and minister. In himself he could do nothing. It was only as an instrument in the hand of Christ that he was successful in bringing them to the obedience of faith. Comp. Gal. 2. 8. By the gospel^ i. e. by means of the gospel. There are three agencies in the conversion of men. The efficiency is in Christ by his Spirit ; the administrative agency is iu preachers ; the instrumental in the word. What God has joined together, let not man put asunder. We cannot do without the first and the third, and ought not to attempt to do without the second. For though multitudes are converted by the Spirit through the word, without any mmisterial intervention, just as grain springs up here and there without a husbandman, yet it is the ordinance of God that the harvest of souls should be gathered by workmen appointed for that purpose.
16. Wherefore, I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
"Wherefore^ i. e. because I am your father. 3e ye follow- ers [fXLfjirjTaL, literally, imitators) of me. He does not exhort them to become his followers or partisans, instead of being the followers of Apollos or of Cephas. But as he had spoken of himself as being humble, self-denying and self-sacrificing in the cause of Christ, he beseeches them to follow his example. In 1], 1 he says, "Be ye imitators of me, as I am of Christ." Comp. 1 Thess. 1, 6. 2, 14. Eph. 5, 1.
17. For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church.
I^or this cause, that is, to secure your imitating my exam- ple. This end, Timothy, whom he commends as his son, and as faithful, was to accomplish by vindicating the apostle from the aspersions which had been cast upon him, by reminding the Corinthians of his conduct and teaching as a minister of Christ. Nothing more was necessary than to appeal to their own knowledge of what Paul had been among them. Jly son ; not only the object of my love, but my child ; one whom I have begotten through the gospel. This is implied from the use of the word in v. 14. Comp. 1 Tim. 1, 2, where he speaks of him as " his own son in the faith." The fact that Timothy stood in this endearing relation to Paul, was a reason for his
I. CORINTHIANS 4, 17. 18. n
sending him, and also a reason why they should receive him with confidence. He was, however, not only Paul's son, but faithful in the Lord. And this was a further reason both for his mission and for their regard and confidence. Faithful hi the Lord means faithful in the service of Christ, or as a Chris- tian. The words in the Lord admit of being connected with the word son., so as to give the sense, " My faithful son in the Lord."
The work which Timothy was to do was to remind the Corinthians of what they seem to have forgotten, viz., of Paul's ways which were in Christ., how he taught., &c. The latter clause Hmits and explains the former. It was not so much his ways or deportment in general, as his character and conduct as a teacher, which were to be brought to mind. This, however, included his consistency, his zeal, humility and fidelity. It is evident from 2 Cor. 1, 17-20 that inconsistency and instability both as to his doctrines and plans, was one of the objections urged against Paul in Corinth, as in other places, comp. Gal. 5,11. 3fy ways which he in Christ., mean-s the ways which I follow in the service of Christ. It was his official conduct as an apostle and teacher which Timothy was to bring to their recollection. As (Ka^ws), in the sense of how. Acts 15, 14. 3 John 3. He is to remind you as., i. e. how, I teach every where in every church. Paul's doctrine and mode of teaching were every where the same. And to this fact Timothy was to bear testimony, and thus vindicate him from the aspersions of his enemies.
18. Now some are puiffed up, as though I would not come to you.
His sending Timothy was not to be considered as any in- dication that he himself did not intend to visit Corinth, as some in their pride and self-confidence supposed. It appears from numerous passages in this and the following epistle, that the false teachers iu Coriath in various ways endeavoured to un- dermine Paul's authority. They called in question his apostle- ship, 9, 1-3. 2 Cor. 12, 12 ; they accused him of Ughtness, or instability, 2 Cor. 1,17; they represented him as weak in person and contemptible in speech, 2 Cor. 10, 10. These were the persons who were puffed up., that is, so conceited as to their own importance, and as to the ejffect of their injurious representations respecting the apostle, ;is to give out that he