While staying in Ephesus (for over 2 years) during his third mission trip (53-57 AD), the apostle Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth, which he had founded (Acts 18:1-11,18) over an 18-month period during his second mission trip (50-52 AD). The run-in Paul had in Athens (Acts 17:16-34) made him all the more eager to preach the simplicity of the gospel, though it seems foolish to the wise (1 Corinthians 2:1-5). Though Corinth should have exhibited maturity, the diverse congregation struggled with division, abuse of sacraments, disorderly worship, theological/doctrinal confusion, and moral laxity and asceticism. Corinth was one of the largest and most corrupt cities in the Roman Empire, and as a commercial center of the world, the city strived to provide an abundance of pleasures for its increasingly diverse population. Some Christians insisted on engaging their culture; others demanded isolation.
1 Corinthians 5:9 implies that there was an earlier letter exhorting the Corinthian believers to separate themselves from immoral “Christians.” It appears that some in the congregation saw themselves as more spiritual and more knowledgeable (1 Corinthians 1:11-12; 3:1-4; 8:13). This missing letter also must have asked them to give an offering (1 Corinthians 16:1-4), along with other instructions and encouragements. Apparently, the congregation replied to Paul’s first (missing) letter with specific inquires on marriage, divorce, food offered to idols, spiritual gifts, and the collection that Paul had requested (1 Corinthians 7:1,25; 8:1; 12:1; 16:1). They even asked for Apollos to visit them (1 Corinthians 16:12). But Paul also found out that he was being criticized in certain circles within the congregation, gross immorality was being engaged in, and Christians were even suing one another (1 Corinthians 4:1-4; 5:1; 6:1-6). So 1 Corinthians is Paul’s response – a massive task given the situation. Chapters 1-6 address troubles that Paul had heard about; chapters 7-16 address the issues that had asked about. Perhaps the Corinthian congregation’s greatest problem was a lack of love. In addressing all that he has to address, Paul sets forth apostolic teaching on God’s sovereignty, the nature of the Church, sanctification, and the bodily resurrection.
Since this is my final commentary on Paul’s epistles, and since the letters to Corinth are perhaps the most intriguing and complex of all of Paul’s works, a lengthy introduction is worthwhile. We begin with a preface by the translator of Calvin’s Commentary, “The Epistles of Paul to the Corinthians contain more of admonition and reproof than most of his other Epistles. While The Church of Corinth was more than ordinarily distinguished in respect of spiritual gifts, it had fallen into corruptions and abuses, from which the other Churches appear to have been, to a great extent, free. There is, accordingly – as might be expected – in these Epistles, more frequent reference to local evils, than in most of the other Epistles of the New Testament. They are not, however, on that account the less adapted for general utility. While the reproofs they contain were occasioned by the corrupt state of a particular Church, they will be found to involve general principles of the highest importance to the Church of Christ under all circumstances. The Epistles to the Corinthians ‘have,’ says Dr. Guyse, in his Preface to the Second Epistle, ‘some advantages that are not to be met with in any other part of the word of God, as they may be deemed the seat of divine directions, relating to the spiritual privileges, rights, and powers, worship and discipline of the Churches of Christ; to the purity of doctrines, manners, and celebrations of Gospel ordinances; and to the unity, peace, and order, mutual watch and care, and religious respect to faithful pastors, that ought to be preserved among them.’”
“As, in the perusal of the four Gospels, the attentive reader can scarcely fail to observe, that many of the instructive sayings of our blessed Lord, which are placed on record by the Evangelists, arose naturally out of occurrences of an accidental nature, – though taking place under the watchful superintendence of him without whom not even a sparrow falleth on the ground (Matthew 10:29) – so we find a large portion of the invaluable directions furnished in the Epistles of the New Testament for the regulation of the Church in every subsequent age, presented incidentally – as if suggested to the mind of the sacred writer by corruptions of doctrine and practice, into which some particular Church in the primitive age had been left to fall. While the unhappily corrupt state of the Church of Corinth, as indicated in the two Epistles addressed to it, tended to mar, in no inconsiderable degree, the prosperity of the cause of Christ in that city, and was an occasion of poignant grief to the mind of Paul, who felt the more solicitous for their welfare from his sustaining to them the relationship – not simply of an instructor, but of a father (1 Corinthians 4:15). The flagrant abuses which had crept in among them were, in the providence of God, overruled for good to the Church of Christ generally, by giving occasion for a fuller development than might otherwise have been necessary, of some of the most important principles of practical Christianity.”
“The Epistles to the Church of Corinth are a portion of Paul’s writings, which, as is justly observed by Dr. Alexander, in his Preface to Billroth on the Corinthians, ‘occupies a very important place in the sacred canon. Besides containing some loca classica upon several of the most essential positions in doctrinal theology, such, for instance, as the deity of Christ, the personality and agency of the Holy Spirit, the resurrection of the body, etc., the two Epistles to the Corinthians may be regarded as constituting the great code of practical ethics for the Christian Church. In this respect they stand to the science of practical theology in a relation analogous to that occupied by the Epistles to the Romans, the Galatians, and the Hebrews, to the science of systematic divinity; they contain the fullest development of those principles on which that science must rest, and the practices which its rules are to authorize or inculcate.’”
“What increases…the utility of Paul’s Epistles to the Corinthian Church is the circumstance that the latter Epistle was written by him a considerable time (about a year, it is generally supposed) subsequently to the former, when opportunity had been given for the Apostle’s receiving accounts as to the effect produced upon the minds of the Corinthians by the faithful, though at the same time affectionate counsels and admonitions, which he had addressed to them in his first Epistle. The Apostle had been intensely anxious as to the effect, which his former Epistle might produce on the minds of the Corinthians. While his authority as an Apostle, and that too in a Church which he had himself planted, was at stake, he was, we may believe, chiefly concerned for the purity of doctrine and discipline, as in danger of being seriously impaired by the corrupt state of the Church of Corinth. With feelings of deep solicitude he left Ephesus, where it is generally believed he wrote his first Epistle to the Corinthian Church, and proceeded to Troas, a sea-port town on the coast of the Aegean Sea, hoping to meet with Titus there on his return from Corinth. Disappointed in this expectation, he went forward to Macedonia, where he at length met with Titus, and received most gratifying accounts as to the favorable reception, which his former Epistle had met with from the Corinthians, and the salutary effect which it had produced in remedying, to a great extent., the evils that he had found occasion to censure.”
“It must have afforded to the mind of the Apostle no ordinary satisfaction to learn, that his admonitions and reproofs had awakened in the minds of the Corinthians the most poignant grief in reflecting on the unworthy part which they had acted – that they had manifested unabated esteem and affection toward him as their spiritual father – that they had, in accordance with his instructions, excluded from their society a gross offender, whose unnatural crime they had too long connived at; and farther, that the exercise of discipline in that painful case had been most salutary in its effects upon the offender himself, so that the Apostle, from what he had learned as to the evidences of repentance, was now prepared to instruct the Corinthian Christians to receive him back, without hesitation or delay, into their fellowship. He had, also, the satisfaction of learning, that his exhortations, in the close of his former Epistle, to liberality in contributing for the relief of the ‘poor saints at Jerusalem,’ had been promptly and cheerfully responded to. While Paul’s second Epistle to the Corinthians furnishes in these and other respects, express proofs of the beneficial effects of his former Epistle, his entire silence in the latter Epistle in reference to various evils unsparingly censured by him in the former, gives reason to believe that, in connection with these also, a more hopeful state of matters had begun to appear. Among these we may notice their party contendings, their vexatious lawsuits, their corrupt administration of the Sacred Supper, their disorderly exercise of spiritual gifts, and, in fine, their erroneous views on the important subject of the resurrection.”
“Thus ‘the success’ of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, as is justly observed by Barnes, in the Introduction to his Notes on that Epistle, ‘was all that Paul could desire. It had the effect to repress their growing strifes, to restrain their disorders, to produce true repentance, and to remove the person who had been guilty of incest in the Church. The whole Church was deeply affected with his reproofs, and engaged in hearty zeal in the work of reform. The authority of the Apostle was recognized, and his Epistle read with fear and trembling. The act of discipline which he had required on the incestuous person was inflicted by the whole Church. The collection which he had desired, and in regard to which he had boasted of their liberality to others, and expressed the utmost confidence that it would be liberal, was taken up agreeably to his wishes, and their disposition on the subject was such as to furnish the highest satisfaction to his mind. Of the success of his letter, however, and of their disposition to take up the collection, Paul was not apprised until he had gone into Macedonia, where Titus came to him, and gave him information of the happy state of things in the Church at Corinth. Never was a letter more effectual than this was, and never was authority in discipline exercised in a more happy and successful way.’”
“At the same time, Paul’s second Epistle to the Corinthian Church is of a mixed character, being designed in part to rectify evils still existing among them, and to vindicate the Apostle from injurious aspersions, thrown out against him by the false teachers. In various parts of the Epistle, but more particularly toward the close, he establishes his claims to apostolic authority.”
“A succinct view of the general tenor and design of this Epistle is given by Poole, in his Annotations, in the following terms:
‘The occasion of [Paul’s] writing this second Epistle seemeth to be partly the false teachers aspersing him 1. As an inconstant man, because he had promised to come in person to Corinth, and was not yet come; the reason of which he showeth was not levity, but the troubles he met with in Asia, and his desire to hear that they had first reformed the abuses he had taxed them for; 2. As an imperious man, because of the incestuous person against whom he had wrote; which charge he avoids, by showing the necessity of his writing in that manner, and giving new orders for the restoring him, upon the repentance he had showed; 3. As a proud and vain-glorious man; 4. As a contemptible person – base in his person, as he expresseth it.’
‘The further occasions of his writing were – to commend them for their kind reception of, and compliance with, the precepts and admonitions of his former Epistle, and their kind reception of Titus – as also to exhort them to a liberal contribution to the necessities of the saints in Judea, to which they had showed their forwardness a year before; and his hearing that there was yet a party amongst them bad enough, that went on vilifying him and his authority, as well as in other sinful courses; against whom he vindicateth himself, magnifying his office, assuring them that he was about to come to Corinth, when they should find him present, such as being absent he had by his letters declared himself, if they were not reformed.’
‘The substance, therefore, of this Epistle, is partly apologetical, or excusatory, where he excuseth himself for his not coming to Corinth so soon as he thought, and for his so severe writing as to the incestuous person – partly hortatory, where he persuadeth them more generally to walk worthy of the gospel; more specially to a liberal contribution to the saints – partly minatory or threatening, where he threateneth severity against those whom, when he came amongst them, he should find contumacious and impenitent offenders. He concludes the Epistle (as usually) with a salutation of them, pious exhortations to them, and a prayer for them.’”
Now John Calvin, claiming a “brief” recital of his study, begins his commentary on 1 Corinthians by saying, “The advantages of this Epistle are various and manifold; for it contains many special topics,
the handling of which successively in their order, will show how necessary they are to be known. Nay, it will appear in part from the argument itself, in the recital of which I shall study to be brief, yet in such a way as to take in the whole, without omitting any of the leading points.”
“Corinth, as every one knows, was a wealthy and celebrated city of Achaia… For as it had the Aegean Sea contiguous on the one side, and the Ionian on the other, and as it was a thoroughfare between Attica and the Peloponnesus, it was very conveniently situated for imports and exports. Paul, after teaching there for a year and a half, as Luke mentions in the Acts, constrained at length by the wickedness of the Jews, sailed thence into Syria. During Paul’s absence false apostles had crept in, not, in my opinion, to disturb the Church openly with wicked doctrines, or designedly to undermine sound doctrine; but, priding themselves in the splendor and magnificence of their address, or rather, being puffed up with an empty loftiness of speech, they looked upon Paul’s simplicity, and even the Gospel itself, with contempt. They afterwards, by their ambition, gave occasion for the Church being split into various parties; and, last of all, reckless as to every thing, provided only they were themselves held in estimation, made it their aim to promote their own honor, rather than Christ’s kingdom and the people’s welfare.”
“On the other hand, as those vices prevailed at Corinth with which mercantile cities are wont to be particularly infested – luxury, pride, vanity, effeminacy, insatiable covetousness, and ambition – so they had found their way even into the Church itself, so that discipline was greatly relaxed. Nay more, purity of doctrine had already begun to decline, so that the main article of religion – the resurrection of the dead – was called in question. Yet amidst this great corruption in every department, they were satisfied with themselves, equally as though every thing had been on the best possible footing. Such are Satan’s usual artifices. If he cannot prevent the progress of doctrine, he creeps forward secretly to make an attack upon it: if he cannot by direct falsehoods suppress it, so as to prevent it from coming forth to light, he digs secret mines for its overthrow; and in fine, if he cannot alienate men’s minds from it, he leads them by little and little to deviate from it.”
“As to those worthless persons, however, who had disturbed the Corinthian Church, it is not without good ground that I conclude that they were not open enemies of the truth. We see that Paul nowhere else spares false doctrines. The Epistles to the Galatians, to the Colossians, to the Philippians, and to Timothy, are short; yet in all of them he does not merely censure the false apostles, but also points out at the same time in what respects they injured the Church. Nor is it without good reason; for believers must not merely be admonished as to the persons whom they ought to shun, they must also be shown the evil against which they should be on their guard. I cannot therefore believe that, in this comparatively long Epistle, he was prepared to pass over in silence what he carefully insists upon in others that are much shorter. In addition to this, he makes mention of many faults of the Corinthians, and even some that are apparently trivial, so that he appears to have had no intention of passing over any thing in them that was deserving of reproof. Besides, he must, in any other view, be regarded as wasting many words in disputing against those absurd teachers and prating orators.
He censures their ambition; he reproves them for transforming the gospel into human philosophy; he shows that they are destitute of the efficacy of the Spirit, inasmuch as they are taken up with mere ornaments of speech, and seek after a mere dead letter; but not a word is there as to a single false doctrine. Hence I conclude that they were persons who did not openly take away any thing from the substance of the gospel, but, as they burned with a misdirected eagerness for distinction, I am of opinion that, with the view of making themselves admired, they contrived a new method of teaching, at variance with the simplicity of Christ. This must necessarily be the case with all that have not as yet thrown off self, that they may engage unreservedly in the Lord’s work. The first step towards serving Christ is to lose sight of ourselves, and think only of the Lord’s glory and the salvation of men. Farther, no one will ever be qualified for teaching that has not first himself tasted the influence of the gospel, so as to speak not so much with the mouth, as with the dispositions of the heart. Hence, those that are not regenerated by the Spirit of God – not having felt inwardly the influence of the gospel – and know not what is meant when it is said that we must become new creatures (John 3:7) have a dead preaching, whereas it ought to be lively and efficacious; and, with the view of playing off their part, they disfigure the gospel by painting it over, so as to make it a sort of worldly philosophy.”
“Nor was it difficult for those of whom we are now speaking to accomplish this at Corinth. For merchants are usually led away with outward disguises, and they do not merely allow themselves to be imposed upon by the empty show with which they deceive others, but in a manner take delight in this. Besides, as they have delicate ears, so that they cannot bear to be rudely taken to task, so if they meet with teachers of the milder sort, that will handle them gently, they give them, as it were, a reward in turn by caressing them.
It is so, I grant, everywhere; but it is more especially common in wealthy and mercantile cities. Paul, who was in other respects a god-like man, and distinguished by admirable virtues, was, nevertheless, not adorned with outward elegance, and was not puffed up with show, with the view of setting himself off to advantage. In fine, as he was inwardly replenished with the genuine excellence of the Spirit, so he had nothing of outward show. He knew not to flatter, and was not concerned to please men (Galatians 1:10). The one object that he had in view was, that Christ might reign, himself and all others being brought under subjection to Him. As the Corinthians were desirous of doctrine that was ingenious, rather than useful, the gospel had no relish for them. As they were eager for new things, Christ had now become stale. Or if they had not as yet fallen into these vices, they were, nevertheless, already of their own accord predisposed to corruptions of that nature. Such were the facilities afforded to the false apostles for adulterating the doctrine of Christ among them; for adulterated it is, when its native simplicity is stained, and in a manner painted over, so as to differ nothing from worldly philosophy. Hence, to suit the taste of the Corinthians, they seasoned their preaching in such a way that the true savor of the gospel was destroyed. We are now in possession of the design that Paul had in view in writing this Epistle. I shall now take in the sum of the argument, by noting down briefly the particular heads of discourse.”
“He begins with an ascription of praise
that is in effect an exhortation, that they should go on as they have begun, and in this way he soothes them beforehand, that he may make them the more docile. Immediately afterwards, however, he proceeds to chide them, making mention of the dissensions with which their Church was infested. Being desirous to cure this evil, he calls upon them to exchange haughtiness for humility. For he overthrows all the wisdom of the world, that the preaching of the Cross may alone be exalted. He also at the same time abases them as individuals, in exhorting them to look around and see what class of persons chiefly the Lord has adopted as members of his flock.”
“In the second chapter he brings forward, by way of example, his own preaching, which, in the account of men, was base and contemptible, but had nevertheless been signalized by the influence of the Spirit. And in the meantime he unfolds at greater length the sentiment, that there is a heavenly and secret wisdom that is contained in the gospel, which cannot be apprehended by any acuteness or perspicacity of intellect, or by any perception of sense, and is not influenced by human reasoning, and needs no meretricious ornament of words or embellishment, but simply by the revelation of the Spirit comes to be known by the understandings of men, and is sealed upon their hearts. He at length comes to this conclusion, that the preaching of the gospel does not merely differ widely from the wisdom of the flesh, and consists in the abasement of the Cross, but cannot be estimated as to its true nature by the judgment of the flesh; and this he does, with the view of drawing them off from a mistaken confidence in their own judgment, by which they measured every thing amiss.”
“The beginning of the third chapter contains the application of this last department of the subject to their case. For Paul complains, that, being carnal, they were scarcely capable of learning the first rudiments of the gospel. He intimates in this way, that the distaste which they had contracted for the word, arose from no fault in the word itself, but from their ignorance; and at the same time he indirectly admonishes them, that they need to have their minds renewed, before they will begin to judge aright. He afterwards shows in what estimation the ministers of the gospel ought to be held – that it ought to be in such a way, that the honor given to them does not in any degree detract from the glory that is due to God – as there is one Lord, and all are his servants: all are mere instruments; he alone imparts efficacy, and from him proceeds the entire result. He shows them, at the same time, what they ought to have as their aim – to build up the Church. He takes occasion from this to point out the true and proper method of building aright. It is to have Christ alone as the foundation, and the entire structure harmonizing with the foundation. And here, having stated in passing that he is a wise master-builder, he admonishes those that come after him to make the end
correspond with the beginning. He exhorts also the Corinthians not to allow their souls to be desecrated by corrupt doctrines, inasmuch as they are temples of God. Here he again brings to naught proud fleshly wisdom, that the knowledge of Christ may alone be in estimation among believers.”
“In the beginning of the fourth chapter he points out what is the office of a true apostle. And as it was their corrupt judgment that prevented them from recognizing him as such, putting it aside, he appeals to the day of the Lord. Farther, as he was contemptible in their view from an appearance of abasement, he teaches them that this ought to be regarded as an honor to him rather than a disgrace. He afterwards brings forward tokens, from which it might in reality appear that he had not consulted his own glory, or his own belly, but had with faithfulness devoted himself exclusively to Christ’s work. He comes at length to infer what honor is due to him from the Corinthians. In the close of the chapter he recommends Timothy to them, until he shall come to them himself; and at the same time he forewarns them that, on his coming, he will openly discover how little account he makes of those empty boastings by which the false apostles endeavored to recommend themselves.”
Before moving on with Calvin’s introduction, here’s a brief summary of the first four chapters of 1 Corinthians from Third Millennium: “After a brief salutation and thanksgiving, Paul turns to a report that came to him from Chloe’s people. Chloe was probably a woman of wealth in Corinth whose servants were thought to have been among Paul’s first converts. Paul was very concerned with some of the tendencies of the Corinthian people especially in regards to leadership, divisions in the church, and personal wisdom. There seemed to be some people who were claiming allegiance to Paul, some to Apollos, and still others to Cephas. This seemed to create some division among them and Paul decided to set the record straight. By claiming, ‘I belong to Christ’ he was attempting to show them that they are in united in Christ. Neither Paul, nor Apollos, nor Cephas were crucified for their salvation, therefore the banner that they ought to claim allegiance to is that of Christ. Paul stresses the need to become fools for Christ because even God’s folly is wiser than our wisdom. Their quest for wisdom had gone against their own personal confession as Christians, showed their lack of reliance upon the divine revealer of true wisdom – the Spirit, and furthermore had proven their infant nature. He reminds them that even their leaders were ultimately accountable to God and they ought to live as one people who are all of one inheritance. They are not to judge one another because God is the only valid judge who possesses the right to assess their deeds. In summation of this section, Paul exhorts them to live according to his example in Christian conduct. He says in essence, ‘follow me as I follow Christ.’”
Back to Calvin’s thoughts, “In the fifth chapter he takes them to task, for silently tolerating an incestuous connection between a son-in-law and a mother-in-law, and instructs them that in connection with a crime of such enormity, there was good reason why they should be covered with shame, instead of being elated with pride. From this he passes on to lay down a general doctrine to this effect, that crimes of that nature ought to be punished with excommunication, that indulgence in sin may be repressed, and that the infection may not spread from one individual to the others.”
“The sixth chapter consists chiefly of two parts. In the first he inveighs against law-suits, with which they harassed one another, before unbelievers, to the great dishonor of the gospel. In the second he reproves indulgence in fornication, which had come to such a pitch, that it was almost looked upon as a lawful thing. He sets out with a heavy threatening, and afterwards enforces that threatening with arguments.”
Again, Third Millennium summarizes chapters 5-6: “Paul receives report of some horrific immorality that was taking place among the Corinthian believers that goes beyond even that of the pagans. Their distorted view of Christian liberty had led to offenses such as a man who was having sexual relations with his father’s wife, this kind of corruption was accompanied by a spirit of arrogance and the church had not gone about any disciplinary measures. Paul had instructed to them in an earlier letter regarding associations with immoral men. They were not to share the status or privileges of the body of Christ, particularly pointing to the Lord’s supper, with those who are guilty of fornication, greed, idolatry, drunkenness, etc. In addition, Paul had received word that the Corinthian believers were going before pagan counsel in order to resolve suits against one another. He is giving a subtle reminder of the source of wisdom again here in his instruction regarding proper authorities in litigation. They are to cease the trivial cases among them, but in the case of legitimate disputes, they are only to come before those who are justified in Christ having access to the wisdom of God through the Spirit. He also addresses the supposed spirituality of men who thought they were free to exploit prostitution. The misconception began with their understanding of the way in which all things are lawful. Paul attempts to clear up their confusion by adding that while all things are lawful, not all things are beneficial. That is, the gospel of liberty is by nature free unless we allow those things that are not profitable to the Christian life to enslave us.”
And previewing the remainder of this epistle, Third Millennium says, “In this the largest section of Paul's letter to the Corinthians he attempts to answer some of the questions they raised in their earlier letter to him. He begins with a long section giving advice regarding the many different facets of marriage. He speaks to the diverse situations of: the married, unmarried, those facing divorce, mixed marriages, virgins, and widows. He answers the question of meat sacrificed to idols, and the sanctity of the Lord's table. Paul identifies his apostleship with a commitment to self-denial. The Christian walk is to be characterized by this kind of self-sacrifice and must be accompanied by a conscious self-control. There were 3 problems Paul seeks to resolve: Relationships between men and women, abuses of the Lord's supper, and the distribution and exertion of Spiritual gifts. He then talks about diversity in unity, the supremacy of love, and more on spiritual gifts as essential attributes of the body of Christ. Paul concludes this section with a theological look at the resurrection of the believer. Among his detailed explanation of its importance Paul stresses its historicity, its first fruit and harvest, the believers participation, and it efficiency in salvation.”
Calvin continues, “The seventh chapter contains a discussion in reference to virginity, marriage, and celibacy. So far as we may conjecture from Paul’s words, a superstitious notion had become prevalent among the Corinthians of this nature – that virginity was a distinguished, and in a manner angelic virtue, so that marriage was held by them in contempt, as though it had been a profane thing. With the view of removing this error, he teaches that every one must consider what his gift is, and not strive in this matter beyond his ability, inasmuch as all have not the same calling. Accordingly he shows who they are that may abstain from marriage, and what ought to be the design of abstaining from it; and on the other hand, who they are that ought to enter into the married state, and what is the true principle of Christian marriage.”
“In the eighth chapter he prohibits them from having fellowship with idolaters in their impure sacrifices, or giving countenance to anything of such a nature as might injure weak consciences. And as they excused themselves on this pretext, that they did not by any means connect themselves with idolaters in any corrupt sentiment, inasmuch as they acknowledged in their heart one God, and regarded idols as empty contrivances, he sets aside this excuse, on this principle that every one ought to have a regard to his brethren, and that there are many weak persons whose faith might be staggered by such dissimulation.”
“In the ninth chapter he shows that he requires from them nothing more than he himself practiced, that he may not be reckoned so unreasonable as to impose upon others a law that he did not himself observe. For he puts them in mind how he had voluntarily refrained from availing himself of the liberty granted him by the Lord, lest he should give occasion of offense to any one, and how he had, in things indifferent, put on as it were various appearances, with the view of accommodating himself to all, that they may learn from his example that no one should be so devoted to self as not to endeavor to accommodate himself to his brethren for their edification.”
“Now as the Corinthians were highly satisfied with themselves, as we said in the outset, in the beginning of the tenth chapter he admonishes them, from the example of the Jews, not to deceive themselves by a mistaken confidence; for if they are puffed up on account of outward things and gifts of God, he shows that the Jews were not without similar ground of glorying, and yet all this availed them nothing, because they abused their privileges. After alarming them by this threatening he returns immediately to the subject on which he had previously entered, and shows how unseemly it is for those who partake of the Lord’s Supper to be participants in the ‘table of devils,’ that being a shameful and insufferable pollution. He at length draws this conclusion, that all our actions should be regulated in such a manner as not to be an occasion of offense to any one.”
“In the eleventh chapter he clears the public assemblies from certain corrupt observances, which were at variance with Christian decorum and propriety, and shows what gravity and modesty ought to be exercised when we stand in the view of God and angels. He takes them to task, however, chiefly for their corrupt administration of the Supper. He subjoins the method of correcting the abuse that had crept in, which is by calling them back to our Lord’s original institution, as the only sure rule and permanent law of right acting.”
“As, however, many abused spiritual gifts for purposes of ambition, he enters into a discussion, in the twelfth chapter, as to the purpose for which they are conferred by God, and also as to what is the proper and genuine use of them, which is, that by contributing mutually to each other’s advantage, we may be united together in one body, that of Christ. This doctrine he illustrates by drawing a similitude from the human body, in which, although there are different members and various faculties, there is nevertheless such a symmetry and fellow-feeling, that what has been conferred on the members severally contributes to the advantage of the whole body – and hence love is the best directress in this matter. The subject he follows out at greater length, and illustrates it more fully in the thirteenth chapter. The sum is this – that all things must be viewed in relation to love. He takes occasion from this to make a digression for the purpose of commending that virtue, that he may the more strongly recommend the pursuit of it, and may encourage the Corinthians the more to cultivate it.”
“In the fourteenth chapter he begins to point out more particularly in what respect the Corinthians had erred in the use of spiritual gifts; and as mere show bulked so much in their estimation, he teaches them that in all things edification alone should be looked to. For this reason he prefers prophecy to all other gifts, as being more useful, while the Corinthians set a higher value on tongues, purely from empty show. In addition to this, he lays down the right order of procedure, and at the same time reproves the fault of sounding forth in unknown tongues without any advantage, while in the meantime the doctrine and exhortations, which ought ever to hold the foremost place, were left in the background. He afterwards forbids women to teach publicly, as being a thing unseemly.”
“In the fifteenth chapter he inveighs against a very pernicious error, which, although we can scarcely suppose it to have spread generally among the Corinthians, had nevertheless taken possession of the minds of some of them to such a degree, that it was necessary that a remedy should be openly administered. He appears, however, to have intentionally delayed mentioning this matter until the close of the Epistle, for this reason – that if he had set out with this, or had entered upon it immediately after commencing, they might have thought that they were all reckoned to be in fault. The hope of a resurrection, accordingly, he shows to be so necessary, that, if it is taken away, the whole gospel falls to pieces. Having established the doctrine itself by powerful arguments, he subjoins also the principle and manner of it. In fine, he carefully draws out a full discussion of this point.”
“The sixteenth chapter consists of two parts. In the first of these he exhorts them to relieve the necessity of the brethren at Jerusalem. They were at that time pinched with famine, and they were cruelly treated by the wicked. The apostles had assigned to Paul the charge of stirring up the Churches of the Gentiles to afford them help. He accordingly exhorts them to lay up in store whatever they were inclined to contribute, that it might be transmitted to Jerusalem without delay. He at length concludes the Epistle with a friendly exhortation and congratulations. Hence we may gather, as I stated in the outset, that the Epistle is replete with most profitable doctrine, containing, as it does, a variety of discussions on many important topics.”
Now, as if we need to visit the authenticity of Paul’s authorship, Daniel Wallace points to both external and internal evidence. Of the former, he says, “The external evidence for the authenticity of 1 Corinthians is impregnable. Clement of Rome [95 AD] states explicitly that it is by Paul and by so doing grants to 1 Corinthians the distinction of being the earliest NT book in which an extra-biblical writer attaches a name. The Didache and Barnabas seem quite familiar with it; Ignatius and Polycarp know it intimately, collectively alluding to it scores of times; Justin Martyr, Athenagoras, Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, and Basilides all refer to it – some, hundreds of times. This epistle even made Marcion’s short list! These data are nothing less than overwhelming on behalf of authenticity.” Of the later, Wallace notes, “The internal evidence is equally strong… The internal grounds for asserting authenticity are four: (1) the letter is ‘the product of a strong and original mind, and is altogether worthy of an Apostle’; (2) there are several coincidences (conceptual, verbal, historical, etc.) with what we know of Paul from Acts and other Pauline letters which are so unobtrusive as to be undesigned that they bear the stamp of genuineness; (3) there is controversy in the letter; Paul defends himself and his gospel as though both were doubted; later forgeries hardly recognize the tension and instead put Paul on a pedestal; (4) there is nothing negative in the epistle (historical discrepancies, language, theological development, etc.) to cast any doubts on authenticity.”
When was this first epistle written? Wallace comments: “Paul had visited the Corinthians on his second missionary journey, and, because of the lack of troubles (Acts 18:10), he was able to stay there eighteen months (Acts 18:11). This was in 50-51 CE – i.e., up until some months after Gallio began his proconsulship. Most likely, Paul left Corinth in the fall of 51 CE. After concluding his second missionary journey, Paul returned again to Asia on his third journey (c. fall, 52 CE). This time he settled down in Ephesus for almost three years (Acts 19:10; 20:31) – i.e., from the fall of 52 until the spring of 55 CE. While in Ephesus there must have been contact between Corinth and Paul, for he speaks of the Corinthians misunderstanding his ‘previous letter’ in 1 Corinthians 5:9. The apostle had to clear up the misunderstanding, as well as address other issues – hence, ‘first’ Corinthians was written. Paul wrote this epistle from Ephesus (1 Corinthians 16:8,9,19) while on his third missionary journey. It was probably written in the spring of 54 CE as is evident from the following data: (1) The letter was written some years after Paul’s first visit, since Apollos had ministered there (Acts 18:26-27; 1 Corinthians 1:12) and Timothy had also been sent there (Acts 19:22; 1 Corinthians 4:17). (2) This letter was written sometime after his first letter (cf. 1 Corinthians 5:9) and probably not in the last year of his ministry in Ephesus. He mentions that he intends to spend the next winter with the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 16:6), a visit which, nevertheless, is not to be identified with the three-month stay of Acts 20:3. This latter visit reads as though it were at the end of Paul’s Ephesian ministry, while it is doubtful that 1 Corinthians was written at the end because otherwise the chronology does not fit with data in 2 Corinthians. (3) This letter was written in the spring because Pentecost is just around the corner (1 Corinthians 16:8).”
To whom was the letter written? Again Wallace comments: “The letter was written to the relatively new converts at Corinth (1:2). The church at Corinth was composed of both Jews and Greeks (Acts 18:4), though it must have been predominantly Gentile since it was while Paul was in Corinth that he reiterated the proclamation which was to define his ministry, ‘From now on I will go to the Gentiles’ (Acts 18:6; cf. 13:46). Further, he made this announcement very early on in his stay there (perhaps in the first few weeks), for the vision that he would not get harmed came later (Acts 18:9-10), prompting Paul to stay for eighteen months (Acts 18:11).”
Why was the letter written? Wallace says, “Basically 1 Corinthians deals with abuses of liberty (just as Galatians deals with the stifling of the Spirit because of legalism). The correction Paul gives is not to question their salvation, but to challenge them in their sanctification. Although the apostle is dealing with several different issues, the general theme of the epistle is ‘the practical implications of progressive sanctification in the context of the Christian community.’ What occasioned the writing of 1 Corinthians was apparently three things. (1) Paul had written a previous letter (1 Corinthians 5:9) which was misunderstood by the Corinthians. In that letter he told them not to associate with immoral persons and they took this to mean all immoral persons, while he only meant immoral professing believers (5:10-13). The matter needed to be cleared up. (2) The apostle also got news from members of Chloe’s house that there were divisions arising among the Corinthian believers (1:11). Presumably the report included other problems such as attitudes toward the apostles (4:1-21), incestuous behavior (5:1-5), and lawsuits between Christians (6:1-11). (3) Chapter 7 begins, ‘Now concerning the matters about which you wrote,’ indicating that Paul was also responding to issues raised by the entire congregation. Apparently a delegation of believers (including Stephanas, Fortunatas, and Achaicus [16:17]) came with these questions in the form of a letter… This sounds very much as though Paul is merely responding, in a very business-like manner, to questions which may or may not be intrinsically related to the preceding section. The occasion for the writing of this letter then gives us a great deal of help in deciphering the method of compilation: the first six chapters are written as a response to the report from Chloe (including both the correction of the Corinthians’ misreading of Paul’s first letter and specific problems raised by Chloe’s people); chapters 7-16 are written as a response to the questions raised by the congregation itself in their letter to Paul brought by Stephanas and friends.”
This lengthy survey of 1 Corinthians is worthwhile, and as we now begin to break down the text, we’ll cover this epistle in 16 chapter-divided segments. Let’s take a look.