PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Corinthians
Frederic William Farrar [1831-1903] · 502,662 words · 564 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Corinthians — Section 1
THE PULPIT COMMENTARY, EDITED BY THE ·VERY REV. H. D. M. SPENCE, D.D., DEAN OF GLOUOESTEB; AND BY THE UEV. JOSEPH S. EXELL, U.A. WITH INTRODUCTIONS BY THE VERY REV. F. W. FARRAR, D.D., F.R.S., DEAN OF CANTERBURY RIGHT REV. H. CO'l'TERILL, D.D., F.R.S.E. VERY REV. PRINCIPAL J. TULLOCH, D.D. REV. CANON G. RA…
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at this trade, with his wife J'riscilla, he entered into partnership with them. They had been expelled from Rome by a decree of Claudius, in A.D. 52, and had probably been converted to Christianity by the unknown disciples who had founded the Roman Church. With them St. Paul formed a happy and lifelong friendship, and …
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all by the disordered and almost insano abuso of the impulse to speak with tho tongue. Furthor, the very agapre which were held in connection with the Eucharist had lieen shockingly disgraced and profaned by greed, selfiRhness, envy, gluttony, and even by the besetting Corinthian vice of intoxication. Worst of all, u…
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CHAPTER I. transition of the word from a title into a proper name. In the two no.mes together The oldest superscription was probably, our Lord is represented as "the Saviour," ~ 'l'o the Corinthians, the first (TTpo, Kop!P- and the anointed Prophet, Priest, and 8/ov, ,rpw.-71)." This is found in i-:, A, B, King, firs…
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1mttrrs is perf0ct.ly valueless, spoke of him thnt the actual resembled the ideal. 'fhey as'· one of the S<'Vent.y disciples, and Ilishop nc,·er conceal the immense chasm which of Colophon" (Euscbius, 'Hist. Eccl.,' i. 12). scp,iratcd the rmtl condition of m,my mem- Th,,rc is a Jewish Sosthenes, A. ruler of the bers…
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"Ev1rngc!icnls." But Christ cnnnot thus be Always; that is, constantly; on all occasions "pnrcellccl into fragments" (,eo vere. 12, 13), of special prayer. He could still thank nor !ms nny parly 11 right to bonst ex- God for them, though liis letter was written clusively, "I om of Christ." The audition, '' with many te…
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nttitude of the eRrly Christinns (Rom. viii. ~incerity of the apostle is ohservahlo in tl1iij I fl-25; Phil. iii. 2P: Hcb. ix. 20; l Thess. thanksgiving. He spcn ks of the Chmch ir i. 10; Col. iii. 4; Titus ii. 13). Love for genc-rnl in terms of grntitude and hopeful- Christ's nmnirestation ·wl\s n Christinn ness, a…
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heen conjectured that 8kphnnas, Fortunatus, Hebrews, which proves that he was of the nnd Aclmicus,Gnrinthi!Lns wl,o were now with school of St. Paul, while at the same time St. Paul at Ephesus (eh. xvi. Hi), may have he showed a splendid originality in his way Leen Chloe's slaves or freedmen. Conten- of nrri ving at th…
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for Y"" 9 " This m1lhnrst of feeling is ,·ery a_postles awoke the sneers of philosophm·s important. ns pr0d11g the imnwa.,nrahle dis- like Celsus and Porphyry. The oroee of tance which, in Paul's own view, separnted Christ. The centml doctl'ine of Christio.nity, him from his Lord. It is also instructive to (he pmachiug…
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to be asbo.med of it. It could never ho o. is, as a part of his Divine economy. The cnrnnl wcmpon of wo.rfure, o.nd yet was world through its wisdom knew not God. mighty for every purpose (2 Cor. x. 4, 5). 'fhese words might be written aa an epitaph Ver. 19.-It is written. This formula on the tomb of ancient philosoph…
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dCl<'.trine" ia one of thr c-oaraest disdain rnnk WI\B the consul Flaviue Clemen~, uncle (<x.\,ia(o,·). and they c,1llrd him "n, ared- of the Emperor Domitie.n. 'l'llis was the more peckor" (Acts XYii. 18, 32), i.e. a mere mnrked bcrause the Jews won nmny rirh picker-up of" ]earning's crumbs." 11n,I noble proselytes, s…
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V(Jr. 20.-That no floah should glory. For (>Jrrpov, o:1ro>-.6-rp,,,<rir). The meaning o.n<l the wea.k instruments of Gocl's triumphs are nature of the act, as regard, Gori, lie in 80 wcnk th"t it wns impossible for them to rcgiuns above our comprehension; s,, that all 11 ,cribe nny power or merit to themselves. specula…
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pC'nce." If men hn'l"e these they have all. 2. The highest good from the highc,t Sor,rce. "God the Father." Men need this good; Heaven only can bestow it. Y crs. 4-9.-E.remplary grati:tnde and precious confidence. "I thank my God alwa~·s on yonr he half," etc. Here we have two blessed states of mind-(1) exemplary yrat…
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suppose, 11ssume that this Chloe was a good character, altho11gh, as a rule, the most un>'miablo persons are the most rearly to parade the imperfections of others. :Now, what woro the divisions a~ainst which he protests? "Now this I say, that every ona of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apolios; and I of Cephas; and …
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ll'nlnres, E1,g lnnd is \\'Cl1-11igh as hide,,us as hcath<'ndom. 1 2. It is easily explained. How is it done? The apostle in this verse indicates one way in which it could be done, that is, by "wisdom of words," by which we understand him to mean gorgeous rhetoric. Wlrnt is called the Chmch has done it; that is, the a…
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Huccecdcd in accomplishing this? Who amongst the wise will come forward to give one single instance? II. Philosophy CONFOUNDED by the gospel. "Hath not God made fooli8h the wiHtlom of this world?" 1. By doing what philosophy could not do. "The world by wisdom knew not God." Though the pages of nature lay open to the e…
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II. GOD IS DETERMINED TO OVERTHROW EVIL BY CONVENTIONALLY CONTEMPTIBLE . ll1EAKS. "God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise," etc. The "wise" and the "mighty" cannot protect evil. The agency to sweep evil away is here represented as" foolish," "weak," "hase," "despised," and "things which…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1-9.-St. Paul and the apostleship. First of all, HE ASSERTS THE DIVINE AUTHORITY OF HIS OFFICE, to which he was "called though the will of God." This pro- found sense of the dignity belonging to his vocation, as one sent of God, was a supreme principle of his nature; not an opinion, …
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Vers. 10-17.-Divisions in the Church condemned. The formative idea of the- chapter is now brought into full view, viz. " There are contentions among you," and it- is prefaced by the sta~ement of a principle, to which St. Paul earnestly directs the attention of the Corinthians, viz. "that they be joined together in t…
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Ver. 2.-" Galled to be saints." The term " saint" is, in common use, limited to certain classes of holy men. It is applied to the inspired evangelists and apostles; to the great doctors and martyrs of the early Church, especially to such as were " canonized;" and to the glorified in heaven. But the New Testament usage …
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Nothing but the consciousness of a new life breathed into humanity, a new hope ,dawning upon the world, could account for these Corinthians being thus addressed by a teacher like Paul. The language is so sweeping and unqualified, and the state- ment is made with so much confidence, that we feel that something very rem…
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Ver. li.-The mission to preach. No man did so much as Paul to prevent Chris•· tia::.ity degenerating into form. He had himself been galled by the bondacro of the olcl ,lispensation, and he the more rejoiced in the liberty of the new. He uphcld the spirit against the letter, the life against the ceremony. He did not …
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-0f "the true cross," and even now relics (supposed) of the instrument of our SaviCJnr's ~u!Terings are treasured and revered. 'fhe cross may be reproduced in shape, ir; orna- ment, in architecture, in posture, and there may all the time be no spiritual under- .standing of the cross. 2. Nor did a merely sentimental m…
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Vers. 1-3.-Christian salutation. I. CHRISTIAN SALUTATION SHOULD BE COURTEOUS. Christianity teaches the truest politeness. It seeks to eradicate the harsh and the 1,rutal. Life is rough enough without our making it rougher; Christianity tends to smooth the ruggedness of life and to make it more kindly. Courtesy in ot…
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love the lovely Christinn, and to give the cold shoulrler to the unlovely. We nee,) morn of the Spirit of the One who came to help the sinful and the unattractive, and who " loved the world.'' V. CHRISTIAN SALUTATION SHOULD NOT BE EMPTY. Much salutation says nothin~ nnd means it. Paul's salutation is very ample and fu…
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C'HRIST. This is, perhaps, the most striking feature of these introductory verses. Reacl the passage and note the extraoi·dinary number of times mention is made of God and tf Christ. The connection of this with the coming rebulrn is apparent. The Corin" thians ha,·e furgolten God, and therefore they have gone astray. C…
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personal qualities or position. A polios was eloquent and captivating; Paul spiritual ancl ~imple; Cephas had peculiar charm through his long association with Christ, ancl represented the Jewish element to the minds of the Corinthians. Instead of enjoying all the teachers in common, folly suggested division and monop…
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m this matter; he sharply rebukes those who would transform Paul into Pope. Avoid- ing every occasion of increasing the evil, he rejoices that he has not baptizcd many Corinthians, lest this should be wrested into an attempt to acquire pre-eminence, and consequently dishonour fall upon the pre-eminent Christ. Some Chur…
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must not bo too disconcerted if men receive our message as one of foolishness. This will not indicate faultiness in the cross, but in those who hear its story, though of course there may be faultiness in our mode of telling that story. V. THE CROSS IS TO BE PREACHED WITH THE REMEMBRANCE OF THE FAILuRE OF EARTHLY WISUO…
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Ver. 30.-What Christ is to the believer. What is Christ to us 1 This is a great, an all-important question. The answer to it is an answer to all vital questions respecting our present and future. To God;Christ is much; to the angels, much; to many men, rwtl,ing-a mere "root out of a dry ground" (Isa. liii. 2). What …
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Vers. 1-3.-The salutation. As usual in Paul's Epistles, this preface contains the name of the writer, the persons addressed, and a prayer for blessing. "\Ve have- I. APOSTOLIC AUTHORI'l'Y. Paul's authority as an apostle was disparaged by some at Corinth, who regarded him as inferior to the twelve. Each of the opposing…
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the~- <li<l n0t lwld themsekes aloof from the evil around them, and regard themselves ns lwl~- unt0 the Lord. Believers now, as then, must keep themselves" unspotted from the world," for the sake of their spiritual health and their mission as the "slllt of the earth." 4. I'rayeifnl. 'l'hey "call upon the Name of our Lo…
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hrought by the Prince of Peace. It includeR: (1) Peace with God. (Rom. v. 1.) By foHh we nre justified, our sins being put away and we ourselves accepted as righteous; and thus we are "reconciled to God through the death of his Son" ( Hom. v. 10). Hence- forth there is friendship between us and God, We become sons of G…
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When the mists have rolled away from this world's ongoings, and everything is seen in its nalrnd reality, the faithfulness of Gori will stand out in clear relief. III. THE FAl'fJIFULNESS OF Gon IS EXEMPLIFIED IN THE SPHERE OF GRACE. Here it shines with conspicuous lustre. All round the circle you may trace it; but a…
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yoke of legalism. It w:is natural for this party to call themselves after the apostle of the circumcision, and to contrast his eminence among the twelve with the position of Paul; while they sought to make compulsory the stricter practice of their favourite apostle, in opposition to the greater freedom allowed by th…
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and one body-ono Christ and one Church. 2. Salvation is not due to hur=n teadien. "Was Paul crucified for you?" Do you owe your redemption to him? If not, why should you call yourselves by his name? Party spidt raises the party name above that of tho common Lord, thus putting the servant in the Master's place. It gives…
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<'arncst hearts feel that perfection was fnrther off than ever. It was otherwise whcm lie could speak to them of the cn,ss of Christ, with all that it implied; for in this is 1he Divine answer to the great life-query which men had striven in vain to answer- How can man be just with God? Here is the One dying for the…
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nppcarcd, will g11ze with devout reverence on the c1mllcd hloorl of Jan,rnrius turning ]i(JUid before his eyes, and will touch with awe the relics of some saint., believing that they will cure his diseases. 'l'he Protestant, disdaining these supergtitions, shows the ~ame spirit in other ways. He may love the sensuous i…
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Ver. 24.- Christ the Power of God. The power of God is seen in nature and in providence, but here we have a new conception of it. Jesus Christ is that Power. In his person, as God manifest in flesh, there resides the potency of the Highest; but the apostle is here thinking mainly of him as crucified. In that cross, whi…
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Yers. 26-31.-Salvation all of God. The apostle has shown, in the previous section, that the cross of Christ, which men count foolish and weak, is really the wisdom and the power of God. In proof of this be now calls their attention to the social status of the converts at Corinth. For the most part they were of no accou…
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1•al rician, did the blessed influence pass, till at last the emperor himself was constrained ,,, do liorn~ge to Jesus Christ. To a large extent the course of the gospel is the same ,till. In onr own country the profession of Christinnity is not con~ncd to any class ill ,,,ciety; but a lidng godliness is a plant of …
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responsibility under which it places him. His whole position as an accountable bein"' is henceforth changed. He may affect to disown the claim, but the sovereign authority of that claim is over him still, and he must answer for his neglect (John xii. 47). 'l'he testimony accomplishes its end only when the Spirit of Go…
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II. 'l'mi: EVIL OF EVEHYTHING THAT VIOi.ATES TIIIS UNITY. The divisions of the Church of Curinth were deprecated by the apostle as an offence against the inndamentCLI principles and laws of the Christian fellowship. All strch divisions have cercain marke,l features of evil. 1. 'l'hey exalt that which ;s subordinate and…
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teaching, St.. Paul says," To the weak I became weal{," etc. (eh. ix. 22); with reference to the substance, "Thongh we or an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel," -etc. (Gal. i. S). Jews and Cireeks are the two broad classes under which these varieties of prejudice might be grouped; and here are their prom…
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of the cross. The one is carnal, vain, selfish, revengeful, self-indulgent; the other i8 ,piritnal, lowly, benevolent, forgiving, self-abaudoning. The cross to every one of us means submission, humiliation, self-sacrifice, it may be reproach and shame; and these, 11re h:ird to bear. It is hard to say, with Paul," God …
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tribes and nations of the earth do not to any appreciable extent, even in Christendom, acknowledt!e or ser,·e the Lord Jesus; and there are vast populations that have ~carcely heard his Name. Even in our own country, one is struck with the avoidance of any express mention of him who is Lord of all, as Lord over us. …
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Ver. 9.-Sacred partnership. "Ye were called into the fellowship of his Son ,Jesus Christ our Lord." I. WHAT IS MEANT BY THIS FELLOWSHIP? It is something more than discipleship or even friendship. It is partnership. It is a form of the word which is used when the sons of Zebedee are described as "partners with Simon," …
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Ver. 21.- Wisdom and foolishness. "Seeing that in the wisdom," etc. ., I. 'l'HE CONTRAST AT CORINTH. The Greeks could no longer boast of great soldiers or statesmen, for military and political power had deserted them and centred at Rome; but they had among them rhetoricians and philosophers, and slill considered the…
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ruml friendship with him. And the heart at times has a passionate cry, "Where is my •God?" Put aside the money-bags, the clever schemes, the amusements, the news- papers, the scientific instruments, and the social engagements, and tell me this, O wisdom of the world I "Where is God my Maker? ls there not a Highest an…
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MC'n who hnve little sense of sin dislike any distinct doctrine of Christ suffering for our· sins. And men who think chiefly of power as the sign of Deity stumble at the state- ment that One who died with nails through bis hands and feet was the Son of God and is the Lord of all. 2. The Greeks sought after wisdom. A…
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for they nrc unholy; Redemption, for they are lost as other men. 1. Wisdom. The early Christians were made wise, not after the type of Jewish rabbis or Greek sages, but as cast into e. higher mould-the mind of Christ. And so also now. It must be confessed that some who profoss and ea.II themselves Christians speak and …
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,lmlns or "Matthias), the term invokes personal knowledge of Christ and dfrect rece}'tion of the commissionfrnm him (Acts i. 21, 22). I. THE c.nou~D OF PAUL'S CLAIM. It could not rest on personal knowledge of Christ's ministry. V{ e have no good reason for assuming that Paul ever saw Christ in the flesh. That, howe…
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'l.'estament, where cities, lands, persons, and things were constantly "sanctified" in the sen~e of being devoted, or consecrated, to the Divine service. Manifestly the meaning" made actually holy" cannot be that required in our text, for this has never yet, in any age, been the fact concerning Christ's Church; and, in…
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:rnd illustrated that the Father-name for God was a most marked feature in our Lord's life and teachings. He seldom or ever used any other name; nnd a candid reader cannot fail to realize that in this "Father-name" must lie much of the secret of his mission. It may be further shown from the Epistles that his disciples …
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With the conception of this speedy coming of Christ in their minds, the apostles regard the proper attitude of the Christian and the Church as bein" one of "waitincr." Such waiting becomes a virtual "preparing;" it involves a care ~ have and hold ';,11 things ready, and this is a good sign of the faithful and diligent …
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viz. man's self-willedness. The yielded will to Christ's li\'ing lend is not a cmslied will. Such yielded personal wills to Christ ensure a mutual sympathy which will ever pre~erve brotherhood and unity in the Church. II. CHURCH UNITY LOST DY MAKING TOO MUCH OF MAN. We are grently helped by human teachers, but there…
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which our discipleship to a person is declared. Illustrate by the branding of cattle or slaves, or by the public declaration of having adopted a child as son aml heir. /faptism is a voluntary taking on ourselves of a Name; from it we are called "Christians;" wo bear on UB the Name into which we were baptized, and are u…
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Vers. 30, 31.- H771at Christ is to the heart that welcomes him. The Revised New Testament makes a slight but important difference in the renderings. It reads," Who was made un~o us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption." This alteration suggests that the wisdom spoken of embraces and in…
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,simplicity of my teaching was part of a plain facts, so repellent to the natural fixed design. Not to know anything. Not, intellect, were driven home with matchles- that is, to depend on any human lmowleclge. force by spiritual conviction. The only Of comse, St. Paul neither means to set asicle heathen critic who has …
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Before the worlds; litcmlly, befo,·e the ages; fragment of Ilcgesippns (clrc. A.n. 150) before time begnn. Unto our glory. The preserved in Photius (Cod. ccxxxii.), tho.t nuthor of the Epistle to the Hebrews clearly old writer indigmmtly repudio.tes this pns- ~tates that "the future nge" is in God's snge, snying tha…
1,014 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.