PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
An Exposition of the First Epistle to the Corinthians
Hodge, Charles, 1797–1878 · 167,870 words · 392 reading sections
I. CORINTHIANS 9, 18.19. 163
18. What is my reward then? (Verily) that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel. To do what he was commanded was no ground of re- ward ; but to preach the gospel without charge was something of which he could boast, i. e. make a ground of con…
401 wordsSECTION 182164 I. CORINTHIANS 9, 19.20.
this apostle. So long as things indifferent were regarded as such, he was ready to accommodate himself to the most un- reasonable prejudices ; but when they were insisted upon as matters of necessity, he would not give place, no not for an hour. Gal. 2, 5. 20. And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the…
424 wordsSECTION 183I. CORINTHIANS 9, 20.21. 165
former, * To the Jews, i. e. to those under the law, I became as a Jew, i. e. as one mider the law.' " Not being myself under the law," jxrj wv avros virb vo/xov. This- clause happened to be omitted from the Elziver edition of the Greek Testament from which our translation was made, and therefore fails in the common E…
447 wordsSECTION 184166 I. CORINTHIANS 9, 21.22.23.
sisted the Judaizers, in order that the truth of the gospel might remain with them, Gal. 2, 5. 22. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak : I am made all things to all (men), that I might by all means save some. By the weak many understand the Jews and Gentiles con- sidered under another aspect, i. …
410 wordsSECTION 185I. CORINTHIANS 9, 23.24.25. 167
confine the statement to the Corinthians. To be a partaker of the gospel, means, of course, to be a partaker of its bene- fits ; the subject of the redemption which it announces. It is necessary to live for the gospel, in order to be a partaker of the gospel. 24. Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but …
398 wordsSECTION 186168 I. CORINTHIANS 9, 25.26.27.
Every one who striveth^ &c. (ttSs 6 dyajvi^d/xcvo?) every one accustomed to contend^ i. e. every professional athlete. The word includes all kinds of contests, whether in running, wrestling or fighting. Is temperate in all things^ i. e. controls himself as to all things. He exercises selt-denial in diet, in bodily indu…
418 wordsSECTION 187I. CORINTHIANS 9, 27. 169
my hody. (vTrwTrta^w, to smite under the eye, to bruise^ to smite, Luke 18, 5.) His antagonist was his body, which he so smote, i. e. so dealt with, as to bring it into subJectio7i ; Uter- ally, to lead about as a slave. Perhaps in reference to the custom of the victor leading about his conquered antagonist as a servan…
391 wordsSECTION 188CHAPTER X.
A continuation of the exhortation to self-denial and caution, vs. 1-13. Ex- press prohibition of joining in the sacrificial feasts of the heathen, vs. 14-22. Particular directions as to the use of meat sacrificed to idols, vs. 23-33. The necessity of self-denial argued from the case of the Israelites. Vs. 1-13. At th…
377 wordsSECTION 189I. CORINTHIANS 10, 1.2. 171
lected by the apostle. The Israelites doubtless felt, as they stood on the other side of the Red Sea, that all danger was over, and that their entrance into the land of promise was se- cured. They had however a journey beset with dangers be- fore them, and perished because they thought there was no need of exertion. So…
436 wordsSECTION 190172 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 2.3.
baptism to be made his disciples. See 1, 13. Rom. 6, 3. In the cloud and in the sea. The cloud and the sea did for them, in reference to Moses, what baptism does for us in reference to Christ. Their passage through the sea, and their guidance by the cloud, was their baptism. It made them the disciples of Moses ; placed…
470 wordsSECTION 191I. CORINTHIANS 10, 3. 173
from heaven.' Neither of these views, however, is consist- ent with the scriptural use of the word. Spiritital neither means refined nor typical. In 15, 44, "spiritual body" means a body adapted to the spirit as its organ. 3. Others give the word here its very common sense, pertainmg to the spirit; as, in the preceding…
467 wordsSECTION 192174 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 3.4.
their being miraculously fed was their Lord's Supper. They were as signal marks of the divine presence and favour as sa- craments are to us. If their privileges did not prevent their perishing in the wilderness, ours will not save us. If the want of self-denial and vigilance destroyed them, it will destroy us. 4. And …
417 wordsSECTION 193I. CORINTHIANS 10, 4. 176
In Ps. 105, 41, it is said, "He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out ; they ran in dry places like a river," which at least proves that the supply of water was very copious, and flowed to a considerable distance. 3. It is not necessary, however, to assume that either the rock or the water out of the rock fol- low…
482 wordsSECTION 194176 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 5.6.
ness, 1 Cor. 10, 9, and that Moses suffered his reproach, Heb. 11, 26 ; Jude 5. says, the Lord, or (asLachmann, after the an- cient MSS. and versions, reads) Jesus, saved his people out of Egypt. This truth early impressed itself on the mind of the Christian church, as appears from the prayer in the ancient Liturgies, …
395 wordsSECTION 195I. CORINTHIANS 10, 6. 7. 8. 177
appropriate as a warning to the Corinthians not to desire par- ticipation in the sacrificial feasts of the heathen in which they had been accustomed to indulge. 7. Neither be ye idolaters, as (were) some of them ; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. The Corinthians were as muc…
405 wordsSECTION 196178 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 8.9.
by the prostitution of virgins. Idolatry and fornication were in that case inseparable. In Corinth the principal temple was dedicated to Venus, and the homage paid to her was almost as corrupt as that rendered to Baal-peor. How could the Corinthians escape this evil if they allowed themselves to at- tend the sacrificia…
421 wordsSECTION 197I. CORINTHIANS 10, 9. 179
To tempt is to try, either in the sense of attempting^ or of putting to the test, with a good or evil intent. God is said to tempt his people, when he puts their faith and patience to the test for the sake of exercising and strengthening those graces, Heb. 11, 17. Satan and evil men are said to tempt others, when they …
485 wordsSECTION 198180 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 9. 10. 11.
among the people, and they bit the people ; and much people of Israel died." Similar judgments awaited the Corinthians if they exhausted the forbearance of the Lord. 10. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also mur- mured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. To murmur is to complain in a rebeUious spirit. The referen…
399 wordsSECTION 199I. CORINTHIANS 10, 11.12. 181
tion is sometimes conceived of as one, and is therefore ex- pressed by the singular alwv ; sometimes as made up of distinct periods, and is then expressed by the phiral alwves. Hence we have the expressions crwreA-cta tov ataij/os, and twi/ atwvcoj/. Matt. 24, 3. Heb. 9, 26, both signifying the completion of a given po…
431 wordsSECTION 200182 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 13.
13. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man : but God (is) faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able ; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear (it). N'o temptation^ i. e. no trial, whether in the form of seduc- tions or of…
423 wordsSECTION 201I. CORINTHIANS 10, 13. 183
Those whom God has promised to save, he has promised to render watchful. Who will not suffer you to he tempted above that you are able^ i. e. able to bear. This is the proof of his fidel- ity. Sut loill loith the teinptation make a way of escape. This means either, that when the temptation comes, God will make a way of…
452 wordsSECTION 202184 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 14.
unite with us in the service. From its very nature, it brings all who partake of the bread and wine into fellowship with Christ and with one another, vs. 14-17. The same is true of Jewish sacrifices. Whoever eats of those sacrifices, is thereby- brought into communion with the object of Jewish worship. The act is in it…
427 wordsSECTION 203I. CORINTHIANS 10, 14.15.16. 185
tionable ; that is, every thing which lies upon the border of what is allo\/able, or which approaches the confines of sin ; and secondly, avoiding the occasion and temptations to sin ; keeping at a distance from every thing which excites evil pas- sion, or which tends to ensnare the soul. 15. I speak as to wise men ; …
414 wordsSECTION 204186 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 16.
ception is not by the mouth, but by faith, then the thing re- ceived is not the material body and blood, but the body and blood as a sacrifice, i. e. their sacrificial virtue. Hence all Re- formed churches teach (and even the rubrics of the Church of England), that the body and blood of Christ are received elsewhere th…
449 wordsSECTION 205I. CORINTHIANS 10, 16. 187
The cup of blessing. The word (cuAoyew), to bless ^ means, 1. To speak well of. 2. To praise and thank ; as when we bless God. 3. To confer blessmgs, as when God blesses us. In vh'tue of the second of these meanings, the word is used interchangeably with (eu^aptcrTeco), to give thanks. That is, the same act is sometime…
465 wordsSECTION 206188 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 16.
can only mean the cup on which we implore a blessing ; that is, which we pray may be blessed to the end for which it was appointed, viz. to be to us the communion of the blood of Christ. That is, the means of communicating to us the bene- fits of Christ's death. Just as we bless our food when we pray that God would mak…
477 wordsSECTION 207I. CORINTHIANS 10, 16. 189
the Gentiles took part in the spiritual blessings of the Jews. Hence we have such expressions as the following : participa- tion of his Son, 1 Cor. 1, 9 ; participation of the Spirit, 2 Cor. 13, 13. Phil. 2, 1 ; participation of the ministry, 2 Cor. 8, 4; of the gospel, Phil. 1, 5 ; of sufferings, Phil. 3, 5. Of course…
478 wordsSECTION 208190 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 16.17.
communicant, leaves out an important significant element in this sacrament. 17. For we (being) many are one bread, (and) one body : for we are all partakers of that one bread. Literally rendered this verse reads : Since it is one breads we the many are one body ; for xoe are all partaJcers of one bread. We are not sa…
406 wordsSECTION 209I. CORINTHIAIS^S 10, 18. 191
18. Behold Israel after tlie flesli : are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar ? Israel after the fleshy i. e. the Jews, as a nation, as distin- guished from Israel 'o/ifer the Sjnrit, or the spiritual Israel or true people of God. As Israel was a favourite term of honour, Paul rarely uses it fo…
436 wordsSECTION 210192 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 19.20.
19. What say I then ? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing ? This is evidently intended to guard against a false inference from this mode of reasoning. It was not to be inferred from what he had said, that he regarded the professed objects of heathen worship as ha-sdn…
409 wordsSECTION 211I. CORINTHIANS 10, 20. 193
devils, therefore, in this case are to be understood demons^ or the fallen angels or evil spirits. That this is the sense in which the Greek word is to be here taken is plain, 1. Because it is its only scriptural sense. The passage in Acts 17, 18, being the language of Athenians, proves nothing as to the usage of Jews …
478 wordsSECTION 212194 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 20.21.
are united to them so as to form one community, with a com- mon character and a common destiny. Into this state of fel- lowship they are brought by sacrificing to them ; that is, by idolatry, which is an act of apostasy from the true God, and of association with the kingdom of darkness. It was of great importance for t…
441 wordsSECTION 213I. CORINTHIAITS 10, 21.22. 195
the wine as well as the meat, were blessed in the name of the idol, and thereby consecrated to him, in a manner analogous to that in which the bread and the wine on the Lord's table were consecrated to him; comp. 1 Sam. 9, 12. 13. The table of the Lord is the table at which the Lord presides, and at which his people ar…
446 wordsSECTION 214196 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 22.23.
and the same Lord that was provoked thereby to jealousy. Here, again, the relation in which Christians stand to Christ, is said to be analogous to that in which the Israelites stood to Jehovah. Christ is therefore our Jehovah. He is our hus- band, to whom our supreme affection is due, and who loves us as a husband love…
427 wordsSECTION 215I. CORINTHIANS 10, 23.24.25. 197
of others ; secondly, regard to our own welfare. The word (o-u/x^cpct) is expedient expresses the one of these ideas, and (olKoSofxel) edijieth the other. All things are not expedient or useful to others ; and all things are not edifying to our- selves. The latter phrase might indeed have reference to others as well as…
842 wordsSECTION 216I. CORINTHIANS 10, 26.1V. 28. 199
fruits and animals with which it is replenished ; which were created by God, and therefore good. Nothing, therefore, can in itself be polluting, if used in obedience to the design of its creation. And as the animals offered in sacrifice were in- tended to be food for man, they cannot defile those who use them for that …
400 wordsSECTION 217200 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 28.29.30.
the weakness of others, exhibited in this whole connection, may well excite the highest admiration. The most enlight- ened man of his whole generation, was the most yielding and conciliatory in all matters of indifference. The clause, " For the earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof," at the end of this verse, is…
410 wordsSECTION 218I. CORINTHIANS 10, 30.31. 201
indignation in behalf of the strong, who certainly need no ad- vocate. They did not require to be told that their liberty was not to be restricted by the scruples of the weak. 2. A much better sense is obtained by connecting this passage with the 28th verse. ' Do not eat out of regard to the conscience of your brother …
463 wordsSECTION 219202 I. CORINTHIANS 10, 31.32.
or, 'Do all things in such a way that God may be glorified.' There is little difference between these modes of explanation. God cannot be glorified by our conduct unless it be our ob- ject to act for his glory. The latter interpretation is favoured by a comparison with 1 Peter 4, 11, "That God in all things may be glor…
457 wordsSECTION 220I. CORINTHIANS 10, 32.33. 203
to avoid giving offence, or causing men to sin. In other words, love to God and love to men should govern all our conduct. 33. Even as I please all (men) in all (things), not seeking mine own profit, but the (profit) of many, that they may be saved. What he urged them to do, he himself did. His object was not his own…
399 wordsSECTION 221204 I. CORINTHIANS 10,33. 11,1.
3. They conceded when the concession was not demanded as a matter of necessity ; but refused when it was so regarded. Paul said circumcision was nothing and uncircumcision was nothing; yet he resisted the circumcision of Titus when it was demanded by the Judaizers. 4. The object of their con- cessions was not to gain m…
205 wordsSECTION 222CHAPTER XI.
The impropriety of women appearing tmveiled in the public assemblies, vs. 2-16. The improper manner of celebrating the Lord's Supper which pre- vailed in the Corinthian church, vs. 17-34. On the impropriety of women appearing in public unveiled^ vs. 2-16. Having corrected the more private abuses which prevailed amon…
102 wordsSECTION 223I. CORINTHIANS 11, 2. 205
indecorous in another. The principle insisted upon in this paragraph is, that women should conform in matters of dress to all those usages which the pubUc sentiment of the commu- nity in which they live demands. The veil in all eastern coun- tries was, and to a great extent still is, the symbol of modesty and subjectio…
429 wordsSECTION 224206 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 2.3.
you were deficient, yet I praise you that you remember me.' The Corinthians, although backward in following the self- denial and conciliatory conduct of the apostle, were neverthe- less in general mindful of the ordinances or rules which he had delivered to them. The word (TrapaSoo-ts) tradition^ here ren- dered ordina…
441 wordsSECTION 225I. CORINTHIANS 11, 3.4. 207
of the same nature with the Father. There is nothing, there- fore, in this passage, at all inconsistent with the true and proper divinity of our blessed Lord. For a brief statement of the scriptural doctrine of the relation of Christ to God, see the comments on 3, 23. It need here be only further re- marked, that the w…
439 wordsSECTION 226208 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 4.5.
lie services. It is not to be inferred from what is here said, that the Christian prophets (or inspired men) had introduced this custom into the church. The thmg to be corrected was, women appearing in public assembhes unveiled. The apostle says, the veil is inconsistent with the position of the man, but is required by…
424 wordsSECTION 227I. CORINTHIANS 11, 5. 6. 7. 209
in the clearest terms, 14, 34. In here disapproving of the one, says Calvin, he does not approve of the other. The veils worn by Grecian women were of different kinds. One, and perhaps the most common, was the peplum^ or man- tle, which in pubhc was thrown over the head, and enveloped the whole person. The other was m…
421 wordsSECTION 228210 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 7. 8. 9. 10.
is not bound to do it, but should not do it. The negative be- longs not to o<^€tAei, but to KaTaKaXvTTTicr^ai. The reason is that he is the image and glory of God. The only sense in which the man, in distinction from the woman, is the image of God, is that he represents the authority of God. He is in- vested with domin…
430 wordsSECTION 229I. CORINTHIANS 11, 10.11. 211
There is scarcely a passage in the New Testament which has so much taxed the learning and ingenuity of commentators as this. After all that has been written, it remains just as obscure as ever. The meaning which it naturally suggests to the most superficial reader, is regarded by the most laborious critics as the only …
425 wordsSECTION 230212 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 11.12.13.
that in Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female ; that the one is as fully a partaker of all the benefits of redemption as the other. And it is also true that he teaches that this equality of Jews and Greeks, bond and free, before God is per- fectly consistent with the social inequalities existing in this world. …
415 wordsSECTION 231I. CORINTHIANS 11, 13. 14. 15. 213
as authoritative. Rom. 1, 32. 3, 8. The constitution of our nature being derived from God, the laws which he has im- pressed upon it, are as much a revelation from him as any other possible communication of his will. And to deny this, is to deny the possibility of all knowledge. Js it comely (tt/oc- TTov €OTt), is it b…
424 wordsSECTION 232214 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 16.
16. But if any man seem to be contentious, w«tf have no such custom, neither the churches of God. The arguments against the custom of women appearing in public unveiled having been presented, the apostle says, if any man, notwithstanding these arguments, is disposed to dispute the matter, or appears to be contentious,…
406 wordsSECTION 233I. CORINTHIANS 11. 215
sense of the words with an ordinary meal. As this sacrament was instituted by oiir Lord at the close of the Paschal supper, so it appears to have been customary at the beginning for the Christians to assemble for a common meal and to connect with it the commemoration of the Redeemer's death. Intimations of this usage m…
467 wordsSECTION 234216 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 17.
its original design, but a cruel perversion of a feast of love into a means of humiliating and wounding their poorer breth- ren, V. 22. In order to show how inconsistent their conduct was with the nature of the service in which they professed to engage, the apostle recounts the original institution of the Lord's supper…
413 wordsSECTION 235I. CORINTHIANS 11, 17.18. 217
irapayyiXXcLv in the New Testament never means to declare, but always to command. Hence, the better translation is, Commanding or enjoining this I do not applaud. It is doubt- ful whether this refers to what precedes or to what follows. If the former, then the sense is, ' AYhile I command what precedes respecting women…
412 wordsSECTION 236218 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 18.19.
had heard to their disadvantage in this matter ; but he was forced to beheve enough to excite his serious disapprobation. 19. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. This is the reason why he believed what he had heard. He knew that such things must happ…
432 wordsSECTION 237I. CORINTHIANS 11, 20.21. 219
20. When ye come together therefore into one' place, (this) is not to eat the Lord's supper. Ye coming together then into one place. Yerse 19 is an interruption. The connection with v. 18 is resumed by the particle (ow) then. When you assemble it is not to eat the Lord's supper. This is not the real, though it is your…
399 wordsSECTION 238I. CORINTHIANS 11, 21.22.
that any of the Corinthians actually became intoxicated at the table which they called the table of the Lord, or whether he meant simply to say, that while one had more, another had less, than enough, it is not easy to decide. As they seem to have accommodated their service to the sacrificial feasts to which they had, …
425 wordsSECTION 239I. CORINTHIANS 11, 22.23. 221
highly honoured of God, the richer Corinthians treated with contempt ; and that too at the Lord's table, where all exter- nal distinctions are done away, and the master is not a hair's breadth above his slave. And shame those icho have not. To shame, i. e. to mortify and humble, by rendering conscious of inferiority. T…
424 wordsSECTION 240222 I. CORINTHIANS 11, 23.
which we have heard of him (dir auToD)," 1 John 1, 5, which certainly does not refer to an indirect communication re- ceived througli others. In this place a-n-o tov Kvptov, from the Lord^ is evidently opposed to om avSpwiroiv, from men. He received his knowledge from the Lord, and not from men. Comp. Gal. 1, 12. So in…
466 wordsSource & rights
Public-domain historical edition (1857). Text from OCR of an original Internet Archive scan; OCR may contain recognition errors.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.