjoined them to make a contribution for the poor saints at Jerusalem, whereupon they seem to have asked directions as to the mode of doing so, to which he now replies (1Co 16:2). It also probably announced his intention of visiting them on way to Macedonia, and again on his return from Macedonia (2Co 1:15-16), which purpose he changed hearing the unfavorable report from Chloe's household (1Co 16:5-7), for which he was charged with (2Co 1:17). In the first Epistle which we have, the subject of fornication is alluded to only in a way, as if he were rather replying to an excuse set up after rebuke in the matter, than introducing for the first time [ALFORD]. Preceding this former letter, he seems to have paid a second visit to Corinth. For in 2Co 12:4; 2Co 13:1, he speaks of his intention of paying them a third visit, implying he had already twice visited them. See on 2Co 2:1; 2Co 13:2; also see on 2Co 1:15; 2Co 1:16. It is hardly likely that during his three years' sojourn at Ephesus he would have failed to revisit his Corinthian converts, which he could so readily do by sea, there being constant maritime intercourse between the two cities. This second visit was probably a short one (compare 1Co 16:7); and attended with pain and humiliation (2Co 2:1; 2Co 12:21), occasioned by the scandalous conduct of so many of his own converts. His milder censures having then failed to produce reformation, he wrote briefly directing them "not to company with fornicators." On their misapprehending this injunction, he explained it more fully in the Epistle, the first of the two extant (1Co 5:9, 1Co 5:12). That the second visit is not mentioned in Acts is no objection to its having really taken place, as that book is fragmentary and omits other leading incidents in Paul's life; for example, his visit to Arabia, Syria, and Cilicia (Gal 1:17-21).

The PLACE OF WRITING is fixed to be Ephesus (1Co 16:8). The subscription in English Version, "From Philippi," has no authority whatever, and probably arose from a mistaken translation of 1Co 16:5, "For I am passing through Macedonia." At the time of writing Paul implies (1Co 16:8) that he intended to leave Ephesus after Pentecost of that year. He really did leave it about Pentecost (A.D. 57). Compare Act 19:20. The allusion to Passover imagery in connection with our Christian Passover, Easter (1Co 5:7), makes it likely that the season was about Easter. Thus the date of the Epistle is fixed with tolerable accuracy, about Easter, certainly before Pentecost, in the third year of his residence at Ephesus, A.D. 57. For other arguments, see CONYBEARE and HOWSON'S Life and Epistles of St. Paul.

The Epistle is written in the name of Sosthenes "[our] brother." BIRKS supposes he is the same as the Sosthenes, Act 18:17, who, he thinks, was converted subsequently to that occurrence. He bears no part in the Epistle itself, the apostle in the very next verses (1Co 1:4, &c.) using the first person: so Timothy is introduced, 2Co 1:1. The bearers of the Epistle were probably Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus (see the subscription, 1Co 16:24), whom he mentions (1Co 16:17-18) as with him then, but who he implies are about to return back to Corinth; and therefore he commends them to the regard of the Corinthians.

JFB: 1 Corinthians (Outline)

• THE INSCRIPTION; THANKSGIVING FOR THE SPIRITUAL STATE OF THE CORINTHIAN CHURCH; REPROOF OF PARTY DIVISIONS: HIS OWN METHOD OF PREACHING ONLY CHRIST. (1Co. 1:1-31)
• PAUL'S SUBJECT OF PREACHING, CHRIST CRUCIFIED, NOT IN WORLDLY, BUT IN HEAVENLY, WISDOM AMONG THE PERFECT. (1Co. 2:1-16)
• PAUL COULD NOT SPEAK TO THEM OF DEEP SPIRITUAL TRUTHS, AS THEY WERE CARNAL, CONTENDING FOR THEIR SEVERAL TEACHERS; THESE ARE NOTHING BUT WORKERS FOR GOD, TO WHOM THEY MUST GIVE ACCOUNT IN THE DAY OF FIERY JUDGMENT. THE HEARERS ARE GOD'S TEMPLE, WHICH THEY MUST NOT DEFILE BY CONTENTIONS FOR TEACHERS, WHO, AS WELL AS ALL THINGS, ARE THEIRS, BEING CHRIST'S. (1Co. 3:1-23)
• TRUE VIEW OF MINISTERS: THE JUDGMENT IS NOT TO BE FORESTALLED; MEANWHILE THE APOSTLES' LOW STATE CONTRASTS WITH THE CORINTHIANS' PARTY PRIDE, NOT THAT PAUL WOULD SHAME THEM, BUT AS A FATHER WARN THEM; FOR WHICH END HE SENT TIMOTHY, AND WILL SOON COME HIMSELF. (1Co. 4:1-21)
• THE INCESTUOUS PERSON AT CORINTH: THE CORINTHIANS REPROVED FOR CONNIVANCE, AND WARNED TO PURGE OUT THE BAD LEAVEN. QUALIFICATION OF HIS FORMER COMMAND AS TO ASSOCIATION WITH SINNERS OF THE WORLD. (1Co 5:1-13)
• LITIGATION OF CHRISTIANS IN HEATHEN COURTS CENSURED: ITS VERY EXISTENCE BETRAYS A WRONG SPIRIT: BETTER TO BEAR WRONG NOW, AND HEREAFTER THE DOERS OF WRONG SHALL BE SHUT OUT OF HEAVEN. (1Co 6:1-11)
• REFUTATION OF THE ANTINOMIAN DEFENSE OF FORNICATION AS IF IT WAS LAWFUL BECAUSE MEATS ARE SO. (1Co 6:12-20)
• REPLY TO THEIR INQUIRIES AS TO MARRIAGE; THE GENERAL PRINCIPLE IN OTHER THINGS IS, ABIDE IN YOUR STATION, FOR THE TIME IS SHORT. (1Co. 7:1-40) The Corinthians in their letter had probably asked questions which tended to disparage marriage, and had implied that it was better to break it off when contracted with an unbeliever.
• ON PARTAKING OF MEATS OFFERED TO IDOLS. (1Co 8:1-13) Though to those knowing that an idol has no existence, the question of eating meats offered to idols (referred to in the letter of the Corinthians, compare 1Co 7:1) might seem unimportant, it is not so with some, and the infirmities of such should be respected. The portions of the victims not offered on the altars belonged partly to the priests, partly to the offerers; and were eaten at feasts in the temples and in private houses and were often sold in the markets; so that Christians were constantly exposed to the temptation of receiving them, which was forbidden (Num 25:2; Psa 106:28). The apostles forbade it in their decree issued from Jerusalem (Acts 15:1-29; Act 21:25); but Paul does not allude here to that decree, as he rests his precepts rather on his own independent apostolic authority.
• HE CONFIRMS HIS TEACHING AS TO NOT PUTTING A STUMBLING-BLOCK IN A BROTHER'S WAY (1Co 8:13) BY HIS OWN EXAMPLE IN NOT USING HIS UNDOUBTED RIGHTS AS AN APOSTLE, SO AS TO WIN MEN TO CHRIST. (1Co. 9:1-27)
• DANGER OF FELLOWSHIP WITH IDOLATRY ILLUSTRATED IN THE HISTORY OF ISRAEL: SUCH FELLOWSHIP INCOMPATIBLE WITH FELLOWSHIP IN THE LORD'S SUPPER. EVEN LAWFUL THINGS ARE TO BE FORBORNE, SO AS NOT TO HURT WEAK BRETHREN. (1Co. 10:1-33)
• CENSURE ON DISORDERS IN THEIR ASSEMBLIES: THEIR WOMEN NOT BEING VEILED, AND ABUSES AT THE LOVE-FEASTS. (1Co. 11:1-34) Rather belonging to the end of the tenth chapter, than to this chapter.
• THE USE AND THE ABUSE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS, ESPECIALLY PROPHESYING AND TONGUES. (1Co. 12:1-31)
• CHARITY OR LOVE SUPERIOR TO ALL GIFTS. (1Co 13:1-13)
• SUPERIORITY OF PROPHECY OVER TONGUES. (1Co. 14:1-25)
• RULES FOR THE EXERCISE OF GIFTS IN THE CONGREGATION. (1Co 14:26-40)
• THE RESURRECTION PROVED AGAINST THE DENIERS OF IT AT CORINTH. (1Co. 15:1-58)
• DIRECTIONS AS TO THE COLLECTION FOR THE JUDEAN CHRISTIANS: PAUL'S FUTURE PLANS: HE COMMENDS TO THEM TIMOTHY, APOLLOS, &C. SALUTATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS. (1Co. 16:1-24)

TSK: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

1Co 1:1, After his salutation and thanksgiving, 1Co 1:10. he exhorts them to unity, 1Co 1:12. and reproves their dissensions; 1Co 1:18, God destroys the wisdom of the wise, 1Co 1:21. by the foolishness of preaching; 1Co 1:26, and calls not the wise, mighty, and noble, 1Co 1:28. but the foolish, weak, and men of no account.

TSK: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

1Co 2:1, He declares that his preaching, though it bring not excellency of speech, or of human wisdom, yet consists in the power of God; 1Co 2:6, and so far excels the wisdom of this world, and human sense, that the natural man cannot understand it.

Poole: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 1

Corinth (the inhabitants of which are called Corinthians) was an eminent city of Achaia, (that Achaia which is now called the Morea), and was situated on an isthmus, or neck of land, betwixt the Aegean and Ionian Seas; so was very convenient for merchandise, and by merchandise came to great riches, which gave them great temptations to luxury, drunkenness, whoredom, &c. They were very infamous for the latter, as we read in writers, and grown to that impudence, that they made the increase of harlots a part of their prayers to their idols, and made the bringing of harlots into the city a part of their vows. Lais was a harlot amongst them, very famous in civil history. And as pride usually attendeth wealth, so they also were a people very proud and puffed up. They were also anciently famous for pagan learning, and had amongst them Stoics and Epicureans, who laughed at the resurrection of the body, and looked upon incest, adultery, and fornication, as very venial things, if at all unlawful. We read of Paul’ s first coming thither from Athens, Act 18:1 , where, Act 16:11 , he continued eighteen months; there he converted Crispus, 1Co 1:8 , and Sosthenes, and many believed and were baptized. Paul went from thence to Ephesus, 1Co 16:18,19 . To the church thus planted at Corinth Paul writeth this Epistle, at what time is not certain; but he is thought to have written it from Ephesus, whither he came, Act 19:1 , the second time, and, as appears from 1Co 1:10 , was going and coming to and from that city between two and three years. The occasion of his writing this Epistle will appear to any who consideringly reads it. He had heard from some who were of the house of Chloe, 1Co 1:11 , of factions and contentions that were amongst them, and had heard it reported that they suffered an incestuous person to abide in their communion, 1Co 5:1 . They had also written to him for his resolution in several cases and questions about marriage, divorce, &c. He had also heard of several disorders amongst them relating to their communion in the Lord’ s supper, and of some amongst them who denied the resurrection. For the allaying of these heats, and quieting their divisions, and for the direction of them in those cases about which they wrote to him, and the setting them right in the doctrine of the resurrection, and directing them in the true and profitable use of their gifts, and in the right celebration of the Lord’ s supper, and the quickening the exercise of their charity, he writes this Epistle; which is supposed to be placed in our Bibles next to the Epistle to the Romans, (though plainly written in order of time before), because that as that Epistle most fully discourseth the doctrine of justification, so this most fully resolves questions concerning church order and government. It is a book of holy writ concerning the Divine authority of which there was never any doubt, nor hath any portion of holy writ (for the quantity of it) a greater variety of matter, nor more of those dosnohta , things hard to be understood, which St. Peter 2Pe 3:16tells us are in this apostle’ s Epistles; the difficulty of which much ariseth from our ignorance of some rites used in the primitive church, but long since disused, and the usages of that country different from ours.

Poole: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 2

MHCC: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

The Corinthian church contained some Jews, but more Gentiles, and the apostle had to contend with the superstition of the one, and the sinful conduct of the other. The peace of this church was disturbed by false teachers, who undermined the influence of the apostle. Two parties were the result; one contending earnestly for the Jewish ceremonies, the other indulging in excesses contrary to the gospel, to which they were especially led by the luxury and the sins which prevailed around them. This epistle was written to rebuke some disorderly conduct, of which the apostle had been apprized, and to give advice as to some points whereon his judgment was requested by the Corinthians. Thus the scope was twofold. 1. To apply suitable remedies to the disorders and abuses which prevailed among them. 2. To give satisfactory answers on all the points upon which his advice had been desired. The address, and Christian mildness, yet firmness, with which the apostle writes, and goes on from general truths directly to oppose the errors and evil conduct of the Corinthians, is very remarkable. He states the truth and the will of God, as to various matters, with great force of argument and animation of style.

MHCC: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

(1Co 1:1-9) A salutation and thanksgiving.

(1Co 1:10-16) Exhortation to brotherly love, and reproof for divisions.

(1Co 1:17-25) The doctrine of a crucified Saviour, as advancing the glory of God.

(1Co 1:26-31) And humbling the creature before him.

MHCC: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

(1Co 2:1-5) The plain manner in which the apostle preached Christ crucified.

(1Co 2:6-9) The wisdom contained in this doctrine.

(1Co 2:10-16) It cannot be duly known but by the Holy Spirit.

Matthew Henry: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians

Corinth was a principal city of Greece, in that particular division of it which was called Achaia. It was situated on the isthmus (or neck of land) that joined Peloponnesus to the rest of Greece, on the southern side, and had two ports adjoining, one at the bottom of the Corinthian Gulf, called Lechaeum, not far from the city, whence they traded to Italy and the west, the other at the bottom of the Sinus Saronicus, called Cenchrea, at a more remote distance, whence they traded to Asia. From this situation, it is no wonder that Corinth should be a place of great trade and wealth; and, as affluence is apt to produce luxury of all kinds, neither is it to be wondered at if a place so famous for wealth and arts should be infamous for vice. It was in a particular manner noted for fornication, insomuch that a Corinthian woman was a proverbial phrase for a strumpet, and korinthiazein , korinthiasesthai - to play the Corinthian, is to play the whore, or indulge whorish inclinations. Yet in this lewd city did Paul, by the blessing of God on his labours, plant and raise a Christian church, chiefly among the Gentiles, as seems very probable from the history of this matter, Acts 18:1-18, compared with some passages in this epistle, particularly 1Co 12:2, where the apostle tells them, You know that you wee Gentiles, carried away to those dumb idols even as you were led, though it is not improbable that many Jewish converts might be also among them, for we are told that Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord, with all his house, Act 18:8. He continued in this city nearly two years, as is plain from Act 18:11 and Act 18:18 compared, and laboured with great success, being encouraged by a divine vision assuring him God had much people in that city, Act 18:9, Act 18:10. Nor did he use to stay long in a place where his ministry met not with acceptance and success.

Some time after he left them he wrote this epistle to them, to water what he had planted and rectify some gross disorders which during his absence had been introduced, partly from the interest some false teacher or teachers had obtained amongst them, and partly from the leaven of their old maxims and manners, that had not been thoroughly purged out by the Christian principles they had entertained. And it is but too visible how much their wealth had helped to corrupt their manners, from the several faults for which the apostle reprehends them. Pride, avarice, luxury, lust (the natural offspring of a carnal and corrupt mind), are all fed and prompted by outward affluence. And with all these either the body of this people or some particular persons among them are here charged by the apostle. Their pride discovered itself in their parties and factions, and the notorious disorders they committed in the exercise of their spiritual gifts. And this vice was not wholly fed by their wealth, but by the insight they had into the Greek learning and philosophy. Some of the ancients tell us that the city abounded with rhetoricians and philosophers. And these were men naturally vain, full of self-conceit, and apt to despise the plain doctrine of the gospel, because it did not feed the curiosity of an inquisitive and disputing temper, nor please the ear with artful speeches and a flow of fine words. Their avarice was manifest in their law-suits and litigations about meum - mine, and tuum - thine, before heathen judges. Their luxury appeared in more instances than one, in their dress, in their debauching themselves even at the Lord's table, when the rich, who were most faulty on this account, were guilty also of a very proud and criminal contempt of their poor brethren. Their lust broke out in a most flagrant and infamous instance, such as had not been named among the Gentiles, not spoken of without detestation - that a man should have his father's wife, either as his wife, or so as to commit fornication with her. This indeed seems to be the fault of a particular person; but the whole church were to blame that they had his crime in no greater abhorrence, that they could endure one of such very corrupt morals and of so flagitious a behaviour among them. But their participation in his sin was yet greater, if, as some of the ancients tell us, they were puffed up on behalf of the great learning and eloquence of this incestuous person. And it is plain from other passages of the epistle that they were not so entirely free from their former lewd inclinations as not to need very strict cautions and strong arguments against fornication: see 1Co 6:9-20. The pride of their learning had also carried many of them so far as to disbelieve or dispute against the doctrine of the resurrection. It is not improbable that they treated this question problematically, as they did many questions in philosophy, and tried their skill by arguing it pro and con.

It is manifest from this state of things that there was much that deserved reprehension, and needed correction, in this church. And the apostle, under the direction and influence of the Holy Spirit, sets himself to do both with all wisdom and faithfulness, and with a due mixture of tenderness and authority, as became one in so elevated and important a station in the church. After a short introduction at the beginning of the epistle, he first blames them for their discord and factions, enters into the origin and source of them, shows them how much pride and vanity, and the affectation of science, and learning, and eloquence, flattered by false teachers, contributed to the scandalous schism; and prescribes humility, and submission to divine instruction, the teaching of God by his Spirit, both by external revelation and internal illumination, as a remedy for the evils that abounded amongst them. He shows them the vanity of their pretended science and eloquence on many accounts. This he does through the first four chapters. In the fifth he treats of the case of the incestuous person, and orders him to be put out from among them. Nor is what the ancients say improbable, that this incestuous person was a man in great esteem, and head of one party at least among them. The apostle seems to tax them with being puffed up on his account, 1Co 5:2. In the sixth chapter he blames them for their law-suits, carried on before heathen judges, when their disputes about property should have been amicably determined amongst themselves, and in the close of the chapter warns them against the sin of fornication, and urges his caution with a variety of arguments. In the seventh chapter he gives advice upon a case of conscience, which some of that church had proposed to him in an epistle, about marriage, and shows it to be appointed of God as a remedy against fornication, that the ties of it were not dissolved, though a husband or wife continued a heathen, when the other became a Christian; and, in short, that Christianity made no change in men's civil states and relations. He gives also some directions here about virgins, in answer, as is probable, to the Corinthians' enquiries. In the eighth he directs them about meats offered to idols, and cautions them against abusing their Christian liberty. From this he also takes occasion, in the ninth chapter, to expatiate a little on his own conduct upon this head of liberty. For, though he might have insisted on a maintenance from the churches where he ministered, he waived this demand, that he might make the gospel of Christ without charge, and did in other things comply with and suit himself to the tempers and circumstances of those among whom he laboured, for their good. In the tenth chapter he dissuades them, from the example of the Jews, against having communion with idolaters, by eating of their sacrifices, inasmuch as they could not be at once partakers of the Lord's table and the table of devils, though they were not bound to enquire concerning meat sold in the shambles, or set before them at a feast made by unbelievers, whether it were a part of the idol-sacrifices or no, but were at liberty to eat without asking questions. In the eleventh chapter he gives direction about their habit in public worship, blames them for their gross irregularities and scandalous disorders in receiving the Lord's supper, and solemnly warns them against the abuse of so sacred an institution. In the twelfth chapter he enters on the consideration of spiritual gifts, which were poured forth in great abundance on this church, upon which they were not a little elated. He tells them, in this chapter, that all came from the same original, and were all directed to the same end. They issued from one Spirit, and were intended for the good of the church, and must be abused when they were not made to minister to this purpose. Towards the close he informs them that they were indeed valuable gifts, but he could recommend to them something far more excellent, upon which he breaks out, in the thirteenth chapter, into the commendation and characteristics of charity. And them, in the fourteenth, he directs them how to keep up decency and order in the churches in the use of their spiritual gifts, in which they seem to have been exceedingly irregular, through pride of their gifts and a vanity of showing them. The fifteenth chapter is taken up in confirming and explaining the great doctrine of the resurrection. The last chapter consists of some particular advices and salutations; and thus the epistle closes.

Matthew Henry: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

In this chapter we have, I. The preface or introduction to the whole epistle (1Co 1:1-9). II. One principal occasion of writing it hinted, namely, their divisions and the origin of them (1Co 1:10-13). III. An account of Paul's ministry among them, which was principally preaching the gospel (1Co 1:14-17). IV. The manner wherein he preached the gospel, and the different success of it, with an account how admirably it was fitted to bring glory to God and beat down the pride and vanity of men (1Co 1:17 to the end).

Matthew Henry: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

The apostle proceeds with his argument in this chapter, and, I. Reminds the Corinthians of the plain manner wherein he delivered the gospel to them (1Co 2:1-5). But yet, II. Shows them that he had communicated to them a treasure of the truest and highest wisdom, such as exceeded all the attainments of learned men, such as could never have entered into the heart of man if it had not been revealed, nor can be received and improved to salvation but by the light and influence of that Spirit who revealed it (1Co 2:6 to the end).

Barclay: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

A GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS OF PAUL

The Letters Of Paul

There is no more interesting body of documents in the New Testament than the letters of Paul. That is because of all forms of literature a letter is most personal. Demetrius, one of the old Greek literary critics, once wrote, "Every one reveals his own soul in his letters. In every other form of composition it is possible to discern the writercharacter, but in none so clearly as the epistolary." (Demetrius, On Style, 227). It is just because he left us so many letters that we feel we know Paul so well. In them he opened his mind and heart to the folk he loved so much; and in them, to this day, we can see that great mind grappling with the problems of the early church, and feel that great heart throbbing with love for men, even when they were misguided and mistaken.

The Difficulty Of Letters

At the same time, there is often nothing so difficult to understand as a letter. Demetrius (On Style, 223) quotes a saying of Artemon, who edited the letters of Aristotle. Artemon said that a letter ought to be written in the same manner as a dialogue, because it was one of the two sides of a dialogue. In other words, to read a letter is like listening to one side of a telephone conversation. So when we read the letters of Paul we are often in a difficulty. We do not possess the letter which he was answering; we do not fully know the circumstances with which he was dealing; it is only from the letter itself that we can deduce the situation which prompted it. Before we can hope to understand fully any letter Paul wrote, we must try to reconstruct the situation which produced it.

The Ancient Letters

It is a great pity that Paulletters were ever called epistles. They are in the most literal sense letters. One of the great lights shed on the interpretation of the New Testament has been the discovery and the publication of the papyri. In the ancient world, papyrus was the substance on which most documents were written. It was composed of strips of the pith of a certain bulrush that grew on the banks of the Nile. These strips were laid one on top of the other to form a substance very like brown paper. The sands of the Egyptian desert were ideal for preservation, for papyrus, although very brittle, will last forever so long as moisture does not get at it. As a result, from the Egyptian rubbish heaps, archaeologists have rescued hundreds of documents, marriage contracts, legal agreements, government forms, and, most interesting of all, private letters. When we read these private letters we find that there was a pattern to which nearly all conformed; and we find that Paulletters reproduce exactly that pattern. Here is one of these ancient letters. It is from a soldier, called Apion, to his father Epimachus. He is writing from Misenum to tell his father that he has arrived safely after a stormy passage.

"Apion sends heartiest greetings to his father and lord Epimachus.

I pray above all that you are well and fit; and that things are

going well with you and my sister and her daughter and my brother.

I thank my Lord Serapis [his god] that he kept me safe when I was

in peril on the sea. As soon as I got to Misenum I got my journey

money from Caesar--three gold pieces. And things are going fine

with me. So I beg you, my dear father, send me a line, first to

let me know how you are, and then about my brothers, and thirdly,

that I may kiss your hand, because you brought me up well, and

because of that I hope, God willing, soon to be promoted. Give

Capito my heartiest greetings, and my brothers and Serenilla and

my friends. I sent you a little picture of myself painted by

Euctemon. My military name is Antonius Maximus, I pray for your

good health. Serenus sends good wishes, Agathos Daimonboy, and

Turbo, Galloniuson." (G. Milligan, Selections from the Greek

Papyri, 36).

Little did Apion think that we would be reading his letter to his father 1800 years after he had written it. It shows how little human nature changes. The lad is hoping for promotion quickly. Who will Serenilla be but the girl he left behind him? He sends the ancient equivalent of a photograph to the folk at home. Now that letter falls into certain sections. (i) There is a greeting. (ii) There is a prayer for the health of the recipients. (iii) There is a thanksgiving to the gods. (iv) There are the special contents. (v) Finally, there are the special salutations and the personal greetings. Practically every one of Paulletters shows exactly the same sections, as we now demonstrate.

(i) The Greeting: Rom_1:1 ; 1Co_1:1 ; 2Co_1:1 ; Gal_1:1 ; Eph_1:1 ; Phi_1:1 ; Col_1:1-2 ; 1Th_1:1 ; 2Th_1:1 .

(ii) The Prayer: in every case Paul prays for the grace of God on the people to whom he writes: Rom_1:7 ; 1Co_1:3 ; 2Co_1:2 ; Gal_1:3 ; Eph_1:2 ; Phi_1:3 ; Col_1:2 ; 1Th_1:1 ; 2Th_1:2 .

(iii) The Thanksgiving: Rom_1:8 ; 1Co_1:4 ; 2Co_1:3 ; Eph_1:3 ; Phi_1:3 ; 1Th_1:3 ; 2Th_1:3 .

(iv) The Special Contents: the main body of the letters.

(v) Special Salutations and Personal Greetings: Rom 16 ; 1Co_16:19 ; 2Co_13:13 ; Phi_4:21-22 ; Col_4:12-15 ; 1Th_5:26 .

When Paul wrote letters, he wrote them on the pattern which everyone used. Deissmann says of them, "They differ from the messages of the homely papyrus leaves of Egypt, not as letters but only as the letters of Paul." When we read Paulletters we are not reading things which were meant to be academic exercises and theological treatises, but human documents written by a friend to his friends.

The Immediate Situation

With a very few exceptions, all Paulletters were written to meet an immediate situation and not treatises which he sat down to write in the peace and silence of his study. There was some threatening situation in Corinth, or Galatia, or Philippi, or Thessalonica, and he wrote a letter to meet it. He was not in the least thinking of us when he wrote, but solely of the people to whom he was writing. Deissmann writes, "Paul had no thought of adding a few fresh compositions to the already extant Jewish epistles; still less of enriching the sacred literature of his nation.... He had no presentiment of the place his words would occupy in universal history; not so much that they would be in existence in the next generation, far less that one day people would look at them as Holy Scripture." We must always remember that a thing need not be transient because it was written to meet an immediate situation. All the great love songs of the world were written for one person, but they live on for the whole of mankind. It is just because Paulletters were written to meet a threatening danger or a clamant need that they still throb with life. And it is because human need and the human situation do not change that God speaks to us through them today.

The Spoken Word

One other thing we must note about these letters. Paul did what most people did in his day. He did not normally pen his own letters but dictated them to a secretary, and then added his own authenticating signature. (We actually know the name of one of the people who did the writing for him. In Rom_16:22 Tertius, the secretary, slips in his own greeting before the letter draws to an end). In 1Co_16:21 Paul says, "This is my own signature, my autograph, so that you can be sure this letter comes from me." (compare Col_4:18 ; 2Th_3:17 .

This explains a great deal. Sometimes Paul is hard to understand, because his sentences begin and never finish; his grammar breaks down and the construction becomes involved. We must not think of him sitting quietly at a desk, carefully polishing each sentence as he writes. We must think of him striding up and down some little room, pouring out a torrent of words, while his secretary races to get them down. When Paul composed his letters, he had in his mindeye a vision of the folk to whom he was writing, and he was pouring out his heart to them in words that fell over each other in his eagerness to help.

INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS TO THE CORINTHIANS

The Greatness Of Corinth

A glance at the map will show that Corinth was made for greatness. The southern part of Greece is very nearly an island. On the west the Corinthian Gulf deeply indents the land and on the east the Saronic Gulf. All that is left to join the two parts of Greece together is a little isthmus only four miles across. On that narrow neck of land Corinth stands. Such a position made it inevitable that it should be one of the greatest trading and commercial centres of the ancient world. All traffic from Athens and the north of Greece to Sparta and the Peloponnese had to be routed through Corinth, because it stood on the little neck of land that connected the two.

Not only did the north to south traffic of Greece pass through Corinth of necessity, by far the greater part of the east to west traffic of the Mediterranean passed through her from choice. The extreme southern tip of Greece was known as Cape Malea (now called Cape Matapan). It was dangerous, and to round Cape Malea had much the same sound as to round Cape Horn had in later times. The Greeks had two sayings which showed what they thought of it--"Let him who sails round Malea forget his home," and, "Let him who sails round Malea first make his will."

The consequence was that mariners followed one of two courses. They sailed up the Saronic Gulf, and, if their ships were small enough, dragged them out of the water, set them on rollers, hauled them across the isthmus, and re-launched them on the other side. The isthmus was actually called the Diolkos, the place of dragging across. The idea is the same as that which is contained in the Scottish place name Tarbert, which means a place where the land is so narrow that a boat can be dragged from loch to loch. If that course was not possible because the ship was too large, the cargo was disembarked, carried by porters across the isthmus, and re-embarked on another ship at the other side. This four mile journey across the isthmus, where the Corinth Canal now runs, saved a journey of two hundred and two miles round Cape Malea, the most dangerous cape in the Mediterranean.

It is easy to see how great a commercial city Corinth must have been. The north to south traffic of Greece had no alternative but to pass through her; by far the greater part of the east to west trade of the Mediterranean world chose to pass through her. Round Corinth there clustered three other towns, Lechaeum at the west end of the isthmus, Cenchrea at the east end and Schoenus just a short distance away. Farrar writes, "Objects of luxury soon found their way to the markets which were visited by every nation in the civilized world--Arabian balsam, Phoenician dates, Libyan ivory, Babylonian carpets, Cilician goatsair, Lycaonian wool, Phrygian slaves."

Corinth, as Farrar calls her, was the Vanity Fair of the ancient world. Men called her The Bridge of Greece; one called her The Lounge of Greece. It has been said that if a man stands long enough in Piccadilly Circus he will in the end meet everyone in the country. Corinth was the Piccadilly Circus of the Mediterranean. To add to the concourse which came to it, Corinth was the place where the Isthmian Games were held, which were second only to the Olympics. Corinth was a rich and populous city with one of the greatest commercial trades in the ancient world.

The Wickedness Of Corinth

There was another side to Corinth. She had a reputation for commercial prosperity, but she was also a byword for evil living. The very word korinthiazesthai, to live like a Corinthian, had become a part of the Greek language, and meant to live with drunken and immoral debauchery. The word actually penetrated to the English language, and, in Regency times, a Corinthian was one of the wealthy young bucks who lived in reckless and riotous living. Aelian, the late Greek writer, tells us that if ever a Corinthian was shown upon the stage in a Greek play he was shown drunk. The very name Corinth was synonymous with debauchery and there was one source of evil in the city which was known all over the civilized world. Above the isthmus towered the hill of the Acropolis, and on it stood the great temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. To that temple there were attached one thousand priestesses who were sacred prostitutes, and in the evenings they descended from the Acropolis and plied their trade upon the streets of Corinth, until it became a Greek proverb, "It is not every man who can afford a journey to Corinth." In addition to these cruder sins, there flourished far more recondite vices, which had come in with the traders and the sailors from the ends of the earth, until Corinth became not only a synonym for wealth and luxury, drunkenness and debauchery, but also for filth.

The History Of Corinth

The history of Corinth falls into two parts. She was a very ancient city. Thucydides, the Greek historian, claims that it was in Corinth that the first triremes, the Greek battleships, were built. Legend has it that it was in Corinth that the Argo was built, the ship in which Jason sailed the seas, searching for the golden fleece. But in 146 B.C. disaster befell her. The Romans were engaged in conquering the world. When they sought to reduce Greece, Corinth was the leader of the opposition. But the Greeks could not stand against the disciplined Romans, and in 146 B.C. Lucius Mummius, the Roman general, captured Corinth and left her a desolate heap of ruins.

But any place with the geographical situation of Corinth could not remain a devastation. Almost exactly one hundred years later, in 46 B.C. Julius Caesar rebuilt her and she arose from her ruins. Now she became a Roman colony. More, she became a capital city, the metropolis of the Roman province of Achaea, which included practically all Greece.

In those days, which were the days of Paul, her population was very mixed. (i) There were the Roman veterans whom Julius Caesar had settled there. When a Roman soldier had served his time, he was granted the citizenship and was then sent out to some newly-founded city and given a grant of land so that he might become a settler there. These Roman colonies were planted all over the world, and always the backbone of them was the contingent of veteran regular soldiers whose faithful service had won them the citizenship. (ii) When Corinth was rebuilt the merchants came back, for her situation still gave her commercial supremacy. (iii) There were many Jews among the population. The rebuilt city offered them commercial opportunities which they were not slow to take. (iv) There was a sprinkling of Phoenicians and Phrygians and people from the east, with their exotic customs and their hysterical ways. Farrar speaks of "this mongrel and heterogeneous population of Greek adventurers and Roman bourgeois, with a tainting infusion of Phoenicians; this mass of Jews, ex-soldiers, philosophers, merchants, sailors, freedmen, slaves, trades-people, hucksters and agents of every form of vice." He characterizes her as a colony "without aristocracy, without traditions and without well-established citizens."

Remember the background of Corinth, remember its name for wealth and luxury, for drunkenness and immorality and vice, and then read 1Co_6:9-10 .

Are you not aware that the unrighteous will not inherit the

Kingdom of God? Make no mistake--neither fornicators, nor

idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sensualists, nor homosexuals, nor

thieves, nor rapacious men, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor

robbers shall inherit the Kingdom of God--and such were some of

you.

In this hotbed of vice, in the most unlikely place in all the Greek world, some of Paulgreatest work was done, and some of the mightiest triumphs of Christianity were won.

Paul In Corinth

Paul stayed longer in Corinth than in any other city, with the single exception of Ephesus. He had left Macedonia with his life in peril and had crossed over to Athens. There he had had little success and had gone on to Corinth, and he remained there for eighteen months. We realize how little we really know of his work when we see that the whole story of that eighteen months is compressed by Luke into 17 verses (Act_18:1-17 ).

When Paul arrived in Corinth he took up residence with Aquila and Prisca. He preached in the synagogue with great success. With the arrival of Timothy and Silas from Macedonia, he redoubled his efforts, but the Jews were so stubbornly hostile that he had to leave the synagogue. He took up his residence with one Justus who lived next door to the synagogue. His most notable convert was Crispus, who was actually the ruler of the synagogue, and amongst the general public he had good success.

In the year A.D. 52 there came to Corinth as its new governor a Roman called Gallio. He was famous for his charm and gentleness. The Jews tried to take advantage of his newness and good nature and brought Paul to trial before him on a charge of teaching contrary to their law. But Gallio, with impartial Roman justice, refused to have anything to do with the case or to take any action. So Paul completed his work in Corinth and moved on to Syria.

The Correspondence With Corinth

It was when he was in Ephesus in the year A.D. 55 that Paul, learning that things were not all well in Corinth, wrote to the church there. There is every possibility that the Corinthian correspondence as we have it is out of order. We must remember that it was not until A.D. 90 or thereby that Paulcorrespondence was collected. In many churches it must have existed only on scraps of papyrus and the putting it together would be a problem: and it seems that, when the Corinthian letters were collected, they were not all discovered and were not arranged in the right order. Let us see if we can reconstruct what happened.

(i) There was a letter which preceded 1 Corinthians. In 1Co_5:9 Paul writes, "I wrote you a letter not to associate with immoral men." This obviously refers to some previous letter. Some scholars believe that letter is lost without trace. Others think it is contained in 2Co_6:14-18 and 2Co_7:1 . Certainly that passage suits what Paul said he wrote about. It occurs rather awkwardly in its context, and, if we take it out and read straight on from 2Co_6:13 to 2Co_7:2 , we get excellent sense and connection. Scholars call this letter The Previous Letter. (In the original letters there were no chapter or verse divisions. The chapters were not divided up until the thirteenth century and the verses not till the sixteenth, and because of that the arranging of the collection of letters would be much more difficult).

(ii) News came to Paul from various sources of trouble at Corinth. (a) News came from those who were of the household of Chloe (1Co_1:11 ). They brought news of the contentions with which the church was torn. (b) News came with the visit of Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus to Ephesus. (1Co_16:17 ). By personal contact they were able to fill up the gaps in Paulinformation. (c) News came in a letter in which the Corinthian Church had asked Paul guidance on various problems. In 1Co_7:1 Paul begins, "Concerning the matters about which you wrote..." In answer to all this information Paul wrote 1 Corinthians and despatched it to Corinth apparently by the hand of Timothy (1Co_4:17 ).

(iii) The result of the letter was that things became worse than ever, and, although we have no direct record of it, we can deduce that Paul paid a personal visit to Corinth. In 2Co_12:14 he writes, "The third time I am ready to come to you." In 2Co_13:1-2 , he says again that he is coming to them for the third time. Now, if there was a third time, there must have been a second time. We have the record of only one visit, whose story is told in Act_18:1-17 . We have no record at all of the second, but Corinth was only two or three daysailing from Ephesus.

(iv) The visit did no good at all. Matters were only exacerbated and the result was an exceedingly severe letter. We learn about that letter from certain passages in 2 Corinthians. In 2Co_2:4 Paul writes, "I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears." In 2Co_7:8 he writes, "For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it though I did regret it; for I see that that letter has grieved you, though only for a while." It was a letter which was the product of anguish of mind, a letter so severe that Paul was almost sorry that he ever sent it.

Scholars call this The Severe Letter. Have we got it? It obviously cannot be I Corinthians, because it is not a tear-stained and anguished letter. When Paul wrote it, it is clear enough that things were under control. Now if we read through 2 Corinthians we find an odd circumstance. In 2Cor 1-9 everything is made up, there is complete reconciliation and all are friends again; but at 2Cor 10 comes the strangest break. 2Cor 10-13 are the most heartbroken cry Paul ever wrote. They show that he has been hurt and insulted as he never was before or afterwards by any church. His appearance, his speech, his apostleship, his honesty have all been under attack.

Most scholars believe that 2Cor 10-13 are the severe letter, and that they have become misplaced when Paulletters were put together. If we want the real chronological course of Paulcorrespondence with Corinth, we really ought to read 2Cor 10-13 before 2Cor 1-9. We do know that this letter was sent off with Titus. (2Co_2:13 ; 2Co_7:13 ).

(v) Paul was worried about this letter. He could not wait until Titus came back with an answer, so he set out to meet him (2Co_2:13 ; 2Co_7:5 , 2Co_7:13 ). Somewhere in Macedonia he met him and learned that all was well, and, probably at Philippi, he sat down and wrote 2Cor 1-9, the letter of reconciliation.

Stalker has said that the letters of Paul take the roof off the early churches and let us see what went on inside. Of none of them is that truer than the letters to Corinth. Here we see what "the care of all the churches" must have meant to Paul. Here we see the heart-breaks and the joys. Here we see Paul, the shepherd of his flock, bearing the sorrows and the problems of his people on his heart.

The Corinthian Correspondence

Before we read the letters in detail let us set down the progress of the Corinthian correspondence in tabular form.

(i) The Previous Letter, which may be contained in 2Co_6:14-18 and 2Co_7:1 .

(ii) The arrival of Chloepeople, of Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus, and of the letter to Paul from the Corinthian Church.

(iii) 1 Corinthians is written in reply and is despatched with Timothy.

(iv) The situation grows worse and Paul pays a personal visit to Corinth, which is so complete a failure that it almost breaks his heart.

(v) The consequence is The Severe Letter, which is almost certainly contained in 2Cor 10-13, and which was despatched with Titus.

(vi) Unable to wait for an answer, Paul sets out to meet Titus. He meets him in Macedonia, learns that all is well and, probably from Philippi, writes 2Cor 1-9, The Letter of Reconciliation.

The first four chapters of 1 Corinthians deal with the divided state of the Church of God at Corinth. Instead of being a unity in Christ it was split into sects and parties, who had attached themselves to the names of various leaders and teachers. It is Paulteaching that these divisions had emerged because the Corinthians thought too much about human wisdom and knowledge and too little about the sheer grace of God. In fact, for all their so-called wisdom, they are really in a state of immaturity. They think that they are wise men, but really they are no better than babies.

FURTHER READING

1 Corinthians

F. F. Bruce, 1 and 2 Corinthians (NCB; E)

J. Hering, The First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians (translated by A. W. Heathcote and P. J. Allcock)

J. Moffatt, 1 Corinthians (MC; E)

A. Robertson and A. Plummer, 1 Corinthians (ICC; G)

Abbreviations

ICC: International Critical Commentary

MC: Moffatt Commentary

NCB: New Century Bible

TC: Tyndale Commentary

E: English Text

G: Greek Text

Barclay: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

An Apostolic Introduction (1Co_1:1-3)

The Necessity Of Thanksgiving (1Co_1:4-9)

A Divided Church (1Co_1:10-17)

Stumbling-Block To The Jews & Foolishness To The Greeks (1Co_1:18-25)

The Glory Of The Shame (1Co_1:26-31)

The Proclamation And The Power (1Co_2:1-5)

Barclay: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

The Wisdom Which Is From God (1Co_2:6-9)

Spiritual Things To Spiritual Men (1Co_2:10-16)

Constable: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Historical Background

Corinth had a long history stretching back into the Bronze Age (before 1200 B.C.).¹ In Paul's day it was a Roman colony and the capital of the province of Achaia. The population consisted of Roman citizens who had migrated from Italy, native Greeks, Jews (Acts 18:4), and other people from various places who chose to settle there.

The ancient city of Corinth enjoyed an ideal situation as a commercial center. It stood just southwest of the Isthmus of Corinth, the land bridge that connected Northern Greece and Southern Greece, the Peloponnesus. This site made Corinth a crossroads for trade by land, north and south, as well as by sea, east and west. In Paul's day large ships would transfer their cargoes to land vehicles that would cart them from the Corinthian Gulf to the Saronic Gulf, or vice versa. There stevedores would reload them onto other ships. If a ship was small enough, they would drag the whole vessel across the four and a half mile isthmus from one gulf to the other. This did away with the long voyage around the Peloponnesus. Later the Greeks cut a canal linking these two gulfs.²

Corinth's strategic location brought commerce and all that goes with it to its populace: wealth, a steady stream of travelers and merchants, and vice. In Paul's day many of the pagan religions included prostitution as part of the worship of their god or goddess. Consequently fornication flourished in Corinth.

"Old Corinth had gained such a reputation for sexual vice that Aristophanes (ca. 450-385 B.C.) coined the verb korinthiazo (= to act like a Corinthian, i.e., to commit fornication)."³

"The old city had been the most licentious city in Greece, and perhaps the most licentious city in the Empire."⁴

The most notorious shrine was the temple of Aphrodite that stood on top of an approximately 1,900 foot high mountain just south of the city, the Acrocorinthus. Hundreds of female slaves served the men who "worshipped" there.⁵ Other major deities honored in Corinth included Melicertes, the patron of seafarers, and Poseidon, the sea god.

"All of this evidence together suggests that Paul's Corinth was at once the New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas of the ancient world."⁶

There were several other local sites of importance to the student of 1 Corinthians. These included the bema (judgment seat or platform), the place where judges tried important cases including Paul's (Acts 18:12).⁷ Cenchrea, the port of Corinth on the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, was the town from which Paul set sail for Ephesus during his second missionary journey (Acts 18:18). Isthmia was another little town east of Corinth, just north of Cenchrea, that hosted the Isthmian Games every two or three years. These athletic contests were important in the life of the Greeks, and Paul referred to them in this epistle (9:24-27).

Paul had arrived in Corinth first from Athens, which lay to the east. There he preached the gospel and planted a church. There, too, he met Priscilla and Aquila, Jews who had recently left Rome. After local Jewish officials expelled the church from the synagogue, it met in a large house next door that Titius Justus owned. Paul ministered in Corinth for 18 months, probably in 51 and 52 A.D. He left taking Priscilla and Aquila with him to Ephesus. Paul then proceeded on to Syrian Antioch by way of Caesarea.

Returning to Ephesus on his third journey Paul made that city his base of operations for almost three years (53-56 A.D.). There he heard disquieting news about immorality in the Corinthian church. Therefore he wrote a letter urging the believers not to tolerate such conduct in their midst. Paul referred to this letter as his "former letter" (1 Cor. 5:9). It is not extant today.

Then he heard from "Chloe's people" that factions had developed in the church. He also received a letter from the church in Corinth requesting his guidance in certain matters. These matters were marriage, divorce, food offered to idols, the exercise of spiritual gifts in the church, and the collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem. Those who carried this letter also reported other disturbing conditions in the church. These conditions were the condoning rather than disciplining of immorality, Christians suing one another in the pagan courts, and disorders in their church meetings. These factors led Paul to compose another letter, "1 Corinthians." In it he dealt with the problem of factions, promised to visit them soon, and said he was sending Timothy to Corinth (chs. 1-4). Paul added his responses to the Corinthians' questions to what he had already written. He dealt next with the oral reports (chs. 5-6) and then with the questions that the Corinthian believers had written to him (chs. 7-16). He evidently sent this epistle from Ephesus by trusted messengers in the late winter or early spring of 56 A.D. (cf. 16:8).

It seems that a conflict had developed between the Corinthian church and its founder. There was internal strife in the church, as the epistle makes clear. However the larger problem seems to have been that some in the community were leading the church into a view of things that was contrary to that of Paul. This resulted in a questioning of Paul's authority and his gospel. The key issue between Paul and the Corinthians was what it means to be "spiritual."⁸

"It [1 Corinthians] is not the fullest and clearest statement of Paul's Gospel; for this we must turn to Romans. Nor is it the letter that shows Paul's own heart most clearly, for in this respect it is surpassed by 2 Corinthians, and perhaps by other epistles too. But it has the great value of showing theology at work, theology being used as it was intended to be used, in the criticism and establishing of persons, institutions, practices, and ideas."⁹

Paul's Corinthian Contacts
Paul's founding visit	His "former letter"	The Corin-thians' letter to him	First Corin-thians	Paul's "painful visit"	His "severe letter"	Second Corin-thians	Paul's antici-pated visit

Message¹⁰

A phrase in 1:2 suggests the theme of this great epistle. That phrase is "the church of God which is at Corinth." Two entities are in view in this phrase and these are the two entities with which the whole epistle deals. They are the church of God and the city of Corinth. The church of God is a community of people who share the life of God, are under the governing will of God, and cooperate in the work of God. The city of Corinth was ignorant of the life of God, governed by self-will, and antagonistic to the purposes of God. These two entities stand in vivid contrast to one another and account for the conflict we find in this epistle.

The church of God in view in this epistle is not the universal church but the local church. These two churches are really not that different from one another. The local church is the micro form of the universal church. Moreover the universal church is the macro form of the local church. What is true of one is true of the other. Whatever we find in a local church exists on a larger scale in the universal church. Whatever we find in one local church exists in many local churches. Remember that the New Testament consistently speaks of the church as people, not buildings. The Apostle Paul addressed these people as believers because that is what they were. Today there may be quite a few unsaved people in a local church's membership. This was not the case in the first century. Believers composed local churches. They shared the life of God because the Holy Spirit indwelt them. They had submitted to God's rule over them to some extent. They were people whom God had commissioned to carry the gospel to every creature. We need to bear these things in mind as we read about the church of God in Corinth.

The city of Corinth is the other entity of primary importance in our grasping the major significance of this epistle. What characterizes the world generally marked Corinth. In the first century when other people described a person as a Corinthian they were implying that lust, lasciviousness, and luxury characterized that one. These were the marks of Corinth. Corinth as a city was ignorant of the true God, entirely self-governing as a Roman colony, and self-centered in her world. These traits marked the lives of individual unbelievers in Corinth as well. The city was going in the opposite direction from the direction God had called the church to go.

The atmosphere of this epistle is Paul's concept of the responsibilities of the church in the city. The apostle articulated this underlying emphasis in 1:9. Fellowship involves both privilege and responsibility. On the one hand, all God's resources are at our disposal. On the other hand, all our resources should be at His disposal as well. The church in any place has a debt to the people who live there to proclaim the gospel to them (Rom. 1:14-16). Paul wrote this whole letter out of an underlying sense of the church's responsibility for the city where it existed.

The church in Corinth was struggling to discharge its debt. It was failing in some very important areas: in readiness, in courage, and in conviction to declare the gospel. The Corinthian church was a carnal church. However, its carnality, as big a problem as that was, was only part of a larger problem. The bigger problem was its failure to carry out its God-given purpose in the city, namely to proclaim a powerful spiritual message to the city. The Christians could not fulfill their purpose unless they dealt with their carnality. Why is carnality wrong? It is wrong because it keeps us from fulfilling the purpose for which God has left us on this planet.

In this letter we discover the causes of the church's failure. Another major emphasis is the secrets of the church's success. On the one hand, we find correctives of carnality. On the other, we have construction of spirituality. Let's consider the causes of failure first.

The first cause of failure was the fact that the spirit of the city had invaded the church as a virus. Every evil thing in the church to which Paul referred was prevalent in Corinth. Three things merit particular mention.

One of the symptoms of Corinthian cultural influence was intellectual freedom. There was much interest in intellectual speculation in Corinth as there was in its neighbor city of Athens. The phrase "Corinthian words" was a synonym for rhetoric in Paul's day. Corinth glorified human wisdom. The Corinthians discussed and debated all sorts of opinions. Each intellectual leader had his group of disciples. Discussion of every subject under the sun prevailed with great diversity of opinion. Unfortunately this spirit had invaded the church. There was a veneration of human wisdom among the Christians. They had chosen their own Christian leaders whom they followed as disciples (ch. 1). Intellectual restlessness prevailed in the church as well as in the city. The believers sampled Christian teaching as the general populace dabbled in philosophical argumentation. This extended to such fundamental doctrines as the Resurrection (ch. 15).

Another evidence that the city had invaded the church was the moral laxity that prevailed. Intellectual permissiveness led to the lowering of moral standards. When people view any idea as legitimate, there are few moral absolutes. The worship of Aphrodite on the hill behind the city was extremely immoral, but the unsaved citizens viewed this worship as perfectly acceptable. "Live and let live" was their motto. Regrettably some Corinthians in the church were viewing morals in the same way (ch. 5).

A third mark of the city's effect on the church was personal selfishness. In the city every person did what was right in his own eyes. The result was there was very little concern for other people and their welfare. One of the evidences of this attitude in the church was the Christians' behavior in their meetings. They were not sharing their food with one another (ch. 11). They were also interrupting speakers in the meetings rather than waiting for the speaker to finish what he had to say (ch. 14). Where edification and order should have prevailed, self-glorification and chaos reigned.

These were only symptoms of a deeper problem. The real root issue was that the church had failed to recognize its uniqueness. The Christians had not grasped and retained some central truths the apostles had taught them that identified the essence of their Christianity. Paul reminded them of these things in this epistle.

They had forgotten the central importance of the message of the Cross of Christ. This was a message not subject to debate. It rested on eyewitness testimony and divine revelation, not human speculation. Christians should unite around this message, share a common commitment to it, and make it the subject of their proclamation. We should appreciate the unity of the body of Christ while at the same time glorying in the diversity of its leaders.

The Corinthians had also forgotten the central importance of the power of the resurrection of Christ. The same power that raised Christ from the dead is at work in Christians to enable us to live morally pure lives. Immorality is not an option for the believer. One of the most outstanding marks of a Christian should be purity. Because Jesus Christ was pure, we should be pure. Because He was pure, we can be pure.

The Corinthians had also forgotten the importance of Christ's command that we love one another. Selfishness had invaded the church. The believers needed to put the welfare of others, their fellow believers and their unsaved neighbors, before their own personal inclinations and preferences.

One of the central revelations of this epistle then is that the church fails to fulfill her function in the city (i.e., culture) when the spirit of the city invades her. The church allows the spirit of the city to invade her when she forgets that God wants her to be unique. The church fails when it adopts the ideas and activities of its environment rather than those revealed for it in God's Word. In view of this, Paul constantly appealed to his readers to be what they were in reality. We are not the people we were. We are saints (1:2). We need to remember that and act accordingly. We do not need to catch the spirit of our age. We need to correct the spirit of our age. When the church catches the spirit of its age, it catches a disease and becomes anemic, weak, and sickly. We avoid catching this spirit by staying spiritually healthy and by constantly imbibing the message of the Cross. We do it by exercising the power of the Resurrection and by keeping others rather than self primary.

I have already begun to hint at the secrets of the church's success, the second major revelation in this epistle.

The church must realize what it is to fulfill its function in the city. We must appreciate our life in Christ.

The life of the church is the life of an organism (ch. 12). It has one Lord whose life we share. It has one Spirit who governs it distributing abilities, assigning positions, and determining results as He sees fit in view of God's overall purpose. The church has one God--not many as in Corinth--whose glory it should determine to promote. To the extent a church realizes these truths, it will be ready to be successful in the sight of God. If it shares the spiritual life of her Lord, submits to the Spirit's leading, and seeks to glorify God, it will succeed. By separating from the spirit of the city, it can help and lift the city.

The law of the church must be the law of love. This is the opposite of the selfish outlook. Paul emphasized the importance of love in chapter 13.

The power of the church is the Resurrection life of Christ (ch. 15). We presently live between two resurrections, the resurrection of Christ and our own resurrection. These resurrections are facts of history. One has already taken place, and the other is yet to come. Between these resurrections the church must fulfill its function in the world. The life that God has given to every believer is life that has power over death. One who overcame death has given it to us. This life is essentially different from what unbelievers possess. It is eternal divine life. With such life we can face any enemy as we serve God. Even the final enemy, death, cannot hold us. It could not hold Him who gave us His life.

Not only must we appreciate the uniqueness of our life as a church to fulfill our function, but we must also fulfill our function by invading the city. Rather than allowing it to invade us, we must invade it to be successful.

We do this by proclaiming that Jesus is Lord. He is the only Lord. The proof of this is His resurrection.

We also do this by rebuking the immorality of the city, not just by decrying it but, what is more important, by overcoming it in our own lives. We do it by demonstrating the power of Christ's life within us by living morally pure lives.

Third, we do this by counteracting the selfishness of our culture by practicing genuine Christian love. This means living for the glory of God and the good of others rather than putting self first.

The church always fails when it becomes conformed to the maxims, methods, and manners of the city--the world in which it lives. It always succeeds when it stands separate from the city and touches it with its supernatural healing life.

This epistle calls the church in every age to recognize its responsibility to its city. The church is responsible for the intellectual, moral, and social conditions in its city. Unfortunately many churches believe they exist merely to conserve the life of their members. We live in a cultural climate very similar to the one in which the Corinthian Christians lived. It is a culture characterized by intellectual pluralism, situation ethics, and personal selfishness. We face the same challenge the Corinthian believers did. Consequently what this epistle reveals is extremely relevant for us. We have responsibility for how people in our city think, how they behave, and whom they glorify. What they need is the message of the Cross delivered in the power of the Resurrection.

This letter is also a call to separation.

First, we must separate from absolute intellectual freedom and willingly submit our understanding and thinking to the revelation that God has given us in Scripture (chs. 1-4). There is a growing notion that all religions lead to God. Increasingly we hear that it does not matter too much what someone believes because we will all end up in the same place eventually. We need to counter that view with the revelation of the exclusive way of salvation that God has provided for people who are hopelessly lost and dead in their sins.

God has also called us to separation from moral laxity. Our culture is playing down personal morality and marital morality today. We need to proclaim the standards of God in these areas even though we may face strong opposition for doing so. Paul held these standards up in chapters 5-7.

Likewise we need to separate from selfish living. We need to make a break with goals and plans designed to glorify ourselves. Instead we need to evaluate all of our activities by the standard of chapter 13.

By way of application we can conclude several things from these observations about the emphases in this epistle.

First, the influence of the church is the influence of its individual members. The sum of its individual members' influence is the church's influence. Everything that is true of the church, therefore, is true of the individual believer in it to some extent.

Second, there should be perpetual conflict between the church and the city. If there is no conflict, the church is not having its proper influence. It may be that the city has invaded the church.

Third, the message of the church must ever be the message of the Cross and the Resurrection. It is a message of failure and success, of success out of failure. That is the message of hope the city needs to hear. Consequently we need to "be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord," because we know that our labor is not in vain in the Lord (15:58).

Constable: 1 Corinthians (Outline)

Outline

I. Introduction 1:1-9

A. Salutation 1:1-3

B. Thanksgiving 1:4-9

II. Conditions reported to Paul 1:10-6:20

A. Divisions in the church 1:10-4:21

1. The manifestation of the problem 1:10-17

2. The gospel as a contradiction to human wisdom 1:18-2:5

3. The Spirit's ministry of revealing God's wisdom 2:6-16

4. The spiritual yet carnal condition 3:1-4

5. The role of God's servants 3:5-17

6. Human wisdom and limited blessing 3:18-23

7. The Corinthians' relationship with Paul 4:1-21

B. Lack of discipline in the church chs. 5-6

1. Incest in the church ch. 5

2. Litigation in the church 6:1-11

3. Prostitution in the church 6:12-20

III. Questions asked of Paul 7:1-16:12

A. Marriage and related matters ch. 7

1. Advice to the married or formerly married 7:1-16

2. Basic principles 7:17-24

3. Advice concerning virgins 7:25-40

B. Food offered to idols 8:1-11:1

1. The priority of love over knowledge in Christian conduct ch. 8

2. Paul's apostolic defense ch. 9

3. The sinfulness of idolatry 10:1-22

4. The issue of marketplace food 10:23-11:1

C. Propriety in worship 11:2-16

1. The argument from culture 11:2-6

2. The argument from creation 11:7-12

3. The argument from propriety 11:13-16

D. The Lord's Supper 11:17-34

1. The abuses 11:17-26

2. The correctives 11:27-34

E. Spiritual gifts and spiritual people chs. 12-14

1. The test of Spirit control 12:1-3

2. The need for varieties of spiritual gifts 12:4-31

3. The supremacy of love ch. 13

4. The need for intelligibility 14:1-25

5. The need for order 14:26-40

F. The resurrection of believers ch. 15

l. The resurrection of Jesus Christ 15:1-11

2. The certainty of resurrection 15:12-34

3. The resurrection body 15:35-49

4. The assurance of victory over death 15:50-58

G. The collection for the Jerusalem believers 16:1-12

1. Arrangements for the collection 16:1-4

2. The travel plans of Paul and his fellow apostles 16:5-12

IV. Conclusion 16:13-24

A. Final exhortations 16:13-18

B. Final greetings and benediction 16:19-24

Constable: 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

THE FIRST

EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL, THE APOSTLE,

TO THE CORINTHIANS.

INTRODUCTION.

Corinth was the capital of Achaia, a very rich and populous city, where St. Paul had preached a year and a half, and converted a great many. See Acts xviii. 10. Now having received a letter from them, (chap. vii. 1.) and being informed of divers disputes and divisions among them, (chap. i. ver. 11.) he wrote this letter to them, and sent it by the same persons, Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, who had brought him their letter, chap. xvi. 17. It was written about the year 56, not from Philippi, as it is commonly marked at the end of the Greek copies, but rather from Ephesus. The subject and main design of this Epistle was to take away the divisions among them about the talents and merits of those who had baptized and preached to them, and to settle divers matters of ecclesiastical discipline. The apostle justifieth his mission, and his manner of preaching, chap. i, ii, iii, and iv. He teacheth them what was to be done with the man guilty of a scandalous sin of incest, chap. v. He speaks of sins against chastity; of matrimony; and of the state of continency, chap. vi and vii. Of meats offered to idols, chap. viii. Of his manner of conversing with them, and what their conversation ought to be, chap. ix and x. Of the holy sacrament of the Eucharist, chap. xi. Of the different gifts of the Holy Ghost, and how to employ them, chap. xii, xiii, and xiv. Of the faith of the resurrection, chap. xv. Of charitable contributions, and of his design of coming again to them, chap. xvi. (Witham) --- St. Paul having planted the faith in Corinth, where he had preached a year and a half, and converted a great many, went to Ephesus. After being there three years, he wrote this first Epistle to the Corinthians, and sent it by the same persons, Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, who had brought their letter to him. It was written about twenty-four years after our Lord's ascension, and contains several matters appertaining to faith and morals, and also to ecclesiastical discipline. (Challoner)

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Gill: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS

This was not the first epistle that was written by the apostle to the Corinthians, for we read in this of his having written an epistle to them before, 1Co 5:9, but this is the first epistle of his unto them, that is now extant; and has been received by the churches, as of divine authority, being written by the inspiration of God, of which there has been no doubt in any age. The apostle himself was nearly two years at Corinth; where he preached with great success; and was the instrument of converting many persons, who by him were formed into a church state, consisting both of Jews and Gentiles, as is clear from many passages in this epistle, and whom be left in good order, and in great peace and harmony; but quickly after his departure, false teachers got in among them, and bad principles were imbibed by many of them, and evil practices prevailed among them, and they fell into factions and parties, which occasioned the apostle to write this epistle to them, as well as their writing to him concerning certain things, they desired to have his judgment and opinion of, 1Co 7:1, It is thought to be written about the year of Christ 55, and in the first year of Nero, though some place it in the year 59. It was written not from Philippi, as the subscription added to it affirms, but from Ephesus, as appears from 1Co 16:8, and, it may be, after the uproar raised there by Demetrius, as should seem from a passage in 1Co 15:32. The matter of it is various. The apostle first rebukes them for their schisms and divisions; suggests that their regard to the wisdom of men, and the philosophy of the Gentiles, had brought the simplicity of the Gospel into contempt with them; blames them for their conduct in the case of the incestuous person, and urges them to put him away from them; reproves them for going to law with one another before Heathen magistrates, and warmly inveighs against fornication; and then answers several questions, and resolves several cases concerning marriage; treats of things offered to idols, and of the maintenance of ministers; and dissuades from idolatry, and all appearance of it; takes notice of the unbecoming conduct of the members of the church at the Lord's supper; and discourses concerning the nature and use of spiritual gifts, and commends charity above them; observes and corrects some irregularities in the use of their gifts; proves by various arguments the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, which some of them denied; exhorts to a collection for the poor saints, and to several other things, and concludes the epistle with the salutations of others, and of himself.

Gill: 1 Corinthians 1 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS 1

This chapter contains the general inscription of the epistle, the usual salutation, and a special thanksgiving for blessings received; after which the apostle intimates the occasion of his writing, the divisions about their ministers, which gives him an opportunity of discoursing concerning the nature, end, use, and efficacy of the preaching of the Gospel. The inscription is in 1Co 1:1, in which an account is given of the persons concerned in this epistle; and first of Paul, the only inspired writer of it, who is described by his name, by which he went among the Gentiles; by his office, an apostle of Jesus Christ; and by the manner in which he came into it, being called to it not through any merit of his own, but through the sovereign will and pleasure of God: and next mention is made of Sosthenes, a brother minister of the Gospel, who was with the apostle, and joined in the salutation of the church, to whom the epistle is written; who are described, by their general character, a church of God; by the place of their abode, and seat of their church state, Corinth; and by their special characters, sanctified in Christ by election, and saints through the effectual calling; and with them are joined all other saints in Achaia, that belonged to them and the apostle, that called upon the name of the Lord; and then follows the salutation in 1Co 1:3, usual in all the epistles; after that a thanksgiving to God for the grace they had by Christ in general, 1Co 1:4, and particularly for their gifts of utterance and knowledge, which were plentifully bestowed upon them, 1Co 1:5, and were a confirmation to them of the Gospel of Christ, 1Co 1:6, and by which it appeared, that they were not behind other churches in these things; and are commended for their waiting for the coming of Christ, 1Co 1:7, by whom the apostle assures them, they would be so confirmed in the mean while, as to be presented blameless by him in that day, 1Co 1:8, of which they might be assured from the faithfulness of God, who had called them to communion with Christ, 1Co 1:9, upon which he exhorts them to unity of affection and judgment, for this end, that there might be no schisms among them; and this he does in a way of entreaty, and that by the name of Christ, and from the consideration of their being brethren, 1Co 1:10, suggesting hereby, that there were divisions among them: and signifies, that he had good reason to believe it, having had an account of them from a family of repute among them, 1Co 1:11, and then expressly mentions what their differences were about, namely, their ministers, 1Co 1:12, and uses arguments to dissuade them from their dividing principles and practices; showing, that one was their Lord and master, Christ, who was crucified for them, and in whose name they were baptized, and not his ministers, 1Co 1:13, and since some among them made an ill use of their having been baptized by the apostle, he is thankful that he had baptized no more of them, and mentions by name those that he had baptized, 1Co 1:14, and gives a reason for it, taken from the principal end of his mission by Christ, which was to preach the Gospel, and not only or chiefly to baptize, 1Co 1:17. The manner in which he was sent to preach, and did preach it, is observed by him, not in the words of human wisdom; and that for this reason, lest either the Gospel should be of no use, or the effect of it should be ascribed to a wrong cause; and then be obviates an objection that might be made to this way of preaching, that hereby the Gospel would be brought into contempt; to which he answers, by granting that it would be, and was reckoned foolishness by them that were blinded and were lost; and by observing on the other hand, that it was effectual to saving purposes to others, 1Co 1:18, and though the former sort might be the wise and prudent of this world, this need seem no strange thing, since the infatuation of such persons is no other than what was foretold would be, as appears from a testimony out of Isa 29:14, cited in 1Co 1:19, upon which some questions are put, and inquiries made, after men of wisdom and learning, whose wisdom God made foolish, 1Co 1:20, the reason of which was, because they did not make a right use of their natural wisdom in the knowledge of God, wherefore it was his pleasure to save men by means esteemed foolishness by them, 1Co 1:21, and these wise men, who accounted the preaching of the Gospel foolishness, are distinguished into two sorts, Jews and Gentiles; the one requiring miracles to confirm it, the other seeking wisdom in it, 1Co 1:22, but finding neither, though there were really both, the preaching of a crucified Christ was a stumbling to the one, and folly to the other, 1Co 1:23, though those that were called by grace from among them, whether Jews or Gentiles, had different sentiments of it, and of Christ preached in it, in whose esteem he was the power and wisdom of God, 1Co 1:24, the reason of which was, because there are superior wisdom and power in Christ and his Gospel, which the apostle, an ironical concession, calls the foolishness and weakness of God, to the wisdom and power of men, 1Co 1:25, and instances in the effectual calling and conversion of the Corinthians, who for the most part were not the wise, the mighty, and noble, 1Co 1:26, but the foolish, weak, and base; and the end of God, in the call of such, was to draw a veil over and bring to confusion the wisdom and power of men, 1Co 1:27, and also that no creature whatever should dare to glory before him, 1Co 1:29, but the true object of glorying in is pointed at, the Lord Jesus Christ; and the reason of it, all blessings of grace being in him, and from him, is suggested, 1Co 1:30, so that whoever glories, should glory in him, 1Co 1:31.

Gill: 1 Corinthians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS 2

The apostle, in this chapter, pursues the same argument as before, that the Gospel needed not the wisdom and art of men: this he illustrates by his own example; and then he extols the Gospel above all the wisdom of men; and observes how it comes to be made known to men, even by the Spirit of God: hence it follows, that it is to be taught in his words, and not in the words of men; and that it can be only known and judged of by the spiritual, and not by the natural man. He instances in himself, and in his own ministry, when at Corinth, where he preached the Gospel in a plain and simple manner, without using the ornaments of speech, and human wisdom, 1Co 2:1 his reason was, because he had determined with himself to preach not himself, but a crucified Christ, 1Co 2:2. His manner of behaviour is more largely declared, 1Co 2:3 that he was so far from being elated with his human literature, and priding himself with that, and making use of it in an ostentatious way, that he was attended with much weakness, fear, and trembling; and his discourses were not adorned with the flowers of rhetoric, but were delivered with the power, evidence, and demonstration of the Spirit, 1Co 2:4. And his end and view in this method of preaching were, that the faith of his hearers should not be ascribed to human wisdom, but to a divine power, 1Co 2:5 but lest the Gospel should be thought meanly and contemptibly of, because of the plain dress in which it appeared, the apostle affirms it to be the highest wisdom, as those who had the most perfect knowledge of it could attest; a wisdom superior to the wisdom of this world, or of its princes, since that comes to nothing, 1Co 2:6 the excellency of which he expresses by various epithets, as the wisdom of God, mysterious wisdom, hidden wisdom, ancient wisdom, ordained before the world began, for the glory of the saints, 1Co 2:7 a wisdom unknown to the princes of the world, who otherwise would not have been concerned in the crucifixion of Christ, 1Co 2:8 and that this far exceeds the capacity of men, and could never have been found out by them, he proves, 1Co 2:9 by a testimony out of Isa 64:4 and then proceeds to show how it comes to be known by any of the sons of men, that it is by the revelation of the Spirit of God, 1Co 2:10 which is illustrated by the nature of the spirit of man within him, which only knows the things of a man; so in like manner only the Spirit of God knows the things of God, and can make them known to others, 1Co 2:11. And in this way he observes, that he and others became acquainted with these things; namely, by receiving not the spirit of the world, which at most could only have taught them the wisdom of the world, but the Spirit of God, whereby they knew their interest in the blessings of free grace, published in the Gospel, 1Co 2:12. And seeing the Gospel is made known by the Spirit of God, it should be delivered, not in the words of man's wisdom, but in the words of the Holy Spirit, as the apostle affirms he and other ministers did deliver it, returning to his former argument, 1Co 2:13. And also it follows from hence, that the things of the Gospel, which the Spirit reveals, cannot be known and received by the natural man, who has no discerning of them, and so no value for them, 1Co 2:14 and can only be discerned, judged, and approved of by spiritual men, 1Co 2:15 and who are not to be judged by natural and carnal men, because they have not the mind of Christ, and so cannot instruct them; but spiritual men have it, such as the apostle and others, 1Co 2:16.

College: 1 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

FOREWORD

Since the past few decades have seen an explosion in the number of books, articles, and commentaries on First Corinthians, a brief word to the readers might help them know what to expect or not to expect from this commentary. This commentary is intended for use by studious lay people, Bible teachers, and seminary students. Most scholars and specialists in the area of New Testament will probably find this commentary's treatment of 1 Corinthians and its problems too elementary. Because of the intended audience for this work and the constraints of length, the user should be aware of certain acknowledged limitations. There are at least four of these:

1. This commentary does not pretend to look at every problem, real or imaginary, which has caught the eye of previous scholarship.

2. The commentary does not attempt to cite continuously the interpretations of leading Christian thinkers as they have written on this Pauline letter.

3. Interpretations are given on individual passages without always citing the full evidence and without working through the attendant arguments, either for or against particular views.

4. Only a moderate number of footnotes have been used. In addition, the vast majority of the secondary literature cited will be English language and will, when possible, be in book form. The nonspecialist for whom this commentary is intended has little interest in or access to technical materials, journal literature, or foreign language materials.

Those who wish to study this letter of Paul in more detail should look to some of the more technical commentaries (e.g., Gordon Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians ).

I owe a special word of thanks to two individuals. My friend Gail Brady graciously typed the entire manuscript of this commentary for me. My friend and colleague Prof. Allen Black read the entire manuscript for me and saved me and my readers from more than one instance of an inappropriate choice of words as well as an occasional overstatement.

I dedicate this volume to my parents who shared with me over the years their own faith, hope, and love.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

INTRODUCTION

METHODOLOGY

The text of Scripture known as 1 Corinthians has provided a well from which believers have drunk for almost two millennia. This portion of Scripture has served the church as a resource for theology, for homiletical exposition, for pastoral issues, and more recently as a source for reconstructing social dimensions and dynamics of early Pauline Christianity. Whatever else one wants to say about 1 Corinthians, it cannot be doubted that it has had a significant impact on the Christian church.

Notwithstanding the necessity and value of this diversity of perspectives and interpretive methodologies which have come across the stage of Christian history, this present work is more narrowly focused in its approach. This work is primarily a historical-exegetical commentary, the goal of which is to understand and set forth the ideas, doctrines, and feelings Paul communicated in the letter of 1 Corinthians. The phrase "ideas, doctrines, and feelings" is not intended to describe an "intellectual history" of the great Apostle. Rather, Paul's ideas, doctrines, and feelings, as recorded in 1 Corinthians, are engendered and evoked by a series of practices and beliefs, diverse in themselves, coming from individuals and groups in the church of God at Corinth.

A decision to write a historical-exegetical commentary brings with it several assumptions and commitments.

1. This means in the first instance that the feelings, doctrines, and ideas of Paul must, as far as possible, be understood in the historical framework, both in which he wrote them and in which the first readers lived. A historical-exegetical approach has little in common with simplistic attempts to modernize Paul, to re-create him after the image of western Christianity. To be sure, every practicing believer knows firsthand the need to bring forward, with God's help and wisdom, the meaning of the ancient text into the modern world. How strange it appears, however, when those who wish to contextualize the Gospel in the modern setting have not invested the time and effort to first learn what it meant in its original context. Just as a good translation of Russian literature into French requires that one be familiar with both languages, so a good translation of the ideas of Paul's letter to the Corinthians into modern idiom requires a competent grasp of the original meaning of this letter as well as the modern world.

2. A commitment to a historical-exegetical methodology means that one must always recognize that Paul's letter to the Corinthians is an occasional document, arising in the first instance as direct responses to ad hoc issues and problems in the lives of believers living in a certain region of the Roman Empire, at a specific time, and under particular historical and cultural circumstances. Since the historical method infers that Paul's commands, arguments, and instructions were given in direct response to the issues raised by the lives and ideas of the Corinthians, one must openly acknowledge that 1 Corinthians may not address every issue that we, living two millennia later, hope it would. In fact, 1 Corinthians was not even adequate or appropriate for addressing the problem in all the Pauline churches. I am certain, for example, that the churches of Galatia would have been perplexed to receive 1 Corinthians as a solution to their specific problems. Indeed, even at Corinth it had to be supplemented by 2 Corinthians.

Not only does the historical method help restrain us from foisting our own agendas and ecclesiastical problems upon that small group of believers who lived at a particular time in Roman Achaia almost 2000 years ago, it also serves as a restraint for those who would twist the Scriptures and put forth their own ideology masquerading as exegesis. Time and again commentators have found a theology or doctrinal imprimatur in the text of 1 Corinthians which, even if generally true, has little in common with Paul's own intention and goals for this letter. Throughout the centuries preachers and theologians have strolled through the cafeteria of 1 Corinthians, appetite whetted, looking for some word, idea, or verse to place upon the plate from which they feed the church. At some point this kind of pragmatism in handling Scripture, which is driven by a variety of appetites, must be labeled as malpractice, and the student of Scripture needs to obey again the pastoral admonition to become "a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth" (2 Tim 2:15).

Even though a historical-exegetical method is the underpinning of this commentary, it is in no way the final task for the church in the interpretation of 1 Corinthians. Rather, the historical-exegetical approach should be the first step, and a necessary one, which is followed by many other steps taken by believers who, through the course of their journey, translate the manifold and variegated message of 1 Corinthians for the contemporary and global church of Jesus Christ. The individual tools and methods used in this process of contextualization would hopefully come from the guidance of God as well as study in the traditional theological disciplines of homiletics, systematic theology, pastoral theology, ethnotheology, and the like.

THE LETTER OF 1 CORINTHIANS

DESTINATION

The letter of 1 Corinthians was sent by Paul and Sosthenes to the congregation of believers in the city of Corinth. This is in contrast to 2 Corinthians, which was written not only to believers in Corinth but also to believers in the province of Achaia, of which Corinth was the capital (2 Cor 1:1). The content of 1 Cor 5:9 "I have written you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people" makes it evident that the letter of 1 Corinthians is not Paul's first written communication with the church at Corinth since he here refers to a previous letter he had already sent them and which they apparently misunderstood (5:9-11).

DATE

Even though the Acts of the Apostles was not written for the purpose of providing a historical framework for the Pauline Corpus, there are instances where Acts and facts from ancient historical records do supplement the letters of Paul. One very important way in which Acts supplements the less specific material in the Pauline letters is in regard to chronology. Without the chronological framework of Acts, it would be much harder to know how to arrange in sequence materials from Paul's letters and to assign dates to them. It is our good fortune to be able to assign dates to about five episodes mentioned in Acts, and thereby, assign relative dates to parts of Paul's correspondence. One of these instances is the case of Acts 18 where Luke narrates the beginning of the Pauline mission in Corinth. At that point we have firm evidence for the date of the Christian mission based upon supplemental historical data. In particular, Acts indicates that Paul's work at Corinth took place while Gallio was the proconsul of Achaia (Acts 18:12). This Roman official, who was the brother of the Roman philosopher Seneca, is known from ancient Roman literature as well as archaeological data. It is this latter realm of evidence which helps specify the time of his career when he was proconsul in Corinth. This would put Paul's work at Corinth and his appearance before Gallio in the early 50s. Acts 18:11 indicates that Paul worked in Corinth for 18 months; this means that Paul's correspondence in 1 Corinthians would have occurred in approximately A.D. 55. While some interpreters have attempted to get even more precise with the dating, it seems that A.D. 55 is as specific as the evidence can support.

PROVENANCE

Paul was actually not far from Corinth when he wrote 1 Corinthians. First Corinthians 16:8 points decisively to a site on the eastern side of the Aegean Sea, in Ephesus, on the western coast of the Roman province of Asia. Travel between large port cities such as Corinth and Ephesus was frequent and relatively easy in the Roman world. Consequently, it is no surprise to find Corinthians visiting Paul, and Paul and his co-workers making visits from Asia to Corinth.

ROMAN CORINTH

The Greek city of Corinth had suffered defeat at the hands of the expanding Roman Republic in 146 B.C. The archaeological evidence does not support, however, the idea that in the ensuing years all life and Greek influence vanished from this conquered and partially desolate site. While the Greek Corinth was clearly defeated, it was not totally deserted in the decades following 146 B.C. When Julius Caesar, shortly before his assassination in 44 B.C., reestablished the city as a Roman colony, it would have quickly become a city which was dominantly, but not exclusively, Roman. Consequently, any study of Paul's letter to the church of God at Corinth must take seriously the fact that Paul was addressing a city which had been, since 44 B.C., a Roman colony ( Colonia Laus Iulia Corinthiensis ). Roman colonies were typically established as outposts for promoting Roman culture, religion, language, and political systems as well as providing lands for retired Roman soldiers. And even though Corinth was located geographically in Greece, there is no doubt that Roman mores and ideas impacted the local populace since, as Aulus Gellius noted (2nd cent. A.D.), Roman colonies "seemed to be miniatures, as it were, and in a way copies" of the Roman people. Therefore, Corinth possessed all the appropriate Roman laws, magistrates and officials.

Because of Corinth's mercantile character and important geographical location, it quickly attracted new residents from throughout the eastern Mediterranean. Consequently, by the time of Paul's arrival in Corinth, almost one century after its reestablishment as a city, the population would have included not only Romans, but also Greeks, Jews, Egyptians, Syrians, etc.

ORIGIN, STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF 1 CORINTHIANS

Even though there is not a consensus among interpreters regarding the exact nature and causes of the problems which Paul treats in 1 Corinthians, there is general agreement that the letter is organized around the cluster of problems which Paul is striving to remedy by his apostolic instruction. The letter is basically a series of smaller units of thought, each of which seems to be directed to a particular aberration in the beliefs and/or practices of the Corinthians. Paul's style in the letter is to acknowledge the existence of a sin or problem, address the sin or problem, and then move on to the next one.

Paul's information about these various problems at Corinth did not come from firsthand knowledge of his own nor through inspiration. The majority, if not all, of Paul's information about the various issues with which he dealt in the letter came most likely from two distinct human sources. The information and problems treated in 1 Cor 1-6 came from those from the house of Chloe. First Corinthians 1:11 states that "some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you," thereby identifying Paul's source of information for the problem he treats in 1 Cor 1-4. The wording of 1 Cor 5:1 "It is actually reported" points probably to additional information in 1 Cor 5-6 which was also supplied by those from Chloe's house. If this is not the case, then we have no idea who provided this report of immorality among the Corinthians.

A second major source for Paul's information is mentioned in 1 Cor 7:1 when he wrote, " Now for the matters you wrote about ." Paul is expressly acknowledging here that the list of issues and problems that he is going to respond to came from a document authored and sent by Corinthian believers to him. Numerous modern interpreters believe, rightly so in my opinion, that this Corinthian document informed Paul not only about the issue discussed in 1 Cor 7:1ff, but also the matters discussed at 8:1ff ( Now about food sacrificed to idols), 12:1ff ( Now about spiritual gifts), and 16:1ff ( Now about the collection for God's people).

At least two points can be drawn from this information. The first is that the Corinthians themselves should receive credit for the broad outline of what was discussed and treated in 1 Corinthians. In addition, one ought not overlook the fact that Paul's treatment of the Corinthians' problems is a treatment of the problems as communicated to him through an unnamed informant of one of the women members of the congregation and through a letter (authors unknown) sent to Paul which already had, regardless of its tone, an agenda for which Paul was not responsible. It is obvious, then, that even though no one seriously doubts the Pauline authorship of 1 Corinthians, it is important for the interpreter to appreciate the complex role of the Corinthians in their contribution to the content and structure of the epistle.

PROBLEMS AT CORINTH

The task of identifying and reconstructing the multiple problems within the church of God at Corinth on the basis of Paul's letter to them is not a simple one. Writing decades ago on this very problem Prof. Kirsopp Lake commented,

The difficulty which undoubtedly attends any attempt to understand the Epistles of St. Paul is largely due to the fact that they are letters; for the writer of letters assumes the knowledge of a whole series of facts, which are, as he is quite aware, equally familiar to his correspondent and to himself. But as time goes on this knowledge is gradually forgotten and what was originally quite plain becomes difficult and obscure; it has to be recovered from stray hints and from other documents by a process of laborious research, before it is possible for the letters to be read with anything approaching to the ease and intelligence possessed by those to whom they were originally sent.

There are some scholars who wish to interpret most, if not all, of the problems in 1 Corinthians as arising from one group of individuals at Corinth. The evidence of 1 Corinthians does not, in my judgment, support such a theory. There are, admittedly, aspects of this approach which are attractive. Common traits, to be sure, can be found among some of the problems. For example, Paul refers to the sin of boasting as an ingredient in more than one of the problems within the Corinthians fellowship. Likewise, the terms "division" ( , schisma ) (1 Cor 1:10; 11:18) and "dissension" (also schisma ) (1 Cor 12:25) are used by Paul in describing more than one problem situation among the letter's recipients. This common denominator of schisma does not require the conclusion that the problems of "party loyalty" in 1 Cor 1-4, abuse of the Lord's Meal in 11:17-22, and misunderstanding and misuse of spiritual gifts in 12-14 must all be traced back to a common theological aberration, to the same social stratum in the church, or to a particular house church in Corinth.

Since the goal in this commentary is to interpret 1 Corinthians as Paul's coherent letter, we must respect Paul's own categorization of the issues at Corinth if we want to understand the intent of his instruction and flow of thought as he responded and gave directions to the church of God at Corinth. If direct and explicit social links between the organizational subunits within 1 Corinthians can be isolated, so much the better for exegesis. However, to this point in time many of the rhetorical, sociological and anthropological reconstructions of the Christian community(ies) at Corinth resemble, at times, a Procrustean Bed rather than a picture put together on the basis of an exegetical-historical model.

Throughout the modern period of Pauline interpretation scholars have regularly commented on the issue of Paul's opponents at Corinth. In this interpretive context, the term opponent has become almost synonymous with those who promoted or participated in the spiritual aberrations opposed by Paul in 1 Corinthians. More recently, however, other scholars have rightly attempted to both refine and redefine the term opponent. From this ongoing discussion two points are relevant to this study of 1 Corinthians. First, one must not automatically equate the personalities, groups and aberrations behind 2 Corinthians with those behind 1 Corinthians. There is no compelling reason to believe that the two letters were written to address the exact same problems. In fact, the internal evidence leads away from such a position. (1) 1 Corinthians was written only to the church in Corinth, while 2 Corinthians was written not only to the church in Corinth but also to all believers in all the Roman province of Achaia, of which Corinth was the capital. (2) Most of the key terms and ideas of each letter are not found in the other. (3) The tenor and literary characteristics of each letter are distinctive.

The second observation from the contemporary discussion of Pauline opponents is the question of whether every spiritual aberration within a Pauline church should be interpreted as intentional and direct opposition to Paul himself. It is not a question of whether Paul ever had opponents (e.g., 2 Corinthians, Galatians), but whether the term opponent is the appropriate term for everyone who was guilty of spiritual perceptions and doctrines different than Paul's or whose lifestyle was not in harmony with Paul's ethical teachings. John Calvin touched on this point in his commentary on 1 Corinthians when he wrote, "Now, I have good reason for thinking that those worthless fellows, who had caused trouble in the Corinthian church, were not open enemies of the truth." Calvin's point is well taken and his caution in using the term opponent will be followed in this work. More explicit and extended discussions on the topic of opponents will be found at the appropriate junctures in the commentary itself.

OUTLINE OF 1 CORINTHIANS

The recognition of literary units in 1 Corinthians is part and parcel of the task of exegesis. The opening and closing of units of thought are not merely arbitrary literary embellishments nor are they just convenient ways to structure Paul's thought and feelings. These units put linguistic and semantic limits on the words and thoughts of Paul. The recognition of these demarcations in 1 Corinthians is mandated, since it helps ensure that the flow of Paul's rhetorical argument remains within the limits set by the Apostle himself. Moreover, a respect for the conceptual units and subunits of Paul's letter will greatly reduce the tendency to make his words mean more than he intended them to mean. This tendency to generalize Paul's thought and words beyond the immediate rhetorical setting comes at a high price, since it can only be maintained by denying the occasional nature of the Pauline correspondence as well as the universally recognized fact that meaning emerges from rhetorical and contextual usage.

Introduction etc. 1:1-9

Issue 1 Disunity and Community Fragmentation 1:10-4:20

Issue 2 Reports of Immorality 5:1-6:20

Issue 3 Sexuality/Celibacy/Marriage 7:1-40

Issue 4 Foods Offered to Idols 8:1-11:1

Issue 5 Liturgical Aberrations 11:2-34

Issue 6 Misunderstanding of Spiritual Gifts 12:1-14:40

Issue 7 Misunderstanding of Believers' Resurrection 15:1-58

Issue 8 Instruction for the Collection 16:1-11

Concluding topics 16:12-24

HISTORICAL MATRIX FOR THE CORINTHIAN PROBLEMS

Without going into the multifaceted issues about the historical evidence from Acts for Paul's churches and how this relates to the evidence for Paul and his churches from his own letters, it seems prudent to rely initially and primarily upon the evidence of 1 Corinthians itself rather than Luke's material in Acts to understand the nature and extent of the problems in the church at Corinth. To be specific, one must not falsely conclude, on the basis of the Lukan picture of a predominant Jewish matrix of the church in Corinth, that Jewish beliefs and practices provide the matrix for most of the aberrations within the Corinthian church. In this regard, Gordon Fee is correct when he points out that many of the problems at Corinth are explicitly traced by Paul to the converts' pagan heritage. It can be argued, furthermore, that even those issues not explicitly traced to pagan heritage by Paul can be best understood by seeing them against the backdrop of Greco-Roman rather than Jewish mores and values.

The issues depicted in 1 Corinthians arose directly from the lives of that first generation Christian community, most of whom had been believers no more than 48 months. Since Paul nowhere implies in 1 Corinthians that the Corinthian problems were introduced by outsiders, the most reasonable course to follow in evaluating the origin of the Corinthian issues is to investigate the urban setting of Roman Corinth from which the converts came. This means that the religious and cultural perspectives which shaped the beliefs and practices of those whom Paul addressed in this letter provide the best circumstantial evidence and clues for the interpretation of 1 Corinthians.

While the need to recognize the Greco-Roman matrix of the Corinthian problems might seem self-evident, the history of the interpretation of 1 Corinthians clearly reveals that not all interpreters have shared this methodological concern. In practice this approach to 1 Corinthians means that:

1. One must not attribute the Jewishness of Paul and the Scriptural basis of his own theology to those recent converts whom he was correcting. To extract texts and vocabulary from Jewish sources (e.g., Mishnah, Dead Sea Scrolls, Gospels, etc.) to understand the matrix of the Corinthians' problems is highly suspect. The fact that Paul often cites Scripture to remedy the problems at Corinth speaks more of his own Jewish heritage, his apostolic ministry, and his convictions that all Christians are to be guided by Scripture than it does that there was some significant Jewish background to the Corinthian problems.

2. The mores, patterns of culture and specific religious institutions of Greco-Roman paganism must be seen as the soil in which the Corinthian problems were germinated and grew.

3. The specific condition of the Corinth of Paul's day should be taken as the immediate setting for the converts. One must exercise caution in using information about an earlier Greek Corinth which had been destroyed in the second century B.C. and no longer existed in Paul's day in order to describe the Corinth of Paul's day.

4. One must recognize the multicultural nature of Corinth at Paul's time. It was geographically Greek, it was administratively and politically Roman, and its denizens came from throughout the central and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Basin. Consequently, one must reckon with ethnic influences in Paul's Corinth which reflect Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Syrian, Jewish, and Anatolian influences.

5. Vague and anachronistic labels such as gnosticism should be avoided until appropriate historical evidence and documentation can be discovered and shown to be relevant to the issues at Corinth addressed by Paul. A commitment to the notion of a gnostic background to 1 Corinthians still has advocates, though their numbers are surely down from that of the 19th and earlier part of the 20th century. Quite recently, for example, Pheme Perkins argued that

. . . gnostic mythologizing does form part of the horizon within which the New Testament should be interpreted. Students of Christian origins have become accustomed to comparing the New Testament material with a wide variety of Jewish and Greco-Roman sources. The same efforts of analysis and comparison should be applied to the gnostic material.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

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________________ . The Spirit and the Congregation . Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1984.

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-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

ABBREVIATIONS

ABD . . . Anchor Bible Dictionary

AUSS . . . Andrews University Seminary Studies

BA . . . Biblical Archaeology

BAGD . . . Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich, Danker

BAR . . . Biblical Archaeology Review

BiblThecSac . . . Bibliotheca Sacra

BJRL . . . Bulletin of the John Rylands Library

BTr . . . Bible Translator

CMM . . . Introduction to the New Testament by Carson, Moo, L. Morris

ChrSt . . . Christian Standard

DPL . . . Dictionary of Paul and His Letters

ed. . . . edited by

EQ . . . Evangelical Quarterly

ExpT . . . Expository Times

HTR . . . Harvard Theological Review

JBL . . . Journal of Biblical Literature

JSNT . . . Journal of Studies in the New Testament

JETS . . . Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society

JTS . . . Journal of Theological Studies

n. . . . note

NovT . . . Novum Testamentum

NTS . . . New Testament Studies

RevEx . . . Review and Expositor

TB . . . Tyndale Bulletin

TDNT . . . Theological Dictionary of the New Testament

TS . . . Theological Studies

trans . . . translated by

WThJ . . . Westminster Theological Journal

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

College: 1 Corinthians (Outline)

OUTLINE

I. INTRODUCTION - 1:1-9

A. Salutation - 1:1-3

B. Thanksgiving - 1:4-9

II. DISUNITY AND COMMUNITY FRAGMENTATION - 1:10-4:21

A. Divisions in the Church - 1:10-17

1. Report Received by Paul - 1:10-12

2. Christ Undivided - 1:13-17

B. Christ the Wisdom and Power of God - 1:18-2:5

1. The Message of the Cross - 1:18-19

2. Both Jews and Gentiles Offended - 1:20-25

3. God's Choice of Foolish Things - 1:26-31

4. Paul's Message Not Based on Eloquence - 2:1-5

C. Wisdom and Spiritual Maturity - 2:6-3:4

1. God's Secret Wisdom - 2:6-9

2. The Teaching of the Spirit - 2:10-16

3. Divisions a Sign of Worldliness - 3:1-4

D. God the Master Builder - 3:5-23

1. Paul and Apollos Merely Servants - 3:5-9

2. Building on the Foundation Laid by Paul - 3:10-17

3. God's View of Wisdom - 3:18-23

E. Apostles of Christ - 4:1-21

1. The Apostles as Servants of Christ - 4:1-5

2. Overcoming Human Pride - 4:6-7

3. Honor and Dishonor - 4:8-13

4. Paul's Warning as Father - 4:14-17

5. Arrogance to Be Confronted - 4:18-21

III. REPORTS OF IMMORALITY - 5:1-6:20

A. Discipline for the Immoral Brother - 5:1-13

1. The Corinthians' Pride in Tolerance - 5:1-5

2. Getting Rid of the Old Yeast - 5:6-8

3. Separating From Evil - 5:9-13

B. Lawsuits among Believers - 6:1-11

1. Settling Disputes in the Church - 6:1-8

2. The Inheritance of the Wicked - 6:9-11

C. Sexual Immorality - 6:12-20

1. The Body As a Member of Christ- 6:12-17

2. The Body As the Temple of the Holy Spirit - 6:18-20

IV. SEXUALITY, CELIBACY, AND MARRIAGE - 7:1-40

A. Godly Use of Sexuality - 7:1-7

B. Celibacy vs. Marriage - 7:8-11

C. Divorce and Separation - 7:12-16

D. Remaining as You Were Called - 7:17-28

E. Freedom from Concern - 7:29-40

V. DEALING WITH IDOLATRY - 8:1-11:1

A. Food Sacrificed to Idols - 8:1-13

1. The General Principle - 8:1-3

2. The Nonreality of Idols - 8:4-6

3. The Weak Brother's Dilemma - 8:7-8

4. The Proper Use of Freedom - 8:9-13

B. The Rights of an Apostle - 9:1-27

1. Paul's Rights as Apostle - 9:1-6

2. General Principle Stated - 9:7-14

3. Paul's Deferment of Rights - 9:15-18

4. To the Jew as a Jew - 9:19-23

5. Looking Forward to the Prize - 9:24-27

C. Warnings From Israel's History - 10:1-13

1. Wandering in the Desert - 10:1-5

2. Punishment for Sins - 10:6-10

3. Examples for Us - 10:11-13

D. Idol Feasts and the Lord's Supper - 10:14-22

1. The Lord's Supper a Participation - 10:14-17

2. The Lord's Table and the Table of Demons - 10:18-22

3. The Christian's Freedom - 10:23-11:1

VI. LITURGICAL ABERRATIONS - 11:2-34

A. Propriety in Worship - 11:2-16

1. Head Coverings in Worship - 11:2-10

2. Hair in the Nature of Things - 11:11-16

B. The Lord's Supper - 11:17-34

1. The Corinthians' Practice - 11:17-22

2. The Lord's Supper As Instituted - 11:23-26

3. Self-examination to Avoid Judgment - 11:27-34

VII. MISUNDERSTANDING OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS - 12:1-14:40

A. Spiritual Gifts - 12:1-11

1. Influence of the Spirit - 12:1-3

2. Different Gifts for a Common Good - 12:4-11

B. One Body, Many Parts - 12:12-31a

1. One Body in Christ - 12:12-13

2. Body Members Not Independent - 12:14-20

3. Special Honor for Weaker Parts - 12:21-26

4. Application to the Body of Christ - 12:27-31a

C. Love - 12:31b-13:13

1. Gifts Without Love Pointless - 12:31b-13:3

2. The Virtues of Love - 13:4-7

3. The Permanence of Love - 13:8-13

D. Gifts of Prophecy and Tongues - 14:1-25

1. Tongues and Prophecy Compared - 14:1-5

2. Tongues and Clarity - 14:6-12

3. The Spirit and the Mind - 14:13-19

4. Maturity and Spiritual Gifts - 14:20-25

E. Orderly Worship - 14:26-40

1. Control of Tongues and Prophecy - 14:26-33

2. Submission of Women - 14:34-35

3. Everything Fitting and Orderly - 14:36-40

VIII. MISUNDERSTANDING OF BELIEVERS' RESURRECTION - 15:1-58

A. The Gospel Paul Preached - 15:1-11

1. Relation of the Corinthians to the Gospel - 15:1-2

2. Basic Issues of the Gospel - 15:3-4

3. Appearances and Apostleship - 15:5-11

B. Christ's Resurrection and the Resurrection

of the Dead - 15:12-34

1. Consequences of Denying the Resurrection - 15:12-19

2. The Fact of Christ's Resurrection - 15:20-28

3. Baptism, Suffering, and the Resurrection - 15:29-34

C. Answers to Some Problems about the

Resurrection - 15: 35-58

1. A Twofold Question - 15:35-41

2. An Explanation of the Resurrection of the Dead - 15:42-50

3. The Secret Revealed - 15:51-58

IX. INSTRUCTION FOR THE COLLECTION - 16:1-11

A. The Collection for God's People - 16:1-4

B. Paul's Travel Plans - 16:5-9

C. Assisting Timothy - 16:10-11

X. CONCLUSION - 16:12-24

A. Personal Requests - 16:12-18

B. Final Greetings - 16:19-24

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV