first corinthians

Background

Authorship.   Everything about this letter breathes Pauline authenticity, from his self-identification to details of his relations with the Corinthians and others to his theology and heart. As a result, “Even the most imaginative critics find no objection on this point.”[1]

Paul’s relations with the Corinthians.   Paul first visited Corinth during his second missionary journey (Acts 18:1–18), arriving probably in the spring or summer of 51. There he ministered for the greater part of that mission, about 18 months (18:11).

He arrived alone, having left Luke in Philippi, and Silas and Timothy in Berea, while he proceeded on to Achaia (stopping briefly in Athens, Acts 17:15–34). He first set about his tent-making trade in collaboration with Aquila and Priscilla, “reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath” (18:4). When Silas and Timothy arrived, apparently with monetary support from the Macedonian believers, Paul left off tent making, and gave himself completely to Jewish evangelism. When that played out, as it were, he forsook the Jews and the synagogue, and turned to Gentile evangelism, ironically using the house next door to the synagogue as a worship center. Not even violent Jewish opposition could deter him from teaching the believers as long as he determined to remain. (As he left, he took Aquila and Priscilla with him across the Aegean to Ephesus, where he left them, and where they then were used of God to instruct the gifted Apollos, who later ministered in Corinth, 18:24–28.)

The greatest part of his third mission was spent ministering at Ephesus (c. 53–56). While there Paul wrote a letter to Corinth which has not survived to the present (1 Cor 5:9). A delegation or two from the Corinthian church (1 Cor 1:11; 16:17) then came to Paul in Ephesus describing the problems and posing the questions which form the background of our 1 Corinthians (cf. 7:1). This letter was probably written early in the spring (see 1 Cor 16:8) of 55 or 56.

It seems Paul then made a brief visit to Corinth to deal personally with a problem involving the man described in 2 Corinthians 2:5; 7:2. Upon his return he probably wrote another letter which like the first has not survived (2 Cor 2:4).

Paul fled from Ephesus after a silversmiths’ riot (Acts 20:1), having already dispatched Titus to Corinth with the third letter. He was terribly anxious to meet Titus in Troas, fearing for Titus’s well-being, as well as for the Corinthians’ favorable and obedient response to his letter. As a result he could not even bring himself to take advantage of an opportunity to preach the gospel in Troas, but was compelled to cross the Aegean in search of Titus (2 Cor 2:12–13). The rendezvous could scarcely have been sweeter, as Titus was well, and he brought Paul good news concerning the church’s response to the letter (2 Cor 7:6–13).

Yet he also brought news of a mischievous group of self-styled apostles who sought to subvert Paul’s authority and theology. He immediately composed our 2 Corinthians, reinforcing his apostolicity and undermining the troublemakers. It must have arrived only shortly before himself, in his third visit, autumn–winter 56.

Destination.   Corinth’s strategic location at an isthmus meant the constant traffic of merchants and seamen, bringing not only the wealth of the world, but also its ideas and its lusts. The city proved most accommodating to all, earning it an international reputation for trade, vice, and promiscuity.

It also had quite a concentration of pagan temples (at least 12). This fact provides special insight into both the problems of sexual misconduct in the church (1 Cor. 5:1), since the temple worship often involved ‘sacred’ prostitution, and the eating of meat offered to idols (8:4, et passim).

Message.   The letter is comprised mainly of Paul’s authoritative responses to both the problems described by Chloe’s family (perhaps chap. 1–6; see 1:11) and the questions raised by the official delegates (chap. 7–16?; see 16:17 and the periodic transitional peri de, “now concerning”). The unifying message of the whole letter centers on proper (mature) Christian behavior, especially as the corporate body of Christ; thus the issues of love and unity recur frequently throughout. The other dominant theme is spirituality, involving the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the redeemed human spirit (“inner man”) of saints, which stands in contrast to carnality, undue attention to things material, including but not limited to the human body, a very prominent and adaptable problem for the Corinthians.

Argument

In his salutation Paul introduces the themes of sanctification and unity (1:1–3), both critical needs in Corinth. Similarly, the rest of the introduction (1:4–9) emphasizes the themes of spiritual gifts, faithful and holy living, and the faithfulness of God.

The first problem to be addressed was disunity, indicative of a fundamental spiritual weakness in the church. Factionalism is entirely out of order in the church, because every member is identified with the undivided Lord (1:10–17).

The theme of wisdom which follows (1:18—2:5) shows that the problem arose from a sense that one leader was superior to another, and that his followers were therefore somehow more sophisticated than others’ followers. Paul’s answer exalts humility, not pride, by showing that in the gospel God deliberately preferred a “foolish” message, in contempt of human wisdom and power (1:18–25), in order to shame the self-sufficient (1:26–31). It was in recognition of this very factor that Paul consciously couched the simple gospel in simple speech, so as to avoid confusion with the world’s ‘wisdom,’ and thus to lay a secure foundation for the Corinthians’ progress (2:1–5).

That is not to say, however, that the Christian message is truly foolish, nor that Paul never articulated it in its wisdom. On the contrary, in it is heaven’s greatest wisdom, long reserved as its secrets (2:6–9), and only made known by special revelation from the mind (Spirit) of God to the minds (spirits) of men (2:10–13). But because of its quality it could not be disclosed in its fullness to the immature even of those who had believed. Thus Paul humbles the Corinthians, styling them not sophisticated, as they would like to think of themselves, but to the contrary quite immature, as indicated by their factions, and thus unready to receive spiritual “solid food” (2:14—3:4).

From there Paul goes on to warn would-be teachers while he instructs the people. He begins by describing the proper way for the Corinthians to think of the Christian ministers they wrongly idolized. He indicates they work together, not competitively against one another, and more, they work together with Christ (3:5–9). Second each of these ministers needs to recognize his work will be judged by Christ as to the motivation behind it (3:10–15); the Lord is fiercely defensive of his precious temple, the church (3:16–17). In the next paragraph (3:18–23) he adds that ministers are not to subscribe to worldly wisdom, and that the people are not to exalt men. In the conclusion he focuses on the minister’s servant relationship to God, being entrusted with God’s prize possession, for which trusted service he will stand accountable (4:1–5).

In his addressing the problem of disunity Paul turns his attention to direct exhortation (4:6–21). He shows how that his and the other apostles’ (including Apollos) lives differ from theirs (4:6–13), and then calls on them to follow his example, first by fatherly appeals (4:14–17), then by threats of fatherly discipline (4:18–21). Thus he concludes his discussion of the problem of factions.

Paul turns next to address three specific problems (5–6). As scandalous as the incest was, Paul says the church compounded the problem by tolerating it (5:1–2). He succinctly renders his judgment—apostolic sentence—and apostolic directive for congregational action (5:3–5). Then he proceeds to instruct the church in the theology (of ecclesiastical purity) behind such action (5:6–13).

He treats the next problem in similar fashion (6:1–11). He condemns the practice of appealing to the civil courts for justice, based on the theology of the church’s calling to wisdom both now and in the eschaton. He offers alternative approaches to resolving such conflicts. His conclusion reviews the doctrine of the believers’ essential distinction from the world, reinforcing both his reasoning as well as the theology of sanctification.

The last of these problem areas Paul addresses by tempering—destroying, really—the worldly logic by which believers were justifying the visiting of prostitutes (6:12–13). The practice is illegitimate because of (1) the sacredness of the body, in light of resurrection (6:14); (2) the incompatibility of oneness with a prostitute and with Christ (6:15–18); and (3) God’s claim on the body by redemption (6:19–20).

The church seems to have asked Paul to instruct them concerning marriage and celibacy (7:1). His first point is that each state is a good gift from God, celibacy having certain advantages compared to the mutual responsibilities of marriage (7:1–7). He next instructs the unmarried (7:8–9) as to preferred legitimate options, and the married (7:10–16) as to marital responsibilities.  He goes on to deal (by means of two illustrations) with the ‘greener grass syndrome,’ advocating contentment in one’s present status (7:17–24). His final point is his commendation of singleness. This he develops first generally, supporting his contention by the factors of the special stress of the end times (7:25–31) coupled with the normal stress of marital duties (7:32–35). Then he addresses two special cases, again permitting marriage while suggesting singleness as preferable (7:36–40).

The church’s next question was whether Christians could or should eat meat that had been offered to idols, to which Paul framed a two-part answer (8–10). First, based on the principle of voluntary self-restriction from participating in things permitted by one’s conscience out of love for one’s brother whose conscience is more restrictive, the idol-meat eaters need to respect the restrictive consciences of their brothers and avoid offense (cf. 10:23–30). Second, no Christian should ever participate in the worship of an idol by eating such meat in an idolatrous festival (cf. 10:14–22).

In a matter of this sort the fundamental issue is that that which should dictate one’s behavior is not whether such a behavior is permissible (i.e., the knowledge of one’s rights), but how one’s brother is affected by it (the responsibility of love; 8:1–3). Objectively and intelligently speaking, Paul acknowledges that idol sacrifice is sacrifice to non-entities, and therefore incapable of defiling meat (8:4–6). Subjectively and personally speaking, however, some people are wrapped up in superstition. Love would never trample on their feelings (8:7–13).

The next chapter is primarily an illustration of how this principle has played out in his own life (9). Beyond that Paul uses the occasion to defend his apostleship (9:1–14)—he could have been despised for not receiving monetary support from the church—and to inspire his readers to give themselves completely to ministry toward others (9:15–27).

Paul follows that with the negative example of Israel (10:1–13). Despite their rich privileges (10:1–4), they suffered plague after plague in judgment for their sins (10:5–10). This Paul insisted should serve as a warning to his readers not to presume on their ‘favored status’ with God, while flagrantly ignoring God’s demand to love (10:11–13).

Paul sums up his answer to the question of 8:1 with three points. The first two were noted earlier in introducing this section. His third is all-encompassing: all Christian behavior is judged by the standard of glorifying God (10:31—11:1).

Next there were a couple problems in the area of public worship that Paul had to address (11–14). The first had to do with women apparently objecting to the bearing of the overt symbols (head covering) of female submission (11:2–16). Paul’s response consisted of a declaration of the divinely prescribed order in personal relations (11:2–3), the importance of the women bearing public expression of their subordination (11:4–6), and three arguments designed to convince the hearers to comply (11:7–16).

The second problem area in the Corinthian public worship concerned the periodic ‘love feast,’ designed for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper (11:17–34). The passage is filled with irony that that which should unite has become the occasion of corporate segregation. Paul exposed and condemned the abuse (11:17–22). He brought his readers back to the original design of the ordinance (11:23–26). And he warned them of the danger of continued abuse, alluding to some who had already suffered the ultimate divine displeasure (11:27–34).

The last problem area in the Corinthian public worship concerned the abuse of spiritual gifts—especially the gift of tongues—for personal prestige rather than for corporate edification (12–14). Paul approaches the problem from the primary perspective of the unity of the church: it is united in its confession concerning Christ (12:1–3). Yet that is not to say the church is characterized by uniformity. On the contrary there is diversity among the members of the church (12:4–6), by divine design (12:7–11). This concept Paul illustrates by the analogy of a human body (12:12–31). As in the human body (12:12–26), so also in the Body of Christ (12:27–31), the member parts are interdependent: each part is necessary, and needs every other part. No single part is entirely self-sufficient, possessing all the gifts, and no gift is possessed by every member.

Thus the governing principle here (as in the matter of idol-meats) is love (13). Good as gifts are, their exercise is valueless if loveless (13:1–3). Paul then defines love in terms of its sterling qualities, distinguishing it from any counterfeits (13:4–7). He also demonstrates the superiority of love over gifts (represented by prophecy, knowledge and tongues) by comparing its infinite durability with the temporality of the gifts (13:8–13).

Paul next addresses the problem from perhaps a more pragmatic perspective. In essence he says, if you are going to exalt and emphasize any gift, choose to emphasize prophecy, because prophecy being intelligible edifies its hearers, whereas tongues being unintelligible do not edify their hearers (14:1–25). This he applies by providing concrete regulations to prevent excesses and elevate the role of prophecy (14:26–33); to which he appends additional limitations especially on women’s participation in worship (14:34–36). The whole subject of tongues is summarized in three clear rules (14:37–40).

The last problem Paul had to address concerned bodily resurrection (15). Some in the church seem to have sought to syncretize with the gospel the Greek philosophical dualistic notion of the intrinsic evil of the material world, implying the desirability of shedding the physical body at death (and perhaps the epicurean attitude of the indifference of good or evil done in the physical body; cf. 6:12ff). Paul’s response is first to reassert the centrality of Christ’s genuine bodily resurrection to the gospel message to which Christians subscribe (15:1–11). Second, he points out the logical trap of denying resurrection, that it necessarily leads to the conclusion that we Christians are not saved from our sins (15:12–19). Third, resurrection is theologically necessary if Christ is to triumph over all creation, including death (15:20–28). Fourth, resurrection is implied in various issues of Christian experience (15:29–34).

Paul’s introduction of an objector (15:35) leads to his explanation of the nature of the resurrection body. His comparisons to nature (15:36–41) show a continuity between, yet with radical transformation from the physical to the “spiritual” body (15:42–49). He explains finally that this transformation will be the culminative step in salvation, occurring at ‘the last trumpet,’ and leading into the fullness of our heavenly inheritance (15:50–57). This (entire) truth should motivate believers to indefatigable faithfulness (15:58).

As he begins to bring his letter to a close, Paul speaks of various future contacts that he and his associates anticipate. The first expected visit was to involve a special monetary gift for the Jerusalem brothers, concerning which collection Paul gives direction (16:1–4). Reference to his and others’ visits is largely informational (16:5–12).

Before he signs off, he issues two final exhortations which, if followed, would be conducive to the resolution of perhaps every problem area addressed in the letter (16:13–18). Even the greetings remind the church of the solidarity of all believers in love (16:19–24).

Outline

I. Introduction  1:1–9

A. Salutation  1:1–3

1. Senders  1:1

2. Receivers  1:2

3. Greetings  1:3

B. Thanksgiving  1:4–9

1. Past confirmation of the testimony of Christ  1:4–7a

2. Future confirmation of the Corinthians by Christ  1:7b–9

II. Division in the church  1:10—4:21

A. Introduction to the problem  1:10–17

1. Positive exhortation to unity  1:10

2. Negative report of disunity  1:11–12

3. Rebuke for disunity  1:13

4. Paul’s innocence in the matter of the party spirits  1:14–17

a) Paul’s ministry apart from baptizing  1:14–16

b) Paul’s commission of gospel preaching  1:17

B. Solutions to the problem  1:18—4:21

1. Doctrine  1:18—4:5

a) The simplicity of the message: Christ crucified  1:18—3:4

(1) Its contradiction of human wisdom  1:18—2:5

(a) God’s choice: foolish preaching 1:18–25

(b) God’s purpose: to shame the self-sufficient  1:26–31

(c) Paul’s commitment to simple preaching  2:1–5

(2) Its revelation of divine wisdom  2:6—3:4

(a) Its previous concealment as mystery  2:6–9

(b) Its disclosure through God’s Spirit  2:10–13

(c) Its apprehension by spiritual men  2:14—3:4

i) The contrast between the inability of the natural and the ability of the spiritual 2:14–16

ii) The Corinthians’ previous inability  3:1–2a

iii) The Corinthians’ present inability  3:2b–4

b) The humility of the messengers: Christ’s servants  3:5—4:5

(1) Their function in God’s economy  3:5–9

(2) Their accountability for their work  3:10–17

(a) Reward or loss  3:10–15

(b) Destruction of the destroyer  3:16–17

(3) Their role not as masters, but servants  3:18–23

(a) Warning to ‘messengers’ not to subscribe to worldly wisdom  3:18–20

(b) Warning to the people not to exalt men  3:21–23

(4) The criterion of their judgment: faithfulness  4:1–5

(a) Their stewardship  4:1–4a

(b) Their accountability to God  1:4b–5

2. Exhortation  4:6–21

a) Exposure of Corinthians’ pride in contrast to the apostles’ self-abasement  4:6–13

b) Call to follow Paul’s example  4:14–21

(1) Fatherly appeal  4:14–17

(2) Fatherly threat of discipline  4:18–21

III. Disorder in the church  5–6

A. Incest in the church  5

1. The report  5:1–2

a) The man’s misbehavior  5:1

b) The church’s failure to take proper action  5:2

2. The directive: to turn him out to Satan  5:3–5

3. The teaching  5:6–13

a) The purity of the church  5:6–8

b) The church’s responsibility to police its own  5:9–13

B. Lawsuits before the world’s courts  6:1–11

1. The problem  6:1

2. The illogic of their actions  6:2–11

a) The future responsibilities and present abilities of believers  6:2–6

(1) Future judgment of the world and angels  6:2–3

(2) Present competence  6:4–6

b) The preference of suffering wrong  6:7–8

c) The spiritual-moral contrast between saints and lost  6:9–11

C. Whoredom by the saints  6:12–20

1. The Corinthians’ mistaken carelessness concerning the body  6:12–13a

2. God’s claim on the body for the future  6:13b–14

3. The incompatibility of oneness with a prostitute and union with Christ  6:15–18

4. God’s claim on the body in the present  6:19–20

IV. Difficulties in the church  7–15

A. Concerning marriage and celibacy  7

1. Avoiding immorality  7:1–7

a) The ideal of celibacy  7:1

b) The sanctity of sexual relations in marriage  7:2–5

c) The variety of ‘gifts’ from God  7:6–7

2. Instructions to the unmarried  7:8–9

a) The preference of singleness  7:8

b) The permission of marriage  7:9

3. Instructions to the married  7:10–16

a) Christian marriage: Don’t divorce!  7:10–11

b) Mixed marriage  7:12–16

(1) Believer should not initiate divorce  7:12–14

(2) Believer should not resist being divorced  7:15–16

4. Instruction not to seek a change of status  7:17–24

a) The principle  7:17

b) The illustration of circumcision  7:18–19

c) The illustration of slavery  7:20–24

5. Instructions advocating singleness  7:25–40

a) The advantages of singleness  7:25–35

(1) The present stress of the world  7:25–31

(2) The added stress of marriage  7:32–34

(3) Summary  7:35

b) The case of fathers of girls  7:36–38

(1) Marriage is permissible  7:36

(2) Celibacy is good  7:37

(3) Summary comparison  7:38

c) The case of widows  7:39–40

(1) Remarriage is permissible  7:39

(2) Widowhood is better  7:40

B. Concerning Christian liberty  8:1—11:1

1. The presenting issue: things sacrificed to idols  8

a) The superiority of love over knowledge  8:1–3

b) Knowledge of the unreality of all gods but One  8:4–6

c) Love for others who do not have this knowledge  8:7–13

(1) Their ignorance  8:7

(2) The danger of offense  8:8–12

(3) The loving determination not to offend  8:13

2. The positive example of Paul’s ministry  9

a) His apostolic rights (rhetorical questions)  9:1–14

(1) Defense of apostleship  9:1–2

(2) Rights of eating and drinking  9:3–4

(3) Rights to marriage  9:5

(4) Rights to receive monetary support  9:6–14

(a) The matter of his (and Barnabas’) self-support  9:6

(b) The principle of support  9:6–10

(c) The application in their ministry  9:11–14

b) His Christian attitude  9:15–27

(1) Statement of Paul’s voluntary self-denial  9:15

(2) Statement of Paul’s inner compulsion to preach  9:16–23

(a) Apart from external motivation  9:16–18

(b) Ready to make any sacrifice  9:19–23

(3) Statement of Paul’s commitment to approval  9:24–27

3. The negative example of Israel’s failures  10:1–13

a) Reminder of their opportunities: 5 privileges  10:1–4

b) Application of their failures: 5 warnings  10:5–10

c) General application not to presume on one’s ‘favored status’ with God  10:11–13

4. The applicable principles  10:14—11:1

a) Christian liberty does not extend into the bounds of idolatrous worship  10:14–22

(1) The principle of identification between a worshiper and the thing worshiped  (10:14–18)

(2) The application to idol-meats and worship  10:19–22

b) Christian liberty is not a higher principle than edification  10:23–30

c) All Christian behavior is judged by the standard of glorifying God  10:31—11:1

C. Public worship  11:2—14:40

1. Veils and women’s subordinate position  11:2–16

a) Proper order in personal relations  11:2–3

b) The necessity of symbolic respect for authority  11:4–6

c) Validation of Paul’s statement  11:7–16

(1) Created order  11:7–12

(2) Natural (cultural) ways  11:13–15

(3) Church custom  11:16

2. The Lord’s supper  11:17–34

a) Corinthian abuse  11:17–22

(1) The verdict of division  11:17–19

(2) The evidence of self-serving inequality  11:20–21

(3) Apostolic condemnation  11:22

b) Original divine intent: united memorial  11:23–26

c) Exhortation to self-examination  11:27–34

(1) The danger of unworthiness  11:27–30

(2) The preference of self-judgment  11:31–32

(3) The prescription to discontinue the abusive practice  11:33–34

3. Concerning spiritual gifts  12–14

a) The genius of diversity in unity  12

(1) Divine source of the concept  12:1–11

(a) Divine source of Christian confession  12:1–3

(b) Divine source of variety among Christians  12:4–6

(c) Divine sovereignty in distribution  12:7–11

(2) The ‘body’ analogy  12:12–31

(a) Introduction  12:12–14

(b) The principle of interdependence  12:15–26

i) None should deem himself insignificant: variety is necessary  12:15–20

ii) None should deem another insignificant: every part deserves honor  12:21–26

(c) The application of interdependence  12:27–31

b) The priority of love over gifts  13

(1) Gifts exercised apart from love are useless  13:1–3

(2) The sterling qualities of love  13:4–7

(3) The durability of love  13:8–13

c) The superiority of prophecy to tongues  14:1–25

(1) The matter of the church’s benefit  14:1–19

(a) (Intelligible) Prophecy edifies the hearers  14:1–5

(b) (Unintelligible) Tongues do not edify the hearers  14:6–19

i) The principle of intelligibility  14:6–11

ii) Insistence on intelligibility  14:12–19

(2) The matter of the world’s response  14:20–25

d) The regulation of worship  14:26–36

(1) The use of tongues  14:26–33

(a) The criterion of edification  14:26

(b) Limitations on tongues  14:27–28

(c) Instructions for prophecies  14:29–33

(2) Limitations on women’s participation  14:34–36

e) Summary  14:37–40

(1) Submit to these instructions  14:37–38

(2) Recognize gifts according to priority  14:39

(3) Maintain order  14:40

D. Concerning the resurrection  15

1. Proofs of physical resurrection  15:1–34

a) The centrality of resurrection to the gospel  15:1–11

(1) The Corinthians’ reception of the gospel  15:1–2

(2) The fundamental components of the gospel  15:3–4

(3) Christ’s post-resurrection appearances  15:5–10

(4) Summary  15:11

b) The logical trap of denying resurrection: no salvation  15:12–19

c) The theological necessity of Christ’s resurrection  15:20–28

(1) To reverse Adamic curse  15:20–22

(2) For Christ’s subjection of all things  15:23–28

d) Experiential arguments for bodily resurrection  15:29–34

(1) Baptism for the dead  15:29

(2) Gospel ministers’ exposure to danger  15:30–32

(3) Exhortations to holy living  15:33–34

2. Explanations of physical resurrection  15:35–57

a) The nature of the resurrection body  15:35–49

(1) The principle of different kinds of bodies  15:35–41

(2) Its superiority to the present body  15:42–49

b) The occasion of receiving the resurrection body  15:50–57

(1) The necessity of transformation  15:50

(2) The experience of transformation  15:51–53

(3) The victory of transformation  15:54–57

3. Implication of physical resurrection: faithfulness  15:58

V. Directives and information concerning future contacts  16:1–12

A. Directives concerning the collection  16:1–4

1. Its collection  16:1–2

2. Its administration  16:3–4

B. Information concerning Paul’s upcoming visit  16:5–9

C. Directive to respect Timothy in his coming visit  16:10–11

D. Information concerning Apollos’ absence  16:12

VI. Closing  16:13–24

A. Final exhortations  16:13–18

1. Faithfulness and love  16:13–14

2. Submission to worthy leaders  16:15–18

B. Greetings  16:19–24