very uncertain. It has been rendered, tary truth is Rgain and ago.in insisted on in "Ulending ~piritual things with spiritual" Scripture, o.nd ignored by sceptics (Rom. (Kling, Wordsworth), i.e. not ndulternting viii. 6, 7; John iii. 3; vi. 44, 45; xiv. 17; them with carnnl admixtures (2 Cor. ii. 17; 2 Cor. iv. 3-6). This verse is sometime, 1 Pet. ii. 22). "Interpreting spiritual things used to dcprcciate knowled.~e, reason, o.nd to spiritual men" (Bengel, Reichert, Stanley, intellect. On that nbuse of the passage, see margin of Revised Version; see Gen. xl. 8; Hooker, • Eccl. Pol.,' iii. viii. 4-11, o.n Dan. v. 12, LXX.). "Explaining spiritual admirable passage, which Bishop Words- things in spiritual words." This meaning worth quotes at length. It is, perhaps, the Greek will not bear, but Calvin and sufficient to say that if God has no need ot' Beza get the same meaning by rendering human knowledge, be has still less need of it, "Adapting spiritual things to spiritual human ignorance. words." It is doubtful whether the Greek Ver. 15.-Judgeth all things. If he car. verb (sunkrinontes) co.n be wndered "com• judge the higher, he can of course judge thi; paring," which comes from the Vulgate, lower. Being spiritual, he becomes intel• comparantes. Wickliffe ha.s the version, lectual also, o.s well as more than intellectual. "Maken a liknesse of spyritual things to He can see into the difference between the goostli men, for a besteli man persuyved dream and the reality; he can no longer not through thingis." The commonest take the shadow for the substance. He sense of the word in the LXX. is "inter- can not only decide about ordinary matters, preting" (Gen. xl. 8, etc.), and the best but can also "discriminate tlrn transcen- rendering is, "Explaining sphituals to dent," i.e. see that which is best even in spiritual men." If it be supposed that the different altemati,es of good. "The xecret verb crvyKplvw acquired the sense of "com- of the Lord is with them that fear him" paring" in Hellenistic Greek (2 Cor. x. 12; (Ps. xxv. 14). He himself is judged ofno man. Wise!. vii. 29; xv. 18), then the rendering He may be judged, condemned, depreciated, of our Authorized Version may stand. slandered every day of his life, but the Ver. 14.-The natural man. The Greek arrow-flights of human judgment fa.ll for word is 1/Jvx1Kos (psychical) ; literally, short of him. 'fhese Corinthians were soulish, i.e. the man who lives the mere life judging e.nd comparing Paul and Apollos of his lower understanding, the unspiritual, and Cephas; but their judgments were sensuous, and egoistic man. He may be false e.nd worthless, o.nd P11ul told them superior to the fleshly, sensual, or carnal that it was lesa than nothing to him to be umn, who lives only the life of the body judged by them or by man's feeble Lrnnsi• (11w.aaT1Kos); but is far below the spiritual tory day (eh. iv. 3). "Evil men,'' as man (1rv,vµ.aT11<&s). St. Paul (1 These. v. Solomon so.id, "understand not juJgment" 23) recognizes the tripartite nature of man (Prov. xxviii. 5). -body, soul, spirit. Beceiveth not; i.e. Ver. 16.-Who bath known the mind of the " does not choose to accept." He judges Lord 1 "The Lord" is Jehovah (see Iso.. them by the foregone conclusions of his own xl. 13, LXX.; Rom. xi. 34). This is the prejudice. Because they are spiritually. reason why no one c61n judge the spii·ituo.l judged. The organ for the recognition man in his spiritual life. To do so is like of such truths-namely, the spirit-has judging God. We have the mind of Christ. become parnlyzed or fallen into atrophy, So Christ himself had told the apostles from neglect; therefore the egoist and the (John xv. 15); and St. Paul always claimed sensualist have lost the faculty whereby to have been taught by direct revelation nlone spirituo.l truth is discernible. It from Christ (Gal. i. 11, 12). They ho.d the becomes to them what po.inting is to tho Spirit of Christ (Rom. viii. 9), and therefore blind, or musio to the deaf. This elemen• the mind of Christ.
HOMILETICS. Vers. 1-5.-A faithful picture of a true gospel preacher. "And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech," etc. These words may be regarded as a faithful picture of a true gospel preacher. I. The grand subject of his ministry is the CRUCIFIED CmnsT. I. Christ crucified, bec~use be is the highest revelation of God's love for man. 2. Christ crucified, because he 1s the most thrilling demonstration of the wickedness of humanity. 3. Christ crncified, because he is the grandest display of loyalty to moral rectitude. This is the t~eme--a personal "Christ crucified;" not a creed or creeds written in books. He himself; not the theories of theologians about him. II. 'l'he grand subject of his mmistry 1s TO HIM souL-ADS0RDING. "I determined not 'l'HE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. [en. n. 1-lG.