δού
o2Cor.i8, 416. Καὶ ἔτι καθ IVI]; Rom. vii. ἐὰν ταῖς 13; Gal.i.
13. p See iv. 17. a See iv. 9.
b xii. 30, xiv. passim; Mk. xvi. 17; Acts ii. 4 ff., x. 46, xix. 6 (και προφητ.).
Ῥεγλώσσαις τῶν * ἀνθρώπων Ῥλαλῶ καὶ τῶν
Σὑπερβολὴν 5 ὁδὸν ὑμῖν δείκνυµι. XIII. τ.
3Σἀγγέλων
ἀγάπην δὲ μὴ exw, αγέγονα “χαλκὸς ‘yay ἡ Σκύμβαλον "ἀλαλάζον γαπη μη EX αγ Χ ηχων η Bp
c Acts vii. 38, viii. 26,
xii. 8, xxiii. 9, xxvii. 23 f.; Rev. v. 2, 11, etc.; Mt. i. 20, etc., xxvili. 5 Π., etc.; Lk. i. 13, ii. 9 ff.; Zech.
1, 181, ος. d ver. 11; 2 Cor. xii. 11. Jer. xxvii. 42; ηχος, Acts ii. 2; Lk. xxi. 25. ν. 38; Josh. vi. 20.
these ‘‘ powers’”’ are in vy. 28 and 8 ff. so decidedly separated from the teaching and associated with the healing gifts, that δυνάµεις appears to look forward, and to be obj. (prospectively) to ἔχουσιν along with χαρίσματα ἱαμάτων: “do all possess powers? all grace-gifts of healings?’’ (so Bz., Mr., Ed.). For δύναμιν exw, see Rev. iii. 8; also Luke ix. 1, Acts i. 8, Matt. xiv. 2
Ver. 31a corrects the inference which an indolent nature or weak judgment might draw from vv. 29 f., supposing that God’s sovereign ordination super- sedes man’s effort. Our striving has a part to play, along with God’s bestow- ment, in spiritual acquisitions; hence the contrastive δέ. ‘‘But (for all that) be zealous after the greater gifts.” A man must not, ¢.g., be content to ‘‘ speak with tongues” when he might “pro- phesy”’ (xiv. 1 ff.), nor to work miracles when beside that he might teach in the “word of wisdom ’’.—fndédw (see parls.) implies in its good sense an ardent, in its bad sense (xiii. 4) an emulous pursuit. The greater (μείζονα) gifts are those in- trinsically greater, or more beneficial (xiv. 5)—conditions usually coincident.
§ 42. ΤΗΕ Way To CurIsTIAN Emr- NENCE, xii. 310-xiii. 3. Carefully and luminously Paul has set forth the mani- foldness of the Holy Spirit’s gifts that contribute to common life of the Church. All are necessary, all honourable in their proper use; all are of God’s ordination. Some of the charisms are, however, more desirable than others. But if these “oreater gifts” be sought in selfish emulation (as the ζηλοῦτε of ver. 31a, taken by itself, might suggest), their true purpose and blessing will be missed; gifts of grace (xapicpara) are not for men actuated by the ζῆλος of party spirit and ambition (cf. 4 Ε., iii. 3; 2 Cor. xii. 20, Gal. v. 20). While encouraging the Cor. to seek larger spiritual powers, the Ap. must “ besides point out” the ‘‘ way ” to this end (310), the way to escape the perils besetting their progress (4 ff.) and to win the goal of the Christian life (8-13). Love is the path to power in the
e Mk. vi. 8; g N.T. A.1.; 1 Chron. xiii. 8, etc.; Ps. cl. 5.
Rev. xviii. 12; Gen. iv. 22. να a Se
h Mk.
Church; all loveless abilities, endow- ments, sacrifices are, from the Christian point of view, simply good for nothing (1-3).
Ver. 315. Καὶ ἔτι κ.τ.λ. (cf. ἔτι τε καί, Luke xiv. 26)—‘‘And besides ”—adds to the exhortation just given (31a) an indication of the way to carry it out; the ζῆλος which aims at the μείζονα χαρίσματα must be that of ἀγάπη. This clause introduces and properly belongs to ch. xiii. (W.H.). a0’ ὑπερβολήν (see parls.) is superlative, not compar.; P. is not pointing out “‘a more excellent way” than that of seeking and using the charisms of ch. xii. (with such a mean- ing he should have written Ἔτι δέ: cf. Luke xxiv. 41, etc.), but “a super-ex- cellent way’ (une voie souverainement excellente, Gd.) to win them (cf. viii. τ b, τ Jo. iv. 7). Δείκνυμι is “to point out” as with the finger.