1 Corinthians 2:6

Wisdom from God

2:6 Now we do speak wisdom among the mature, ¹  but not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are perishing.

1 Corinthians 3:8

3:8 The one who plants and the one who waters work as one, ²  but each will receive his reward according to his work.

1 Corinthians 3:10

3:10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master-builder I laid a foundation, but someone else builds on it. And each one must be careful how he builds.

1 Corinthians 4:7

4:7 For who concedes you any superiority? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as though you did not?

1 Corinthians 7:7

7:7 I wish that everyone was as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that.

1 Corinthians 7:25

Remaining Unmarried

7:25 With regard to the question about people who have never married, ³  I have no command from the Lord, but I give my opinion as one shown mercy by the Lord to be trustworthy.

1 Corinthians 8:1

Food Sacrificed to Idols

8:1 With regard to food sacrificed to idols, we know that “we all have knowledge.” ⁴  Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.

1 Corinthians 10:11

10:11 These things happened to them as examples and were written for our instruction, on whom the ends of the ages have come.

1 Corinthians 13:12

13:12 For now we see in a mirror indirectly, ⁵  but then we will see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known.

1 Corinthians 14:15

14:15 What should I do? ⁶  I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind. I will sing praises with my spirit, but I will also sing praises with my mind.

[2:6]  ¹ tn In extrabiblical literature this word was applied to an initiate of a mystery religion (BDAG 995 s.v. τέλειος 3, gives numerous examples and states this was a technical term of the mystery religions). It could here refer to those who believed Paul’s message, the mystery of God (v. 1), and so be translated as “those who believe God’s message.”

[3:8]  ² tn Grk “are one.” The purpose of this phrase is to portray unified action on the part of ministers underneath God’s sovereign control. Although they are in fact individuals, they are used by God with a single purpose to accomplish his will in facilitating growth. This emphasis is brought out in the translation “work as one.”

[7:25]  ³ tn Grk “virgins.” There are three main views as to which group of people is referred to by the word παρθένος (parqenos) here, and the stance taken here directly impacts one’s understanding of vv. 36-38. (1) The term could refer to virgin women who were not married. The central issue would then be whether or not their fathers should give them in marriage to eligible men. (This is the view which has been widely held throughout the history of the Church.) (2) A minority understand the term to refer to men and women who are married but who have chosen to live together without sexual relations. This position might have been possible in the Corinthian church, but there is no solid evidence to support it. (3) The view adopted by many modern commentators (see, e.g., Fee, Conzelmann, Barrett) is that the term refers to young, engaged women who were under the influence of various groups within the Corinthian church not to go through with their marriages. The central issue would then be whether the young men and women should continue with their plans and finalize their marriages. For further discussion, see G. D. Fee, First Corinthians (NICNT), 325-28.

[8:1]  ⁴ sn “We all have knowledge.” Here and in v. 4 Paul cites certain slogans the Corinthians apparently used to justify their behavior (cf. 6:12-13; 7:1; 10:23). Paul agrees with the slogans in part, but corrects them to show how the Corinthians have misused these ideas.

[13:12]  ⁵ tn Grk “we are seeing through [= using] a mirror by means of a dark image.” Corinth was well known in the ancient world for producing some of the finest bronze mirrors available. Paul’s point in this analogy, then, is not that our current understanding and relationship with God is distorted (as if the mirror reflected poorly), but rather that it is “indirect,” (i.e., the nature of looking in a mirror) compared to the relationship we will enjoy with him in the future when we see him “face to face” (cf. G. D. Fee, First Corinthians [NICNT], 648). The word “indirectly” translates the Greek phrase ἐν αἰνίγματι (ejn ainigmati, “in an obscure image”) which itself may reflect an allusion to Num 12:8 (LXX οὐ δι᾿ αἰνιγμάτων), where God says that he speaks to Moses “mouth to mouth [= face to face]…and not in dark figures [of speech].” Though this allusion to the OT is not explicitly developed here, it probably did not go unnoticed by the Corinthians who were apparently familiar with OT traditions about Moses (cf. 1 Cor 10:2). Indeed, in 2 Cor 3:13-18 Paul had recourse with the Corinthians to contrast Moses’ ministry under the old covenant with the hope afforded through apostolic ministry and the new covenant. Further, it is in this context, specifically in 2 Cor 3:18, that the apostle invokes the use of the mirror analogy again in order to unfold the nature of the Christian’s progressive transformation by the Spirit.

[14:15]  ⁶ tn Grk “what then is it?”