Sectic»n_t4;f3 To 
 
 Nn y>3 
 
c^. P.jf^..^^ 
 
/ 
 
 THE LUTHERAN COMMENTARY 
 
 A PI^AIN EXPOSITION OT THB 
 
 J^olp J>cri))tur0^ of ti^t jj^ctD €c^tammt 
 
 BV 
 SCHOLARS OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA' 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 HENRY EYSTER JACOBS 
 Vol. VIII. 
 
 flew lorft 
 
 €1)0 €!)n^tiau %itztatute €a» 
 
 MDCCCXOVn. 
 
ANNOTATIONS 
 
 ON THE 
 
 EPISTLES OF PAUL 
 
 CORINTHIANS VIl.-XVL, II. CORINTHIANS 
 AND GALATIANS 
 
 HENRY E. JACOBS, D.D., LL.D. 
 
 Professor of Systeviatk Theology, Lidheran Seminary, Philadelphia, Pa. 
 
 GEORGE FREDERICK SPIEKER, D.D. 
 
 Professor of Chicrch Histo7y, LntJi,-ra;i Seiitiiiary, Pltiladelfhia, Pa. 
 
 CARL A. SWENSSON, Ph. D. 
 
 Presii/ef/l of Bethany College, I.itidsborg, Ka>isas 
 
 IRew lf?orft 
 
 €l3c Cfjn^tiau ^literature Co* 
 
 MDCCCXCVII. 
 
Copyright, 1897, 
 By the christian LITERATURE COMPANY 
 
PART Ysf .--'{Continued:) 
 
 (E.) Five Questions concernhig Marriage. 
 {a^ Should Corinthian Christians Marry ? (7 : i, 2). 
 
 I, 2 Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote: It is good for a 
 man not to touch a woman. But, because of fornications, let each man 
 have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. 
 
 Whereof ye wrote. Reference is made to an Epistle 
 which the Corinthians had written Paul. In this Epistle, 
 the questions that are here answered were propounded. 
 The correspondence between Paul and the Corinthians in 
 Armenian, and which Byron translated into English; is 
 conceded to be spurious. (See LiGHTFOOT.) It is good. 
 Here celibacy is designated as a good, whereas in the 
 institution of marriage (Gen. 2 : 18), God said, " It is not 
 good." How are the two to be reconciled? The passages 
 in which marriage is professedly treated must be taken as 
 the standard, according to which this reference to mar- 
 riage in certain relations or under certain circumstances 
 must be judged. Besides the account of its institution 
 in Genesis 2, our Lord's commendation of it in Matt. 19 
 and Mark 10 must be considered. Paul's estimate of 
 marriage, as it is in itself, is given in Eph. 5 : 28-33. Ir* 
 I Tim. 4 : 3, he repels, with indignation, every imputa- 
 tion upon its sanctity, as a doctrine of demons; just as 
 Heb. 13 : 4 vindicates it from all who would disparage it. 
 Ps. 128 belongs to Christians as well as Jews. " Good," 
 therefore, cannot mean here morally good, i. e. good in 
 
2 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. i. 
 
 such a way that, where the opposite course is followed, 
 there is sin ; but " good " in the sense of becoming, viz. 
 that which commands our respect. Less emphatic than 
 "morally good," it is somewhat stronger than "expe- 
 dient." " Qualifications are afterwards added in the 
 context. They are two-fold : (i) With what limitations is 
 celibacy good ? These limitations are given in vers. 2 
 and 9. Thus it is not good in all cases. (2) For what 
 reasons is it good ? These appear in vers. 26, 32, sq. 
 Celibacy therefore is only so far better than marriage in 
 proportion as it fulfils these conditions " (Lightfoot). 
 These conditions may reappear at the present day, where 
 one is so intent upon the discharge of some special duty 
 for the advancement of the Kingdom of God, that he 
 denies himself the companionship of a wife and the com- 
 forts of family life, where they would interfere with the 
 energetic prosecution of his calling. Single men can go 
 where it would be impossible to sustain married men, or 
 where the sacrifices required of a woman are such, that 
 no man who truly loves her would ask her to share them. 
 If the service of the government requires officers of the 
 navy to go on long cruises and forbids the presence of 
 wives or children, the service of Christ may often be greatly 
 increased by a long postponement or even an entire renun- 
 ciation of married life. The same occurs, where a son 
 assumes the care of a widowed mother and that of younger 
 brothers and sisters, and foregoes, for their sake, marriage. 
 As a woman specially gifted and trained for service as a 
 deaconess may, in the love of God, reject the most favor- 
 able offers of marriage that she may continue in what 
 she regards her true life-work, so devotion to forms and 
 spheres of ministerial work may advise the same sacrifice. 
 Celibacy adopted, with this end in view, is a proof of 
 heroic devotion that should be duly acknowledged as a 
 
VII. 2.] THE CORINTITTAN A TMOSPHERE. 3 
 
 good thing, a noble act. " The great zeal with which 
 many young ministers scarcely ordained (often even while 
 students) look around for a wife, as though they had 
 nothing more important to do, is absolutely irreconcilable 
 at least with the seventh chapter of i Corinthians." 
 (ScHAFF, History of the Apostolic Church, p. 452.) 
 
 Ver. 2. Because of fornications. Paul is not giving 
 here the chief end of marriage. This he has done else- 
 where (see above). But he is considering the adaptability 
 of the Corinthian Christians for the renunciation of mar- 
 riage, when in their zeal for Christ they are ready for 
 adopting celibacy. His words at first sight seem harsh 
 and coarse. But he is writing to those whose great weak- 
 ness was pride in their imagined superior intellectuality, 
 with its general accompaniment, the professed contempt 
 of the bodily side of their nature. He strikes them, 
 therefore, just where they are most vulnerable and sensi- 
 tive. An affectation of intellectualism, that depreciates 
 the preaching of the gospel, as beneath the proper stand- 
 ards of wisdom, is in special danger of an outbreak of 
 the lowest desires of sensuality, as the Apostle shows in 
 Rom. I : 22-24. The Corinthian Christians brought over 
 with them from heathenism the tendency to err in this 
 false estimate of wisdom, and thus were also peculiarly 
 subject to temptations to licentiousness. When the 
 moral sense of a community has been thoroughly cor- 
 rupted in any particular direction, it requires more than 
 one generation for raising the standard to the level which 
 even the general Christian consciousness demands. Paul 
 is writing, be it remembered, to many who have in their 
 memory the stain of many an act of licentious indulgence, 
 and who, however penitent, can never, as long as this life 
 lasts, be entirely free from the consequences of these sinful 
 habits. (See above, 6 : 9-1 1 .) To such persons, convalesc- 
 
4 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 2, 3. 
 
 ing from the fearful disease of impurity, which was an 
 epidemic at Corinth above all other places, there could 
 be no better protection afforded than that of a pure mar- 
 riage. Nothing would so completely sunder them from 
 their old comrades in sin and their old associates and their 
 unchaste memories and suggestions, as the elevating and 
 sanctifying companionship of a godly wife. Let each 
 man have his own. A clear prohibition of polygamy. 
 In the Greek there is a variation in the form as applied 
 to the husband and then to the wife, that is worthy of 
 attention, as the same contrast occurs also in other pas- 
 sages. (Comp. Greek of Eph. 5 : 28, 31, 33 with that of 
 Eph. 5 : 22 ; Tit. 2:5;! Pet. 3:1,5.) LiGHTFOOT ex- 
 plains it by the husband being " the lord of the wife." 
 The difference may also be accounted for by the fact that 
 the husband has sought for and won his bride, and she 
 thus is " the wife of himself," while she cleaves to him as 
 " the particular or peculiar man," whom the Lord in His 
 Providence has given her. 
 
 It must also be noted that the imperative " Let him 
 have," " Let her have," is more than permissive. It ex- 
 presses a command, with exceptions treated more fully 
 afterwards (ver. 8). 
 
 ((5.) Mutual Duties of Hiishands and Wives (vers. 3-7). 
 
 3-7. Let the husband render unto the wife her due : and likewise also 
 the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power over her own body, 
 but the husband : and likewise also the husband hath not power over his 
 own body, but the wife. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be by 
 consent for a season, that ye may give yourselves unto prayer, and may be 
 together again, that Satan tempt you not because of your incontinency. 
 But this I say by way of permission, not of commandment. Yet I would 
 that all men were even as I myself. Ilowbeit each man hath his own gift 
 from God, one after this manner, and another after that. 
 
 Ver. 3. Another question which the Corinthians seem 
 
VII. 4. 5-] ^O^ ^ ^^^ TRIMONY. 5 
 
 to have submitted was as to whether, hi view of the dis- 
 tress of. the times, and the persecutions which were im- 
 minent, those who were Hving as husband and wife should 
 not deny to each other those relations through which 
 they assumed the responsibility of parentage. Connected 
 with this also was the implication that these relations 
 could not be altogether pure and sinless. Again the 
 tense does not express simply permission, but it gives a 
 command. (Comp. Ex. 21 : 10; Heb. 13:4.) * 
 
 Ver. 4. The wife hath not power, etc., i. e. withdrawal 
 of or suspension from these relations is lawful, according 
 to God's law, only when it is a matter of mutual agree- 
 ment. In this respect, both are equal. The husband 
 has no rights with respect to the wife, that the wife does 
 not have also with respect to the husband. In the duties 
 of his calling, in his responsibilities as a member of the 
 Church, or as a citizen, in the external relations of the 
 family and the control of the children, the ultimate de- 
 cision rests with the husband, however he may esteem 
 the advice and judgment of his wife, and however he 
 may deem it best at times to entrust to her wise discre- 
 tion much that properly belongs to him ; for he is the 
 head of the wife. But in their personal relations with 
 respect to what pertains to each other as husband and 
 wife, they stand on a precise equality. Nor is there any 
 difference in the guilt of the violation of the covenant by 
 either party. Public opinion may attach a deeper dis- 
 grace to an unfaithful wife, but, by God's law, it belongs 
 equally to the unfaithful husband. Theophylact says 
 that the husband is both the owner and the servant of 
 his wife, and the wife both the owner and the servant of 
 her husband. 
 
 Ver. 5. Defraud ye not. " If it should occur to those 
 who have been married that they should adopt celibacy, 
 
6 / CORINTHIANS. [vii. 5. 
 
 as a holier estate, or if they should be tempted by wan- 
 dering lusts, let them remember that they are united by 
 a mutual bond. For the husband is only the half of his 
 own body, and so also the wife. They have not, there- 
 fore, free deliberation, but should restrain themselves by 
 such thoughts as these : Since one needs the aid of the 
 other, God has united us, that Ave may be of mutual 
 service; each must supply the need of the other, and 
 neither be a law to himself or herself " (Calvin). By con= 
 sent. Even a religious motive is not suflficient to excuse 
 from any of the duties of married life, unless they be 
 voluntarily surrendered by the other party. For a sea= 
 son. No one is allowed to permanently free the other 
 party from these duties. Here a mutual agreement is 
 inadmissible. It avails only for temporary cases. Give 
 yourselves unto prayer, *' We distinguish between 
 prayers. Some are daily (i Thess. 5 : 17). That these 
 are not hindered by the association of married life, but 
 that the reverse occurs, is shown by i Pet. 3 : 7. Other 
 prayers are extraordinary, which are offered either in un- 
 dertaking some difficult matter, or in performing some 
 sacred service, or in some public calamity, or a peculiar 
 domestic affliction. Such prayers are combined with 
 fasting. These more solemn prayers are meant by the 
 Apostle, just as in Joel 2 : 16. It is entirely out of place 
 to infer from the Apostle's words that marriage is vicious. 
 For with equal reason we must then infer that the com- 
 mand to abstain for a time from food and drink, in order 
 that our prayers be rendered more earnest, implies that 
 the use of food and drink is a wicked and unlawful thing 
 —which would be an absurdity" (HUNNIUS). That 
 Satan tempt you not. The remedy, then, is not simply 
 by entrance into the married estate, but also by fidelity 
 in regard to all its duties. 
 
VII. 6-8.] THE UNMARRIED. y 
 
 Ver. 6. This I say, viz. what has been just stated in 
 the preceding verse. By way of permission, i, c. : The 
 
 temporary withdrawal of husband and wife from each 
 other for special seasons of prayer is a course they are 
 permitted to follow, in case they believe that it will prove 
 of service to their spiritual interests ; but God does not 
 command it. " I compel no one, but leave free to the 
 godly conscience of each one whatever he thinks ought 
 to be done in these matters, provided only that honor 
 and chastity be maintained, fornication be guarded 
 against, and occasions for lusts and snares of Satan be 
 avoided " (HUNNIUS). 
 
 Ver. 7. That all men were even as I myself, viz. fur- 
 nished with the gift of continence, able to dispense with 
 marriage, without enduring those temptations that power- 
 fully disturb others. There is no intimation here that he 
 desired all to be unmarried ; and this would certainly be 
 contrary to his teaching elsewhere. It cannot be proved 
 that Paul was never married. Each man hath his own 
 gift. Gifts and callings correspond. The gift fitted 
 Paul for his calling. Without this gift, the prosecution 
 of his peculiar calling would have been impossible. 
 (Comp. Matt. 19 : li.) 
 
 {c.) The Unmarried, the Widows, the Separated 
 (vers. 8-1 r). 
 
 8-1 1. But I say to the unmarried and to widows, It is good for them if 
 they abide even as I. But if they have not continency, let them marry : 
 for it is better to marry than to burn. But unto the married I give 
 charge, yea not I, but the Lord, That the wife depart not from her hus- 
 band (but and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or else be recon- 
 ciled to her husband) ; and that the husband leave not his wife. 
 
 Ver. 8. Unmarried is regarded by LUTHER, Grotius, 
 Calovius, etc., as meaning ** widowers," as contrasted 
 
8 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 9, la 
 
 with " widows." The word is general : " The unmar- 
 ried, especially widows." Clement of Alexandria, Ori- 
 GEN, Erasmus, Luther, and, among living writers, 
 Farrar, contend that Paul was a widower. The argu- 
 ment from Phil. 4 : 3 is absolutely incorrect ; and the fact 
 of the requirement of marriage for admission into the 
 Sanhedrim, and Paul's being a member of that body, is 
 not satisfactorily demonstrated. (See Meyer and Light- 
 FOOT.) It is good. (See ver. i.) Even as I, viz. unm.ar- 
 ried. Not as a universal rule of life, but because of the 
 peculiar dangers and trials of the church of that period. 
 
 Ver. 9. Let them marry. (Comp. i Tim. 5 : 14.) To 
 burn, i. e. to be inflamed with improper desires. Even 
 though the will may not succumb to the temptation, yet 
 the conflict is so frequent and so great, that the spiritual 
 life is constantly disturbed, and the service of God inter- 
 rupted by the conflict of emotions. ** This burning 
 thrusts men at length into hell-fire " (Bengel). Where 
 the body acts upon the soul, physiological remedies may 
 be of service — attention to food and drink, or other ex- 
 pedients a physician may suggest. But the conflict often 
 begins within, and the impure heart leads the body 
 captive. Again we must remember that this was written 
 to those who breathed the pestilential atmosphere of 
 Corinth, where the external temptations arising from the 
 unchaste lives which many had lived in heathenism must 
 be taken into account. 
 
 Ver. 10. Not I, but the Lord. This cannot mean that 
 the inspiration differed either in kind or degree ; but only 
 that he here quotes the substance of the Lord's own 
 words to the Jews concernirfg divorce (Matt. 5 : 31, 32; 
 19 : 3-9 ; Mark 10 : 2-12 ; Luke 16 : 18). That the wife 
 depart not. The particular reference to the wife as 
 aggressive in a separation seems to be explained by the 
 
VII. u-ijj MIXED MARRIAGES. 9 
 
 supposition of the more deeply religious sensibility of a 
 Christian wife, being more responsive to a temptation, 
 from false spirituality, to abandon married life for a more 
 thorough consecration to Christ. 
 
 Ver. II. If she be separated. " Contrary to the com- 
 mandment " (Bengel), or " before receiving this deci- 
 sion " (Meyer). Let her remain ... or else be rec= 
 onciled, i. e. : She can marry no one else, during the 
 life of her husband ; for her marriage has not been actually 
 annulled. 
 
 (</.) Mixed Marriages {yGXs. 12-24). 
 
 12-24. But to the rest say I, not the Lord : If any brother hath an un- 
 believing wife, and she is content to dwell with him, let him not leave her. 
 And the woman which hath an unbelieving husband, and he is content to 
 dwell with her, let her not leave her husband. For the unbelieving hus- 
 band is sanctified in the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified in the 
 brother: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy. Yet if 
 the unbelieving departeth, let him depart : the brother or the sister is not 
 under bondage in such i-fjj't'.j'.' but God hath called us in peace. For how 
 knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband .-' or how 
 knowest thou, O husband, whether thou shalt save thy wife.'' Only, as the 
 Lord hath distributed to each man, as God hath called each, so let him 
 walk. And so ordain I in all the churches. Was any man called being 
 circumcised ? let him not become uncircumcised. Hath any been called in 
 uncircumcision .'' let him not be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing, 
 and uncircunicision is nothing ; but the keeping of the commandments of 
 God. Let each man abide in that calling wherein he was called. Wast 
 thou called being a bondservant .'' care not for it : but if thou canst become 
 free, use // rather. For he that was called in the Lord, being a bondser- 
 vant, is the Lord's freedman : likewise he that was called, being free, is 
 Christ's bondservant. Ye were bought with a price ; become not bond- 
 servants of men. Brethren, let each man, wherein he was called, therein 
 abide with God. 
 
 Vers. 12, 13. To the rest, i. c. where husband and wife 
 are not both Christians. I, not the Lord. Christ uttered 
 no word on such cases that could be quoted. The 
 Apostle derives it by inspiration. Nevertheless, it is no 
 
lO /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 14. 
 
 less truly God's Word. If any brother hath. Marriages 
 already contracted are here spoken of. The verse does 
 not justify the marriage of a Christian with an unbeliever 
 (2 Cor. 6 : 14). Nor, on the other hand, is marriage of a 
 believer with a baptized person who is careless concern- 
 ing his Christian duties, but who shows an outward 
 respect for and no hostility to the Christian faith and the 
 church, absolutely forbidden. The passage respects cases 
 where, by the preaching of the Gospel, a separation has 
 occurred (Matt. 10 : 35). The husband has been con- 
 verted to Christianity, while the wife remains attached to 
 her old religion, or devoted to worldliness. Let him not 
 leave her. Marriage being an indissoluble contract dare 
 never be broken by the Christian, If annulled, the act 
 must be that of the non-Christian wife, who, by her de- 
 sertion, breaks her covenant and thus releases her husband. 
 Ver. 13 simply applies the same principle to the be- 
 lieving wife of an unbelieving husband. 
 
 Ver. 14. The unbelieving husband is sanctified in the 
 wife. " Observe the large and liberal view which the 
 Apostle here adopts. The lesser takes its character from 
 the greater, not the greater from the lesser. God does 
 not reject the better because of its alliance with the worse, 
 but accepts the worse on account of its alliance with the 
 better " (Lightfoot). The thought simply is, that the 
 believing husband should not be distressed as though he 
 would be defiled by his marriage with an unbeliever, or 
 as though the marriage would be impure and unblessed 
 of God, and the children be outside of God's covenant. 
 Everything that a Christian can use in a legitimate way 
 is sanctified by the word of God jind prayer, to his growth 
 in grace, and the progress of God's Kingdom. He is, 
 therefore, to continue to live with his unbelieving wife ; 
 and, notwithstanding her unbelief, the relation is that of 
 
V 1 1 . 1 5- ] SANC TIFICA TJON OF CHILDREN. 1 1 
 
 holy matrimony. The sanctification referred to is not 
 the personal sanctification of the unbeHever, which is im- 
 possible without personal faith, but that of the un- 
 believer's sanctification for the relation into which she 
 enters with a believing husband. " He means here not 
 ecclesiastical sanctification which we profess in the Creed, 
 i. e. not justification or renovation, which is not conferred 
 by means of marriage, but by the word and sacraments ; 
 but political and external sanctification, by which those 
 things are said to be sanctified that are pure, permitted, 
 and approved by God " (BALDWIN). In the wife, as the 
 sphere within which this sanctification occurs. Else were 
 your children unclean, but now are they holy. " Here 
 again is meant not spiritual and ecclesiastical holiness, by 
 which, as children of God, we are pleasing and acceptable 
 to Him, — for such holiness is to be ascribed not to carnal, 
 but to spiritual, holiness which is of God ; but legal and 
 political holiness, because such children have the right of 
 approach to the blessings of the church, which is denied 
 those who are without, unless they be called in a legiti- 
 mate way " (Baldwin). " Since, however, no one doubts 
 that the children are holy, viz. with the same civil holi- 
 ness with which he had said that the unbelieving man 
 was sanctified by the believing wife, he infers that asso- 
 ciation with an unbelieving wife of whom these children 
 are born, is lawful, holy, and conceded to a believing 
 husband" (HUNNIUS). 
 
 Ver. 15 declares that no constraint upon the heathen 
 husband or wife is to be used in endeavoring to continue 
 the relation. Even no urgent persuasion is admissible. 
 God hath called us in peace. The continuance of the 
 marriage, where there must of necessity be constant an- 
 tagonisms and disputes, is foreign to that peace of mind 
 which should prevail in married life. The Christian must 
 
12 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. i6, 17. 
 
 neither seek, nor do aught to cause the other party to 
 seek the dissolution ; but if, without his will or consent, 
 the other party break the bond, he is free. " Since de- 
 sertion appears here as an admissible ground for divorce, 
 this has been thought to conflict with Matt. 5 : 32 ; 19: 9. 
 But the seeming contradiction vanishes, if we consider 
 ver. 12, according to which Jesus had given no judgment 
 upon mixed marriages. Matt. 5 : 32, therefore, can only 
 bind the believing consort, in so far that he may not be 
 the one who leaves. . . . But to apply, as is often done, 
 the permissive ' let. him depart ' also to such marriages 
 as are Christian on both sides— the one departing being 
 an un-Christianly-minded Christian — is exegetically inad- 
 missible, seeing that ' the rest ' who are here spoken of 
 constitute the specific category of mixed marriages " 
 (Meyer). For defence of " malicious desertion " as a 
 legitimate ground of divorce, see GERHARD, Loci Thco- 
 logici. Cap. De Conjiigio, % 607. 
 
 Ver. 16. How knowest thou, O wife. The ultimate 
 conversion of the unbelieving party is a matter of such 
 uncertainty that it is not worth the sacrifice of peace 
 which is required, when there is ceaseless fretting on the 
 part of the one who wants to be freed and is unwillingly 
 detained. 
 
 Ver, 17. Only limits the main thought that precedes, 
 viz. : A brother is not in bondage, except in so far as the 
 following principle is to be observed. The rule is the 
 patient acceptance of the Providential station to which 
 he has been assigned. As the Lord. In Pauline Epistles, 
 for the Second Person of the Trinity. Hath distributed. 
 The lot which the Lord gives is to be accepted, and not 
 arbitrarily abandoned. As God hath called each, viz. to 
 salvation. Those who became Christians were not to 
 change their callings, unless these were in themselves 
 
VII. 18-20.] THE EARTHLY CALLING. 13 
 
 antagonistic to the Divine Law. But the calling was to 
 be pervaded and sanctified by the new life in Christ. 
 all the churches-. The rule is universal, and, therefore, 
 not confined to this particular instance, or to the Church 
 at Corinth. Paul's Apostolic authority comes here to 
 the foreground. 
 
 Ver. 18. Let him not become uncircumcised. (Comp. 
 I Mace. 1:15. See Thayer's Lexicon on cpis/^ao.) The 
 thought is that all peculiarities of Judaism that are not 
 contrary to the Gospel are to be retained. The refer- 
 ence to circumcision stands for a large class of Jewish 
 usages. If they belong to one by birth or adoption into 
 people, lot them be retained. Let him not be circumcised, 
 i. e. he will be none the better for assuming the usages of 
 Jews. The prohibition, however, is not so absolute as 
 to forbid Gentile Christians from accommodating them- 
 selves, for the sake of expediency, to the practice of 
 Jewish Christians, or the reverse, in order that there be 
 uniformity of church regulations. In the decree of the 
 Synod of Jerusalem (Acts 15 : 20). the observance of 
 certain prescriptions of the Ceremonial Law was enjoined 
 upon the Gentiles, in order that offence might be avoided. 
 
 Ver. 19 means simply that no ceremonial usages should 
 be placed upon an equality with God's Commandments, 
 or should be urged as though they were divinely pre- 
 scribed. " In its wider application, the maxim reconciles 
 the Apostle's own conduct, as a Jew among Jews (Acts 
 21:21 sqq.), with his assertion of Gentile freedom (e. g. 
 in the Epistle to the Galatians). It condemns those in 
 our own time who insist on the absolute rejection of 
 forms and those who maintain the absolute necessity of 
 retaining them, as equally opposed to the liberty of the 
 Gospel " (LlGlITFOOT). 
 
 Ver. 20. In that calling. Clearly, not avocation, or 
 
14 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 21-33. 
 
 profession, or employment ; but the Divine call into the 
 kingdom of grace, as in 5:17. The injunction is that 
 the external relations are to remain just as when this 
 Divine call met him. He is not to imagine, if a Jew, 
 that he must obliterate all traces of his former Judaism, 
 or, if a Gentile, those of his former Gentile origin, in 
 order to serve God acceptably. 
 
 Ver. 21. A bondservant. This he illustrates by an 
 example, in which he takes an extreme case. Even though 
 the station be the very lowest, the slave is not to grieve 
 as though his bondage prevented him from being a 
 Christian. lie is not to fret and chafe under his hard 
 lot, eagerly as he is to embrace any opportunity Provi- 
 dence may offer, whereby his freedom may be secured. 
 Not indifferent to freedom, he may well be content with 
 slavery, until the Lord render his freedom, in a godly way, 
 possible. 
 
 Ver. 22 shows that the distinctions in station among 
 men are accidental and superficial. The Lord's freedman. 
 The Christian can be a slave only in appearance. In 
 entering into Christ's life, he has risen above his earthly 
 servitude. He serves his masters now, from a new mo- 
 tive. His service is one of love ; and the service of love 
 is true freedom. (Comp. Col. 3 : 22, 23 : Eph. 6 : 6.) 
 Christ's bondservant. No freedom from earthly slavery 
 releases one from the obligation in all things to serve 
 Christ. 
 
 Ver. 23. Ye were bought, viz. from bondage to sin and 
 Satan. (See note on 6 : 20 and i Pet. t : 18, 19.) Become 
 not bondservants of men, viz. by obeying their com- 
 mands in matters contrary to God's will and their own 
 conscience. Thus he indicates the limitations of obedi- 
 ence. (Comp. Acts 5 : 29.) The thought is :" Be content 
 with the place in which God's Providence has placed 
 
VII. 24.] A PERPLEXING QUESTION: 15 
 
 you ; but only see to it that you discharge every duty 
 out of love to God, and that you do nothing at variance 
 with your Christian profession. The injunction applies 
 also to the maintenance of the Christian's independence 
 of party leaders. " Paul designs that this should be 
 applied to the mistaken submission shown on the part of 
 the Church to such as wished that men should break up 
 or alter their civil relationships and other existing situa- 
 tions to please them " (Meyer), 
 
 Ver. 24 sums up the principle laid down in vers. 17, 20. 
 Abide with God, i.e. in union and communion with God. 
 His nearness to God, his life in God, his walk with God, 
 in the performance of the duties of his calling, here ap- 
 pear. 
 
 {c.) Of Virgins (7: 25-38). 
 
 25-38. Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord : 
 but I give my judgement, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be 
 faithful. I think therefore that this is good by reason of the present dis- 
 tress, namely, that it is good for a man to be as he is. Art thou bound 
 unto a wife? seek not to be loosed. Art thou loosed from a wife? seek 
 not a wife. But and if thou marry, thou hast not sinned ; and if a virgin 
 marry, she hath not sinned. Yet such shall have tribulation in the flesh : 
 and I would spare you. But this I say, brethren, the time is shortened, 
 that henceforth both those that have wives may be as though they had 
 none; and those that weep, as though they wept not; and those that re- 
 joice, as though they rejoiced not ; and those that buy, as though they 
 possessed not ; and those that use the world, as not abusing it : for the 
 fashion of this world passeth away. But I would have you to be free from 
 cares. He that is unmarried is careful for the things of the Lord, how he 
 may please the Lord : but he that is married is careful for the things of the 
 world, how he may please his wife. And there is a difference also between 
 the wife and the virgin. She that is unmarried is careful for the things of 
 the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit : but she that is 
 married is careful for the things of the world, how she may please her hus- 
 band. And this I say for your own profit; not that I may cast a snare 
 upon you, but for that which is seemly, and that ye may attend upon the 
 Lord without distraction. But if any man thinketh that he behaveth him- 
 self unseemly toward his virgin daughter, if she be past the flower of her 
 
1 6 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 25. 
 
 age, and if need so reqiiireth, let him do what he will ; he sinneth not ; 
 let them marry. But he that standeth stedfast in his heart, having no 
 necessity, but hath power as touching his own will, and hath determined 
 this in his own heart, to keep his own virgin (iaiightcr, shall do well. So 
 thea both he that giveth his own virgin daiii:;litcr in marriage doeth well ; 
 and he that giveth her not in marriage shall do better. 
 
 Ver. 25. Concerning virgins. This was manifestly 
 another topic concerning wliich the Corinthians had 
 asked the Apostle's advice in the letter which they had 
 addressed him. (See ver. i.) I have no commandment. 
 
 We must not infer from this that Paul means here to ac- 
 knowledge that he is speaking without inspiration. What 
 he does mean is that Christ, neither during His intercourse 
 with His disciples, nor afterwards by audible words, had 
 given any specific instruction on the subject. The case 
 is parallel with that of ver. 10, and is to be explained in 
 the same way. But the Apostle is led by the Holy 
 Spirit to this judgment which he presents for the guid- 
 ance of the Corinthians. " Lest any one may think that 
 a distinction should be made from the Apostolic passage 
 (i Cor. 7: 25), between a commandment of God and in- 
 spiration, we must observe that the Apostle is speaking 
 concerning a general couunaiul obligatory upon all virgins, 
 which was expressly and particularly promulgated cover- 
 ing this subject by God, from which he distinguishes his 
 own judgment prudently adapted to the eoiiditwii of the 
 times and persons. The conclusion, therefore, is manifest 
 that evangelists and Apostles wrote according to the com- 
 mand and will of God " (Gerhard, Loei Theohgiei, 
 i: 22, Prenss ed.). "The things treated in this chapter 
 are such that they partly fall under eoiuviandinent, partly 
 under opinion and indulgenee. But it was becoming that 
 the comviandment should be written throughout in the 
 name of the Lord, the opinion and indulgence in the name 
 of the Apostle. Therefore on that point, which falls 
 
vir. 26.] THE PRESENT DISTRESS. 17 
 
 under coimnandi)icnt, the Lord had expressly given the 
 Apostle what he should write, but, on this, which falls 
 under opinion, it was not necessary to give it. For the 
 Apostle wrote nothing not given by inspiration ; but they 
 sometimes had a special revelation and command (ch. 14: 
 37; I Thess. 4: 15). The rest they derived from the ha- 
 bitual faith which had arisen in them from experience of 
 the Lord's mercy, as in this verse, and also from the 
 treasury of the Spirit of God (ver. 40). In these things, 
 they might very freely apply various methods according to 
 the variety of circumstances and persons. . . . Therefore 
 here also, though without conniianding, he yet wrote 
 things which exactly agreed with the mind of the Lord, 
 who would only have this opinion given. But, at the 
 same time, he faithfully informs us by what principle he 
 wrote everything " (Rengel). Faithful, i. e. trust- 
 worthy, as in I Tim. 4: 9. His judgment, he declares, 
 therefore, can be depended upon as correct ; and that, 
 too, not because of his own natural powers, but because 
 of the mercy of the Lord, whose instrument he is in 
 reaching this decision and declaring it. 
 
 Ver. 26. By reason of the present distress. Not, then, 
 a general rule, but one called forth by the peculiar cir- 
 cumstances of the period in which this letter was written. 
 There was a crisis — whether of persecution, or famine, or 
 of peculiar difficulty of procuring a livelihood caused by 
 the profession of Christianity, we do not know — which 
 rendered proper care of a family extremely difficult. 
 " The man who kept himself free from the entangle- 
 ments of earthly ties would save himself from many a 
 bitter conflict ; he would not have to face the terrible 
 alternative — the most terrible to sensitive minds — be- 
 tween duty to God and affection to M'ife and children. 
 
 A man who is a hero in himself becomes a coward when 
 2 
 
1 8 /• CORINTHIANS. [vii, 27-39. 
 
 he thinks of his widowed wife and orphaned children " 
 (Ligiitfoot). For a man. In the Greek man is not 
 the mascuhne, but the common noun ; and, therefore, 
 applies to both sexes. To be as he is. A general prin- 
 ciple, more fully explained in the next verse, the applica- 
 tion being made particularly to single life. 
 
 Ver. 27. Art thou bound ? The reference is simply to 
 the marriage bond (Rom. 7 : 2), and not, as some have 
 thought, to any peculiar burdens or hindrances connected 
 with marriage. Art thou loosed ? i. e. unmarried, whether 
 as a widower, or as one who has never been married. 
 
 Ver. 28. Thou hast not sinned. This verse shows that 
 the advice for a celibate life is based entirely upon the 
 anxieties and cares to be anticipated under the circum- 
 stances of time and place. Where men or women were 
 brave enough to face these dangers and sorrows, and 
 notwithstanding the certainty of their approach, to enter 
 this relation, no law of God would be violated. Tribula- 
 tion in the flesh. " In bodily circumstances and rela- 
 tions " (Ellicott). The husband may be pained at the 
 drudgery which is wearing away the life of his wife whom 
 he cannot properly support ; the wife, at the perils, ab- 
 sences, sufferings, and even death of her husband for 
 Christ ; godly parents, at the ungodly lives of children, 
 led away by worldly temptations, or, like Mary the mother 
 of our Lord, the sword may pierce through their souls, 
 when children, firm in their religious convictions, en- 
 counter the hostility of the world, etc. I would spare 
 you, because I foresee that the cross will be so heavy that 
 you will scarcely be able to bear it. 
 
 Ver. 29. The time. Not time in general {chronos), but 
 a limited period (as in Rom. v. 6), opportunity {kairos). 
 Hence the employment of this text to express the brevity 
 ofthislife, and vanity of earthly things, is not in strict har- 
 
VII. 30, 3I-] ABOVE THE WORLD. 19 
 
 mony with its thought. This limited period was probably 
 in Paul's mind, the time intervening until the coming of 
 the Lord which he regarded near, or its scope may be 
 still more limited, with its goal in some crisis close at 
 hand, impossible for us to-day to determine, that would 
 terminate their opportunity for accomplishing some work 
 of especial importance in the Divine Kingdom. Is 
 shortened, i. e. is contracted, is abridged, all its moments 
 press closely one upon the other. That henceforth, i. e. 
 that in the future. As though they had none. Married 
 life is to be made entirely subordinate to the ends of the 
 kingdom of God. 
 
 Ver. 30. As though they wept not. The Christian ks 
 neither to be discouraged by worldly adversity, nor elated 
 by worldly prosperity. As though they possessed not. 
 Property is to be employed in the service of Christ, as 
 though it had never been ours, but as though it were, as 
 it actually is, only a trust. We are to be ready to part 
 with it gladly the moment our loss would promote the 
 progress of the kingdom of God, and should live in constant 
 prospect of death, when all earthly gains must be de- 
 serted. 
 
 Ver. 31. As not abusing it. Lit. : " Not fully using it," 
 i. e. not using it to excess. The Christian engages in 
 worldly undertakings, mingles with worldly men, takes 
 an interest in worldly enterprises, only as means to the 
 advancement of his spiritual interests, and no more. 
 The world thus becomes his slave to promote his higher 
 life. (Comp. chap. 3 : 22.) But the transition is easy 
 by which the world is loved and used for its own sake, 
 or for the gratification of worldly tastes growing upon 
 the Christian. Hence the utmost moderation is en- 
 joined, lest, using the world to the full, we become com- 
 pletely enslaved by its allurements. The fashion of this 
 
20 /. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 32, 33. 
 
 world, i. e. its external form, which strikes and charms 
 the senses. Men are held by the spell of constantly 
 changing phenomena. Passeth away. Lit. : " Is passing 
 away." Even while we speak and write, the change is 
 in progress, *' as a passing scene in a play " (Alford). 
 Bengel interprets the fashion of this world, as " to marry, 
 to weep, to rejoice, to buy [vers. 29, 30], etc. Ps. 39 : 6 ; 
 73 : 20. While a man, for example, advances from twenty 
 to forty years of age, he has lost most of his former re- 
 lations and acquired new." " Everything germinates, 
 ripens and withers away." 
 
 Vers. 32, Ty},. Free from cares, i. e. from distractions, as 
 in Matt. 6 : 25, etc. The unmarried person can more 
 readily concentrate all his thought and energy upon the 
 particular service of God to which he has been called, 
 while the married person's interests and duties also are 
 necessarily divided. It belongs to the Divine calling for 
 the husband to provide for the interests of his wife and 
 children, while he serves God in a particular sphere of 
 Church work. To neglect them, under the pretext of a 
 higher form of service, is expressly condemned by the Lord 
 in his reproof of those who, in a similar way, attempted 
 to repudiate their filial obligations (Mark 7 : 1 1, 12). The 
 married Christian, therefore, will ordinarily have two 
 spheres in which to serve the Lord, first, that of his 
 family, and then that of the Church and the world ; while 
 the unmarried person is limited only to the latter. As 
 the Apostle expressly declares that it was onl}^ peculiar 
 circumstances in the life of Christians of that time which 
 called forth this advice, so the recurrence of these or 
 similar circumstances to-day would urge to the same 
 course, as, for example, certain forms of missionary work, 
 or the duties of a pastor where the support of a family 
 cannot be provided for, or the calling of a deaconess, etc. 
 
VII. 34] CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE. 21 
 
 On the other hand, many a zealous laborer in the king- 
 dom of God has had the burden raised from his shoulders, 
 and been relieved of distracting secular cares by the 
 administrative ability of an efificient wife, who has thus 
 greatly multiplied his power and influence. The very 
 principle, therefore, which leads to celibacy in the one 
 case, must lead to marriage in the other, i Tim. 3:2; 
 Tit. I : 6, clearly imply that, as a rule, a pastor should be 
 a married man. Things of the world, how he may please 
 refers probably to peculiar temi:)tations at Corinth, where, 
 among people only recently converted to Christianity, the 
 spirit of the Gospel had only feebly and superficially en- 
 tered, and the selfishness of the old heathen nature was 
 apt to recur in demands which husband or wife made upon 
 earli other in matters that required a withdrawal from 
 complete devotion to the Lord's service. While care for 
 worldly things, in order to please a wife, is not sinful 
 when the aim beyond this is to please the Lord, who has 
 ordained marriage, and exhorted husbands to love and 
 cherish their wives, it becomes sinful when a worldly 
 woman is permitted to divert her husband's employment 
 and interest altogether to her own gratification and self- 
 exaltation. If the wife, however, be a godly woman, she 
 is pleased most of all by her husband's care for the things 
 of the Lord, and the Word of God, speaking forth in her 
 daily life, is to him a constantly present means of grace 
 (Comp. ver. 14.) Marriage with such a woman has been 
 the salvation of many a man who would otherwise have 
 remained a child of the world. 
 
 Ver. 34. Between the wife and the virgin^ " For 
 the woman is the helper of the man, and changes her 
 condition more than the man in contracting mar- 
 riage " (Bengel), Holy, not as though marriage de- 
 filed, and rendered one unholy (comp. Heb. 13:4 and 
 
2 2 I.CORINTHIANS. [vn- 35, 36. 
 
 this entire chapter) ; but to indicate that it was not a 
 mere external matter, but one of the heart, not one per- 
 taining alone to the body, but also to the spirit. We 
 must regard this as referring to the positive rather than 
 as limited to the negative side of holiness. It is the con- 
 secration of the entire personality to the service of Christ, 
 without the interruptions and distractions caused by 
 worldly employments. May please her husband. The 
 danger here lies in the possibility of this husband being 
 a worldly man, whether at heart an unbeliever or an in- 
 different and weak Christian. 
 
 Ver. 35. Cast a snare upon you. An unhappy ren- 
 dering. Marginal rendering is correct : " Constraint^ Gr. 
 noosed The figure is that of throwing the noose, or put- 
 ting on the halter. The Apostle thus disclaims that he 
 is laying down any law which the Corinthians should feel 
 obliged to obey. He gives his judgment, and leaves 
 with each individual the decision as to the proper course 
 to pursue under the circumstances. Those who, in this 
 crisis, determine to marry, will do so after being fully 
 warned of the trials which they shall meet. 
 
 Ver. 36. Now comes the explicit statement of the case 
 which had been laid before Paul, and his decision. A 
 father whose daughter is probably engaged to be married, 
 asks whether he should permit the marriage at this time. 
 The probability is that the engagement is one that has 
 been standing for a considerable time. The daughter 
 is of full age. (Comp. Thayer's Lexicon, hypcrahnos) 
 The decision is that if it seems to be a wrong to the 
 daughter, either because of the dishonor and loss of 
 esteem she might suffer, by deferring the marriage until 
 better times would come, or because her heart was set 
 upon an immediate marriage which in other respects was 
 proper, no further hindrance was advisable. 
 
VII- 37-39-] ^^ THE LORD. 23 
 
 Ver. 37. Rut where there was no such urgency, i. e. 
 where no prior engagement had intervened, or the persons 
 concerned readily acquiesced in the paternal decision, or 
 the daughter left everything in the hands of her father, 
 there was no question that he should, under the peculiar 
 circumstances of time and place, decide adversely. We 
 are thus taught that the consent of parents is necessary 
 for a godly marriage, and that the authority of parents 
 in this matter is not absolute, but must be used with 
 due regard to the reasonable preferences of their chil- 
 dren, and a careful consideration for their future welfare. 
 " The legitimate authority of the parent is great, but 
 he has no right to treat his children as mere chattels. 
 He can only be said to have ' power over his own will,' 
 when he can act without selfishly thwarting the reason- 
 able wishes of those whom God has committed to his 
 care " (LlAS). The Apostle was consulted probably 
 only as to what a father should do under the circum- 
 stances, and, for this reason, he has no advice for the 
 daughter ; so LlGHTFOOT, in opposition to Meyer. 
 
 (/•) Of Widows (vers. 39, 40). 
 
 39, 40. A wife is bound for so long time as lier husband liveth ; but if 
 the husband be dead, she is free to be married to whom she will ; only in 
 the Lord. But she is happier if she abide as she is, after my judgement: 
 and I think that I also have the Spirit of God. 
 
 Ver. 39 was afterwards more fully elaborated by Paul 
 in Rom, 7 : 2, 3. (Sec notes on that passage.) Only in 
 the Lord. This undoubtedly includes the idea that the 
 Christian widow is to be limited in those whose offers she 
 may accept, to Christians. (Comp. 2 Cor. 6: 14, 15.) 
 But it means still more. The marriage is to be entered 
 in the fear of the Lord, and with prayer for his guidance. 
 " The Lord " is to be the element in which the marriasre 
 
24 /• CORINTHIANS. [vii. 40. 
 
 is rooted and by which it will constantly be maintained. 
 Not earthly, but spiritual motives are to direct and 
 control it. 
 
 Ver. 40. She is happier. In i Tim. 5 : 14, the Apostle 
 leaves no room for doubt as to his judgment concerning 
 the desirability of the remarriage of the younger widows 
 in times of relative peace for Christian congregations. 
 The advice here given, as throughout the chapter, pre- 
 supposes a crisis, which suspends the rule laid down in 
 the other passage. I think. " The word not of one who 
 doubts, but of one who asserts " ( AUGUSTINE). A mild 
 and modest way of positively affirming that he is speak- 
 ing by inspiration. 
 
IV. Social and Ecclesiastical Disorders in the 
 Church at Corinth. 
 
 (A.) The Question Concerning Meats offered to Idols 
 (ch. 8— II : i). 
 
 I. The Question of Itself a Matter of Indifference {^ : i-6). 
 
 1-6. Now concerning things sacrified to idols : We know that we all 
 have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but love edifieth. If any man 
 thinketh that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth not yet as he ought to 
 know ; but if any man loveth God, the same is known of him. Concern- 
 ing therefore the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol 
 is anything in the world, and that there is no God, but one. For though 
 there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth ; as there are 
 gods many, and lords many ; yet to us there is one God, the Father, of 
 whom are all things, and we unto him ; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through 
 whom are all things, and we through him. 
 
 Vers. 1-3. On the principles here involved, read Rom. 
 14 and annotations thereon. The entire doctrine is to 
 the effect that it is one thing to clearly apprehend 
 a principle abstractly considered, and quite another to 
 understand and apply it in its relations with respect to 
 changing circumstances. In the various sacrifices, the 
 offering was not entirely consumed ; parts were reserved 
 for the priest and the worshipper. When sold to dealers, 
 meat that had been consecrated to an idol, became a 
 matter of ordinary merchandise. The question, there- 
 fore, which disquieted some was as to whether, by using 
 such meat, an honor would not be shown the heathen 
 god that would be inconsistent with Christianity. With 
 
 25 
 
26 /• CORINTHIANS. [viii. 4-6. 
 
 respect to this, St. Paul says that the answer is in itself 
 not difficult. Every Christian ought to know it. It is 
 inherent in the very conception of Christianity. We all, 
 i. e. so far as we have apprehended what Christianity is, 
 have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up . . . known of 
 him, A parenthetical clause, indicating, first, that, for an 
 answer to such a question, more than knowledge is re- 
 quired, and, secondly, that the knowledge of principles, 
 without the spirit of love to guide in their application, 
 and to properly interpret the principles in their relation 
 to circumstances, is not true knowledge. The absolute 
 certainty of a principle docs not imply that there can 
 only be one way of action, without denying the principle 
 (ver. 3). Is known of God. American revisers correctly 
 prefer "by God." (Comp. i John 4 : 7,8.) The thought 
 is, that being thus known of God, this knowledge is im- 
 parted to him and becomes a power in his life, 1. e. in 
 other words, true love and true knowledge have a recip- 
 rocal action. The love of God leads to the knowledge 
 of God, and the knowledge of God, in turn, to the love 
 of God, and the love of God to a deeper love for our 
 fellow-Christians, and a more delicate regard for those 
 with whom we differ. 
 
 Ver. 4. No idol is anything. Every Christian, he says, 
 ought to know that an idol is worthy of no regard or 
 consideration whatever, and should be treated precisely 
 as though it were a complete nonentity. From this 
 standpoint, it seems absurd for Christians ever to inquire 
 Avhether or not meat had been sacrificd to an idol. What 
 if it had ? What right had the,idol to it, or what power 
 over it could the idol exercise, when the idol is only a 
 piece of wood or brass or stone, and has no reality back 
 of it? 
 
 Vers. 5, 6. That are called gods, i. e. so-called gods. 
 
vm. 7-] THE WEAKER brethren: 27 
 
 (Comp. Deut. 32 : 17.) There are gods many, i. e. angels, 
 superhuman brings, as indicated by the expression, 
 " God of gods and Lord of lords" (Deut. 10 : 17). One 
 God, One Lord, viz. in the true and proper sense of the 
 terms. Of whom. The Trinitarian formula : " All 
 things are of the Father, by the Son," has its origin here. 
 So also, "through "the Son, we come " unto " the Father. 
 But the intention here is not to bring the Trinitarian rela- 
 tion into the foreground. The thought here is rather that 
 of the order of the Plan of Redemption (comp. notes on 
 Rom. I : 7), which is applied as in i Tim. 2:5, and 
 means: As there is only One God, and only One Media- 
 tor, there is no place for the idols to which such worship 
 is rendered. 
 
 2. TJic Bearing of the Question upon the Weaker 
 Brethren (vers. 7-13). 
 
 7-13. Ilowbeit in all men there is not that knowledge: but some, being 
 used until now to the idol, eat as o/d. thing sacrificed to an idol ; and their 
 conscience being weak is defiled. But meat will not commend us to God : 
 neither, if we eat not, are we the worse; nor, if we eat, are we the better. 
 Hut take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling- 
 block to the weak. For if a man see thee which hast knowledge sitting at 
 meat in an idol's temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be embold- 
 ened to eat things sacrificed to idols ? For through thy knowledge he that 
 is weak perisheth, the brother for whose sake Christ died. And thus, sin- 
 ning against the brethren, and wounding their conscience when it is weak, 
 ye sin against Christ. Wherefore, if meat maketh my brother to stumble, 
 I will eat no flesh for evermore, that I make not my brother to stumble. 
 
 Ver. 7. Not that knowledge, i. e. " The knowledge 
 which all Christians ought to have, some are without," or 
 "This knowledge which all have theoretically, is found 
 to be clouded and" perverted by prejudices, when applied 
 to practice." What all concede as an axiom, is found 
 after all not to have been fully apprehended in all its 
 
28 /. CORINTHIANS. [viii. 8. 
 
 bearino-s. Being used until now, i.e. under the influence 
 of the prejudices of former idolatry, still have some idea 
 that an idol stands for a reality. They cannot rid them- 
 selves of the impression that partaking of such sacrifices 
 is an act of worship. Conscience is defiled. Explained 
 in Rom. 14 : 14. 
 
 Ver. 8. Meat will not commend us unto Qod. There 
 is no advantage either in the enlightened Christians 
 asserting the claims of his Christian liberty to the very 
 utmost, or in the unenlightened Christians abstaining 
 from particular kinds of food, in accommodation to the 
 prejudices of his old heathenism. Neither eating, nor 
 fasting, has in itself any moral quality (Rom. 14: 17). 
 A stumbling=block. (Comp. Rom. 14:21.) Through 
 thy knowledge, (Comp. Rom. 14 : 15.) If meat make 
 my brother stumble (Rom. 14: 21). The treatment in 
 Romans, written after this Epistle, is in large measure 
 simply a recasting of the same thoughts. We refer, 
 therefore, to the annotations upon that chapter, also, 
 above, on ch, 6:12. The passages must not be under- 
 stood, however, as meaning that the weaker brother, like 
 the spoiled child in an ill-regulated family, must always 
 determine the course to be pursued. While due regard 
 must be had to weaknesses, when these weaknesses claim, 
 under the semblance of weaknesses, but, in reality, as 
 tyranny, the right to rule, the same love demands that 
 they be disregarded. " If the law of love necessitates 
 that they who hold the freer opinions should not recklessly 
 use this liberty, and in certain cases must even find them- 
 selves called upon to abstain from the disputed modes of 
 action, in order not to shock the weak members ; still, 
 love requires that this submission should not be unlimited. 
 For then the weak would only be confirmed in their mis- 
 take, while the strong would be liindcred in their progress, 
 
VIIT. 8.] CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. 29 
 
 and the truth would be denied. The rcquirem^.wt that 
 we should accommodate ourselves to the weak must be 
 combined with this, that, on the one side, we must make 
 it apparent that we are not overcome by these enjoy- 
 ments, and, therefore, can dispense with them ; but, on 
 the other side, we must seek to lead the weak among 
 us to clearer knowledge." (Martensen, Ethics (Eng. 
 Trans.), i : 419 sq.) 
 
 3. Limitations to the Exercise of Christian Liberty. 
 (a.) Enforced by the Exaniph^ of the Apostle (9 : 1-23). 
 
 1-23. Am I not free ? am I not an apostle? have I not seen Jesus our 
 Lord ? are not ye my work in the Lord ? If to others I am not an apostle, 
 yet at least I am to you : for tlie seal of mine apostleship are ye in the 
 Lord. My defence to them that examine me is this. Have we no right to 
 eat and to drink ? Have we no right to lead about a wife that is a believer, 
 even as the rest of the apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas .■" 
 Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working .'' What 
 soldier ever serveth at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and 
 eateth not the fruit thereof ? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the 
 milk of the flock ? Do I speak these things after the manner of men ? 
 or saith not the law also the same ? For it is written in the law of Moses, 
 Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. It is for the 
 oxen that God careth, or saith he it altogether for our sake? Yea, for our 
 sake it was written : because he that ploweth ought to plow in hope, and 
 he that thresheth, A'///;vj-//! in hope of partaking. If we sowed unto you 
 spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things ? If 
 others partake of this right over you, do not we yet more ? Nevertheless 
 we did not use this right; but we bear all things, that we may cause no 
 hindrance to the gospel of Christ. Know ye not that they which minister 
 about sacred things eat (/the things of the temple, and they which wait 
 upon the altar liave their portion with the altar? Even so did the Lord 
 ordain that they which proclaim the gospel should live of the gospel. But 
 I have used none of these things : and I write not these things that it may 
 be so done in my case : for // -loere good for me rather to die, than that any 
 man should make my glorying void. For if I preach the gospel, I have 
 nothing to glory of ; for necessity is laid upon me ; for woe is unto me, if I 
 preach not the gospel. For if I do this of mine own will, I have a reward : 
 but if not of mine own will, I have a stewardship intrusted to me. What 
 
30 /. CORINTHIANS. [ix. 1-3. 
 
 then is my reward ? That, when I preach the gospel, I may make the 
 gospel without charge, so as not to use to the full my right in the gospel. 
 For though I was free from all men, I brought myself under bondage to all, 
 that I might gain the more. And to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I 
 might gain Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law; not 
 being myself under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; 
 to them that are without law, as without law, not being without law to 
 God, but under law to Christ, that I might gain them that are without law. 
 To the weak I became weak, that I might gain the weak : I am become 
 all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. And I do all 
 things for the gospel's sake, that I may be a joint partaker thereof. 
 
 Ver. I. At first sight there seems to be a break in the 
 argument. " This is an interruption to the argument, 
 suggested we know not how. Perhaps the letter was 
 broken off. Something then may have occurred mean- 
 while ; some outward event, or some inward train of 
 thought, of which when the letter was resumed the 
 Apostle must first disburden himself, before he took up 
 the thread where he had dropped it " (LlGllTFOOl). 
 But there is no actual break. He shows the Corinthians 
 that he is not merely a private Christian, but much more, 
 an Apostle. If, then, as an Apostle, he constantly waives 
 his rights for the advantage of those to Avhom hehasbeen 
 sent, every private Christian should certainly be ready to 
 do no less. The change in order in R. V. makes this all 
 the plainer. Am I not free ? He begins by placing him- 
 self on a level with the Corinthians. Then he rises : Am 
 I not an apostle ? i. e. : I am still more. Have I not seen 
 Jesus? A requisite of an Apostle, referring to "the 
 sight of the glorified Jesus, which was first vouchsafed 
 near Damascus to call him to be an Apostle (Acts 9 : 17 ; 
 22 : 14 sq, ; 26 : 16; i Cor. 15 : .8), and was often repeated 
 afterwards, although in different forms (Acts 18:9; 22 : 
 17 sq. ; 2 Cor. 12 : i)." Are ye not my work. (Comp. 
 
 3:15-) 
 
 Vers. 2, ^. The seal of mine apostleship. The won- 
 
IX. 4-6.] MARRIED APOSTLES. 3 1 
 
 ders of Divine grace displayed in the conversion and 
 sanctification of the Corinthians arc proof sufficient of 
 his Apostolic authority. So also were the miracles which 
 he wrought among them (2 Cor. 12:12). In the Lord. 
 Because his work at Corinth was by the Lord's command, 
 and with the Lord's power working through him (Acts 
 18 : 10). My defence is this. " This " refers to what 
 has just been specified in vers, i, 2. The meaning is : 
 " Such is my answer to all who question my Apostolic 
 authority. I refer them all to you." 
 
 Vers. 4-6. No right to eat and drink. The Lord had 
 declared that the preachers of the Gospel had the right to 
 be fed by those to whom they preached it (Luke 10: 7). 
 This right Paul did not use (2 Cor. 11:9). A wife that is 
 a believer. Lit. : " A sister " (viz. in Christ) " as a wife," 
 Some have suggested "a Christian woman/' just as there 
 were women who attended our Lord. But the singular 
 number, and the unavoidable scandal such a course would 
 have incurred, makes this interpretation scarcely worthy 
 of mention. Paul, therefore, asserts not only his right to 
 marriage, but also his right to claim support not only for 
 himself, but also for a wife. Rest of the apostles. The 
 majority, therefore, were married. Brethren of the Lord. 
 (Comp. Matt. 12:46; 13:55.) Probably the sons of 
 Joseph and Mary. And Cephas mentions Peter as an 
 eminent example among them of an Apostle who was 
 attended on his missionary journeys by his wife. This 
 may be intended particularly for the attention of the 
 Petrine party at Corinth. It certainly should have deterred 
 those who regard the primacy of Peter as the foundation 
 of the Papacy, from denying priests the right to marry. 
 Right to forbear working. The reference is to manual 
 labor. The others were supported by those to whom they 
 preached. Paul, at his trade as a tent-maker, or maker 
 
32 /. CORINTHIANS. [ix, 7-10, 
 
 of cloth for tents, and Barnabas, by some employment 
 of which we are ignorant, were compelled to earn a liveli- 
 hood. 
 
 Ver. 7. He illustrates this from three other callings. 
 First, the soldier is never expected to support himself 
 while engaged in a campaign. Both the keeper of a vine- 
 yard and the shepherd justly expect some returns from 
 their pains and labor. 
 
 Vers. 8-10. After the manner of men, j. e. : This is no 
 merely human rule ; it has its foundation in Divine inspi- 
 ration. Saith not the law, viz. the law of Moses. It is 
 written (Deut. 25 : 4). Quoted in i Tim. 5 : 8 with the 
 same application to the duty of affording ministers of the 
 Word a proper support. Is it for the oxen, etc. While 
 undoubtedly the first reference is to oxen, and therefore, 
 the passage is to be understood literally, nevertheless it 
 is intended to suggest that the same principle belongs 
 also to other relations. If abundant provision must be 
 made for the irrational creature who serves temporal 
 wants, no less care must be taken of those whose energies 
 are devoted to providing eternal and heavenly blessings. 
 The appeal is like that in Matt. 6 : 26 ; 10: 29; Luke 
 12 : 24. The child of God who feeds his cattle well, cer- 
 tainly would not deny ample support to those to whom, 
 under God, he owes the salvation of his own soul and of 
 those of his household. While his cattle have plenty, he 
 will not, or at least he ought not, put off hispastor or the 
 Church's missionaries with a pittance! He that ploweth 
 ... he that thresheth. These terms are used figuratively, 
 for the work of the ministers of the Gospel. The thought 
 is : As in the earthly sphere, he that ploweth plows in 
 hope of participating in the bounty of the harvest that 
 comes as the result of God's blessing upon his work, so 
 in the spiritual sphere, the laborer should expect to share 
 
lA. 11-14.] PAUL'S CELIBACY. 33 
 
 in all the blessings with which God blesses those to whom 
 he preaches. 
 
 Ver. II. If we have sowed spiritual things, etc., i. e. 
 bestowed upon you the more important blessings. Carnal 
 things, viz. food, clothing, money, etc. Even when such 
 a return is made, it is entirely disproportionate to the 
 service rendered. 
 
 Ver. 12. If others partake, viz. other Christian teachers 
 who very justly receive support from you. We bear a\\ 
 things, i. e. we endure all the labors and self-denials that 
 followed from refraining to exercise this right, and to 
 demand of you that to which we are properly entitled. 
 That we may cause no hindrance. Since he knows that 
 the exercise of this right was sure to be misinterpreted. 
 His motives would be questioned; his service of Christ 
 would be pronounced mercenary. In the case of a settled 
 pastor, or of an Apostle or missionary, moving within a 
 relatively limited sphere, such charges could more readily 
 be disproved. But the scope of Paul's activity rendered 
 it particularly desirable that he should be elevated above 
 all efforts to gather the means of support from his follow- 
 ers, and that his work should be entirely dissociated from 
 all pecuniary associations. (Comp. Acts 20 : 32, 33 ; 2 
 Cor. II : 9.) 
 
 Ver. 13. They which minister. He recurs to his argu- 
 ment. His willingness to forego the right must in no 
 way be regarded as a forfeiture of it. Besides the other 
 proofs he had given, there is that derived from the O. T., 
 where the priests retain a portion of the sacrifices (Numb. 
 18 : 8-20). They which wait upon the altar restates, by 
 way of explanation, what has just been said. 
 
 Ver. 14. Did the Lord ordain. The reference in " Lord " 
 is to Christ. His declaration of this principle is found in 
 Matt. 10 : 10 ; Luke 10 : 7. The provision made, accord- 
 3 
 
34 ^' CORINTHIANS. [ix. 15-18. 
 
 ing to ver. 1 3, in the O. T., is thus shown to be carried over 
 into the N. T., and thus to be permanent. 
 
 Vers. 15, 16. Now comes the application. While his right 
 cannot be questioned, he does not avail himself of it. 
 This is preparatory to the conclusion that the more en- 
 lightened Corinthians should show like consideration for 
 their weaker brethren, and, instead of pressing their rights, 
 should be ready to forego them. Good for me rather to 
 die. Self-denial, for the sake of the brethren, he regards 
 a high privilege, more valuable than even life itself. My 
 glorying, i. e. his preaching the Gospel without cost to 
 others, and, indirectly, his absolute freedom from any 
 suspicion that his activity as an Apostle was influenced 
 in any way by mercenary motives. Never was there a 
 more ambitious man than Paul. But his ambition was 
 not a selfish one, it was bent upon accomplishing the ut- 
 most that human strength, as the organ of God's grace, 
 could effect for the advancement of the kingdom of God. 
 This is the sole ground of his glorying. His ceaseless 
 activity as a preacher did not give any such ground. 
 If I preach, I have nothing to glory of. For his preach- 
 ing is not a matter of free choice ; it is one of absolute 
 duty. His call as an Apostle determined that ; although 
 it allowed him the needed support as a return for his 
 services. If he refuse to preach, he casts himself away 
 from the grace of God in Christ ; but if he should receive 
 support, he would be only accepting" what is his due. 
 
 Vers. 17, 18. I have a reward. No performance of 
 what was an absolute command could claim any reward 
 in the strict sense of the term., A stewardship. (Comp. 
 ch. 4 : I ; Acts 20 : 24.) What then is the reward ? Not 
 any treasure of merit laid up in everlasting life, but simply 
 to have no reward. A seeming paradox : My reward is 
 to have no reward, i. e..: It is suf^cient reward to know that 
 
IX. 19-21.] PAUL'S ADAPTATIONS. 35 
 
 I have received no earthly compensation whatever for 
 having preached the Gospel, Not to use to the full, as 
 in 7: 31. Observe the new light shed upon this passage 
 by the change of translation from A. V. Paul would not 
 have " abused his power " by accepting compensation, 
 but declining it, he does not use to the full his right. 
 
 Ver. 19. Thought I was free, etc., i. e. : By not using 
 to the full his freedom, he was able to bring a larger 
 number of persons under the power of the Gospel, and to 
 convert them to Christ. In thus not assertinghis freedom, 
 he made himself the servant of all, i. e. enslaves himself 
 to all. (Comp. Phil. 2 : 5-8.) 
 
 Ver. 20. The "all" of ver. 19 next analyzes or groups 
 into three classes : i. Jews ; 2. Gentiles ; 3. weak Christians. 
 To the Jews, I became as a Jew, i. e. he complied with 
 Jewish customs that were not obligatory upon one who 
 was entrusted with the Gospel. Such was his use of cir- 
 cumcision in the case of Timothy (Acts 16 : 3); his vow 
 (Acts 18 : 18) ; his ceremonial purification (Acts 21 : 26) ; 
 his claim to be a Pharisee (Acts 23 : 6). That I might 
 gain the Jews. Not that he might deceive them con- 
 cerning his real character, but that he might disarm 
 their prejudices by his willingness to comply with all 
 adiaphora, or matters in themselves morally indifferent, 
 that were characteristic of Judaism. Under the law, i. e. : 
 Those who regard themselves still under obligations to 
 comply with all the demands of the Ceremonial Law. 
 
 Ver. 21. Them that are without law, i. e. the Gentiles. 
 When among them, he was ready to abstain from all the 
 innocent usages of Judaism, even though such as in them- 
 selves he might prefer. (See Gal. 2 : 3, 12, 13.) His teach- 
 ing in the Hellenic form, as in Acts 17, is correctly cited 
 by Meyer as an instance. Not being without law. Al- 
 though free from any obligation to the Ceremonial Law, 
 
36 /• CORINTHIANS. [ix. 22. 
 
 he was not independent of all legal obligation. He did 
 not act arbitrarily. In all things, he subjected himself to 
 the will and command of Christ. This had elevated him 
 above obligation to all ceremonial ordinances, even though, 
 in his freedom, he might choose to use them. A princi- 
 ple determines him even in his use and disuse of what is 
 a matter of indifference. It is the impulse of the presence 
 within him of his Saviour (Gal. 2 : 20). " It is the duty of 
 the minister of the Word to adapt himself to his hearer, 
 not indeed in doctrine, but in his outward life and con- 
 versation ; not that he is to assent to and approve the 
 wrong which they commit, but in those matters which do 
 not do violence to conscience, and which pertain to the 
 outward life ; according to the example of Paul, in this 
 passage, and of Christ who in His sermons adapted Him- 
 self to the capacity of His hearers, and explained the 
 mysteries of the kingdom of God by well-understood 
 illustrations " (BALDWIN). That I might gain. His one 
 end is not to assert his rights, or use his freedom, but to 
 win men to Christ. To this end, he constantly employs 
 subordinates and enslaves his freedom. 
 
 Ver. 22. To the weak, I became weak. (Comp. Rom. 
 15 : I.) The reference is to weak and prejudiced Chris- 
 tians, for whose infirmities he made allowance, and, so far 
 as was possible without strengthening them in their error, 
 complied with their wishes. (Comp. i Thess. 2 : 7.) It 
 was unnecessary for Paul to state that there were limita- 
 tions to this law of Christian expediency. Every one who 
 knew him was aware that where any principle was at 
 stake, Paul would not yield an hair's-breadth. His all 
 things to all men was not that of the man without posi- 
 tive convictions, but, on the contrary, that of one who 
 was so firm and assured of his principles, that he was 
 never concerned about the surrender of a pure accidental 
 
IX. 23, 24-] THE GRECIAN GAMES. 37 
 
 matter, when the substance was retained. "Thus Paul 
 yields and gives way to the weak in food and times or 
 days (Rom. 14 : 6). But to the false Apostles who 
 wished to impose these upon consciences as necessary 
 things, he will yield not even in those things which in 
 themselves are adiaphora (Col. 2 : 16); and when Paul 
 and Barnabus yielded to a certain extent, Paul openly 
 reproves them as those who have not walked aright, 
 according to the truth of the Gospel (Gal. 2 : ii, sqq.)." 
 {Formula of Concord, p. 646.) 
 
 Ver. 23. All things for the gospel's sake. Upon this 
 one object all his interests centre. The progress of the 
 Gospel is the all-absorbing end of all his thoughts and 
 efforts. That I may be a joint partaker thereof. Note 
 the humility of the expression : " He who labored more 
 than all others, has yet in view no higher reward for him- 
 self than just the salvation common to all believers " 
 (Meyer). 
 
 3. Dangers from the Exaggeration of the Claims of 
 Liberty (9 : 24 — 10 : 13). 
 
 ((^r.) Illustration from the Grecian Games. 
 
 24-27. Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one re- 
 ceiveth the prize .'' Even so run, that ye may attain. And every man that 
 striveth in the games is temperate in all things. Now they ito it to receive 
 a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, as not 
 uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the air: but I buffet my body, and 
 bring it into bondage : lest by any means, after that I have preached to 
 others, I myself should be rejected. 
 
 Ver. 24. Paul next suggests that the bold assertion of 
 all the claims of personal liberty, and the demand to use 
 them to the full, without regard to the weaknesses of 
 brethren, is attended with peril. The Christian must 
 never be absolutely secure of his position until the close 
 
gS /■ CORINTHIANS. [ix. 25, 26. 
 
 of life. He may begin the course, and be still in it, and, 
 nevertheless, at last fail to complete it. Know ye not 
 that they which run in a race. The proximity of Corinth 
 to the site of the Isthmian Games, nine miles distant, 
 makes it clear that the allusion was well understood. 
 The point of comparison lies in the fact that not all that 
 entered the course received the prize. Unlike in these 
 games, however, the victory of one is not gained at the 
 expense of others. Here the figure does not apply. 
 Many may gain the prize. All would gain it, if they 
 would only persevere until the end of the course. But 
 the figure applies, in so far as many who begin the course 
 fail to continue it, and thus do not reach the goal. " It 
 is not enough that one believe and run in Christ's course, 
 but he must lay hold of eternal life, as Christ says (Matt. 
 24: 13): ' He that shall endure until the end, the same 
 shall be saved,' and St. Paul (i Cor. 10 : 12) : * Let him 
 that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall ' " 
 (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 25. Is temperate in all things. The contestants 
 at the games were forbidden every form of sensual indul- 
 gence for ten months preceding the contests. The line 
 of Horace in the Ars Poctica (ver. 412) is well known to 
 classical students. A corruptible crown, viz. a garland 
 of pine or ivy leaves. An incorruptible, viz. everlasting 
 life (2 Tim. 4:8; James i : 12 ; i Pet. 5:4; Rev. 2 : 10 ; 
 comp. I Pet. I : 4). 
 
 Ver. 26. I therefore so run. He takes himself as an 
 example. As not uncertainly. He has the goal clearly 
 before him. There is no uncertainty in his mind as to 
 the course to be pursued. He is not led by selfish con- 
 siderations to hesitate and seek circuitous routes. Straight 
 as an arrow to the mark, he hastens onward. As not 
 beating the air. As a boxer, he knows his opponent 
 
IX. 27.] BODIL Y DISCITLINE. 39 
 
 well, and how to overcome all his skill, so that every 
 blow may count. Again it is his directness of aim that 
 overcomes all opposition. As Bengel suggests, he re- 
 gards the contest as a serious matter, and not mere practice 
 or exercise. 
 
 Ver. 27. But I buffet my body. Lit. : " Beat it black 
 and blue," i.e. subdue it by self-denials and hardships. 
 " Body " as in Rom. 8:13. "By subduing the body, he 
 means not only the suppressing of carnal lust, but every 
 temporal thing in which we have bodily pleasure, as 
 honor, fame, property, etc." (Luther). This carries 
 out the figure of the temperance referred to in ver. 25, 
 and recurs to the thought running through the entire 
 chapter of the self-denial which the Christian should 
 practise in matters that in themselves are clearly legiti- 
 mate, and the readiness with which he should waive the 
 exercise of rights which are undeniably his. I myself 
 should be rejected. A clear declaration of the possibility 
 of such a fall from the grace of the Gospel as would 
 result in his eternal ruin. The regenerate may fall from 
 the grace of God and become reprobate. " He who does 
 not tame the body, preaches in such a way that he 
 himself shall be condemned, even though he preaches 
 aright " (LUTIIER). The explanation which Calvin pro- 
 posed to substitute for this is worthy of note. " My life 
 should be a rule to others. I strive, therefore, so to con- 
 duct myself that my life and works may not contradict 
 my doctrine, and that thus I may not, to my great 
 disgrace and with grievous offence to my brethren, neg- 
 lect those things which I require of them." The note 
 of Alford throws much light on the passage : " An 
 examination of the victorious combatants took place after 
 the contest, and if it could be proved that they had con- 
 tended unlawfully, or unfairly, they were deprived of the 
 
40 /. CORINTHIANS. [x. i. 
 
 prize, and driven with disgrace from the games. So the 
 Apostle, if he had proclaimed the laws of the combat to 
 others, and not observed them himself, however success- 
 ful he might apparently be, would be personally rejected 
 as adokiinos in the great day. And this he says with a 
 view to show them the necessity of more self-denial, and 
 less going to the extreme limit of their Christian free- 
 dom." 
 
 (/?.) Warning from O. T. History (lo : 1-13). 
 
 1-13. For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant, how that our 
 fathers were all under the cloud, and passed through the sea ; and were all 
 baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat the same 
 spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank 
 of a spiritual rock that followed them : and the rock was Christ. Howbeit 
 with most of them God was not well pleased : for they were overthrown in 
 the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we 
 should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. 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. Neither let us commit fornication, as 
 some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. 
 Neither let us tempt the Lord, as some of them tempted, and perished by 
 the serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them murmured, and per- 
 ished by the destroyer. Now these things happened unto them by way of 
 example ; and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends 
 of the ages are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take 
 heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as man 
 can bear : but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above 
 that ye are able ; but will with the temptation make also the way of escape, 
 that ye may be able to endure it. 
 
 The great theme of this section is that many who have 
 enjoyed great spiritual privileges have failed to remain 
 in the grace of God, and have, finally been rejected of 
 Him. Comp. on this entire section the following psalms, 
 which, besides the fuller accounts in the Books of Moses, 
 seem to have been in Paul's mind when he wrote, viz. 
 Ps. 78, 105, io6, 136. 
 
X. I, 2.] BAPTISM UNTO MOSES. 4I 
 
 Ver. I. I would not have you ignorant. A frequent 
 expression of St. Paul. (Sec e. g. Rom. i : 13.) Brethren 
 is frequently employed to introduce an earnest appeal. 
 Five instances of great privileges are then enumerated. 
 Our fathers. This does not imply that all to whom he is 
 writing were Jews. As the Christian is the successor of 
 the Israelite Church, the fathers among the Jews were the 
 predecessors of Christians. Were all under the cloud. 
 The pillar of cloud in the wilderness (Ex, 13: 21; Ps. 
 105 : 39). Passed through the sea (Ex. 14 : 22 ; Ps. 
 
 78: 13). 
 
 Ver. 2. Were all baptized. The reference is to the 
 assurance of God's favor which they had received, and 
 their solemn consecration to God's service that had been 
 attested, by these external signs, as seals. Details of 
 baptism are sometimes traced in the passage through the 
 Red Sea, which carry the figure far beyond what we be- 
 lieve is here taught. The fundamental exception of bap- 
 tism as taught in Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3 : 27, is here in mind. 
 Both the cloud and the miraculous passage through the 
 sea testified to God's love to every one of the Israelites, 
 and that all the Divine power was directed to the service 
 of His highest good. "Baptized, i. e. received by external 
 testimonies, the cloud covering the people, and the waves 
 standing in the sea. These miracles were sacraments 
 testifying to the reception of the people " (Melanch- 
 tiion). Unto (lit. " Into ") floses. Certainly not into 
 the person of Moses, as elsewhere we are said to have 
 been baptized into Christ ; but into the promises and 
 favor of God, as declared through Moses, and with a conse- 
 cration to the Word of God, as proclaimed through Moses. 
 Moses stood before the people as representative of God. 
 CiiRYSOSTOM dwells here on the confidence which the 
 people displayed in Moses when they ventured to pass 
 
42 /• CORINTHIANS. [x. 3, 4. 
 
 between the walls of water, as he commanded and pre- 
 ceded them. They left all the world behind them, they 
 suppressed all their doubts and fears as they left the 
 shores and passed through the way made in the waters, 
 because the Divine commission of Moses had been at- 
 tested by such numerous signs that they could not dis- 
 pute it, and they were carried forward by the impulse 
 and authority of his inspired personality, so that they 
 could not resist it. 
 
 Vef. 3. The same spiritual meat, viz. the manna (Ex. 
 16 : 13-15). The thought of the original is, "The same 
 meat, and that, spiritual meat." (Comp. Ps. 78 : 25.) 
 It is called "spiritual," because not from an earthly, but 
 from a heavenly source ; it came to them, not in a natural, 
 but a supernatural, way. The manna was then more 
 than the mere means of bodily sustenance ; it was a clear 
 attestation of the Divine favor, and of the existence of 
 supernatural agencies always in store for the blessing 
 of those trusting in God's promises. Thus every drop 
 of manna eaten had a truly sacramental character. 
 
 Ver. 4. The same spiritual drink. The water which 
 was miraculously supplied when Moses smote the rock 
 (Ex. 17:1-6; Numb. 20:2-11). "Spiritual" in the 
 same sense as in ver. 3. A spiritual rock, i. e. : After all, 
 it was not the rock that was the real source of the water 
 that was thus given, but it was the wonder-working power 
 of Christ, the gracious Intercessor between God and sin- 
 ful man, who constantly intervened when the necessities 
 of His people were present. Even in the O. T., He was 
 ever present to bring deliverance. That followed them. 
 Not " the chain of mountains along which they made 
 their journey " (Mel.) ; the reference is to the " Spiritual 
 Rock " ; it was Christ who attended and followed them 
 whithersoever they went. (Comp. Ex. 23 : 20 ; 32 : 34.) 
 
X. 5. 6.] O. T. SACRAMENTS. 43 
 
 The water that came from the rock was a pledge of His 
 presence and favor. Every draught of water had, there- 
 fore, a sacramental character, in assuring the person who 
 drank that he was included in the Divine mercy. As 
 vcr. 2 has baptism in mind, so vers. 3, 4 manifestly look 
 towards the Lord's Supper, which the Apostle is about to 
 mention in ver. 10. " If the N. T. had more sacraments, 
 Paul would have drawn some resemblance for the others 
 also " (Bengel). 
 
 Ver. 5. God was not well pleased, i. e. although all en- 
 joyed these signal displays of iJivine mercy, although 
 each individual among them had the pledge of God's 
 favor, yet the great majority did not avail themselves of 
 these privileges. They did not realize fully what they 
 meant, and, under the strain of the trials of the journey, 
 they lost faith, and abandoned the service of God to 
 which they had been solemnly consecrated. They were 
 overthrown in the wilderness, Joshua and Caleb alone 
 of those above twenty years of age entering the Holy 
 Land. (Comp. Num. 14 : 29 seq. ; 26 : 64 ; Ps. 106 : 26; 
 
 Heb. 3:.i7-) 
 
 Ver. 6. Were written for our examples. Lit. : "These 
 
 things were types for us." (Comp. 5:11.) While, by this, 
 
 it is not meant that the history is not true, but must be 
 
 spiritualized, he means to say that all the details of the 
 
 history of Israel should be studied and laid to heart 
 
 (Rom. 15:4). The Old Testament has still its place in 
 
 the thought and preaching of the Christian Church. The 
 
 argument is actually from less to greater, as in Heb. 2 : 2, 
 
 3. They had the same assurance of God's favor that wc 
 
 have, only in a less clear and feebler way. But if with 
 
 this assurance they fell, our danger is the same, only our 
 
 fall will be all the greater, as our privileges are more. P'ivc 
 
 modes of temptation arc then enumerated, corresponding 
 
44 /• CORINTJJIANS. [x. 7, 8. 
 
 to the five forms of privileges in vers. 1-3. As they also 
 lusted. Paul begins at the root. The lust for evil things 
 is the source of all other sins (James i : 14). The desire 
 for anything contrary to God's will is lust. The inci- 
 dent in Numb. 11:4 gives only one form of this lust, 
 although that is a striking one. The spiritual food, the 
 manna, is despised, and the flesh, which the Egyptians 
 have, is desired. The warning here is, that all longing 
 to be as the heathen are, and to have what the Gentiles 
 have, when God's appointed means do not bring them, 
 must be suppressed. But even the exercise of Christian 
 liberty with off'ence to the brethren is an evil thing. 
 (See Rom. 14 : 20.) 
 
 Vcr. 7. Neither be (lit. " become ") idolaters. The 
 danger to which those persons would be peculiarly liable, 
 who would join in festivals in honor of a heathen god, to 
 conciliate the favor or escape the hatred of the heathen. 
 The historical allusion is found in Ex. 32 : 6. In the 
 incident there related, the children of Israel do not at- 
 tempt to repudiate the worship of Jehovah, but only to 
 worship Him under a visible figure in the golden calf, 
 thus conforming their worship of Jehovah to that of the 
 nations about them. But even to worship Jehovah in a 
 way that He has prohibited, or not prescribed, is no better 
 than idolatry. Thus those who abuse Christian liberty, 
 so as to urge their liberty as a pretext for conformity 
 with worldliness or false religions, must come under the 
 condemnation belonging to these forms of ungodliness. 
 Eat, drink, play, referring to the banquets and games in 
 honor of the golden calf, such as^ their neighbors had in 
 honor of their deities. 
 
 Ver. 8. Neither let us commit fornication. Notice 
 change of person from ver. 7. This Epistle shows that 
 in the Corinthian Church there was already this sin, and 
 
X. 9, lo.] FALLING FROM GRACE. 45 
 
 that the Church participated in the guilt by refraining 
 from the administration of discipHne. But the sin of 
 vcr. 7 probably had not been committed. Fornication, 
 closely connected with idolatry, was a sin for which the 
 temptations at Corinth were particularly strong. Fell in 
 one day three and twenty thousand. The account in 
 Num. 25 : 9 says 24,000. The divergence is of no signifi- 
 cance. If the number had been 23,600, a person speak- 
 ing in round numbers might have truthfully said 24,000 
 from the nearer thousand, or 23,000, in order to be within 
 the number. The probability, however, is that Paul 
 quotes from memory, it being immaterial as to whether 
 the exact number be given or not, and divine inspiration 
 not being furnished for purposes of mathematical accuracy 
 in regard to matters not affecting the correctness of the 
 argument or statements of the facts of God's revelation. 
 
 Ver. 9. Let us not tempt the Lord, i. e. " test 
 His power presumptuously, or with secret unbelief." 
 (See ScilyEFFER on Matt. 4 : 4.) In Num. 14 : 22, the 
 children of Israel are said to have tempted God ten 
 times. Examples of this temptation, or trial of the pa- 
 tience, or avenging power of God, are given in Ex. 17 : 
 2, 7 ; Num. 21 : 5, 6. The application here is to the 
 trial of God's patience, by the tendency of reverting to 
 sins belonging to their former heathen life, under the 
 plea of the maintenance of their liberty in Christ. 
 
 Ver. 10. Neither murmur ye. The reference is to 
 the murmuring against Moses and Aaron (Num. 16 : 41), 
 with an implied reference to the course of the Corin- 
 thians with respect to Paul, and then, in both cases, the re- 
 bellion against God, in the dishonor shown His servants 
 Luke 10 : 16. Were destroyed by the destroyer. Ac- 
 cording to Num. 16 : 46-49, 14,700 of the people fell 
 by the plague. Here, as in 2 Sam. 24 : 16, mention is 
 
46 I.CORINTHIANS. [x. 11-13. 
 
 made of the Divine agent who inflicts the penalty. 
 (Comp. Ex. 12 : 23.) 
 
 Ver. II. By way of example. (Comp. v. 6.) For our 
 admonition. (Comp. Rom. 15:4; ch. 9 : 10.) The ends of 
 the ages. (Sec Hcb. 9 : 26.) Comp. with " fubiess of 
 the time." (Gal. 4 : 4), and " fulness of the times" (Eph. 
 I : 10). Every past period of the world's history has had 
 its goal. The ages are like plants that spring up, bud, 
 blossom, bear seed, and then die, the goal being in the 
 seed, which, in turn, is the goal of a new plant. Each 
 age is thus the goal of its predecessor. This is then one 
 final goal toward which all tend. The N. T. dispensa- 
 tion marks the consummation of the history of the world, 
 awaiting the end of the present order in the appearance 
 of the Lord in glory. It is the last chapter of the book. 
 The application here is that, in this age, all the privileges, 
 as well as all the dangers, culminate. We know the goal 
 of the past, as those who lived in those ages could not, 
 and can be instructed by its examples as even contempo- 
 raries could not. 
 
 Ver. 12. A warning against a security that, under the 
 persuasion of its liberty, is betrayed into sins that involve 
 the loss of divine grace. The Christian, by his self-con- 
 fidence, may become a reprobate. The fall of Peter fur- 
 nishes an example ; only Peter's return is by no means 
 sure to be repeated. 
 
 Ver. 13. As man can bear. Lit. "such as is human." 
 Not that man could bear it by his own strength ; for our 
 contest is with superhuman powers (Eph. 6 : 12). But a 
 Christian man, having God's grace, is more than an equal 
 to his enemies, as long as his confidence is in Christ, and 
 not in himself. God is faithful, i. e. : He can be de- 
 pended upon to keep all His promises. He will never de- 
 sert the tempted one who trusts Him. If man falls, it 
 
X. i4-i6.] THE LORD'S SUPPER. 47 
 
 will be through no fault of God (James 1:3; comp. 2 
 Thess, 3 : 3). Will not suffer above, etc. Every temp- 
 tation comes, therefore, by God's permission (Job i : 10- 
 12), and is entirely within the knowledge and beneath 
 the control of God, who seeks, by the permission of the 
 temptation, to develop Christian character, and to impart 
 a blessing (Rom. 5:3-5; 8 : 35-37; i Pet. 1:7; James 
 1:12). The way of escape, viz. by always supplying the 
 weapon whereby the assaults of the tempter may be suc- 
 cessfully resisted. (See Eph. 6:13 sqq.) 
 
 4. TJie Lord's Supper, a Warjiing against Compromises 
 zvith Idolatry (10 : 14-22). 
 
 14-22. Wherefore, my Ijcloved, fiee from idolatry. I speak as to wise 
 men ; judge ye what I say- The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not 
 a communion of the blood of Christ ? The bread which we break, is it not 
 a communion of the body of Christ ? seeing that we, who are many, are one 
 bread, one Ijody : for we all partake of the one bread. IJehold Israel after 
 the flesh: have not they which eat the sacrifices communion with the altar? 
 What say I then .-' that a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an 
 idol is anything.'' But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, 
 they sacrifice to devils, and not to Ood : and I would not that ye should 
 have communion with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and 
 the cup of devils : ye cannot partake of the table of the Lord, and of the 
 table of devils. Drdo we provoke the Lord to jealousy .'' are we stronger 
 than he ? 
 
 Ver. 14. Flee from idolatry, i. e. : Carefully avoid all 
 contact with it. Do nothing by which your irreconcil- 
 able hostility to it may be concealed. 
 
 Ver. 15. ! speak as to wise men. An appeal to the 
 Corinthians as to men of good common .sense. He does 
 not attempt to demand obedience upon his Apostolic 
 authority ; but sidDinits the case to their judgment. 
 
 Ver. 16. The cup of blessing. The cup over which the 
 blessing in the Lord's Supper is said, viz. the consecrated 
 
48 /. CORINTHIANS. [x. i6. 
 
 cup ; used, according to a well-known figure, for the con- 
 secrated wine. Which we bless. The sacramental con- 
 secration. (See Matt. 26 : 26 ; Mark 14: 23.) "Observe 
 the first person plural is the same throughout ; the bless- 
 ing of the cup and the breaking of the bread, the acts of 
 consecration, were not the acts of the minister, as by any 
 authority peculiar to himself, but only as the representa- 
 tive of the whole Christian congregation " (Alford). 
 The consecration occurs by the application of the word of 
 God with prayer (i Tim. 4 : 5). " In the administration of 
 the Holy Supper the words of institution should be pub- 
 licly spoken or sung, distinctly and clearly, and should in 
 no way be omitted : i. That obedience may be rendered 
 to the command of Christ * This do.' 2. That the faith of 
 the hearers concerning the nature and fruit of this sacra- 
 ment (concerning the presence of the body and blood of 
 Christ, concerning the forgiveness of sins and all benefits 
 which have been purchased by'the death and shedding of 
 the blood of Christ, and arc bestowed upon us in Christ's 
 testament) may be excited, strengthened, and confirmed 
 by Christ's word. 3. That the body and blood of Christ 
 may therewith be administered," etc. {Formula of Con- 
 cord, p. 616). "The consecration occurs when, by the 
 recitation of the words of the Lord's Supper, we recall 
 the minds of communicants to the first blessing which 
 once proceeded from the mouth of Christ, whereby He 
 consecrated the cup of blessing for the communication of 
 His precious blood — the force of which blessing lasts even 
 to the present time, and is recalled to our memories by 
 the recitation of the words of institution " (HUNNIUS). 
 A communion of the blood of Christ, i. e. : A sharing or 
 participation in the blood of Christ. The meaning is that 
 by drinking of the consecrated wine, with it we become 
 partakers of the blood of Christ. The Greek word prop- 
 
X. i;.] THE LORD'S SUPPER. 49 
 
 erly speaking does not mean " communication ; " and 
 yet, since the cup is the sharing in Christ's blood, no 
 violence is done the meaning by declaring that the cup is 
 a means of communicating or imparting Christ's blood, 
 or a communication of the blood. " He who drinks of 
 this cup is a partaker of the blood of Christ " (Bengel). 
 The bread which we break. The breaking of the bread 
 was only preliminary to the distribution. The meaning, 
 therefore, is : The bread which we distribute. That 
 which originally belonged to one loaf is shared by many ; 
 and in that distribution, it is made the means whereby 
 those receiving it become partakers also of Christ's body. 
 Ver. 17 introduces a supplementary thought. The 
 Lord's Supper is more than a communion or participating 
 in Christ's body and blood. It is a communion with one 
 another, of those who partake of the bread and wine. 
 As there is in the Lord's Supper only one bread and 
 one body, no one partakes of these in an isolated way. 
 The one bread and the one body unite and incorporate 
 the many communicants with one another. We regard 
 the Apostle as assuming that all are believing communi- 
 cants. The question of the communion of the unworthy 
 does not enter until in the next chapter. He is writing 
 to his "beloved " in Christ Jesus (ver. 14), concerning the 
 peculiar bond which unites them by partaking of the 
 Lord's Supper, in order to warn them of a somewhat 
 similar bond which unites those who partake of the 
 heathen sacrifices, and to urge them against all such con- 
 tamination and fellowship. The one body alludes indeed 
 to the Mystical Rodyof Christ, the church, or communion 
 of saints (i Cor. 12 : 12, 13 ; Eph. 4:4, 12) ; but there is 
 a deeper reference here. The unity in view is not simply 
 one of faith, or, in other words, one determined by the 
 common spiritual participation in the benefits of redemp. 
 4 
 
^o /■ CORINTHIANS. [x. iS-20. 
 
 tion ; but it is one based upon the sacramental partici- 
 pation, as supplementary and confirmatory to the spiritual 
 participation. 
 
 Ver. 18. An illustration, even though it be of a lower 
 kind, he says, may be found in the Israelitic sacrifices. 
 After the flesh determines the reference as not being to 
 the spiritual Israel, but simply to the external congrega- 
 tion, or community. (Comp. i : 26 ; also Rom. 9 : 5.) 
 Communion with the altar. " The one who ate the 
 sacrifices had thus an actual participation with the altar 
 on which the sacrifices were consumed. The sacrifice 
 was that which mystically united the worshipper and the 
 altar to which he brought his offering" (Ellicott). 
 " By their participation in the sacred banquets, they 
 approved these sacrifices in no obscure way, and openly 
 united as adherents of that worship " (HUNNIUS). There 
 was no need of drawing the inference ; it was immediately 
 patent, viz. : No one can, therefore, participate in the 
 banquets made in honor of idols, without thereby partic- 
 ipating in the idolatrous worship, and, thus, renouncing 
 faith in Christ. 
 
 Ver. 19. An idol is anything. (Comp. 8 : 4.) The 
 prophets repeatedly treat idolatry with intense irony 
 (Is. 44 : 10-20 ; Jer. 10 : 2-6). The plea, then, might be 
 urged that if an idol were nothing, no evil could result 
 from partaking of their sacrifices, as the sacrifices would 
 be to non-entities, and, therefore, without any moral 
 
 quality. 
 
 Ver. 20. They sacrifice to devils. An idol indeed is 
 nothing ; but to show honor to that which is nothing, 
 instead of to God, is a most - serious matter. The 
 idol stands for the corruption of the idea of God, and 
 hostility to his claims. The sacrifice claims to be a 
 truly religious rite, while it is antagonistic to the very 
 
X. 20.] SACRIFICES TO DEMONS. 5 1 
 
 first conception of true religion. It is in fact open defi- 
 ance of the authority of the only true God. It elevates 
 to the throne of God, who will not share His divine 
 rights even with the highest archangel, that which is far 
 beneath even man. Back, therefore, of these idolatrous 
 rites, are the demons or agents of the devil. The merely 
 natural intellect of man, corrupt as it is, is not the source 
 of the absurdity involved in idolatry. There is a super- 
 natural Satanic influence at work, which had determined 
 the downward course described in Rom. i : 23. When 
 we are here told that such sacrifices are made to devils or 
 demons, instead of to God, it must not be inferred that 
 the Apostle means to declare that the gods of the heathen 
 have any real existence, and that they are in reality the 
 demons whom we learn to know in the Gospels and in 
 Acts by the various cases there given of demoniacal pos- 
 session. " It is indeed probable that in i Cor. 8 : 4 sqq. ; 
 10 : 19 sq., Paul, when he used the word ' demons ' in 
 speaking of the Greek gods, takes it from the LXX. of 
 Deut. 32 : 17; but Paul there maintains, in my opinion, 
 not that the individual heathen gods are demons, but 
 only that, in the service of the heathen gods, a demoniac 
 element prevails" (QlHLER's O. T. Thcoiogy, Transl. 
 p. 105). So the Church writer, Atiienagoras : " They 
 who draw men to idols are the aforesaid demons." Vain 
 as are the idols, the demons delight in the sacrifices that are 
 made them ; and the service of idols is thus a real service 
 of the demons, who stand back of the idol and act under 
 its cover. In Acts 17 : 22-29, Paul approaches idolatry 
 on the other side. He concedes that beneath it there 
 lies a real element of truth. There is a religious instinct 
 within man which cannot be satisfied with the world of 
 sense that surrounds him, and that constantly incites 
 him to seek after God. But this does not blind Paul, 
 
52 /. CORINTHIANS. [x. 21, 22. 
 
 even in Acts, to the folly and guilt of the perversion 
 (Acts 17 : 29). It is one thing for him to recognize and 
 proclaim the element of truth to the heathen themselves, 
 in order to lead them to a realization of the inconsistency 
 of their position, and quite another thing to ask Christians 
 to hold this element in such regard, as to countenance 
 the perversion by joining in idolatrous worship. Have 
 communion with devils, i. c. by joining in such feasts^ 
 they testify that the service of idols is after all a matter 
 of indifference, and thus share in the work and guilt of 
 demons in keeping the worshippers in bondage to their 
 errors. 
 
 Ver, 21. Ye cannot drink. A "moral impossibility " 
 (Meyer), "without very great sin" (Beisgel). They 
 could not drink of the cup of the Lord, so as to receive 
 the blessing for which the cup was provided. Cup of the 
 Lord is that which the Lord has provided and offers. 
 Cup of devils is that which has been devised, prepared, and 
 offered by demons. 
 
 Ver. 22. Do we provoke the Lord. Since idolatry brings 
 down His wrath (Ex. 22 : 20; 23 : 13 ; Lev. 26 : i ; Deut. 
 II : 16, 17; 27 : 15 ; Ps. 97 : 7). Recall the provocation 
 by idolatry in the wilderness (ver. 9 ; Ps. 95 : 8 ; Heb. 
 3 : 16). Are we stronger, i. e. : If we enter into a contest 
 with God, can there be any doubt as to who shall be the 
 victor? (Comp. Ez. 22 : 14.) 
 
 5. Summing up and Decision of the Qiiestion.{to : 23 — 1 1 : i). 
 
 ■» 
 
 23-33. AH things are lawful ; but all things are not expedient. All 
 things are lawful; but all things edify not. Let no man seek his own, but 
 eac/i his neighbour's ,^'-('C(/. Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, eat, ask- 
 ing no question for conscience sake; for the earth is the Lord's, and the 
 fulness thereof. If one of them that believe not biddeth youA' a feast, and 
 ye are disposed to go ; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no ques 
 
X. 23-28] CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. 53 
 
 tiou for conscience sake. lUit if any man say unto you, This hath been 
 offered in sacrifice, eat not, for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience 
 sake : conscience, I say, not tliine own, Ijut the other's ; for why is my 
 liberty judged by another conscience? If I Ijy grace partake, why am I 
 evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? Whether therefore ye eat, 
 or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Give no occa- 
 sion of stumbling, either to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the church of God: 
 even as I also please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but 
 \\\c profit of the many, that they may be saved. 
 
 I. Be ye imitators of me, even as I also am of Christ. 
 
 Vcr. 23-28. All things . . . expedient. A repetition 
 of 6 : 12. (Sec annotations as there given.) All things 
 edify not. (Comp. 8 : \.\ Only that is expedient or 
 proper for the Christian, that maybe done without injury 
 to his fellow-men. Each his neighbour's good. Restated 
 in Rom. 15:2. (Sec Annotations. Comp. Phil. 2 : 4.) 
 Vcr. 25. In the shambles. The meat-market. The 
 Christian is directed to have no conscientious scruples 
 concerning the meat which he purchases. If the question 
 be not raised, and thus no distinction be made between 
 what has been sacrificed and what has not, it is a matter 
 of entire indifTerence whether he use such meat or not. 
 " Curiosity is often more hurtful than simplicity " 
 (Bengel). But if others make a distinction, either by 
 attaching special virtue to such meat, or by endeavoring 
 to make the most of your conduct as a precedent, the 
 duty of absolutely declining it is clear. The fulness 
 thereof. (From Ps. 24 : i.) All that the earth contains, 
 and therefore all its food, whether consecrated to idols 
 or not. (Comp. i Tim. 4:4; vers. 27, 28.) The same 
 principle is applied to feasts, as to the market. The 
 feasts referred to cannot be sacrificial feasts, as partaking 
 of food there has been absolutely prohibited. Nor can 
 they be any feasts in an idol's temple, or of a religious char- 
 acter. (Comp. 8 : lo.) But they must, therefore, be enter- 
 
54 /. CORINTHIANS. [x. 28, 30. 
 
 tainments in a private house to which reference is made. 
 Attendance at such feasts would not be absolutely wrong. 
 "Christ ate with Pharisees (Luke 7 and 14); Paul, with 
 Gentiles in the ship (Acts 27) ; and the examples of 
 Joseph in Egypt, of David among the Philistines, and of 
 Daniel among the Babylonians are well known, who, 
 without loss of faith, lived among the ungodly and did 
 not share in their sins or have fellowship with their works 
 of darkness (Eph. 5)" (HuNNlUs). At such feasts, the 
 use of sacrificed meat might naturally be anticipated. 
 But unless the question were actually raised concerning 
 some particular food, the Christian, without the least 
 scruple, could and should eat of everything set before 
 him. If the question be raised, then the Christian must 
 abstain from the sacrificed meat, lest his eating of it 
 might be construed into an endorsement of the worship 
 of idols. The person raising the question here seems to 
 be some fellow-Christian who is not in the clear concern- 
 ing the right of the Christian to partake of all things, and 
 whose conscience must be spared. (Comp. 8 : 7.) 
 
 Ver. 29. Why is my liberty judged ? i. e. : Not only, 
 what right has another to interfere with my liberty, but 
 also why should I use my liberty in such a way that I 
 am misunderstood and condemned by others, and thus 
 hindered from building them up in the faith, and thus 
 advancing their highest interests ? Why should I use my 
 liberty, so as to interfere with my influence ? The service 
 and edification of others, even of the weakest in the 
 faith, is a part of the work which Christ entrusts to His 
 followers. Free from all, we are nevertheless the servants 
 of all ; and we serve all, when we refrain from the full 
 use of that to which we are actually entitled, viz. the 
 full exercise of our Christian liberty. (See 9 : 19-22.) 
 Thus he throws the decision not upon his own conscience, 
 
X. 30-32] A VOIDING OFFENCE. 55 
 
 which is free to cat or not, but on the conscience of his 
 weak brother, whom he endeavors to edify. 
 
 Ver. 30. If I by grace partake, etc. Here again indi- 
 cating both the unreasonableness of the demand made by 
 a weaker brother, and at the same time the subordination 
 of the Christian's Hberty, as well as of all else that he has, 
 to his service of God in his service of his fellow-men. 
 For which I give thanks. (Comp. Rom. 14 : 6; i Tim. 
 
 4 : 3-5-) 
 
 Ver. 31. This section is concluded by the statement of 
 the two great principles that should underly the entire 
 Christian life, first, the glory of God, and, secondly, the 
 salvation of our fellow-men. These principles must con- 
 stantly guide us, even in the use of adiaphora. In nothing 
 can we act independently of them. Eat or drink or 
 whatsoever ye do, viz. however insignificant or however 
 permissible in itself it may be. All to the glory of God. 
 " The glory of God is the celebration of the Divine good- 
 ness, righteousness and wisdom, which the Apostle wants 
 to be regarded and promoted in all the actions of our 
 lives, so that we may do nothing against conscience, god- 
 liness or honesty" (Baldwin). (Comp. Matt. 5:16; 
 Col. 3 : 17 ; I Pet. 4 : ii.) 
 
 Ver. 32. No occasion of stumbling. A specific applica- 
 tion of the principle of living for the glory of God. This 
 limitation must always be placed upon the exercise of 
 Christian liberty, or we obscure, instead of promote, the 
 glory of God. Either to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the 
 church of Christ. The Jews and Greeks describe the 
 two classes of non-Christians, and not the two sections of 
 the Church, as some have proposed. The meaning is 
 that the use of Christian liberty must be so regulated that 
 neither believers nor unbelievers can find in it any en- 
 couragement for sin or error. Jews and Greeks arc 
 
^6 /• CORINTHIANS. [x. 33— xi. I. 
 
 offended, when they find in the life of Christians that 
 which seems to endorse their course of rejection of Christ. 
 The reference here, we must remember, is not to the doing 
 of what is in itself a sin, but to the use of that which in 
 itself is perfectly proper, as the eating of certain kinds of 
 meat, and the drinking of certain kinds of drink, in regard 
 to which our consciences are clear, but in which others 
 find that which they regard sinful. " If a Christian were 
 to eat in an idol's temple, or would go to a sacrifice, the 
 Jews said : ' You can see how true is their profession that 
 they worship only one God.* The Greeks said : 'If they 
 do this, they cannot find fault with idolatry.' Those who 
 are still tender Christians were easily impelled to defection 
 when any evils impended " (Grotius). " Regard must 
 be had not only to our own conscience, but also to that 
 of our neighbor, lest it be disturbed by our words and 
 deeds. For this reason, even in regard to food, some of 
 our liberty must be renounced, provided it cannot be used 
 without injury to the weak " (CalOVIUS). 
 
 Ver. 33. That they may be saved. The ultimate end 
 of this withholding of the exercise of Christian liberty is 
 not simply to avoid giving offence, but by avoiding offence 
 to promote the salvation of men, or the glory of God in 
 the salvation of men. Paul makes his Christian liberty a 
 slave in the service of the great calling of his life. No 
 sacrifices to him are real sacrifices, no waving of rights a 
 humiliation or hardship, if thereby he may bring souls to 
 Christ. (See above 9 : 22, where the same thought is 
 expressed.) 
 
 Ver. I. Be ye imitators of me. The very culmination 
 of the entire section. Hence Calvin well observes : " It 
 is apparent how unfortunate are the divisions of chapters 
 whereby this sentence is separated from what precedes 
 to which it should be appended, and is attached to what 
 
XI. I.J ADIAPHORA. 57 
 
 follows with which it has nothing common. In these 
 words, he reminds the Corinthians that he has asked 
 nothing of them, which he himself docs not observe, and 
 refers them to Christ as the only exemplar of a proper 
 course of life." If Paul is the type of life to which they 
 are to conform, Christ is its archetype. (Comp. Phil. 
 2 : 4-8.) 
 
 (B.) Women in the Public Services (11 : 2-16). 
 
 2-16. Now I praise you that ye remember me in all things, and hold 
 fast the traditions, even as I delivered them to you. But I would have you 
 know, that the head of every man is Christ ; and the head of the woman 
 is the man ; and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or proph- 
 esying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. But every 
 woman praying or prophesying with her head unveiled dishonoureth her 
 head : for it is one and the same thing as if she were shaven. For if a 
 woman is not veiled, let her also be shorn : but if it is a shame to a woman 
 to be shorn or shaven, let her be veiled. For a man indeed ought not to 
 have his head veiled, forasmuch as he is in the image and glory of God : 
 but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman ; 
 but the woman of the man : for neither was the man created for the woman ; 
 but the woman for the man : for this cause ought the woman to have a 
 sign ^authority on her head, because of the angels. Howbeit neither is 
 the woman without the man, nor the man without the woman, in the Lord. 
 For as the woman is of the man, so is the man also by the woman ; but all 
 things are of God. Judge ye in yourselves: is it seemly that a woman 
 pray unto God unveiled .'' Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a 
 man have long hair, it is a dishonour to him ? But if a woman have long 
 hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering. But if 
 any man seemeth to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the 
 churches of God. 
 
 Another question concerning adiaphora, applying the 
 principle of ver. 32 : " Give no occasion of stumbling 
 either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God." 
 Questions concerning covering and uncovering the head 
 in public worship do not belong to the essentials of the 
 faith or of Christianity. A man surely can truly worship 
 
S8 /. CORINTHIANS. [xi. i- 
 
 God and can preach to edification with his head covered. 
 A woman can worship to edification, and can profitably 
 discharge every duty as a member of the congregation 
 to which the Lord may call her, with her head uncovered. 
 The grace of God is not bound to such externalities. 
 But what of itself is a matter of no importance, may, 
 under certain circumstances, be of great moment, while, 
 under others, its significance need not be regarded. The 
 Augsburg Confession cites as an example this question of 
 covering the head : " It is lawful for bishops or pastors 
 to make ordinances that things be done orderly in the 
 Church, not that thereby we should merit grace or make 
 satisfaction for sins, or that consciences be bound to 
 judge them necessary services, and to think that it is a 
 sin to break them without offence to others. So Paul 
 ordains that women should cover their heads in the con- 
 gregation, that interpreters of Scripture he heard in order 
 in the Church, etc. It is proper that the churches should 
 keep such ordinances for the sake of charity and tran- 
 quillity, so far that one do not offend another, that all 
 things be done in the churches in order, and without con- 
 fusion ; but so that consciences be not burdened to think 
 that they be necessary to salvation, or to judge that they 
 sin when they break them without offence to others ; 
 as no one will say that a woman sins who goes out in 
 public with her head uncovered, provided only that no 
 offence be given " (Art. XXVI I.). " Christian Liberty 
 moderates Apostolic rites, ... so that they may be in- 
 stituted, changed and abrogated, with a view to edifica- 
 tion, time, place, persons, etc. Thus the regulation of 
 the Apostles concerning what has been strangled, and 
 concerning blood, has long since ceased to be observed. 
 For the cause on account of which it was made is no 
 longer present. In i Cor. ii, Paul decides that men pray 
 
XI. 2.] THE TRADITIONS. 59 
 
 and prophesy with head uncovered; but women, with 
 covered head. He divines this from the circumstances 
 of place and time. For, in those places, men went into 
 public with uncovered heads, and women, both slaves 
 and frecdwomen, with veiled heads. To speak with un- 
 covered head was a sign of authority, and the contrary, 
 one of subjection. In our times and places, the opposite 
 is observed. For to speak or hear with uncovered head 
 is a testimony of subjection, and with covered head, a 
 sign of authority " (CllEMNITZ, Exainoi, p. 86, Preuss ed.). 
 
 The decision here given has, thercfcMe, an entirely 
 temporary character and temporary validity. It has re- 
 spect to peculiar circumstances of time and place. But 
 circumstances of time and place may, therefore, elevate 
 to the rank of an absolute obligation, that which other- 
 wise is entirely free. Postures and apparel in worship are 
 not, when regarded in their relations, matters of entire 
 indifference. Even an attitude may have an interpreta- 
 tion that must be carefully regarded, and may be decisive 
 as to its adoption or rejection. Superficial thinkers con- 
 stantly confound what is non-essential with what is un- 
 important, and regard the two terms synonymous. 
 
 Ver. 2. I praise you. Such conciliatory introductions 
 are usual with Paul. Hy conceding them all due honor, 
 he always prepares the way for a rebuke. Hold fast the 
 traditions, i. e. the "regulations concerning worship and 
 Church government which he had given them, either 
 orally or by private letter. Rome uses this passage as a 
 support of its position that oral traditions are supple- 
 mentary to Holy Scripture as sources of doctrine. The 
 claim is unfounded because (i) there were as yet no Holy 
 Scriptures ; (2) the traditions probably referred only to 
 such matters as, in their specific form, were, as in the 
 present case, determined by peculiar circumstances. The 
 
6o /. CORINTHIANS. [xi, 3. 
 
 Apostle praises the Corinthians for their general care- 
 fulness to conform to his directions; but, with all this 
 care, some abuses had crept in. 
 
 Ver. 3. The head of every man is Christ. The Order of 
 Redemption is here in view. By " every man," the 
 Apostle means every believing man (12 : 12, sq.). All 
 authority belongs to Christ (Matt. 28: 18). The figure 
 is frequent to indicate that Christ is worshipped and 
 obeyed, as the absolute source of all power and knowl- 
 edge. (See Eph. i : 22 ; 4 : 15 ; 5 : 23 ; Col. i : 18.) 
 The reference is not to the inner constitution of the 
 Church, but to it as externally organized for the purposes 
 of worship, discipline, and beneficence ; for, on its inner 
 side, the Christian wife, as a spiritual priest, has access to 
 Christ just as immediate as is that of her husband. The 
 head of the woman is the man. The wife is dependent 
 upon and subordinate to her husband (Eph. 5 : 24; i 
 Tim. 2 : 12 ; i Pet. 3 : i). Equal as they are before God, 
 having alike direct access as spiritual priests to Christ, 
 nevertheless with respect to the outward life, and partic- 
 ularly in their joint-relations to the Christian congrega- 
 tion, the power of decision must always be with the 
 husband. " Authority and government are lodged in 
 him ; the household has its unity and centre in him ; 
 from him the Avife receives her cherished help ; his views 
 and feelings are naturally adopted and acted out by her ; 
 and to him she looks for instruction and defence. Severed 
 from him, she becomes a widow, desolate and cheerless ; 
 the ivy which clasped itself so lovingly round the oak, 
 pines and withers when its tree has fallen. And there is 
 only one head ; dualism would be perpetual antagonism " 
 (Eadie on Eph. 5 : 22). The head of Christ is God. 
 According to the Order of Redemption, the second 
 person of Trinity co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, 
 
XT. 4-6.] APPAREL FOR IVORS FIT P. 6 1 
 
 by assuming human nature and, in it, performing tlie 
 various works belonging to the Mediatorial office, places 
 himself in a subordinate position. (Comp. John 14 : 28.) 
 The explanation of this by HUNNIUS, B.VLDWIN, as refer- 
 ring to the assumed human nature, while correct, is not in- 
 tended to be brought into prominence here. The absolute 
 co-cquality of the persons of the Godhead proves the 
 absolute co-equality before God of the two sexes. The 
 subordination of the Son to the Father in the work of 
 Redemption, proves the subordinate relation in which 
 woman stands to man in regard to the external life. 
 
 Ver. 4. Every man praying, i. e. : making a public 
 prayer. Or prophesying, i. e. speaking in the public 
 assemblies of Christians, under the immediate influence 
 of the Holy Spirit. Having his head covered. The Jews 
 prayed with veiled faces, in order to express their great 
 reverence of God ; they would not venture to appear as 
 though they addressed Him face to face. Among the 
 Romans, the practice was similar. The Greeks, on the 
 other hand, required that the head should be uncovered 
 when sacred rites were performed. It was natural for the 
 Greek custom to be followed at Corinth. It was sup- 
 ported by the consideration of the new relation in wliich 
 the Christian stands to God under the N. T. There is 
 but one Mediator, Christ (i Tim. 2 : 5), and to Christ 
 believers have immediate access. There are no saints or 
 angels, there is no Virgin Mother to intervene ; nothing 
 is to stand between him and his Redeemer. Dishonoureth 
 his head. Hence the veil is out of place ; by its use, he 
 denies the freedom and confidence he has in Christ, and 
 the assurance God has given that he is a Son of God. 
 (See 2 Cor. 3 : 13-18.) The "head " dishonored is Christ 
 who is thus denied. 
 
 Vers. 5, 6. Every woman praying or prophesying. 
 
62 /. CORINTHIANS. [xi. 5, 6- 
 
 " In granting women the right to prophesy, the Apostle 
 does not contradict himself in i Cor. 14 : 34. For just 
 as none but men are ordinarily permitted to prophesy or 
 to interpret the Scriptures, so what is stated concerning the 
 prophesying women was something entirely extraordi- 
 nary, adopted to their relations of time, where the Holy 
 Spirit appeared -visibly not only upon the men, but also 
 upon the women, so that they spake with tongues and 
 prophesied. . . . Extraordinary cases may occur in which 
 a woman can properly discharge some part of the minis- 
 terial office. Thus Scripture mentions the prophetess 
 Deborah (Judges 4 and 5), Iluldah who liv^cd in the time 
 of Josiah, Anna the prophetess (Luke 2), and the daughters 
 of Philip. Priscilla instructed the doctor of the church at 
 Corinth, Apollos," etc. (HuNNlUS). " The singular gift 
 of the Holy Spirit which was promised the primitive 
 church by Joel 2 : 28 " (Baldwin). With her head un= 
 veiled. It was natural for the women in prophesying to 
 follow the new custom which the men had adopted, and, 
 upon the ground of their essential equality in Christ, to 
 dispense with the veil. But with them, the veil had been 
 more than a simple attire for prayer, as with the men. 
 It was the sign and token of their relation as wives. To 
 dispense with it was, therefore, for the time being to 
 attempt to rise above the station in which God had 
 placed them as wives, to renounce their subjection to 
 their husbands and to proclaim their independence. 
 Even where no deliberate purpose of that kind was in 
 view, it would readily be so misinterpreted at Corinth, 
 with its peculiarly relaxed view oT the marriage relation, 
 and where the uncovered and even the shaved head were 
 badges of license and infidelity to marriage vows. " What 
 Paul means to say, then, is : A woman praying with un- 
 covered head stands, in the eye of public opinion, guided 
 
xt. 7-IO.] WOMAAT IN THE CHURCH. 63 
 
 as it is by appearances, on just the same level with her 
 who has the shorn hair of a courtesan " (Meyer). 
 
 Ver. 7. Image of God, viz. with respect to his lordship 
 and dominion over the earth and all it contains (Gen. i : 26 ; 
 Ps. 8 : 6-8). Nothing stands between man and God. 
 Even tlie angels who, according to the Order of Creation, 
 were above him, are, according to the Order of Redemp- 
 tion, beneath him (Heb. 2 : 16). While this is true of all 
 humanity, it belongs to the men in a peculiar sense in 
 respect to the external life. For man's being the image 
 of God, and his dominion were prior to the creation of 
 woman (Gen. 2 : 19-21). Hence Paul derives from this 
 an argument for the subjection of women, in i Tim. 2 : 13. 
 (Comp. ver. 8.) The woman is the glory of the man. This 
 does not deny that woman is the image of God ; but she 
 has that image by being the glory of man. Sharing in 
 his glory, she thereby shares in that dominion over all 
 things, which he had before her creation. The dominion 
 and image she obtains through the glory, i. e. mediately, 
 and not immediately, as man possesses it. She is depend- 
 ent upon man, not man upon her. 
 
 Vers. 8, 9. Not of the woman. Reference is thus 
 made to the history of the creation in Gen. 2 : 21-23. 
 Mankind began with Adam, not with Eve. So according 
 to ver. ,9, Eve was made for Adam, not Adam for Eve. 
 
 Ver. 10. A sign of authority, i. e. a badge of the re- 
 lation she bears to man, and of his authority over her, 
 for in this is her glory. The laying aside of this badge 
 does not render her independent, but only degrades 
 her. To be as God means one to be, is the highest 
 glory a person can have. The wearing of the veil would, 
 therefore, be a token of her humble and grateful accept- 
 ance of the lot which God had assigned her. Because of 
 the angels. Amidst numerous interpretations, the fact 
 
64 /• CORINTHIANS. [xi. ii. 
 
 that "angels" when unlimited means always "the good 
 angels," and that it was a customary thought among the 
 Jews to regard the angels present in the assemblies of 
 worshippers (Ps. 138 : i), suggest that this is the meaning 
 here. As Erasmus has paraphrased : " If a woman has 
 arrived at that degree of shamelessness, that she does not 
 fear the eyes of men, let her at least cover her head on 
 account of the angels who are present at your assemblies." 
 " Not only Christ, but all the angels will be witnesses of 
 the license, if women lay aside the veil " (Calvin). 
 Calvin understands the allusion to the angels as having 
 reference to their superiority in rank. May it not mean, 
 then, besides the thought of their presence, that also of 
 the grateful manner in which each angel accepts the grade 
 in which God has created him, and fulfils its duties? 
 The angels of the lower grade in no way envy or attempt 
 to assume the place of those of the higher grade. Their 
 worship in the heavenly sanctuary is accompanied with 
 the most rigid observance of the relation that each bears 
 to the other. 
 
 Ver. II. Nor the man without the woman. A limita- 
 tion of what has been just said. Man's independence is 
 not absolute, or his will to be arbitrary. They stand after 
 all in a reciprocal relation. If priority belongs to him, 
 he depends upon her for all his prosperity. He cannot 
 do without her. " Man does not exist without woman ; 
 for this would be a head cut off of its body. Neither 
 does woman exist without man ; for this Avould be a body 
 without a head " (Calvin). In the Lord. Not simply 
 in the sphere of nature, but in that also of grace ; in the 
 work and worship of the Church, as well as elsewhere. 
 Their interests in the Lord are common. Whatever ad- 
 vances the interest of the one in the sphere and calling 
 God has assigned, advances that of the other 
 
XI. i2-i6.] WOMAN IN THE CHURCH. 65 
 
 Ver. 12. The woman is of the man. (See ver. 8.) The 
 man is by the woman. Every man since Adam has had 
 a mother. All things are of God, i. e. : This is the order 
 that He has appointed. Man's priority is not a personal 
 one, but one in which he stands as God's representative. 
 Woman's subordination is not, properly speaking, to man. 
 but to the Lord (Col. 3 : 23). 
 
 Ver. 13. Judge ye. (Comp. 10: 15.) Is it seemly, i. e. 
 decent. 
 
 Verses 14, 15. Doth not even nature itself teach. 
 " The law of creation " (Alpord). The rule is not so 
 absolute that, under all circumstances, man's hair is to be 
 shorn, and woman's unshorn. Nature itself varies with 
 climate ; and the variations in national customs frequently 
 conform to changes in national conditions. But the 
 Apostle means that the very luxuriance of woman's hair 
 suggests that man is to assume a more prominent place 
 and to appear in public with open face in a way that she 
 cannot. The appeal, however, let it be noted, must be 
 interpreted according to the customs of those to whom 
 Paul writes. (See Smith's Bible Dictionary, Article 
 " Hair.") The Jewish custom was that here prescribed. 
 The hair of the Avomen was unshorn, Avhile that of the 
 men was cut short. The custom among the Greeks was 
 for both sexes to wear long hair. Hence the cutting of 
 the hair of the women was contrary to the usage of both 
 Jews and Greeks — the two elements of which the Corin- 
 thian Church was composed. 
 
 Ver. 16. If any man seemeth to be contentious, i. e. : 
 If any one still be unconvinced and wishes to argue con- 
 cerning the matter. We have no such custom, neither 
 the churches of God. He should remember that there is 
 no precedent for such a course. It is contrary to the 
 universal practice of the churches. This should at onec 
 5 
 
66 /• CORIN-THIANS. [XI. 17. 
 
 decide his course. If he persist in his arguments, we 
 shall not pay to them any more attention. " Let them 
 remember that it is not our custom to dispute with the 
 contentious, nor is it the custom of the churches of God 
 to excite or cherish altercations, inasmuch as such discus- 
 sions confer nothing towards edification, but only to de- 
 struction " I^HUXNIUS). " The contentious are those who, 
 without necessity, violate good and useful rites, who ex- 
 cite controversies concerning matters that are not in 
 doubt, who yield to no reasons, who allow not themselves 
 to be reduced to order. Such are the separatists, who by 
 a foolish affectation are led to new and unusual forms. 
 These persons Paul does not deem worthy of reply, be- 
 cause their contention is pernicious, and, therefore, ought 
 to be suppressed by the churches " (Calvix). 
 
 (C.) Disorders at the Lor if s Supper (11: 17-34). 
 I. The Abuse Stated. 
 
 17-22. But in gi\"ing you this charge, I praise you not, that ye come to- 
 gether not for the better but for the worse. For first of all, when ye come 
 together in the church, I hear that divisions exist among you ; and I partly 
 believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which 
 are approved may be made manifest among you. When therefore ye 
 assemble yourselves together, it is not possible to eat the Lord's supper: 
 for in your eating each one taketh before other his own supper ; and one is 
 hungr],-, and another is drunken. What ? have ye not houses to eat and 
 to drink in ? or despise ye the church of God, and put them to shame that 
 have not ? What shall I say to you ? shall I praise you in this .'' I praise 
 you not. 
 
 Ver. 17. Thi5 change, viz. that comprised in the pre- 
 ceding section. I praise you not. In ver. 2, he had 
 praised them for their general obser\-ance of his directions. 
 He deals here with variations from their commendable 
 conduct. These are of a most serious nature. For the 
 worse. Their congregational services, instead of con- 
 
XI. i8, 19.] CHURCH DISSENSIONS. 67 
 
 tributing to edification were so conducted that spiritual 
 injuiy resulted therefrom. 
 
 Ver. 18. First of all introduces the subjects of criti- 
 cism, which were, first, the abuse of the Lord's Supper, 
 and, secondly, the abuse of spiritual gifts treated of in 
 chapter xii. In the church, i. e. in the assembly of 
 Christians. " Approaches meaning : ' Place of meeting 
 (Bengel). Divisions. Lit.: "Schisms." But " schism " 
 has become a technical term, designating a rupture of the 
 external union of the Church, which it cannot mean here. 
 It means the separation of the congregation into cliques 
 and parties, indicating a divergence of interests among 
 them. (Comp. i : 10 sqq.) Some have applied their 
 imaginations to this passage, so as to suggest that the 
 parties of Paul, Apollos, Cephas, and Christ had separate 
 tables for the Lord's Supper. I partly believe it. There 
 is a foundation for the report. He hopes that the extent 
 of the divisions may have been exaggerated. 
 
 Ver. 19. Heresies. This word has also a technical 
 theological meaning, and is thus applied to a doctrinal 
 error which is immediately directed against the founda- 
 tion truths of Christianity. This is not its meaning here. 
 As in Acts 24 : 14, the meaning is nearer that suggested 
 by its etymology, and refers to the setting up of individ- 
 ual judgments in opposition to the divisions of those 
 who have authority, or the common interests. They 
 occur where men arise who attempt to judge and act in 
 all things arbitrarily, being deaf to argument and im- 
 patient of contradiction. A divine purpose is here shown 
 to be at the back of the existence of such evils. They 
 are permitted in order that they which are approved 
 may be made manifest. Unbelief, which otherwise 
 might exist in obscurity, is allowed to assume a positive 
 and aggressive form, to provoke the confession of faith 
 
68 /. CORINTHIANS. [xi. 20, 21. 
 
 and the maintenance of God's claims by those whose 
 devotion would otherwise have remained unknown. The 
 presence of such evils is the temptation, or trial, which, 
 like a touch-stone, tests and brings into view the real 
 character of men, the good, as well as the bad. 
 
 Ver. 20. Not possible to eat the Lord's 5upper. Very 
 serious irony. What occurs is so at variance with the 
 institution and purpose of the Holy Supper, that it may 
 be said : Such a festival as that which you celebrate can 
 scarcely be called the Lord's Supper ! It seems to be 
 degenerating more into the place of a mere social banquet, 
 if not into that of a carousal ! The Agape or Love-feast 
 preceded the Lord's Supper in the early Church. " Agape 
 is sometimes used for the Lord's Supper, as, among 
 others, by Ignatius in his Epistle to the Smyrneans, 
 chap. viii. In the beginning, it appears to have been 
 celebrated before the Sacrament, according to the pre- 
 cedents of the first Lord's Supper. Afterwards it became 
 the rule that it should follow the Sacrament, because, 
 according to the decision of the Third Council of Car- 
 thage, Canon 29, only sober persons should partake of 
 the Supper. Only on Maundy Thursday, as the day of 
 institution of the Lord's Supper, was the ancient custom 
 retained, especially because of the Manicheans and Pris- 
 cillianists. But the Trullan Council commanded that the 
 Lord's Supper should be received fasting on this day " 
 {A\5G\3'>,Tl, Christliche Archcsologic,\.: pp.499sq.). This 
 shows the abuse of the Agape by the very excesses in its 
 use, against which Paul here warns. 
 
 Ver. 21. His own supper. A'mere private, as contrasted 
 with the common meal. For when, at the Agape, private 
 tables took the place of one table, and each one selected 
 his own nearest circle of friends around his own table, 
 with such provisions as his means supplied, the greatest 
 
XI. 22, 23.] SACRILEGE. 69 
 
 inequality would prevail among those dining in the same 
 room ; or when one simply partook alone of what he 
 brought with him from home, a similar result would 
 follow from the plenty of the rich, and the scanty provis- 
 ion of the poor. Taketh before refers to the eagerness 
 with which they sought the food and drink there pro- 
 vided, so that each one thought only of himself. One 
 is hungry, i. e. : He comes to this holy ordinance bent 
 upon satisfying the cravings of his appetite. Another is 
 drunken. The words mean what they say. The effects 
 of the excessive use of the wine are felt. 
 
 Ver. 22. Have ye not houses? This means that the 
 Lord's Supper was not instituted for the appeasing of 
 hunger and thirst. This should be provided for in do- 
 mestic life. So sacred an ordinance was degraded when- 
 ever it was used or connected with such purposes. The 
 Church of God, viz. the Christian congregation constitut- 
 ing the one body of Christ, within whose worship no such 
 distinctions should occur. That have not, viz. the poorer 
 members of the Church, who suffer by the contrasts pre- 
 sented in such separation of interests and of eating and 
 drinking. Shall I praise you? In order to carry con- 
 viction, he throws the statements of ver. 17 into the form 
 of an appeal. 
 
 Tlie Seriousness of the Abuse Proved from the Institutio?i 
 of the Lord's Supper. 
 
 23-27. For I received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, 
 how that the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread ; 
 and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, This is my body, 
 which is for you : this do in remembrance of me. In like manner also the 
 cup, after supper, saying. This cup is the new covenant in my blood: this 
 do, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat 
 this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord's death till he come. 
 
 Ver. 23. For I received of the Lord. Connects closely 
 
70 /. CORINTHIANS. [xi. 24. 
 
 with preceding verse. The emphatic ego of the Greek 
 also must be regarded. The thought is: " How would 
 it be possible for me to praise you, inasmuch as I have 
 been entrusted with a special revelation from the Lord, 
 that most clearly shows that all such use of the Lord's 
 Supper is directly contrary to its institution ? " I deliv- 
 ered unto you. That revelation you also know; fori 
 have taught it. You have, therefore, no excuse for your 
 course. In the night in which he was betrayed. All 
 the circumstances of the institution are stated, in order 
 to bring the historical fact into prominence. "A deeply 
 solemn and arresting thought contrasted with the frivol- 
 ity displayed among the Corinthians at the Agape " 
 (Mevek). Incidentally these words teach that the Lord's 
 Supper is the sacrament of completed redemption, as it 
 was instituted, not at the beginning of Christ's ministry, 
 but just as He is about to lay down His life. Took bread. 
 (See SCH^FFER on Matthew 26 : 26.) 
 
 Ver. 24. (See on 10: 16.) For exposition of the words 
 of institution, see, as above, the commentary on Matthew 
 (ch. 26 : 26). The distinction here is made between the 
 Lord's Supper and all other meals, in that, in the former, 
 with the bread, the body of Christ, and with the wine, 
 the blood of Christ is offered and received. " The body 
 of Christ is the chief part of this supper" (BALDWIN). 
 This, viz. " This which I hand you." Hy body, viz. the 
 true, real, substantial body of Christ, which was crucified 
 for our sins, lay in the grave, w^as raised from the dead, 
 walked on the weaves, entered closed rooms, ascended 
 into heaven, and, when the Lord's Supper was instituted, 
 as also whenever and wherever the same supper is admin- 
 istered, is present and received through the properties of 
 a spiritual body inseparably united to an Omnipotent 
 and Omnipresent Divine Nature. For you. Notice the 
 
XI. 25, 26.] THE HOL Y COMMUNION. 7 1 
 
 absence of " given " found in A. V. " The words ' for you ' 
 require truly believing hearts " (LuTllER). Do in remem- 
 brance of me. The presence of the body and blood of 
 Christ in the Lord's Supper affords the surest pledge of 
 the provision of Redemption through the vicarious suffer- 
 ings and death of the Son of God, and of the offer of all 
 its benefits, and their saving application to all who re- 
 ceive the words " for you " in true faith. The Lord's 
 Supper is an epitome of the Gospel, which cannot be 
 properly read unless the key of the doctrine of the Real 
 Presence be applied. It commemorates our need of 
 Christ, and of a suffering Saviour as the penalty for sins 
 that no earthly expedient can remove. It commemorates 
 also the mysterious power and infinite love that have in- 
 tervened in His divinely-human person, and that bring the 
 efficacy of divine grace, through the very blood of the 
 covenant, to all who come to this Holy Ordinance. It 
 is the communion, not of an absent, but of a present, 
 although unseen, Christ. 
 
 Vers. 25, 26. The new covenant in my blood. " My 
 blood of the covenant" (Matt. 26:28). For explana- 
 tion, see note on that verse. The underlying thought is 
 that it is only through the shedding of Christ's blood 
 that the new covenant is established, and that with the 
 wine of the Lord's Supper, the very blood, which has 
 been shed, is present and given to all communicants, as a 
 pledge to each one of God's gracious will to him. As oft 
 as ye drink it, viz. whensoever you drink. Ye proclaim. 
 Much better than " show " of A. V. The meaning is : 
 The Lord's Supper is a memorial of Christ's death, so 
 clear and forcible that, in partaking of it, the communi- 
 cants declare more loudly than by words all that is com- 
 prehended by the one word, redemption. The Lord's 
 Supper, without the sacrifice of Christ for sin, would be a 
 
72 /. CORINTHIANS. [xi. 26. 
 
 meaningless ceremony. Neither is its testimony to the 
 full extent of redemption heard, unless the bread is be- 
 lieved to be the communion of Christ's body, and the 
 wine to be the communion of His blood. The Lord's 
 death. Not that the testimony and assurance of the 
 Lord's Supper end with His death, but that it comprises 
 all that the Gospel tells of His death, with its limitajjons 
 in His glorious resurrection. The body and blood in the 
 Lord's Supper assure us of a Redeemer, " who liveth, 
 and was dead, and is alive forevermore " (Rev. i: 18), 
 " who being raised from the dead dieth no more ; death 
 hath no more dominion over Him " (Rom. 5 : 9). We pro- 
 claim Christ's life as well as His death, as in the Lord's 
 Supper we partake not of His dead, but of His ever living 
 body, endowed with resurrection-power. Until he come, 
 viz. at His Second Coming. (See John 14: 3.) TheLord's 
 Supper will be administered and received until the Second 
 Coming of Christ. Hence, there will always be Christians 
 on earth. The Church shall never cease to exist. (Comp. 
 Matt. 16: 18.) The Lord's Supper, therefore, is not only 
 a memorial of the past, but it points forward to the 
 future. It is a pledge of Redemption: i. Provided; 
 2. Applied ; 3. To be without fail completely realized, for 
 both soul and body, at Christ's return. 
 
 3. The Proper Reception of tJie Lord's Supper. 
 
 27-34. Wherefore whosoever shall eat 'be bread or drink the cup of the 
 Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But 
 let a man prove himself, and so let him eat of the bread, and drink of the 
 cup. For he that eateth and drinketh, eateth and drinketh judgement unto 
 himself, if he discern not the body. For.this cause many among you are 
 weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. But if we discerned ourselves, we 
 should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the 
 Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. Wherefore, my 
 brethren, when ye come together to eat, wait one for another. If any man 
 
XI. 27-] COMMUNION OF THE UNWORTHY. 73 
 
 is hungry, let him eat at home; that your coming together be not unto 
 judgement. And the rest will I set in order whensoever I come. 
 
 Ver. 27. Eat the bread or drink the cup. Not " and," 
 as in A. V. Each is regarded separately, thus intensify- 
 ing the warning. Unworthily. Referring, first of all, 
 to such an abuse as had occurred among the Corinthians, 
 and, then, generalizing the statement, so as to cover all 
 cases where the Lord's Supper is abused. Calvin is 
 right in affirming that there are various degrees of un- 
 Avorthiness in the reception. Absolutely speaking, all are 
 unworthy, as the words of the Centurion, so often applied 
 to the Holy Supper, declare (Luke 7 : 6). Our worth- 
 iness, therefore, must consist solely in the merits of 
 Christ, in which we come to the Lord's Table (Phil. 3 : 9), 
 The unworthy, then, are those who are without the 
 righteousness of Christ, i. e. unbelievers. " He who eats 
 and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks judgment to him- 
 self. But he who believes, whether his faith be weak or 
 strong, is not condemned (John 3:18). He, therefore, 
 who believes, even though his faith be weak, does not 
 receive judgment in the Eucharist, and, hence, is not to 
 be numbered with the unworthy whom the Apostle 
 affirms bring down upon themselves judgment. Besides, 
 if this declaration concerning guilt and judgment were 
 directed by St. Paul against the weak in faith, would not 
 they who know themselves to be such be altogether de- 
 terred by this declaration of the Apostle from the use of 
 the Supper? Yet the Lord's Supper was instituted for 
 the very purpose that, by its use, weak faith may be 
 strengthened and encouraged. (See also Matt. 9: 12; 2 
 Cor. 12: 10) "(HuNNius). LUTIIER, in his defence before 
 Cajctan, at Augsburg, Oct. 14th, 15 18, treating of the 
 communion of the unworthy, said: "But if you say: 
 What, if I be unworthy, and unprepared for the sacra- 
 
74 t' CORINTHIANS. [xi. 28, 29. 
 
 mcnt ? I answer : By no preparation are you rendered 
 worthy, by no works are you made fit for the sacrament, 
 but by faith alone, because faith in Christ's word alone 
 justifies, renders worthy, quickens, and prepares, and 
 without it all else is a matter either of presumption or 
 despair. For the just lives not by his preparation, but 
 by his faith. Of your unworthiness, therefore, you ought 
 not to doubt, but should approach the Holy Sacrament, 
 just bccaiise yoiL arc umuorthy, in order to be inade ivortJiy, 
 and be justified by Him, who came to seek and save not 
 the righteous, but sinners." In the case of many of the 
 Corinthians, this unworthiness or absence of real faith in 
 Christ manifested itself in conduct showing their utter 
 lack of appreciation of what the Lord's Supper both is 
 and brought them. They looked on its purely external 
 side, as presented solely in the elements bread and wine, 
 and their purely physical use for satisfying hunger and 
 thirst. They were without the spiritual sense to long for 
 or to accept from a sense of spiritual need, i. e. from con- 
 viction of sin, the heavenly gift therein offered. Guilty 
 of the body and blood. By treating with contempt, not 
 merely the bread and wine, but the body and blood of 
 Christ, as offered them in the Lord's Supper, and thus 
 justly beneath God's anger. 
 
 Ver. 28. Prove himself, i. e. " test himself," or see 
 whether he actually be worthy by being in Christ. (See 
 2 Cor. 13:8.) Instead of receiving the Lord's Supper 
 with frivolity and self-indulgence, it is to be preceded 
 and accompanied by earnest self-recoUectedness. We are 
 to test ourselves by the Law to learn our sins and need 
 of redemption ; and by the Gospel, to ascertain how far 
 its promises are appropriated and have entered into our 
 lives as a new power. 
 
 Ver. 29. Eateth and drinketh judgment. His eating 
 
XI. 3o] COMMUNION OF THE UNWORTHY. 75 
 
 and drinking, as acts of unbelief, treating the Lord's body 
 and blood with contempt, incur God's wrath. This nec- 
 essarily means everlasting punishment, unless the person 
 be afterwards brought to repentance and faith. A com- 
 parison of the other passages where the same word occurs 
 makes this meaning clear (Luke 23 140 ; i Tim. 3:6; Jas. 
 3 : I ; Jude 4. Comp. John 3 : 18). Not discerning the 
 Lord's body, i. e. by regarding the Lord's Supper, the 
 Communion of the Lord's body and blood, precisely as 
 though it were an ordinary meal, and thus by their lack 
 of spiritual perception and disregard of Christ's Word 
 (comp. note on ver. 27) showing their unbelief. 
 
 Ver. 30. Among you refers to some who had been 
 members of their church according to the external fel' 
 lowship. Not a few sleep. Sleep is applied even to the 
 death of the godless (Dan. 12:2). "In regard of such 
 manifestations of God's judgments, it may be remarked, 
 first, that the profanation of the Lord's Supper may have 
 been, as the ' one is drunken ' (ver. 21) seems to imply, 
 of a very grievous nature; and secondly, that temporal 
 punishments, like other miraculous manifestations, in 
 accordance with the eternal wisdom of God, formed a 
 part of the disciplinary development of the early life of 
 the Christian Church " (Ellicott). Nevertheless the 
 tender manner in which the falling of these divine judg- 
 ments is stated suggests that by the gradual approach of 
 the diseases, as the thought seems to be, a gracious warn' 
 ing was given, which was not in all cases unheeded. 
 What came as a punishment of Avrath may in more than 
 one case have been changed into a chastisement of love. 
 The sin brought the penalty ; but although when the sin 
 was repented of, the disease remained and brought death, 
 the condemnation was no longer there (Rom. 8: i. See 
 ver. 32). 
 
76 /• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 31— xii. i. 
 
 Ver. 31. If we discerned ourselves. The imperfect 
 tense designates in the original what is repeated. " If we 
 were in the habit of examining and passing judgment upon 
 ourselves, it might save from that judgment of the Lord 
 which some are experiencing." 
 
 Ver. 32 shows the corrective and remedial intention 
 back of these judgments. Their chief end was to lead to 
 repentance, " God willeth the salvation of all (i Tim. 2:4; 
 4 : 10), and chastens in order that His gracious will should 
 not be hindered by the sinfulness of man " (EllicOTT). 
 
 Vers. 33, 34. Wait one for anotlier is the reverse of 
 " Taketh before " of ver. 21. The rest will I set in order 
 suggests that there are other matters connected with the 
 administration of the Lord's Supper, concerning which the 
 Apostle preferred to postpone his direction, until he could 
 be personally present and could have all the circumstances 
 in view. 
 
 (D.) Spiritual Gifts (ch. 12 — 14 : 25). 
 I. Tlicir Source. 
 
 1-3. Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you 
 ignorant. Ye know that when ye were Gentiles ye were led away unto 
 those dumb idols, howsoever ye might be led. Wherefore I give you to 
 understand, that no man speaking in the Spirit of God saith, Jesus is ana- 
 thema; and no man can say, Jesus is Lord, but in the Holy Spirit. 
 
 The new life of Christianity had taken a powerful hold 
 upon the Corinthians, and had manifested itself in most 
 energetic activity. But with many, this activity was not 
 controlled by a discreet judgment. The emotional side 
 of Christianity was perverted, and threatened to become, 
 by its abuse, their ruin. The new gifts varied, and be- 
 came the occasion for new emulations and rivalries. As 
 they quarrelled concerning the relative abilities of their 
 
Xir. 1-3.] SPIRITUAL GIFTS. if 
 
 teachers (i : 12 sqq. ; 2 : 4 sqq.), so the gifts were also 
 treated. It is the characteristic of St. Paul to refute an 
 error or censure a practice, by first thoroughly examining 
 the principles that underly the truth or the practice that 
 has been perverted. Hence he here seeks to convict the 
 Corinthians of their error by such questions as : What 
 are spiritual gifts ? Whence do they come ? What is their 
 end? What relation have they to one another? The 
 answer to these questions at once shows the folly of the 
 controversies on the subject in which they had been 
 engaged. 
 
 Vers. T, 2. Spiritual gifts. " Gifts " is not in the orig- 
 inal. The term is more general: "Spiritual matters," 
 embracing '' gifts," " ministrations," and " workings " of 
 vers. 5,6. I would not have you ignorant. (Comp. 10 : i ; 
 Rom. I : 13.) Ye were led away. He contrasts their 
 condition under the spiritual darkness of Heathenism, 
 with that which they now enjoy with the spiritual illumi- 
 nation of the Gospel. The folly of idolatry is declared by 
 the expression dumb idols. (See Is. 44 : 15-20; Ps 115 : 
 4-8.) But beyond this, the chief allusion is to the com- 
 plete dominance of impulse. They were at the mercy of 
 every fantastic suggestion that was made. There was 
 nothing fixed and stable ; everything was uncertain and 
 vacillating, as the words howsoever ye might be led 
 imply. 
 
 Ver. 3. Jesus anathema. The ecstasy which accom- 
 panied some of the supernatural gifts of the Spirit was 
 readily confounded with the ravings of false spirits. Here 
 the Apostle shows that there is but one test whereby to 
 discriminate one Avho acts and speaks beneath the power 
 of Satan, and one who acts and speaks a?i moved by the 
 Holy Ghost. Such test is the confession. Exalted utter- 
 ance, facility of expression, ardor of feeling, even speaking 
 
. 78 /. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 3. 
 
 with tongues, of themselves signify nothing. Satan knows 
 how to use them (2 Thess. 2 : 9). The Hnes are drawn ; 
 the camps are estabhshed ; the hostile armies are arrayed 
 asfainst each other. As there are two armies, and there 
 can be no neutrahty, so there are two watchwords, viz. 
 either " Jesus anathema" or "Jesus Lord." A similar 
 text is found in i John 4: 1-3. For "anathema," see 
 note on Rom. 8:3; it means something that is set apart 
 for destruction, as peculiarly hateful to God. " This 
 blasphemous utterance would mainly be that of the Jews 
 (comp. Acts 13:45; 16:6)" (Ellicott). But there 
 may have been those who spoke under supernatural 
 demoniacal impulse, whose declarations may have been 
 listened to temporarily by some of the weaker Corinthians, 
 as though their miracles were of themselves the seal of 
 their divine authority. The case may be stated for the 
 sake of the argument. To call Jesus anathema would be 
 so flagrant an offence, that it was manifest that the speaker 
 could not be moved thereto by the Holy Spirit. But 
 that one who called Jesus Lord spake by the Spirit, is 
 just as certain. Can say Jesus is Lord, i. c. " Recognize 
 Him as Lord, believe in Him, call upon, proclaim and 
 glorify His name, by a true confession of faith, holy 
 obedience, and subjection to His will. For all this a 
 special gift of the Holy Spirit is required (John 6:29; 
 Phil. I : 29) " (Calovius). The reference cannot be to 
 the lip service of Matt. 7:21, but to calling upon the 
 Lord or confessing the Lord, from the heart (2 Tim. 
 2 : 22). " To say that Jesus is Lord is to acknowledge 
 oneself as His servant, and to seek only His honor" 
 (Luther). This, howev&r, is done by all true Christians. 
 All true Christians, therefore, have the Holy Spirit, and 
 whatever be their gifts, are to be recognized and honored. 
 The diversity of gifts is rooted in the unity of the faith 
 
XII. 4-6.] SPIRITUAL GIFTS. 79 
 
 and confession of Christians. " This is the general gift 
 of the Holy Spirit, common to all Christians. In this all 
 Christians are in all respects equal " (BALDWIN). 
 
 2. Their Variety and Common Object. 
 
 4-1 1. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there 
 are diversities of ministrations, and the same Lord. And there are diver- 
 sities of workings, but the same God, who worketh all things in all. But 
 to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit to profit withal. For 
 to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom; and to another the 
 word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit : to another faith, in the 
 same Spirit ; and to another gifts of healings, in the one Spirit ; and to 
 another workings of miracles ; and to another prophecy ; and to another 
 discernings of spirits : to another livers kinds of tongues ; and to another 
 the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh the one and the same 
 Spirit, dividing to each one severally even as he will. 
 
 Vers. 4-6. The threefold parallel is worthy of particular 
 attention 
 
 j Gifts \ j Spirit. 
 
 Diversities of \ Ministrations \ ==the same \ Lord. 
 ( Workings ) ( God. 
 
 Here there is diversity in unity, and unity in diversity. 
 Where there is no diversity, there can be no organization. 
 There must be a common centre with large diversities in 
 the members that go forth from it. Gifts. " Charisms." 
 (See notes on Rom. 12 : 6-8.) The one gift of the Spirit 
 specialized according to the varied capabilities and re- 
 lations of individual members, distinguishes the endow- 
 ments of grace that result as though they were separate 
 gifts. " Whether it were that the Spirit infused entirely 
 new powers, or stimulated those already existing to higher 
 power and activity " (Meyer). Even these capabilities 
 and relations are providentially determined according to 
 God's plan for the administration of Redemption. Minis- 
 
8o /• CORINTHIANS. [xii. 5, 6. 
 
 trations are the various forms of official Christian service. 
 The fundamental thought is that of activity in executing 
 the commands of another. They refer to the various 
 spheres and function of the Christian ministry in the 
 widest sense of the term. The absolute parity of all 
 ministers does not conflict or render of no value their 
 subordination to each other in an organization for com- 
 bined efforts and mutual efficiency. The \ ery idea of 
 organization carries with it that of a diversity of minis- 
 trations. These ministrations, however, include here 
 various forms of lay activity. Workings, viz. the works 
 and effects of grace, whether of the miraculous and ex- 
 traordinary character found in the early Church, or of an 
 ordinary kind in the administration of the Word and 
 sacraments, both then and now. Whenever the gifts of 
 grace are received they at once work, and the results ex- 
 hibit diversities corresponding to the diversities in the 
 <Tlfts themselves. The same Spirit, the same Lord, the 
 same God. A clear Trinitarian declaration. The ascend- 
 ing climax from the Spirit to God implies no subordi- 
 nation of the other persons to the Father, but must be 
 understood according to the order of the Divine Revela- 
 tion. The Second Person of the Trinity is the Revealer 
 of the Father (John i : 14). But man knows God as 
 Father, only as the Son is known. Apart from and be- 
 fore the revelation in Christ, the personal distinction is 
 unknown, and the thought is alone of God. The work- 
 ings of God's grace are here traced to their very fountain- 
 head in the will of the Father who gave the Son, and 
 from the ascended Son sends down upon the Church the 
 Holy Spirit. The gifts, the ministrations, the workings 
 are not divided, as though the one class is exclusively the 
 sphere of one person ; but within each as it is revealed to 
 man, each person is peculiarly prominent. Thus John 
 
XII. 5, 6.] SPIRITUAL GIFTS. 8i 
 
 5 : 17, 19 is most clear concerning the co-ordination of 
 Father and Son in the workings here ascribed to the 
 Father alone, or perhaps better to God, in whom Spirit, 
 Son, and Father unite. 
 
 The same Spirit. A clear statement of the personality 
 and the unity of the Spirit. The Spirit is not, therefore, 
 a mere force or " motion created in things." Personal 
 attributes and works are ascribed to Him, not only here 
 but throughout the chapter, and in such places as 2 : 10. 
 The unity also makes it clear that in such allusions as 
 that in Rev. i : i to " seven spirits," the thought is that 
 of the sevenfold operations of the one Spirit of God. 
 
 The same Lord. After the resurrection and ascension, 
 regularly applied to Jesus in the N. T., and especially by 
 St. Paul. (See above ver. 4, also notes on Rom. 10 : 13.) 
 " The name Lord describes Him as the divine sovereign 
 of the world (Rom. 10 : 12; i Cor. 15 : 27) sitting at the 
 right hand of God (Rom. 8 : 34), to whom is given the 
 possession of the world " (VVeiss, Biblical TJuology, 
 I. 392). The ministrations, in their diversities, are as- 
 cribed to Him by pre-eminence, because ministers are 
 ministers of Christ (4 : i) and ambassadors for Christ 
 (i Cor. 5 : 20), and thus are the agents, through whom the 
 mediatorial ofificc of Christ, as Prophet, Priest, and King, 
 is exercised. 
 
 The same Qod. Through the Avorkings of the Spirit, 
 
 the Lord Jesus is brought to men (John 16 : 15) and men 
 
 are brought to Him. Through Christ, we come to the 
 
 Father (John 14 : 6). Thus brought through the Spirit 
 
 to the Son, and through the Son to the Father, all God 
 
 is ours, and all diversities of gifts, ministrations, and 
 
 workings proceed from the one God. We do not regard 
 
 the word "God" here used as restricted to the Father. 
 
 He is clearly implied, but the very change in the term, 
 6 
 
82 I. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 7-8. 
 
 emphasizes the unity of the Godhead. Worketh all in 
 all. The distinctions, then, rest upon distinction of God's 
 gifts, not of human merits or works. God's workings 
 are not to be despised in the least, or to be assumed as 
 one's own in the more exalted. These works are " begun, 
 continued and ended in" God, " from whom all holy de- 
 sires, all good counsels, and all just works do proceed." 
 " Not : ' He worketh all things in one,' or one would be 
 proud, but ' in all,' so that what one has not in himself, 
 he may have in another " (Anselm). 
 
 Ver. 7. To each one, viz. of those who hav^e these gifts. 
 The thought is that wherever there is a gift, there is some 
 particular work in the Church for which God has designed 
 it. The manifestation of the Spirit, i. e. : The Holy Spirit 
 bestows the gift that externally manifests His presence. 
 The gift manifests the Spirit ; and, at the same time, the 
 Spirit manifests Himself in and through the gift. To 
 profit, and, therefore, neither for mere display, nor for 
 pride in the consciousness of its possession. 
 
 Vers. 8-1 1. Through the Spirit, as the agent. Accord- 
 ing to the Spirit, as the standard. In the same Spirit, as 
 the element in which the faith mentioned lives and acts. 
 This variety is grounded not only in the unity of the 
 one God, but also of the one Spirit. The word of wis= 
 dom, viz. ability to apply the facts and doctrines of 
 Christianity to the varied events and perplexities of the 
 Christian life, the unction of devotional utterance. An 
 illustration is found in the hymns, the prayers, the devo- 
 tional books of an Arnd or a Gerhard, the sermons of many 
 devout preachers, the casuistic- and practical counsel of a 
 Baldwin or a Spener. The word of knowledge, viz. the 
 ability to present, in due order and with clearness, the 
 doctrines of Christianity, or its important facts illustrated 
 by the confessions and scientific theologians of the Church. 
 
xii. 9, lo.] FAITH OF MIRACLES. 83 
 
 The two gifts supplement one another. " The latter term 
 is divine science, and the first is that enlightenment which 
 springs from it. So that the first noun is subjective, and the 
 second objective. The study of the knowledge brings the 
 * wisdom,' wisdom results from penetration into this knowl- 
 edge ; knowledge is the study, and wisdom its fruit " 
 (Eadie on Col. 2 : 3). Knowledge must be assimilated, 
 in order to be transformed into experience, from which 
 the word of wisdom proceeds. LUTHER, however, refers 
 "wisdom" to the dogmatical, and " knowledge" to the 
 ethical side of Christian doctrine. 
 
 Faith. " Not the common faith in Christ, whereby one 
 is justified before God, and obtains forgiveness of sins, 
 since this must be found in all Christians, even though 
 they have not the particular gifts here mentioned ; but 
 he here mentions a peculiar virtue or power of Spirit 
 which He works in the Church, so that some can do great 
 and remarkable things with unwavering courage (i Cor. 
 13: 2)" (Luther). "That heroic impulse, incited by 
 which, men attempt, from no rash boldness or arbitrary 
 caprice, but from a secret movement of the divine Spirit, 
 great undertakings, and, beyond the expectation of all 
 men, conduct them to their desired ends with promptness 
 and ease " (HUNNIUS). " It is found to-day in those who 
 with great confidence cleave, in doubtful affairs, to God, 
 where others, who are without this faith, in anxiety of mind, 
 tremble, and cannot promise for themselves the longed- 
 for success " (Baldwin). " An extraordinary degree of 
 practical moral energy, in which the superiority of sancti- 
 fied will over nature reveals itself " (Schapt). Gifts of 
 healing. Miraculous cures (Mark 16: 18; Acts 4:30; 
 19 : 1 1, 12 ; 28 : 8). They do not exclude the use of means 
 to which extraordinary efficacy is given, as in James 
 5 : 14. Workings of miracles, i. e. : All miracles be- 
 
84 I.CORINTHIANS. [xii. lo, ii. 
 
 side those of healing: Peter's slaying Ananias and 
 Sapphira (Acts 5:3); Paul's blinding Elymas, the sor- 
 cerer (Acts 13 : 11) ; the raising of the dead (Acts 9 : 
 40); the giving over to Satan (i Tim. i : 20). Prophecy. 
 (See note on Rom, 12:6.) Discernings of spirits. " Here 
 a peculiar faculty is indicated, which Paul declares has 
 not been given all believers, so that by certain marks 
 not immediately obvious to every one, one distinguishes 
 between true and false teachers, and, by a peculiar sagacity 
 of an enlightened mind, foresees what the devil is plan- 
 ning through this or that false teacher" (HUNNIUS). Not 
 to be confounded with natural perspicacity. Kinds of 
 tongues. Inspired utterance in a rhapsody of devotion, 
 peculiar to the Apostolic Church. See Mark 16 : 17, 
 where the reference to new kinds of tongues, not simply 
 foreign languages, is most clear, when the original is con- 
 sulted. This gift seems to have included the ability to 
 speak in foreign languages, as on the Day of Pentecost ; 
 but it could not have been limited thereto. In the 
 Corinthian Church, the form which it assumed was that 
 of an address to God, intelligible to none but those en- 
 dowed Avith the gift of the interpretation of tongues. 
 Language is ordinarily the means of conveying our 
 thoughts to others ; but here it conveyed no meaning 
 (14: 2). All these, viz. charisms or gifts. One and the 
 same Spirit. Thus the unity underlying the diversity is 
 brought into prominence. The possession of the more 
 eminent gifts does not justify the despising of those who 
 have only those thatare humbler. Dividing to each one. 
 The adaptation of the work of the Spirit in His extraor- 
 dinary gifts to the varying capacities of the members of 
 the Corinthian Church. Even as he will. In the face 
 of such a statement, who can deny the personality of the 
 Holy Spirit? (Comp. 3 : 5-7.) 
 
XII. 12.] THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 85 
 
 On this entire section, sec SCHAFF, History of the 
 Apostolic Church, pp. 469-484. 
 
 3. Their Organic Union. 
 
 2-31. For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the 
 members of the body, being many, are one body ; so also in Christ. For 
 in one Spirit were we all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, 
 whether bond or free; and were all made to drink of one Spirit. For the 
 body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say. Because I am 
 not the hand, I am not of the body ; it is not therefore not of the body. 
 And if the ear shall say. Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body ; 
 it is not therefore not of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where 
 were the hearing ? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling .■' 
 But now hath God set the members each one of them in the body, even as 
 it pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body ? 
 But now they are many members, but one body. And the eye cannot say 
 to the hand, I have no need of thee : or again the head to the feet, I have 
 no need of you. Nay, much rather, those members of the body which seem 
 to be more feeble are necessary : and those farts of the body, which we 
 think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more al)undant hon- 
 our ; and our uncomely farts have more abundant comeliness ; whereas 
 our comely farts have no need : but God tempered the body together, giv- 
 ing more abundant honour to that part which lacked ; that there should be 
 no schism in the body ; but t/iat the members should have the same care 
 one for another. And whether one member suffereth, all the members 
 suffer with it; or one member is honoured, all the members rejoice with it. 
 Now ye are the body of Christ, and severally members thereof. And God 
 hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondly prophets, thirdly 
 teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, divers 
 kinds of tongues. Are all apostles .'' are all prophets .■• are all teachers ? are 
 all workers (^ miracles ? have all gifts of healings ? do all speak with tongues ? 
 do all interpret ? But desire earnestly the greater gifts. And a still more ex- 
 cellent way shew I unto you. 
 
 Ver. 12. The illustration of the body and its members 
 is introduced to show that Christians are not isolated and 
 independent units, but that they arc mutually interde- 
 pendent. (Sec notes on Rom. 12:4,5.) ^® '* Christ. 
 All being united with and in Christ, through Him they 
 become one body. 
 
86 /• CORINTHIANS. [xii. 13-16. 
 
 Ver. 13. In one Spirit. In this statement of the man- 
 ner in which they were united, more is meant than 
 that the Holy Spirit is the agent whereby it is ac- 
 comphshed. He is not only the agent, but the very 
 element in which the spiritual life thus begun moves and 
 acts. The emphasis is on " one." " One is not baptized 
 in one, and another in another spirit. Not only is there 
 one who baptized us, but one, into which he baptized, 
 i. e. on account of which he baptjzed " (ChrysOSTOM). 
 Into one body, viz. so as to become one body. Whether 
 Jews or Greeks. Worldly distinctions, such as those 
 made on national and social lines, do not avail here. 
 Drink of one Spirit. Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Hun- 
 nius, Calovius, and many others down to Hcnrici, refer 
 this to the Lord's Supper. But why should so sudden 
 and abrupt a change be made ? It is more natural to 
 refer it to the gift of the Holy Spirit, bestowed in bap- 
 tism, which believers receive, as the trees planted by the 
 streams drink of the water at their roots. The first 
 clause of the verse refers, therefore, to the gift ; and the 
 second, to our reception of it through the new powers 
 that come with this gift. 
 
 Ver. 14. Not one member, but many The unity of 
 the body is not inconsistent with a variety of members. 
 To an organism, this is necessary. The one end is at- 
 tained by a variety of functions. It is the same prin- 
 ciple that obtains in the distribution of labor in social 
 organizations. 
 
 Vers. 15, 16. Differences of functions do not imply 
 contradiction or independence. The folly of envy 
 among Christians is illustrated by the harmony of the 
 various members of the body. The figure was a familiar 
 one to the ancients. yEsop's fable and a passage in the 
 Second Book of Livy (II. 32) may be noted. 
 
xii. 17-2S.] THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS. 87 
 
 Vers. 17-19 show the great loss to the body if the 
 individuality of its various members were destroyed. 
 The body is maintained by the careful preservation of 
 their distinctive functions, as they are all made to con- 
 verge upon one end. 
 
 Ver. 20 expresses the other side of ver. 14. Ver. 14 
 had taught unity in diversity ; ver. 20 teaches diversity 
 in unity. 
 
 Ver. 21 sets forth the importance of the less prominent 
 members to those that are more prominent. " For as the 
 hand needs the direction of the eye, with which it per- 
 forms its ofifice so as to work aright ; so also the eye 
 needs the protection of the hand, if it is to avoid injury. 
 Although the head has the most prominent position, never- 
 theless it needs the feet in order to be moved from place 
 to place ; as well to avoid injury, as to obtain what is for 
 its advantage " (CllLOVlUS). 
 
 Vers. 22-24. riore feeble, less honourable, are general 
 terms, stating the principle, and were scarcely intended 
 to indicate a rigid classification. In general, the former 
 refer to the more delicate organisms, such as the eye and 
 the ear ; and the latter, the parts covered by clothing, 
 except the class that are mentioned as uncomely, where 
 the reference is clearly to the demands, not so much of 
 protection, as of modesty. The argument is that every 
 part of the body is necessary and useful, and that there 
 is a compensation for the relative prominency some of 
 the members have. God tempered the body. By fur- 
 nishing the original clothing (Gen. 3 : 21). 
 
 Vers. 25, 26. No schism, i. e. no antagonism. The 
 body is rent asunder, and all suffer, when a collision of 
 interests is imagined. The same care. Self-interest de- 
 mands it. A member provides best for its own interests, 
 when, forgetful of self, all its efforts are directed towards 
 
88 /. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 26-28. 
 
 the service of the other members. Whether one mem= 
 ber suffer. " A pain in any portion, even the most re- 
 mote from the seats of life, affects the whole " (LlAS). 
 All the members rejoice with it. "'And how do they 
 rejoice with it ? ' say you. The head is crowned, and the 
 whole man is honored. The mouth speaks, and the eyes 
 laugh and are delighted. If the eyes appear beautiful, the 
 whole person is embellished. When a straight nose and 
 upright neck and other members are praised, the eyes 
 rejoice ; and again they shed tears in great abundance 
 over the griefs and misfortunes of the other members, 
 even when they themselves continue uninjured " (Chry- 
 sostom). 
 
 Ver. 27. Now ye are the body of Christ. A return to 
 the thought of ver. 12. Severally. Margin: "Each in 
 his part." The individuality of each member is entirely 
 consistent with their unity in one body. The preserva- 
 tion of this individuality is necessary for the continuance 
 of the body. Not only is one not to attempt the office 
 of the other; but it is an impossibility for the eye to do 
 the work of the hand, or the feet that of the head. 
 
 Ver. 28. God hath set some. The interpretation pre- 
 serves the very language in which the figure was stated. 
 (See ver. 18.) This passage is of great importance for the 
 light which it throws upon the organization of the Church. 
 " Paul here recounts some grades of those who have been 
 placed in the ministry of the Church, thus teaching clearly 
 that that anarchy is in no way pleasing to God, according 
 to which no one is either over or under another. But 
 God decided that there should be a diversity of gifts, for 
 the very purpose, that to those endowed with more gifts, 
 greater things should be assigned " (HuNNius). On 
 these several offices, Calovius says : " The apostles hold 
 the chief place, as immediately called ; as those who laid 
 
XII. 28.] FORMS OF MINISTRY. 89 
 
 the foLindation.s of the churches among the Gentiles (see 
 Rev. 21 : 14); and as those who were led by the Holy 
 Spirit, into all truth, and thus were absolutely infallible. 
 In the second rank are placed the prophets, who taught 
 concerning future or abstruse subjects, such as those in 
 the Church at Antioch (Acts 11:27), Judas and Silas 
 (Acts 14:32), Agabus (21:10), and the daughters of 
 Philip (Acts 21 :9). In the third rank are placed the 
 teachers, who although they did not speak from imme- 
 diate revelation, nevertheless were divinely endowed with 
 a peculiar gift for teaching. If the question be asked 
 why in this catalogue the Apostle omits the ' evangelists 
 and pastors,' who in Eph. 4:11 have the third and 
 fourth places, while the * teachers ' have the fifth place; 
 the reason, I think, is that the evangelists are compre- 
 hended here, partly under the prophets and partly under 
 the teachers, as, like Mark and Luke, they were divinely 
 inspired, or were not." On apostles, see note on Rom. 
 I : I ; on prophets and teachers, notes on Rom. 12 :6, 7. 
 Mever classifies the various offices here mentioned as 
 follows: " I. To the gift of teaching, the most important 
 of all, belong apostles, prophets and teachers. 2. To the 
 gift of miracles, miracles, gifts of healings. 3. To the gift 
 of practical administration, helps and governments. 4. To 
 the ecstatic charism, various kinds of tongues." Miracles, 
 gifts of healing. (See above on ver. 10.) Helps. The 
 office of deacons and deaconesses, as in Acts 6:3; Rom. 
 16: I ; I Tim. 3 : 8-1 1. Possibly referred to in the final 
 clause of Rom. 12:8. Qovernments. The office of 
 presbyter, derived from the synagogue, and often desig- 
 nated in Apostolic times as that of the episcopate, or 
 bishop, in accommodation to the Greek and other Gentile 
 Christians. As the diaconate ^\■as occupied with works 
 of mercy, the presbyterate regulated the order and dis- 
 
90 /■ CORINTHIANS. [xil. 29. 
 
 cipline of the Church. Kinds of tongues. (See above on 
 ver. 10.) " From this order, it is clear that there is a 
 subordination of ministers of the Church ; and, that it is 
 of divine right, and necessary from the harmonious con- 
 stitution of the mystical body, and differs in ranks of 
 dignity, Hulsemann proves: i. From the word 'hath 
 set,' which is employed equally concerning the natural ap- 
 pointment of members of the body, from the pure will of 
 God (ver. 18), and the application of this will in appointing 
 ministers in the Church, especially if the word zihai be 
 explained by parallel passages, as Acts 20:28; Rom. 
 4- 17 ; 9 • 33 ; 2 Cor. 5 : 19 ; i Thess. 5:9; i Tim. 1:12; 
 2 : 7 ; 2 Tim. i : 1 1. 2. Because the same natural neces- 
 sity of subordination occurs in the harmony of the natural 
 (vers. 13-15), and of the ecclesiastical body (vers. 27-29). 
 3. A diversity of dignity is manifest also from the terms 
 * honorable ' and * less honorable ' (vers. 22, 23, 24). 4. Also 
 from the diversity of dignity between the eye and the 
 toe (vers. 17, 22). 5. From the offices signifying prece- 
 dency of order and dignity (ver. 28). 6. Finally, by a com- 
 parison of the offices. For as teaching and prophecy, in 
 the abstract, excel bodily and external ministries (Acts 
 6 : 2, 3 ; I Cor. 14 : 39 ; i Tim. 5 : 17), so, in the concrete, 
 ministers occupied in these diverse offices are of higher 
 rank one to the other, according to the above cited pas- 
 sage in the Epistle to Timothy, and here (vers. 28, 29), as 
 well as in the last verse, where ' the greater gifts ' are 
 mentioned " (Calovius). 
 
 Ver. 29. Are all ? " That is, not very many are " 
 (Bengel). There is a differe-ntiation and distribution of 
 offices and gifts. One office must not be confounded or 
 interchanged with the other. This verse alone would be 
 sufficient to disprove the statement that to all Christians 
 belongs inherently the exercise of the ministerial office, 
 
XI,. 3t— xin. I.] LOVE GKEATEK ril AN GIFTS. 9I 
 
 and that only, for good order's sake, what belongs to all 
 is exercised by one or a few. 
 
 Ver. 3 1 . The greater gifts. Those accomplishing most 
 for the good of the Church and the glory of God. " They, 
 then, merit praise who endeavor to rise by honorable 
 means, and exert their natural gifts in order that they 
 may be able to labor more than others. For this is ' to 
 stir up the gifts of God,' as Paul required (2 Tim. i : 6). 
 They, on the other hand, who bury their Lord's talent, 
 i. e. waste God's gifts by their idleness, do not hear from 
 Christ so grateful a sentence (Matt. 25 : 26, 27)." A still 
 more excellent way shew I. These words are the intro- 
 duction to the next chapter, and should be included in 
 it. The thought is that desirable as these gifts are, they 
 are valueless without love, and that the lowest gift with 
 love is greater than the highest without it. Where love 
 prevails, the ardor of a holy ambition to cultivate all 
 powers and use all gifts to the utmost, will always be 
 present. Love is the energizing, impelling, transforming, 
 enabling force of the Christian life. 
 
 4, TJicir Rcgulati)ig Principle {zi\. 13). 
 {a^j Love Greater tJian Gifts. 
 
 1-3. If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not 
 love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. And if I have 
 the i^ift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge ; and if I 
 have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 
 And if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to l>e 
 burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. 
 
 Ver. I, Tongues of men and of angels. The gift of 
 tongues was, in the estimation of the Corinthians, the 
 greatest of all. \\\ the preceding chapter (ver. 28) Paul 
 had shown that it was of a far lower rank than that of the 
 
92 /. CORINTHIANS. [xiii. i. 
 
 gift and office of teaching and preaching. Here he de- 
 clares that the very highest degree of this gift conceivable 
 is incomparable to the gift of love, which the Holy Spirit 
 graciously works in all who resist not His will. Not that 
 the gift of tongues, or any other of God's gifts, is to be 
 lightly esteemed, but that love is to come first, in order 
 that the gift may be a blessing, and have value. The 
 suggestion that Paul here means to affirm that angels 
 have a peculiar language, such as he heard when he was 
 caught up into Paradise (2 Cor. 12 : 4), is without suffi- 
 cient foundation. The force of the statement is that 
 even though the bounds of all earthly excellence in the 
 gift of tongues were surpassed, his possession of this dis- 
 tinction without love would be useless. Love. The 
 Greek dyd-rj^ unknown to the classical writers, was used 
 in the N. T. to denote a new conception of love. " Self- 
 denying and compassionate devotion " (Cremer). This 
 meaning of " love," Creimer exhibits by its contrast with 
 the (piXa'Aipoj-Kia of the Greek as stated by Nagelsbach in 
 \\\% Post-Homeric Theology. " We shall not lorm a correct 
 idea of the spirit and essence of neighborly love among 
 the Greeks, unless we remember that the word for it, 
 philanthropia, should not mislead us into the belief that 
 it was practised from love to man as such. It was rather 
 an exhibition of that justice which gives to a man that 
 to which he is entitled, whether he is a friend and bene- 
 factor who has a personal claim, or a fellow-citizen who 
 has a political claim, or a helpless and needy fellow-man, 
 having a divine claim to help. Nothing more was neces- 
 sary to the full display of neigJiborly love, than to give a 
 man the full rights to which he was entitled." This was 
 after all nothing but an effort to satisfy justice, mere 
 respect for law. Only once in the Pauline Epistles 
 (2 Thess. 3 : 5) is the word employed in any other sense 
 
XIII. 2.] LOVE GREATER THAN GIFTS. 93 
 
 than for love to man. Used of love to God only when 
 so determined by an objective genitive. Sounding 
 brass, clanging cymbal. Nothing but an instrument to 
 make a noise as acted upon from without. Destitute of 
 all sensibility and life and emitting a sound without 
 character or meaning. Vox, prcetcrca nihil. The ears 
 are deafened by the din, but the mind is not instructed, 
 or the heart refreshed. " As the cymbal neither hears 
 its own sound, nor is improved thereby, so such a preacher 
 docs not understand what he himself says, and is not 
 profited thereby before God. Much better would it be 
 were he dumb, than that he should speak like an angel, 
 and yet sc-jk onl}- his own interest " (LUTIIER). 
 
 Ver. 2. The gift of prophecy. (See on 12 : 28, and espe- 
 cially Rom. 12:6.) A man may be great as a preacher, 
 or even as an organ of inspired utterance, and, neverthe- 
 less, amount to nothing. As an example, Balaam may 
 be cited. Know all mysteries. Here the peculiar force 
 of the word "mystery," as used by St. Paul, should be 
 recalled. (See on Rom. 11 : 25 ; i Cor. 2 : 7,) It means 
 what had been unknown, but has been revealed. " To 
 know all mysteries " is, therefore, to be a great theologian, 
 to have an accurate knowledge of all the doctrines of 
 Revelation, The implication is clear to the fact that the 
 knowledge of all mysteries is not necessary to salvation. 
 " That one should not merely hold, in the way of or- 
 dinary Christians, the catechetical chief heads of doctrine, 
 but should penetrate into the very sanctuary of heavenl)' 
 wisdom, and learn that wisdom to whose summit none of 
 the princes of this world have been able to ascend (i 
 Cor. 2), is an inestimable divine benefit. If, in such a 
 man, the Holy Spirit rule, faith prevail, love be eminent, 
 he may be called a select vessel and organ of God, to 
 assert the truth of the mysteries of the Gospel against 
 
94 /• CORINTHIANS. [xiii. 3. 
 
 its assailants or corrupters. But if the spirit of pride in- 
 flate his mind, if ambition blind his mind, this most 
 eminent gift of God is of no profit, as it is used not for 
 the glory of God and the welfare of the church, but is 
 enslaved to the caprice and ambition of its possessor in 
 framing new dogmas, disturbing the churches, and lead- 
 ing astray the minds of the simple" (HUNNIUS). Have 
 all faith. The reference is not to justifying faith, but to 
 that peculiar faith through which miracles were wrought. 
 (See notes on ch. 12 19.) Justifying faith is never with- 
 out love ; but faith of miracles may be without it (Matt. 
 7 : 22). 
 
 Ver. 3. If I bestow all my goods. " Wonderful ampli- 
 fication ! He said not, ' If I give to the poor the half of 
 my goods,' or 'two or three parts,' but 'though I give all 
 my goods.' And he said not 'give,' but ' distribute in 
 morsels,* so that to the expense may be added the ad- 
 ministering with all care " (Chrysostom). ' Bestow ' is 
 literally ' dole out,' morsel by morsel, and means, there- 
 fore, that the life of the giver is devoted to the details of 
 the administration of his bounty, so that it may reach 
 the greatest number. Such gifts may have no love at 
 their root. They may come from work-righteousness, 
 or the desire, as in Matt. 6 : i, to gain the favor of men, 
 or the constraint of conscience which is reluctantly fol- 
 lowed, instead of the principle of 2 Cor. 9:7. I give my 
 body to be burned. This is more than resignation to 
 such martyrdom when it comes. It is the cheerful sur- 
 render of the life to the cause which is persecuted. But 
 such martyrdom also may be without love. Many a bad 
 cause has its martyrs. Men are willing to die sometimes 
 rather than acknowledge that they are wrong. " Among 
 the heathen, there are examples of those who, with 
 greatest fortitude, endured most 'exquisite torments for 
 
XIII. 4, 5-] CHARACTERISTICS OF LOVE. 95 
 
 the sake of their country, as Regulus, Scaevola, Curtius. 
 They have their praise before men. But before God, 
 every praise vanishes that does not spring from faith, 
 or from Christian love, but from the desire for glory " 
 (HUNNIUS). Martyrdom is not of itself a proof of the 
 righteousness of a cause. 
 
 {b^ The Characteristics of Love. 
 
 4-7. Love suffereth long, and is kind ; love envieth not ; love vaunteth 
 not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not its 
 own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil ; rejoiceth not in unright- 
 eousness, but rejoiceth with the truth ; beareth all things, believeth all 
 things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 
 
 Ver. 4. Suffereth long. Defers anger, and the inflic- 
 tion of merited punishment as long as possible. (See 
 note on Rom. 2 : 4.) Is kind, i. e. mild, gentle. Same 
 root, as word as in Matt. 11 : 29, and " goodness " of 
 Rom. 2 : 4. Envieth not. Envy cannot enter, since 
 this love recognizes the gifts and prosperity of a brother 
 as belonging to the entire body of Christ, and, therefore, 
 as promoting the welfare of all the rest, being subjects 
 only for joy. Vaunteth not itself, i. e. does not boast, 
 or exalt itself over others, by acting the part of the brag- 
 gart. Among the vices that marked the godlessness of 
 the heathen (Rom. i : 30), and that will characterize the 
 degenerate Christianity of the last times (2 Tim. 3 : 2), is 
 that of boastfulness. Is not puffed up, i. e. : Does not 
 bear oneself arrogantly; several times in this Epistle 
 (4: l8sq.; 5 : 2; 8 : I). 
 
 Ver. 5. Behave itself unseemly, i. e. it does nothing of 
 which it has reason to be ashamed, commits no actual 
 impropriety. Love infuses such delicate regard for the 
 rights and welfare of others, that this protects from all 
 errors in this particular. Is not provoked. The present 
 
96 /. CORINTHIANS. [xiii. 6, 7. 
 
 tense denotes here what is habitual. The person whose 
 life is pervaded by love is without that state of irritability 
 in which he is ready to vent his indignation on everything 
 that does not harmonize with his conceptions of right or 
 propriety. Love and the controversial temper are incom- 
 patible, even though love may sometimes demand that 
 controversies be undertaken. Our Lord's indignation 
 (John 2 : 15 sqq.), and that of Paul (2 Cor. 11 : 29), must 
 not be forgotten. \\\ order to show that the reference 
 here is to a condition or habit of mind, A. V. inserts the 
 word " easily," and, by this paraphrase, is nearer the 
 meaning of the original than R. V., with its more literal 
 exactness. Taketh not account of evil, A mercantile 
 phrase, as in Rom. 4:612 Cor. 5:19. Love keeps no 
 books, into which it makes entries of the wrongs done it. 
 The person who boasts that, while he forgives, he does 
 not forget, does not actually forgive. " Love writes our 
 personal wrongs in ashes or in water " (Farrar). 
 
 Ver. 6. Rejoiceth not in unrighteousness. Where 
 there is true love, the end never justifies the means. 
 Zeal for party or for self never tempts true love to rejoice 
 in a wrong that may be done an opponent. \\\ all 
 its contests, it resorts to no underhanded measures, but 
 demands fair play, and rigidly adheres to the strict line 
 of what is just. Rejoiceth with the truth. Wherever 
 the truth may be found, and even though its acknowledg- 
 ment may be misinterpreted to the temporary disadvan- 
 tage of the advocate of the right. Where there is love, 
 there is perfect candor, frankness, sincerity, no equivoca- 
 tion, no double-dealing, no suppression of the truth. 
 
 Ver. 7. Beareth all things. - It endures all labors, 
 dangers, privations, sufferings, disgraces, that are required 
 for the advancement of the interests of the person who 
 is beloved. The marginal reading of R. V., " covereth 
 
XIII. 8.] PERMANEA'CY OF LOVE. 97 
 
 all things," has some support, but, for justification of 
 translation adopted, see Thayer, on aTiyu). Believeth 
 all things. It " puts the most charitable construction on 
 all the actions " of one's neighbor. This docs not teach, 
 however, credulity or indifference to the correct judgment 
 of our fellow-men. (See above ch. 2:15; i Thess. 5: 
 21 ; I John 4:1.) Hopeth all things. This applies to 
 the future, as the preceding clause does to the present. 
 " It despairs of no man, however wicked he may be." 
 The reference here is entirely to hope concerning our 
 fellow-men, as a characteristic of lote towards our fellow- 
 men, of which the Apostle is here treating. Hope in 
 God is a co-ordinate, although an inseparable virtue. 
 Endureth all things. The reference is to perseverance 
 and persistence in the course to which love prompts until 
 its end isattained. It " remains under" the burden, until 
 deliverance comes. (Comp. Rom. 12 : 12; 2 Tim. 2: 
 10.) See notes on " Patience " (Rom. 2 : 7 ; 5 : 3 ; 8 : 25). 
 
 (^.) The Permanency of Love. 
 
 8-13. Love never faileth : but whether there be prophecies, they shall be 
 done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be 
 knowledge, it shall be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy 
 in part : but when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall 
 be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I 
 thought as a child : now that I am become a man, I have put away childish 
 things. For now we see in a mirror, darkly ; but then face to face : now I 
 know in part; but then shall I know even as also I have been known. 
 lUit now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these 
 is love. 
 
 Ver. 8. Never faileth. Is never turned from its course. 
 (Comp. Song of Solomon 8 : 7.) Prophecies shall be 
 done away. When it is fulfilled, the prophecy has no 
 longer any value for the future. So also, as inspired 
 utterance concerning present mysteries, prophecies be- 
 7 
 
p8 /• CORINTHIANS. [xiil. 9, 10. 
 
 longed to the extraordinary gifts of the early Church, 
 which did not survive beyond the age of the Apostles. 
 Tongues. Because they were a sign to unbelievers (ch. 
 14: 22), they would be no longer needed when men were 
 brought to faith. Their presence belongs to an abnormal 
 and temporary condition of things. Knowledge as inch. 
 12: 8, the scientific presentation of Christian doctrine. 
 It will vanish in the light of the clearer revelations of 
 spiritual and heavenly things that are yet to come. 
 
 Ver. 9. We know in part. Our knowledge, at present, 
 is fragmentary, incomplete, disjointed. This partial 
 nature of knowledge renders its constant growth possible. 
 Partial, as this knowledge is, it is adequate for present 
 necessities, sufficient for salvation (2 Tim. 3 : 15), and 
 comprises, in an outline, the whole counsel of God (Acts 
 20 : 27). We prophesy in part. The entire history of 
 revelation is an illustration. Revelation is progressive. 
 Every prophecy fulfilled points forward to another that 
 is yet to be fulfilled, as when we scale one mountain-peak 
 another rises to view. The whole future is not disclosed 
 to us at once. What the knowledge of Isaiah was to 
 that given in the patriarchal period, or that of the N. T. to 
 that of theO. T. (ch. 2 : 9, 10), that of to-day is still in a 
 higher degree, when compared to that which belongs to 
 the future life. 
 
 Ver. 10. That which is perfect. This does not mean 
 that man's knowledge can ever be infinite, or that his 
 progress will ever reach an end. The contrast is between 
 the goal attained and the point from which it started. 
 We will not glory in the partial knowledge possessed at 
 a preceding period, in the light of the fuller and clearer 
 revelation that follows, and which, when compared with 
 what was before enjoyed, is relatively " perfect." We 
 read the O. T. in the light of the N. T. The Apostles, after 
 
XIII. II, 12.] LIFE'S ENIGMAS. gg 
 
 Pentecost, interpreted the words they heard from Christ, 
 as they could not before the Holy Spirit was given. 
 In the clearer revelation of the world to come, we will 
 be able to understand and appreciate the limitations of 
 our present knowledge, and present prophesying or preach- 
 ing of the Gospel, as we cannot do to-day. The lower 
 constantly gives way to the higher dispensation (John 
 3: 30). 
 
 Ver. II. I was a child. The word, used in ver. 10 
 for "perfect," meaning also " full grown," is used to ex- 
 press the contrast with infancy in ch. 14: 20; Eph. 4 : 
 13,14. The word " child " here means an " infant," or 
 " babe," as in Rom. 2 : 20. The allusion evidently is 
 to the time when the very first efforts to speak are made. 
 
 Ver. 12. In a mirror. Better " through a mirror." 
 " Our knowledge of divine things is, in our present con- 
 dition, not an immediate, but one imperfectly communi- 
 cated " (Henrici), and, as such, conditioned by the 
 limitations of the medium of communication. We see 
 spiritual and eternal things, as reflected through and in 
 the corporeal and temporal world. " We see God in a 
 world which imperfectly reflects Him " (EllicOTT). 
 The allusion is not to glass mirrors of modern civiliza- 
 tion, but to the less correct steel mirrors of the ancients. 
 What a change a very slight convexity or concavity of 
 the surface will produce in distorting the objects seen ! 
 Hence " darkly " is literally " in an enigma," or " riddle," 
 referring to the. puzzling form of what is seen, leaving 
 much to be inferred beyond what is clearly expressed. 
 The words are understood ; but their full meaning lies 
 deeply concealed Face to face. The intuitive and im- 
 mediate knowledge of God. (Comp. Gen. 32 : 30 ; 
 Numb. 12:8; Job 19 : 26, 27 ; i John 3:2; Rev. 22 : 4.) 
 Know. In the Greek, the former " know " is another and 
 
lOO /. CORINTHIANS. [xiir. 13. 
 
 a weaker word than the latter. Hence margin suggests 
 for the latter " know fully," (Comp. note on Rom. 10 : 2.) 
 As I have been known, or " was known." Not " am 
 known " of A. V. " As God foreknew me, and saw the 
 end of my course from the beginning." The comparison 
 is not one of degree or extent, but only of kind. 
 
 Ver. 13. But now. Not temporal, but inferential. 
 " As the case stands," " such being the case." (See 
 ch. 12 : 18, 20.) Abideth. These three virtues are per- 
 manent, while the gifts of vers. 8-12 are temporary. 
 Faith remains ; for with every new revelation, it only 
 stands on the very brink of the fulness of God's knowl- 
 edge, and infinity is still before it. Hope abides in the 
 state of expectancy that belongs to the glorified saints, of 
 which examples can readily be found in the Book of 
 Revelation. Even though hope be fulfilled, as in Rom. 
 8 : 24, this fulfilment only opens new grounds for farther 
 hope. " Faith here is saving faith. This remains even 
 in the world to come the constant apprehensive cause of 
 salvation. That which preserves the glorified in their 
 continual possession of salvation is their constant trust in 
 the reconciliation purchased for them by the death of 
 Christ. Eternal fellowship with Christ in the future is 
 not capable of being conceived of without the eternal 
 endurance of the living ground and bond of this fellow- 
 ship, which is faith " (Henrici). The faith of miracles 
 (ver. 2) vanishes, however, when the difficulties are re- 
 moved, and there are no longer opponents to be encoun- 
 tered. The greatest of these is love. " In this passage, 
 Paul is speaking of love to our neighbor, and indicates 
 that love is greatest, because it has most fruits. Faith 
 and hope deal only with God. But love has numberless 
 works to do towards men in consoling, teaching, instruct- 
 ing, aiding, counselling, both secretly and publicly. We 
 
xiii. 13-] FAITH AND LOVE. lOi 
 
 concede that it is the ijreatest virtue, because the chief 
 commandment is : ' Thou shalt love the Lord thy God ' 
 (Matt. 22:37)" {Apology, Art. III. § 105). (Comp. 
 I John 4 : 8, 16.) " In eternal life, the realization of the 
 love of God towards us, and of our love towards God, 
 will constitute the highest stage of our blessedness " 
 (Melanchthon). " Considered in certain respects, 
 faith is greater than love ; but in other respects and 
 manners, love is greater than faith. Faith is the greater : 
 I. By reason of the object. For faith has respect alone 
 to God and Christ. Love, on the other hand, not only 
 rises to the love of God, but also condescends to love our 
 neighbor. 2. Faith is the source and mother of love ; 
 and is, therefore, the more eminent, as the cause is 
 greater than the effect. 3. Faith perfects love, so that it 
 pleases God ; inasmuch as whatsoever is not of faith is 
 sin. 4. Faith alone apprehends Christ and His merits, 
 and accordingly alone enters into the mystery of our 
 justification, which love never attains. But love is said 
 to be greater: i. Because, by its fruits, it diffuses itself 
 to more than either faith or hope, both of which benefit 
 only their possessors. 2. Because of its duration " 
 (HUNNIUS). " It is just as though I were to say that 
 Christendom is greater on earth than Christ. By this I 
 do not mean that in itself Christendom is better and 
 worthier than Christ, but that it has existed longer and 
 been more widely extended on earth than was Christ, 
 who was for only three years on earth, and that too at 
 only one place " (Lutiier). No contrast becomes pos- 
 sible, except as faith and hope are conceived of as re- 
 stricted to a sphere in Avhich love does not act, while love 
 without faith is just as absolutely inconceivable as is a 
 faith that does not end in love. The two vn'rtues have a 
 reciprocal influence : Faith begets love ; love increases 
 
I02 /• CORINTHIANS. [xiv. i 
 
 faith, which, in turn, further nourishes love. Love is 
 greater than hope ; for what would the hope of future 
 glory amount to were it not sustained by the love of 
 God ? (Comp. Rom. 5 : 5.) 
 
 5. Their Relative Value — Prophesying the Greatest of 
 all the Gifts. 
 
 (a.) Prophecy Contrasted ivith the Gift of Tongues. 
 
 XIV. i-ii. Follow after love ; yet desire earnestly spiritual ^//?j', but rather 
 that ye may prophesy. For he that speaketh in a tongue speaketh not unto 
 men, but unto God; for no man understandeth ; but in the spirit he 
 speaketh mysteries. But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men edifica- 
 tion, and comfort, and consolation. He that speaketh in a tongue edifieth 
 himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the church. Now I would have 
 you all speak with tongues, but rather that ye should prophesy : and greater 
 is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues, except he inter- 
 pret, that the church may receive edifying. But now, brethren, if I come 
 unto you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you, unless I speak to 
 you either by way of revelation, or of knov^^ledge, or of prophesying, or of 
 teaching? Even things without life, giving a voice, whether pipe or harp, 
 if they give not a distinction in the sounds, how shall it be known what is 
 piped or harped .? For if the trumpet give an uncertain voice, who shall 
 prepare himself for war.? So also ye, unless ye utter by the tongue speech 
 easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken ? for ye will be 
 speaking into the air. There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the 
 world, and no Jdnd is without signification. If then I know not the mean- 
 ing of the voice, I shall be to him that speaketh a barbarian, and he that 
 speaketh will be a barbarian unto me. 
 
 Ver. I. Follow after love. This sums up all that is 
 said in ch. xiii. The chief aim of all Christians in all 
 their relations to their fellow-men should always be to 
 cultivate love. That which all. can have, if they only 
 yield to divine grace, is to be more highly prized and 
 more diligently sought after, than any or all of those 
 gifts whereby Christians are distinguished from one an- 
 other. " Follow " expresses the persistency of the effort 
 
XIV. 2.] PROPHECY, THE GREATEST GIFT. 103 
 
 required. It is cultivated by its constant exercise. 
 Desire earnestly spiritual gifts. This shows that the 
 overshadowing importance of love does not demand that 
 these gifts be suppressed, or be lightly esteemed. The 
 Christian is to cultivate his individuality, but only in the 
 spirit of love. He is to be fired with enthusiasm for the 
 attainment of these gifts. That ye may prophesy. As 
 the gifts are inferior to the graces, and among the graces, 
 love is the greatest, so among the gifts there is a grada- 
 tion, and prophecy has the chief place. For " prophecy," 
 see notes on Rom. 12 : 6. Here it means the public dec- 
 laration of the revealed will of God — the highest form of 
 preaching in the Apostolic Church. With love reigning 
 in the heart and constraining the life, there is no position 
 so exalted as that of the preacher, 
 
 Ver. 2. The standard according to which to estimate 
 the relative value of a gift, is that of its serviceableness 
 to the Church. Prophecy is the greatest of all gifts, be- 
 cause it is of greater use to others than to the one who 
 exercises it. Speaking with tongues was the particular 
 gift which the Corinthians had most highly esteemed. 
 (See notes on ch. .12 : 10.) Speaketh not unto men. 
 The gift of tongues, at any rate in the form in which it 
 'A^as known at Corinth, was, therefore, a spiritual privilege, 
 that edified only the speaker. All worship and preaching 
 in a language not understood by the people, fall under 
 the same criticism ; whether it be in a dead language, 
 like the Roman Mass ; or in a language vernacular to a 
 small portion of the congregation, but not intelligible to 
 its younger members, as where the German or Swedish 
 language is retained in congregations whose children 
 have been in language Anglicized ; or where the preacher 
 uses the language of the schools and of books, instead 
 of adapting himself to the capacity of his hearers. The 
 
I04 I- CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 3-6. 
 
 greatness of a preacher depends upon his ability to 
 reach and move the greatest number of people with the 
 message of the Gospel. So also with our prayers, hymns, 
 and orders of service. No man understandeth, viz. un- 
 less there be one present endowed with the gift of the 
 interpretation of tongues (ver. 5 ; ch. 12 : 10). In the 
 Spirit. His spirit being under the influence of the Holy 
 Spirit is occupied entirely with the contemplation and 
 utterance to God of those mysteries of divine grace that 
 are disclosed to him. It belongs to his private com- 
 munion with God. 
 
 Ver. 3. Edification and comfort and consolation. A. V. 
 is more correct in rendering the second word " exhorta- 
 tion." So also the American revisers judged. Meyer 
 suggests that " exhortation " and " consolation " express 
 the two forms of " edification," vi/.. " edification, both 
 exhortation and consolation." Shore gives a good para- 
 phrase : " They communed with God by the speaking with 
 tongues ; they communed with the brethren by prophecy, 
 — building up, stirring up, cheering up, as each required." 
 
 Ver. 5. I would have you all speak with tongues. 
 He so declares, lest the preceding verses may lead them 
 to regard " speaking with tongues " a matter of no value 
 or importance. It has its use for private, but not for 
 public and united devotion. That the church may re- 
 ceive edifying, i. e. the speaking with tongues has place 
 in public, only as the speech is translated, and the thoughts 
 that move the lips of the speaker arc brought down to 
 the comprehension of the audience. Truth cannot be 
 applied by mere words ; the word is a means of grace, 
 only as it conveys thought. 
 
 Ver. 6. The thought is : How can you be profited by 
 the greatest display of this gift, unless you learn some 
 divinely-given truths through me ? Revelation . . . 
 
XIV. 7-9- PLAIN WORDS FOR PLAIN PEOPLE. 105 
 
 teaching. Revelation is the subject of " prophesying " 
 and " knowledge " of " teaching." It was the office of 
 the prophet to communicate the revelations that God 
 had made ; of the teacher, to impart the knowledge which 
 he gained by experience and reflection and the instruc- 
 tions of others, " The prophet spoke in an extempore 
 way what was unfolded and furnished to him by revela- 
 tion of the Spirit ; the teacher developed the deep knowl- 
 edge which he had acquired by investigation, in which he 
 was himself active, but yet was empowered and guided 
 by the Spirit " (Meyer). 
 
 Vers. 7, 8. A musical instrument is invented and used 
 for the purpose of making an intelligible impression upon 
 the ear, and through the ear, upon the mind of the 
 hearer. If it give but one note, or notes without regu- 
 larity and distinctness, as when a storm would play upon 
 the strings of a harp, this would not be music. No one 
 would be instructed or entertained. So, too, the notes of 
 the trumpet must be accurately adjusted to the intelli- 
 gence of those who hear them, if they are to evoke any 
 response. If no care is taken to bring them within the 
 comprehension of the army, they might as well not have 
 been sounded. This military figure would scarcely have 
 been employed, if all war were absolutely wrong. It 
 would not be surprising, if some modern agitators were 
 to criticise it as too martial ! 
 
 Ver. 9. Plain words for plain people. The more elab- 
 orate and learned mode of discourse should be reserved 
 for the assemblies of those acquainted with such speech. 
 Learning reaches its highest end in the service of the 
 Church, when it enables the public teacher to speak with 
 such transparent simplicity and directness, that the 
 speaker is forgotten, and the message alone makes an 
 impression (Is. 50 : 4). 
 
io6 /■ CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 10-13. 
 
 Vers. 10, II. Kinds of voices, i. e. different languages. 
 Nothing is without significance. Every word in each 
 language is intended to communicate thought. Other- 
 wise speech would be only a nonsensical jargon. Mean- 
 ing of the voice, i. e. of the language. A barbarian. One 
 with whom it is impossible for him, because of the differ- 
 ence in languages, to communicate. There can be no 
 social intercourse or fellowship between them, unless there 
 be some medium whereby the one may understand the 
 words of the other. 
 
 (^.) Practical Applicatioji of the Principle. 
 
 12-19. ^° ^"^o y6> since ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye 
 may abound unto the edifying of the church. Wherefore let him that 
 speaketh in a tongue pray that he may interpret. For if I pray in a tongue 
 my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is it then '} 
 I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also : 
 I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. 
 Else if thou bless with the spirit, how shall he that filleth the place of the 
 unlearned say the Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he knoweth not 
 what thou sayest ? For thou verily givest thanks well, but the other is 
 not edified. I thank God, I speak with tongues more than you all: how- 
 beit in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, 
 that I might instruct others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue. 
 
 Ver. 12. Spiritual gifts. Lit. :" Spirits," as in marginal 
 reading. Ye may abound. Supply " in them." The 
 motive for your cultivation of them should not be your 
 own self-advancement, but the edification of the Church. 
 (Comp. ver. 6. See also below, ver. 26.) 
 
 Ver. 13. Pray that he may interpret. Taken by itself, 
 this may mean either that he should pray to have the gift 
 of interpretation, or that he should pray in the unknown 
 tongue, in such a way as to be able to interpret his lan- 
 guage to those who could not understand his prayer. 
 The succeeding verses seem decisive as to the fact that 
 
XIV. M, 15-] CHURCH SONG. 107 
 
 the latter is the meaning. The speaking with tongues 
 seems, therefore, to have been largely in prayers in their 
 public assemblies. This is allowable, says Paul, only 
 when the prayer is explained to those who cannot under- 
 stand it. 
 
 Ver. 14. Even in the passive reception of a gift of the 
 Holy Spirit, the Christian may err. The gift must be 
 received with the careful recollection and consciousness 
 of the use which it is intended to subserve. It is not to 
 be enjoyed as a mere luxury, in a semi-conscious condi- 
 tion. What is proper in private prayer, where the one 
 who prays may be scarcely conscious of the words which 
 he uses, is improper where a congregation has assembled 
 for common prayer. The purpose of the assembly is 
 mutual edification. The teaching and the prayers should 
 be directed to the end of being fruitful. This they can- 
 not be, where there is no reflection upon what is said and 
 prayed, and everything is dependent upon the spontaneous 
 impulse of the moment and is forgotten in the very breath 
 in which it is uttered. This was true even when those 
 who spoke and prayed were endowed with miraculous 
 spiritual gifts. 
 
 Ver. 15. I will pray with the spirit, '' to my own edifi- 
 cation, so that in spirit I may worship my God," and I 
 will pray with the understanding also, " so that I may 
 be understood to the profit of others " (Calovius). " He 
 will not let his public ministrations as regards prayer and 
 praise evaporate into mere enthusiasm ; nor will he, on 
 the other hand, allow a cold intellectual creed to chill and 
 freeze the warm emotions of the spirit" (Shore). I will 
 sing with the spirit, etc. Singing, therefore, was already 
 customary in the assemblies of Christians. (Comp. Eph. 
 5 : 19.) This reference is about a half century before 
 Pliny's celebrated letter to Trajan, in which he reports 
 
lo8 /. CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 16. 
 
 that the Christians, in their early morning meetings, sang 
 a hymn to Christ as God. It may be, that the speaking 
 with tongues sometimes assumed the form of singing 
 " improvised psalms " (Meyer), or that the Apostle, in 
 laying down the general principles for public Christian 
 worship, may apply it to what is closely connected, but 
 not necessarily identified with the speaking with tongues. 
 " I have no doubt that from the beginning they at once 
 imitated the rite of the Jewish Church with respect to 
 Psalms " (Calvin). 
 
 Ver. 16. If thou bless. The meaning is not to invoke 
 blessings upon some one, but, as in Luke i : 64 ; -2 : 28 ; 
 24 : 53 ; James 3:9, to praise God, by acknowledging 
 the blessings received from Him. Filleth the place of 
 the unlearned, i. e. a person not able to interpret tongues. 
 Say the Amen. " The Amen is the voice of faith, ex- 
 pressing the firm declaration or assent of the heart that 
 the things prayed or said are true, and receive recogni- 
 tion from God " (Baldwin). " Notice the perpetual 
 custom of the Church. In a congregation, there was 
 always one person who reverently recited the public 
 prayer. Afterwards either the people, or some one, in the 
 name of the people, responded : Amen. But some one 
 may ask, What need is there of this ? I answer: God 
 wishes that there should be agreement in the Church 
 in doctrine, faith, prayer, and petition. He also wants 
 public assemblies to be held, and to be invoked in them 
 by the united hearts of the people, according to Matt. 
 18 : 19, 20. F"or this reason, the custom has been pre- 
 served that the people add this indication of their agree- 
 ment. Paul wants it added. The custom is approved by 
 many other passages of Scripture, especially in Ps. 118 : 
 2-4 " [where the response is called for from different 
 classes, first, from Israel, then, from the house of Aaron, 
 
XIV. i8, 19.] THE **AMEN*> 109 
 
 and then, from all who fear the Lord] (Melanchthon). 
 "This expression of Paul shows that one of the ministers, 
 in a clear voice, spoke the prayers, and that the entire 
 congregation followed his words mentally, until he came 
 to the close ; and then all said. Amen, in order that they 
 might declare that the prayer made by this one person 
 was made by all in common. It is well known that 
 Allien is a Hebrew word, of the same origin as the word 
 for faith or for truth. It is a sign of confirming both 
 assertions and writers. Paul says now: ' If, in a public 
 prayer, you employ a foreign idiom, which the people, 
 among whom you speak, do not understand, there will 
 be no fellowship.' ' No one,' says Paul, ' can add \\vs, Amen 
 to a prayer or psalm which he does not understand ' " 
 (Calvin). For the O. T. use of the responsive Amen 
 see Deut. 27 : 15 ; i Chron. 16 : 36; Num. 5 : 13 ; 8 : 6; 
 Ps. 105 : 48. On the meaning of Amen, apart from its 
 responsive use, LUTHER has forcibly commented in his 
 Exposition of the Lor el's Prayer for the Laity (1518),^ and 
 his Simple Mode of Prayer (1535).'^ 
 
 Vers. 18, 19. With tongues more than you all, i. e. 
 More than all put together. As a rule, the merest tyros 
 in any art are those who are most inflated concerning 
 their attainments, while the masters are humble and con- 
 scious of their defects. Paul's principle that service is 
 the true end and only value of all gifts is that of Christ 
 Himself (Luke 22 : 26). 
 
 (<:.) Folly of the Perversion of the Principle. 
 
 20-25. Brethren, be not children m mind : howbeit in malice be ye 
 babes, but in mind be men. In the law it is written. By men of strange 
 tongues and by the lips of strangers will I speak unto this people ; and 
 
 1 Works, Erlangen edition, xxi. 225 sqq. 
 
 2 Works, Erlangen edition, xxiii. 221. 
 
no /• CORINTHIANS. [xi v. 20-22. 
 
 not even thus will they hear me, saith the Lord. Wherefore tongues are 
 for a sign, not to them that believe, but to the unbelieving: but prophesy- 
 ing is for a sign not to the unbelieving, but to them that believe. If there- 
 fore the whole church be assembled together, and all speak with tongues, 
 and there come in men unlearned or unbelieving, will they not say that ye 
 are mad ? But if all prophesy, and there come in one unbelieving or un- 
 learned, he is reproved by all, he is judged by all; the secrets of his heart 
 are made manifest ; and so he will fall down on his face and worship God, 
 declaring that God is among you indeed. 
 
 Ver, 20. Brethren. Nearly always introducing a mild 
 rebuke. (See note on ch. i : 10.) Children, babes, men. 
 Note the three stages of growth here described. He in- 
 timates that their conduct in estimating the gift of tongues 
 above that of prophecy, and in using it for ostentation, 
 instead of for service, has been very childish. They have 
 acted like those having the mind or judgment of mere 
 children. In only one thing is it proper for them to be 
 children, and that is in the freedom from pride and love 
 of display, and envy, that characterizes the youngest of 
 children, even babes. (Comp. Ps, 131.) The quotation in 
 the next verse makes it clear that Paul has in mind Is. 
 28 : 9. Be men == Adults, full grown. (See above note 
 on ch. 13 : 11.) 
 
 Ver. 21. In the law. Used here for the O. T. in 
 general. The quotation introduced is from Is. 28 : 11,12. 
 The original reference is to the judgment of God in per- 
 mitting the Assyrians to conquer Judaea, so that the 
 chosen people in the strange language of their conquer- 
 ors could recognize God's voice. Through this foreign 
 tongue, God called them to repentance. So on the Day 
 of Pentecost, the many tongues were given to communi- 
 cate a similar call to repentance and announcement of 
 God's wrath against sin. 
 
 Ver. 22. The diversity of tongues, therefore, does not 
 belong to an ideal condition of the Christian Church. It 
 
XIV. 23-25.] SCAFFOLDING. 1 1 1 
 
 implies a state of sin and unbelief, just as the division of 
 languages at Babel was a judgment of God on man's un- 
 belief. Not that the gift in the early Church was to be 
 despised ; but after all, it was a temporary gift, adapted 
 to the unbelief of the times, and when God's purposes 
 with respect to that unbelief were accomplished, to cease. 
 As giving expression to a special influence of the Holy 
 Spirit upon the spirit of believers, this expression was not 
 essential to the Christian life, or to the cultivation of the 
 spirit of devotion which it accidentally subserved. The 
 purpose of the gift was as a sign not to the believing, 
 but to the unbelieving. Like all miracles, the sign was 
 intended to attract attention and to lead men to examine 
 the evidences for the claims of Christianity. Where there 
 is faith, there is no need of miracles, and where other 
 evidences for the truth of the Gospel are abundant, they 
 are unnecessary even to attract the attention of unbelievers 
 and lead them to repentance. They belong to the scaf- 
 folding of the Church that are no longer needed when the 
 building is erected. 
 
 Ver. 23. If all speak with tongues. The meaning is : 
 If this gift be cultivated to the exclusion of all others, 
 i. e. if one who enters the assembly hear no preaching or 
 prophesying, but only the speaking with tongues, the 
 very end for which this gift is bestowed will be defeated. 
 Miracles without preaching are readily ascribed to dis- 
 ordered natural conditions, rather than to supernatural 
 and divine authority. As on the Day of Pentecost, the 
 display of the miracle only prepares the way for the 
 preaching. 
 
 Vers. 24, 25. It is the prophesying (see note on Rom. 
 12:6), not" the miracle of tongues that leads to con- 
 viction. He is reproved by all. The word of God in 
 the mouth of each prophet discloses the secrets of his 
 
112 I. CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 25. 
 
 heart, and he sees himself as he never did before (Heb. 
 4 : 12). " The fundamental character of prophetic address, 
 the penetrating into the depths of the human heart for 
 wholesome admonition" (Meyer). Falling down on his 
 face. Because in the word of prophecy, he recognizes 
 the voice of God. (Comp. Ex. 3:6; Gen. 28: 16.) The 
 greatest argument whereby men are convinced of the 
 truth and divine authority of Christianity, or of any com- 
 munion that claims to be Christian, is to be found in the 
 manner in which it applies the word of God to the heart 
 and conscience. Ponderous discussions, laborious investi- 
 gations, protracted controversies, are far inferior to the 
 power which the simple truth, spoken in the plainest and 
 most direct words, has in forcing conviction. No conflict 
 can be found between these words and what is said in 
 ver. 22 ; as the reference here is to an unbeliever who 
 has been led through such sign, as that of tongues, to 
 give attention to the preaching. So Augustine went to 
 hear Ambrose, at first purely because of his eloquence ; 
 and through the study of his oratory was gradually led 
 to the saving knowledge of the truth. 
 
 (f.) Rubrics Concerning Public Worship (14 : 26-40). 
 
 26-40. What is it then, brethren ? When ye come together, each one 
 hath a psalm, hath a teaching, hath a revelation, hath a tongue, hath an 
 interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying. If any man speaketh 
 in a tongue, let it be by two, or at the most three, and that in turn ; and let 
 one interpret : but if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the 
 church ; and let him speak to himself, and to God. And let the prophets 
 speak by two or three, and let the others discern. But if a revelation be 
 made to another sitting by, let the first keep silence. For ye all can proph- 
 esy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted ; and the 
 spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets ; for God is not a God 
 of confusion, but of peace; as in all the churches of the saints. 
 
 Let the women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto 
 them to speak ; but let them be in subjection, as also saith the law. And 
 
xrv. 26.] RUBRICS. 113 
 
 if they would learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home: 
 for it is shameful for a woman to speak in the church. What ? was it 
 from you that the word of God went forth .' or came it unto you alone ? 
 
 If any man thinketh himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him take 
 knowledge of the things which I write unto you, that they are the com- 
 mandment of the Lord. But if any man is ignorant, let him be ignorant. 
 
 Wherefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and forbid not to 
 speak with tongues. But let all things be done decently and in order. 
 
 Ver. 26. What is it then ? i. e. : What special directions 
 concerning your worship are needed ? Each one hath a 
 
 psalm, etc., describes the scenes of disorder in their meet- 
 ings. There is no observance of any rule. Everything 
 is arbitrary. Every one esteems himself at liberty, or 
 feels himself called to exercise his gifts, without regard 
 to what may, at the time, claim the attention of his 
 brethren. Now one breaks forth in singing a psalm, 
 while another is teaching ; or the one who speaks in a 
 tongue hastens to anticipate one who feels himself im- 
 pelled to communicate a revelation. No regard is had 
 to the fitness of things, or the relation of the various 
 parts of the service to each other. That even good men, 
 endowed with supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit, 
 tolerated such irregularities, in no way sheltered them 
 from the Apostle's condemnation. "A place must be 
 given to each gift, but in its order and mode " (Calvin). 
 All things to edifying. As in vers. 5, 12. The verse 
 presents a very vivid picture of the rudimentary and un- 
 organized form of the government and worship in the 
 church at Corinth, and shows that the Apostle did not 
 regard such a condition of a congregation permanent and 
 essential, or even in any way desirable. What was justi- 
 fiable in the very beginning, became inexcusable as time 
 advanced. The Church had no pastor to direct or lead 
 the worship ; otherwise, such irregularities would have 
 been impossible. 
 8 
 
114 I.CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 27-31, 
 
 Ver. 2^. This means simply that not more than three 
 persons should exercise the gift of tongues at one meet- 
 ing, and forbids that this speaking should be simultaneous. 
 Each one must take his turn. More than one interpreter 
 is prohibited, for the purpose of avoiding confusion and 
 disputes. 
 
 Ver. 28. The gift of tongues must not be exercised 
 without interpretation. Otherwise, the design of the 
 public assembly is frustrated. Why should men speak 
 without the possibility of being understood by any one? 
 Certainly it would be better for them to save themselves 
 the effort, and to speak and pray alone to God in the 
 silence of their chambers. 
 
 Ver. 29. The same rule applies to the prophets as to 
 those who have the gift of tongues. More than three 
 addresses at one meeting would be wearisome and profit- 
 less. If there be other prophets present, they may exer- 
 cise their gifts in testing what is spoken according to the 
 standard of Holy Scripture (Acts 17: 11; i John 4: i; 
 I Thess. 5 : 21), 
 
 Ver. 30, Revelation be made to another sitting. In 
 the early church, as in the synagogue, the public teacher 
 stood ; the hearers sat. If, then, while one was speaking, 
 one of the audience received a revelation (let us remem- 
 ber that this was the period of supernatural endowments), 
 the speaker was to bring his address to a close — probably 
 upon a well understood signal having been given— in 
 order that the revelation, just made, might be heard. 
 
 Ver, 31, The emphatic words are one by one, and not 
 several at a time, so as to prevent one another from being 
 understood, and, therefore, defeating the very end for 
 which they spake. The meaning is: "Be patient, and 
 abide your time ; you will have an opportunity to be 
 heard." 
 
XIV. 32-34-] RUBRICS. 115 
 
 Ver. 32. The spirits of the prophets. The reference is 
 to these spirits as organs of Divine revelation. Even 
 when the human spirits are filled with the Holy Ghost, 
 they are not borne along by an involuntary movement, 
 but are at all times subject to the will of their possessor. 
 Because the Holy Spirit moves him, does not justify the 
 disregard of order, or determine that he should speak 
 without regard to the edification of others. The utter- 
 ance must be repressed, until his judgment determines 
 that the right time to speak has come. Even an inspired 
 man has a responsibility with respect to the time when 
 he is to speak. 
 
 Ver. 33. The spirit which demands that it be heard, 
 without regard to what others say, or when others speak, 
 by its self-assertion causes dissatisfaction and banishes 
 peace from the Church. Where persons attend church 
 for edification, and this is thus interfered with, and the 
 very ending of coming together defeated, peace cannot 
 prevail. All the churches. An additional argument 
 from the universal practice of the other Apostolic 
 churches. Most modern expositors regard this clause 
 as introducing the next verses. But, as given in our cur- 
 rent versions, it is a very appropriate termination of the 
 declaration concerning the importance of observing turns 
 in prophesying. 
 
 Ver. 34. Let the women keep silence. The reference 
 makes it clear that, in the scenes of disorder just de- 
 scribed, where the confused voices of teachers were 
 blended with those of prophets and the speakers with 
 tongues and interpreters, paying no attention to one 
 another, but at the impulse of the moment speaking, 
 sometimes all at the same time, the voices of women 
 were also heard, carried along by the excitement of the 
 hour, and rendering confusion worse confounded. Apart 
 
Il6 I.CORINTHIANS. [xiv. 34. 
 
 from any other consideration, Christian women had no 
 place in the struggle between the men for a hearing. 
 The very suggestion detracts from the modesty, dignity, 
 and sanctity of Christian womanhood. The church, i. e. 
 the public assembly, was to have its worship regulated by 
 a fixed order, and this order was not to admit of the 
 participation of women in the functions of a public 
 teacher, or prophet, or interpreter. This was demanded 
 by the custom of the times.^ The breaking through the 
 bounds of propriety in Corinth, the city notorious above 
 others for its immodest women, was to be avoided there, 
 even more than elsewhere ; as the irregularities would be 
 sure to be misinterpreted. It is not permitted unto them 
 to speak, i. e. in the place of a public teacher or prophet, 
 of the bearer of a revelation, or interpreter (comp. i Tim. 
 2: 12), in a Christian church, where there are Christian 
 men to speak or pray. The passage, however, must not 
 be strained, as an absolute prohibition concerning all 
 speaking of women under all circumstances within the 
 church. Otherwise they could not sing, or join in the 
 responses, or unite in repeating the Lord's prayer, or 
 answer when examined in the catechism, or teach a class 
 in Sunday-school. The prohibition is simply with re- 
 spect to such speaking as implies the repudiation of the 
 priority of man, as leader and speaker, and as the one 
 with whom, save in exceptional cases, rests the responsi- 
 bility of public advice and decision. " Paul forbids 
 women to preach in congregations where there are men 
 who are qualified to preach, that due order be observed ; 
 since it is more becoming for a man to speak, and he is 
 better fitted for it. But how could Paul resist the Holy 
 Ghost who, in Joel 2 : 28, promised : ' Your daughters 
 
 1 See quotations from Tyrtaeus, Sophocles and Valerius Maximus in 
 Grotius and Calovius. 
 
XIV. 34] DARE WOMEN PREACH? n-j 
 
 shall prophesy;' and in Acts 21:8,9, Philip had four 
 daughters, all prophetesses. Miriam, the sister of Moses, 
 was a prophetess (Ex. 15 : 20). Huldah, the prophetess, 
 gave advice to the godly king, Josiah (i Kings 22: 15); 
 and Deborah, to the ruler Barak (Judges 4:6); and the 
 hymn of the Virgin Mary (Luke i : 48) is praised through- 
 out the world. Paul himself teaches that women should 
 pray and prophesy with covered heads. Order and pro- 
 priety require, therefore, that women should be silent, 
 when men speak. But where there is no man to preach, 
 it is a matter of necessity for women to preach " 
 (Luther).i " Such necessity may occur as requires the 
 voice of a woman. Paul has in mind only what is prop- 
 er in a regularly established congregation " (Calvin). 
 " God sometimes has willed that the duties of the sacred 
 office be performed extraordinarily by women. We have 
 examples in Zipporah (Ex. 4); in Miriam (Ex. 15); in 
 Deborah (Judges 4, 5) ; in Huldah (2 Kings 22); in Anna 
 (Luke 2); in Priscilla, the wife of Aquila," etc. (HuN- 
 Nius). " Estius does not permit women to teach in the 
 church, even if they b^ endowed with the gift of proph- 
 ecy. But why would the prophetic spirit or revelation 
 have been given them, if it would not have been right for 
 them to have published their predictions or revelations? 
 (Calovius). Spener says that he cannot find anything 
 in Holy Scripture against women teaching in the assem- 
 blies of women, although how, when, where, and to what 
 extent this can be done with profit is a different question. 
 Paul wanted the aged women to be ' teachers of good 
 things ' (Tit. 2 : 3). Luther concedes that where there are 
 not men, but only women, as in nunneries, a woman may 
 be appointed to preach."^ 
 
 1 Works, Erlangen edition, xxviii. 
 * Letzte Bedenkeuy ii. 1 47. 
 
ii8 /. CORINTHIANS. [XIV. 35-37. 
 
 Under obedience. The application is that her position 
 of a public teacher in an audience of men is inconsistent 
 with the Divine order, according to which the priority- 
 belongs to man (i Tim. 2 : 12, 13). The law stands here 
 for O. T. in general. (See Gen. 3: 16.) 
 
 Ver. 35. Let them ask their husbands at home. The 
 next sentence interprets this as meaning that they must 
 not even ask any questions in the church assembly, thus 
 contributing to the confusion. It does not forbid women 
 from consulting their pastors concerning spiritual mat- 
 ters, or require that the husband be the sole religious 
 teacher of his wife. The pastoral relation, as we now 
 have it, did not yet exist. The more secluded habits of 
 women demanded by the current abuse of the place, ren- 
 dered it peculiarly desirable that the man's priority as his 
 wife's teacher should be asserted. It is assumed here 
 that among Corinthian adults marriage was the rule ; for 
 nothing is said concerning maidens. It must not be for- 
 gotten that if women had been permitted to ask ques- 
 tions publicly, they could readily have taught, by cloth- 
 ing their instructions in an interrogative form. The art 
 of most effective teaching is often little more than the art 
 of putting significant questions. 
 
 In ver. 36 Paul resorts to sarcasm. If the custom of 
 giving women the right to teach and preach in the public 
 congregation prevail at Corinth, contrary to the practice 
 of the other churches, and it be justifiable, then the 
 Corinthians must represent the primitive practice of the 
 Church of Christ ! The practice of the other churches 
 must be a corruption, unless, perhaps, they have no right 
 to the name of church, and have been entirely without 
 the Word of God. 
 
 Ver. 37. If any man thinketh himself, i. e. professes 
 to be a prophet. Or spiritual, i. e. endowed with spiritual 
 
XIV. 38-40.] ORDER IN WORSHIP. II9 
 
 gifts. The test as to whether' his professions be true, is 
 his acknowledgment of the divine authority of the 
 Apostle's word. We test men according to their doc- 
 trine, not the doctrine according to the men. 
 
 Vcr. 38. Let him be ignorant. " To invincible bigotry 
 and ignorant obstinacy, St. Paul will have no more to say 
 (Matt. 15: 14; I Tim. 6:3-5)." 
 
 Ver. 39. Wherefore sums up the entire argument, viz. 
 since all these gifts, in their proper place, may be used to 
 edification. Desire earnestly. (Comp. ch. 14 : i.) 
 
 Ver. 40. Decently refers to the manner in which every 
 act of worship is to be rendered ; in order, to its regular- 
 ity, viz. that everything be properly adapted to the cir- 
 cumstances of time and place. 
 
7. CORINTHIANS, [xv. 
 
 (V.) The Doctrine of the Resurrection (ch. 15). 
 
 This belongs to the more profound doctrines of Chris- 
 tianity. The discussion in this Epistle which has pro- 
 ceeded with the purpose of giving milk to babes in Christ, 
 now offers the strong meat which belongs to those of full 
 age. In theological depth, this chapter ranks with the 
 Epistles to the Romans, Colossians, and Ephesians. (See 
 note on ch. 2 : 6.) 
 
 Strange it must seem, that within twenty-five years 
 after the resurrection of Christ, there were those in the 
 Christian Church who doubted concerning the resurrec- 
 tion of the body. It is idle to question whether these 
 doubts proceeded from a Sadducean or an Epicurean 
 element in the Church, or from those who, in their love 
 of speculation, had philosophical difificulties concerning 
 the restoration of the body to propose. Meyer goes so 
 far as to suggest that it was among the members of the 
 party of Apollos that these errorists were chiefly found. 
 The Sadducean tendency belongs to corrupt human 
 nature, and readily springs up there, without any direct 
 connection with Sadducees or Epicureans or speculative 
 schools. Some have thought that the errorists merely 
 attempted to spiritualize the doctrine of the resurrection, 
 as in I Tim. i : 20. Paul's argument is deeper than such 
 as would have only such opponents in view. It was 
 elaborated probably more to. put into the hands of 
 Christians the weapons whereby to meet all attacks upon 
 the doctrine, than to meet directly any one particular 
 form of error on this article. 
 
XV. I, 2.] GOSPEL OF THE RESURRECTION. 
 
 I . The Preaching of tJic Resurrection of Christ an Essential 
 Part of the Gospel. 
 
 2-1 1. Now I make known unto you, brethren, the gospel which I 
 preached unto you, which also ye received, wherein also ye stand, by which 
 also ye are saved ; / fnake knozon, I say, in what words I preached it 
 unto you, if ye hold it fast, except ye believed in vain. For I delivered 
 unto you first of all that which also I received, how that Christ died for our 
 sins according to the scriptures ; and that he was buried ; and that he hath 
 been raised on the third day according to the scriptures; and that he ap- 
 peared to Cephas; then to the twelve; then he appeared to above five 
 hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain until now, but 
 some are fallen asleep ; then he appeared to James ; then to all the apos- 
 tles ; and last of all, as unto one born out of due time, he appeared to me 
 also. For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be'called an 
 apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God 
 I am what I am : and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not 
 found vain ; but I laboured more abundantly than they all : yet not I, 
 but the grace of God which was with me. Whether then it be I or they, 
 so we preach, and so ye believed. 
 
 Vers. I, 2. While the discussion of what is involved in 
 the doctrine belongs to the higher and deeper mysteries 
 of the faith, yet the fact itself is presupposed in the very 
 conception of the gospel. No resurrection, no gospel. 
 Thus from the very beginning Paul had preached ; and 
 thus the Corinthians had believed. If they remained 
 Christians, it was because of their faith in a Risen Jesus. 
 By this faith in a Risen Jesus they were being saved, i. e. 
 their salvation was progressively advancing. In what 
 words. The construction adopted by Meyer, Godet, 
 Ellicott, and Shore seems preferable : " Ye arc being 
 saved, provided ye hold fast with what word I preached 
 the Gospel to you." They must continue to adhere to 
 the word as the Apostle preached it, if their salvation is 
 to be completed. Except ye believed. Otherwise the 
 faith with which they embraced the Gospel when it was 
 
122 I.CORINTHIANS. [xv. 3-7. 
 
 first taught them, would be vain. Our salvation does not 
 rest upon our having once believed, but upon our faithful 
 continuance in the Word. " We have following one an- 
 other: I. The announcement of the Gospel. 2. The 
 reception by faith of the Gospel as announced. 3. The 
 preservation of the Gospel to one persevering in faith ; 
 and 4. Eternal salvation through the Gospel received and 
 preserved by faith. For he who believes and perseveres 
 to the end is saved (Mark 16:16; John 3:16; Rom, 
 10: 14; I Pet. I : 5) (Calovius). 
 
 Ver. 3. First of all, viz. in importance. Which I re= 
 ceived- Therefore, nothing new or originating with Paul. 
 The implied meaning is that Paul had not received this by 
 immediate revelation, but through the ordinary channel 
 of historical tradition. Died for our sins. A forcible 
 statement of the doctrine of vicarious satisfaction. 
 (Comp. Rom. 3 : 24, 25 ; Gal. 1:4; 3:13; ]o\\\\ i : 29.) 
 According to the scriptures, viz. of the O. T. (See Luke 
 24 : 25 sq. ; John 2 : 22 ; 20 : 9 ; Acts 17 : 2 sq. ; 26 : 22 sq.) 
 For the O. T. passages, see Ps. 22 ; Is. 53, etc. 
 
 Ver. 4. He was buried, the surest proof of His death. 
 According to the scriptures limits He hath been raised. 
 For O. T. predictions of Christ's resurrection, see Gen. 
 3:15; Ps. 16 : 10 ; Is. 53 : 10, 12 ; Hos. 13 : 14. These 
 passages include also the burial as the necessary condition 
 prior to the resurrection. The change in tense is cor- 
 rectly brought out in R. V., viz. : " Was buried," viz. at 
 a definite point of time in the past ; " Hath been raised," 
 viz. as indicating that, by the resurrection. He has entered 
 into a new state where the consequences of the act con- 
 tinue. 
 
 Vers. 5-7. The accumulation of witnesses is noteworthy. 
 The importance and supernatural character of the event 
 render this necessary. The witnesses enumerated are 
 
XV. 8, 9] PROOFS OF THE RESURRECTION. 123 
 
 men. Christ's appearances to the women are not men- 
 tioned, thus anticipating the argument of modern scep- 
 ticism that the thought of a resurrection originated in the 
 excitable and imaginative minds of women, who then 
 persuaded themselves of its truth. To Cephas (Luke 
 24:34). To the twelve. (John 20: 19 sq. ; Luke 24: 36 
 sq.). In the absence of Judas and Thomas, there were 
 but ten ; but the name " the twelve " became a usual 
 designation of the Apostles. Five hundred brethren at 
 once. Probably in Galilee, as the number of believers in 
 Jerusalem was only one hundred and twenty (Acts 1:15). 
 It has been suggested that the appearance on the moun- 
 tain in Galilee (Matt. 28 : 16) is meant, and that the eleven 
 disciples are mentioned by Matthew simply by way of 
 pre-eminence. This suggestion of the Galilaean's appear- 
 ance harmonizes with Matt. 26 : 32. Paul appeals with 
 confidence to the testimony of numerous eye-witnesses 
 who still remain. James. There is almost entire agree- 
 ment that this was James the Just, the Lord's brother 
 (Gal. 2:9; Acts 15 : 13 ; 21 : 18). " Perhaps it was this 
 appearance which made him become decided for the 
 cause and service of his divine Brother " (Meyer). Of 
 all the apostles. The word is used in N. T., both in a 
 narrow and technical sense for the twelve, and again in 
 a wider sense, for all preachers of the Gospel receiving 
 their commission immediately from Christ (Barnabas, 
 Acts 14:4, 14; Timothy and Silvanus, i Thess, 4:7). 
 As " the twelve " are referred to above, the word must 
 be used here in its wider meaning, thus comprising James 
 again, who did not belong to the twelve. 
 
 Vers. 8, 9. Last of all to me. The allusion is to the oc- 
 currence on the road to Damascus. (See note on ch. 9:1.) 
 He calls himself in the original by a single word, viz. " an 
 abortion." As this cannot properly be called a man, so 
 
124 ^- CORINTHIANS. [xv. lo, il. 
 
 it is only of divine grace that one called in so irregular a 
 way could be reckoned as an Apostle. When his Apostle- 
 ship, however, was disputed, Paul claimed for himself, by 
 divine grace, all the rights that belonged to the office. 
 It was the appearance and voice of the Risen Jesus that 
 turned him from his course of persecution and made him 
 an Apostle. No merits within him, no efforts of his, had 
 aught to do with it. 
 
 Ver. lo. Less than all the Apostles personally, his 
 labor has been far greater ; and this has been determined 
 solely by the grace of God. " Labor " here refers to the 
 cares, self-denials, sufferings endured in the prosecution 
 of his Apostolic vocation ; in the Apostle to the Gentiles, 
 these were necessarily more and greater than in the 
 Apostles of the Jews. All this was endured, not in his 
 own strength, but by the sustaining power of Divine 
 grace. (Comp. Matt. io:2o; i Cor. 3 : 6, 9 ; 2 Cor. 
 
 3:5.) 
 
 Ver. 1 1. Whether then it be I or they. The message 
 
 was essentially the same, no difference which of the 
 Apostles proclaimed it. Paul's message had, therefore, 
 all the Apostolic force of that of the rest. He has thus 
 proved the resurrection of Christ: (i) From the O. T. 
 (2) From the tradition of the Church. (3) From the testi- 
 mony of eye-witnesses. (4) From his own Apostolic 
 authority. 
 
 2. Without the Resurrection, CJiristianity a Delusion. 
 
 12-T9. Now if Christ is preached that he hath been raised from the dead, 
 how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But 
 if there is no resurrection of the dead, neither hath Christ been raised: and 
 if Christ hath not been raised, then is our preaching vain, your faith also 
 is vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God ; because we wit- 
 nessed of God that he raised up Christ ; whom he raised not up, if so lie 
 that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, neither hath 
 
XV. 12-17.] A FUNDAMENTAL ARTICLE. 125 
 
 Christ been raised : and if Christ hath not been raised, your faith is vain ; 
 ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ 
 have perished. If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all 
 men most pitiable. 
 
 Ver. 12. Is preached. Lit. : " Is being preached." 
 How say some. A question of astonishment. Among 
 you. In your congregation. 
 
 Ver. 13. If there is no resurrection, i. e. : If it be im- 
 possible for a dead body to be raised again to life, the 
 resurrection of Christ is an impossibility, since His body 
 we claim to have been restored to life. 
 
 Ver. 14. Then is our preaching vain. Because then 
 the Christ whom we preach is only a dead man, and our 
 faith rests upon a dead man instead of upon the Son of 
 the living God, who has the keys of death and hell. 
 You trust, then, in a Saviour who cannot deliver Himself, 
 and, therefore, much less save others ; and your faith is 
 then vain, for it rests upon an empty delusion. 
 
 Ver. 15. The entire Gospel is a tissue of falsehoods, if 
 there be no resurrection. It is no accidental article that 
 can readily be omitted without affecting the whole ; but 
 the whole fabric of the Gospel rests upon it, and goes 
 down with it. Disprove the resurrection from the dead, 
 and the Apostolic testimony concerning everything else 
 is overthrown. Men who deny the resurrection from the 
 dead, and nevertheless profess a high regard for Chris- 
 tianity and the Holy Scriptures, can scarcely have read 
 these verses. 
 
 Vers. 16, 17. He emphasizes this, by repeating it with 
 only a slight verbal change. Ye are yet in your sins, viz. 
 because, if there be no resurrection, there is no redemp- 
 tion, and you are without a Saviour. (See notes on Rom. 
 4:5; 6:9.) No resurrection, no forgiveness of sins; no 
 forgiveness of sins, no sonship with God. A suggestion 
 
126 /. CORINTHIANS. [xv. i8, 19. 
 
 that must have been immediately rejected as false by their 
 personal experience of the grace of God. 
 
 Ver. 18. Have perished. Because without the forgive- 
 ness of sins, they must remain forever under God's wrath. 
 
 Ver. 19. If in this life only. The " only " is ordinarily 
 understood as qualifying the words " in this life." The 
 original clause shows that, with much emphasis, the 
 " only " limits the entire conditional clause. It may be 
 paraphrased : " If we be no more than merely such as 
 place in this life their hope in Christ and have no faith in 
 that which is beyond," i. e. : " If our relation to Christ 
 be one neither that extends, nor has any hope of extend- 
 ing, beyond the grave. If to us, Christ be living only by 
 the inspiration of His heroic life upon earth, and His noble 
 death of self-sacrifice. If every comfort drawn from His 
 resurrection must be surrendered." "Blot out the resur- 
 rection of Christ from your creed ; and everything that, 
 in a spiritual sense, differentiates you from the godless 
 world is destroyed ; while its life of devotion to sense has 
 more substantial reality, than the sphere of delusions in. 
 which you move and think." Many bring into promi- 
 nence here the self-denials of the Christian life, especially 
 the martyrdom of the early Christians, and the sufferings 
 of the Apostles, as in ch. 4 : 9-13, with the application 
 that, were there no resurrection, such sacrifices were need- 
 less. This seems to us only a remote application. The 
 misery would lie in their delusion. Christianity, without 
 a firm conviction of the truth of the resurrection, is both 
 falsehood and insanity. 
 
 3. Tlie Place of the Resurrection 'in the Order of Salva- 
 tion. 
 
 20-28. But now hath Christ been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of 
 them that are asleep. For since by man catnf death, by man came also the 
 
XV. 2C^22.] FIRSTFRUirS. 127 
 
 resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall 
 all be made alive. But each in his own order : Christ the firstfruits ; then 
 they that are Christ's at his coming. Then coineth the end, when he shall 
 deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father ; when he shall have 
 abolished all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he 
 hath put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be abol- 
 ished is death. For he put all things in subjection under his feet. But 
 when he saith. All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is ex- 
 cepted who did subject all things unto him. And when all things have been 
 subjected unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subjected to him 
 that did subject all things unto him, that God may be all in all. 
 
 Ver. 20. But now hath Christ been raised. Such a 
 supposition as that of the preceding verse cannot be 
 entertained. No argument is necessary. The resur- 
 rection so clearly testified to by hundreds who are still 
 living is an incontrovertible fact. Firstfruits. (See 
 note on Rom. 8 : 23.) No firstfruits of dough, as in 
 Rom. II : 16 (see note); but here, the firstfruits of the 
 harvest. The resurrection of Christ, the promise and 
 pledge of the resurrection of believers. " The risen 
 Christ is the beginning of the history of the end" (Lu- 
 tiiardt). Of them that are asleep. Used in the N. T. 
 only of departed believers. (See above, ver. 6 ; comp. 
 Acts 7 : 60 ; 13:36; i Thess. 4:13 sqq. ; 2 Pet. 3 : 4.) 
 Christ will raise unbelievers at the Last Day as an act of 
 justice, not of grace and mercy, and, therefore they be- 
 long not to the harvest of which He is the firstfruits. If 
 it be said that Lazarus was raised first, the answer is that 
 his emergence from the dominion of death was not per- 
 manent, while the resurrection of Christ was the complete 
 anci permanent withdrawal of His body from the realm 
 of the grave, and the inseparable reunion of soul and 
 body. 
 
 Vers. 21, 22. For since by man. Another step in the 
 argument. The " firstfruit " proves the probability 
 of the harvest. But Christ's resurrection has a closer 
 
128 /. CORINTHIANS. [xv. 23, 24. 
 
 connection with the resurrection of the race. Humanity 
 is organically united. The death of its organic head 
 involves necessarily the death of the entire race. God 
 brings redemption to the race according to the same 
 order, according to which the race lost spiritual life. Give 
 the race another head, truly organicall}'' united with it ; 
 and the life that expels death and overcomes corruption 
 in the head, will do the same in the members. In Adam 
 all die. (See notes on Rom. 5 : 12-21.) Shall all be 
 made alive. In Christ there is life and redemption, and, 
 therefore, potential resurrection for all, as in Him there is 
 forgiveness for all. But as mafny, by the persistent antag- 
 onism of their wills to divine grace, thwart the divine 
 counsel of love concerning themselves, so also with re- 
 spect to the resurrection. Life, as the quickening of the 
 body becomes theirs ; but to them it comes as an act of 
 divine justice, and a resurrection to damnation (John 5 : 
 29). 
 
 Ver. 23. But each in his own order. The organic 
 union does not render it necessary that each part of an 
 organism shall have the same experience at the same 
 time. The light reaches the eyes before it does the 
 feet. Death continues its conquests for ages after the 
 Head has passed beyond its power ; but as sure as life 
 came to the Head, just so sure will it, in God's own time, 
 who has appointed the order, reach also the dead and 
 dying members. Three groups or ranks successively 
 appear: i. Christ. 2. "Them that are His," viz. all 
 believers, and 3. by implication, the resurrection of the 
 unbelieving is included in " the end,"' mentioned in the 
 next verse. (Comp. i Thess. 4 : -16.) 
 
 Ver. 24. Then cometh the end, the culmination of the 
 " order " mentioned in the preceding verse, the goal of 
 all God's redemptive acts, the harbor for all vessels, the 
 
XV. 24.] DELIVERY OF THE KINGDOM. 129 
 
 rendezvous towards which all God's hosts are marching. 
 An answer is here made to the question, Why, if the life 
 of Christ implies our own, is it that, since He has arisen, we 
 are still subject to death? Why, if the victory is won for 
 us, are we, nevertheless, one by one, vanquished ? The 
 answer is " The end " is coming, i. e. the end of God's 
 gracious interference for our salvation, in the complete 
 realization of redemption. This entire section suggests 
 Rom. 8 : 18-23. (Comp. Luke 21 : 28 ; Eph. i : 14 ; 
 4 ; 3.) When he shall deliver up the kingdom to God. 
 Since in other portions of Holy Scripture, it is clearly 
 said that Christ is an everlasting King, and His kingdom 
 shall have no end (Is. 9:6; Dan. 7:14; Luke i : 33), no 
 resignation or abdication, but only a change in the mode 
 of government can be here meant. When the number of 
 the redeemed and saved is complete, and all are brought 
 to the fruition of what Christ has purchased for them, a 
 change will occur in the mode of administration. The 
 Kingdom of Glory will completely replace the Kingdom 
 of Grace. God's blessings will no longer be bestowed 
 through the means of grace ; for being brought into 
 direct and immediate contact with the Source of all 
 grace, we will draw immediately from His fulness. No 
 obstacles will any longer be encountered, or enemies to it 
 arise. The kingdom and all its subjects will be beyond 
 all hindrance or attack or change. The Son hands over 
 to the Father the fruits of His victory in those whom He 
 has rescued from sin and death. (Comp. Eph. 5 : 27.) 
 " This delivery is to be understood (i) either according 
 to God's economy, i. e. with respect to the mode of ad- 
 ministration. For while the kingdom itself shall not 
 cease, nevertheless the mode of administering it shall, 
 after Christ has subjected all His enemies. . . . Some 
 distinguish between the essential and economical king- 
 9 
 
13© /• CORINTHIANS. [xv. 24. 
 
 dom ; the former, He exercises, with the Father and the 
 Holy Ghost, to all eternity ; but the latter, He delivers 
 to the Father, since, in the life to come, the Church will 
 no longer need such aid, since it shall then be with its 
 Head" (Gerhard, Loci, ix. 109 sq.). The Kingdom of 
 Christ, in this sense, is simply the entire order of agencies 
 through which, in this life, He works for man's salvation. 
 " Or (2) it is to be understood by metonymy, because, on 
 the Last Day, Christ will place the elect who compose 
 His spiritual and heavenly Kingdom before His Father, 
 according to John 17 : 12, 24; Eph. 5 : 27. Luther in 
 his exposition combines both " (GERHARD, nt supra)} 
 " He will bring the Church, collected from the entire 
 human race, to the sight of God and the Father, in 
 order that the Church may, face to face, behold the Father 
 in whom it has believed, and joyfully may triumph over 
 all enemies conquered by Christ, and, to all eternity, 
 may enjoy God's sweetest consolation. Then God will 
 treat with us no longer through Word or Sacraments ; 
 then there will no need to believe what we shall not see. 
 But we shall immediately look upon divinity, and God 
 shall pervade us with His light, wisdom, righteousness, 
 life, and joy. We shall see God face to face, just as He 
 is, and without any veil. Then shall we experience and 
 truly possess what we here believe according to His 
 Word " (Hesshusius in Calovius). To God, even the 
 Father. " A twofold point of view. He is considered 
 both God and Father towards Christ (John 20 : 17); even 
 when exalted (Rev. 3 : 12, 21); and towards believers 
 (Col. 3 : 17). He is considered as God towards enemies " 
 (Bengel). Shall have abolished all rule, etc. Not 
 merely hostile powers, but the entire gradation of all 
 
 1 Comp. Luther's Exposition of i Cor.xv. (a. d. 1534), lVorl:s, Erlangen 
 ed., li. pp. 70-275. 
 
XV. 25.] END OF THE KINGDOM. 131 
 
 who exercise authority, whether in God's stead, or not. 
 God will no longer deal with His people through ministers 
 or rulers. Neither men nor angels shall rule them in 
 God's Name. But every one shall have direct access to 
 God, and shall learn God's will from God Himself. " As 
 the world shall have an end, so also governments and 
 magistrates and laws and distinctions of orders and ranks 
 of dignities, etc. The servant shall not differ from his 
 master, or the king from a subject, or a magistrate from 
 a private person. Besides both, in Heaven, angelic rule, 
 and, in the Church, the ministry shall cease, that God 
 alone may exercise His power by Himself, and not by 
 the hands of men or angels " (Calvin), So also 
 Luther, at considerable length.^ This interpretation is 
 sustained by the fact that the Apostle is here explaining 
 and defending God's order of bringing to His people the 
 fruition of the glory which Christ has procured for them. 
 " When the King lays down his arms after subduing his 
 enemies, his soldiers are discharged " (Bengel). 
 
 Ver. 25. For he must reign, i. e. according to the pres- 
 ent order, by the interposition of mcan'^^ and through a 
 process of gradual conquest. Because not all enemies 
 have as yet been subdued, the present order of things 
 continues. But only wait. Everything is hastening 
 towards the end. Though seemingly remote, the issue 
 is certain. For quotations see Ps. no: i. Meanwhile 
 He has His word preached, and rules the Church spiritu- 
 ally by His word and sacraments, and by faith and His 
 Spirit, in the midst of His enemies; if they annoy and 
 oppress us, He protects and maintains us against them, 
 with the sure consolation that, on that day. He will put 
 them under His feet ; although He has begun to do this, 
 and is doing it every day. For by the Gospel, and Chris- 
 
 1 Works, Erl. ed., li. 162-164. 
 
132 /. CORINTHIANS. [xv. 26-28. 
 
 tian people, He is inflicting wounds upon the fanatics, 
 and driving back the devil, and driving oppression from 
 its seat, and checking the rage of the world, and removing 
 from sin and death their power and might " (Luther), 
 
 Ver. 26. Now comes the application. If the question 
 be asked why we do not immediately escape death be- 
 cause of the resurrection of Christ, the answer is that 
 death is the last of all these enemies to be destroyed. 
 One by one, they yield, and their power is weakened, but 
 the last in order to depart is death. Even though death 
 do not absolutely reign over the believer, yet, like sin, it 
 dwells in us in this life, and in the world to come, de- 
 prives us of our bodies, until the hour of Christ's complete 
 assertion of His full supremacy arrive. " Last, i. e. after 
 Satan (Heb. 2 : 14), and after sin (ver. 56) " (Bengel). 
 
 Ver. 27. He is excepted, viz. God, the Father. The 
 passage quoted is Ps. 8 : 6. 
 
 Ver. 28. Then shall also the Son be subjected. The 
 voluntary subjection of the Son to the Father, after the 
 complete restoration of all the redeemed to communion 
 with God, involves no denial of the co-eternity and co- 
 equality of the Father and the Son. We find a greater 
 difficulty in limiting this subjection to the human nature 
 of Christ, since this implies either a separation of natures 
 that is inadmissible, or a restoration of the State of 
 Humiliation. A self-limitation of the divine nature is 
 involved in the very conception of the Personal Union, 
 and is, therefore, entirely consistent with the divine nature 
 of any of the three persons. The subordination here 
 .seems to be nothing more than that the S-,n will no 
 longer intervene between the Father and the children of 
 God, but that, having brought them to the Father, they 
 shall now have direct and immediate access to Him ; and 
 yet this their immediate access to the Father is determined 
 
XV. 28.] GOD, ALL IN ALL. 133 
 
 and conditioned upon what Christ has been to them and 
 has made them. " The subjection and obedience of the 
 Son to the Father do not affect the equality of power, 
 nor prove diversity of essence. The Son in all eternity 
 acknowledges with deepest reverence that He was be- 
 gotten from eternity by the Father. He also acknowl- 
 edges that He has received the spiritual kingdom from 
 the Father, and been made Lord of the whole world. 
 He will show to the whole creation this His most holy 
 reverence, subjection and filial love, that all honor may 
 be rendered to the eternal Father. But all this derogates 
 nothing from the divine honor of the Son ; since the 
 Father wills that all men honor the Son, as the Father " 
 (HeSSHUSIUS, quoted by BeNGEL). 
 
 God may be all in all. " All things without any inter- 
 ruption, with no creature to invade, no enemy to disturb, 
 will be subordinated to the Son, and the Son to the Father. 
 All things will say : ' God is all to vie' In this world, 
 God is esteemed nothing by the ungodly (Ps. 10:4; 14 : 
 i) ; and with the saints, many things prevent Him from 
 alone being all to them ; but then He will be all in all '* 
 (Bengel). " Not that we shall be reduced to nothing, 
 so that nothing whatever but God remain, but, raised in 
 our substance, we shall not collect piece-meal mediately 
 from other creatures, as in this world, the things necessary 
 for our life and salvation, but shall have all our salvation 
 and happiness immediately from God Himself " (Brentz). 
 " In this life, we are occupied with the knowledge, love, 
 praise and worship of the true God, but are withdrawn to 
 many other objects, and, in our care for the things per- 
 taining to this life, are very frequently called away from 
 the care of divine things ; but in the future life, we shall 
 cleave to God without distraction (i Cor. 7 : 35). Moses, 
 Aaron, and the elders of the Israelites had seen God in 
 
134 I- CORINTHIANS. [xv. 29. 
 
 the mount (Ex. 24 : 10), but on descending from the 
 mount they returned to secular occupations, political 
 government, the Levitical rites, domestic employments ; 
 but, in life everlasting, those once admitted to the sight of 
 God shall never be withdrawn to other matters ; he who 
 has once entered God's temple shall never go out (Rev. 
 3 : 12). In this life, we have various objects of delight. 
 But in life eternal, our pleasure shall be in God alone. 
 He will be light to our intellect, rectitude to our will, a 
 peaceful rest to our affections, sweet music to our hearing, 
 most delicious honey to our taste, the perfection of beauty 
 to our sight, most fragrant balm to our nostrils, and 
 highest pleasure to our touch. All that is good or joyful 
 for which we long, we shall find most abundantly in 
 Him. He will be the end of all our desires ; so that, 
 beyond and outside of Him, we shall seek for nothing. 
 ' He will be all in all,' i. e. : He will shed upon all the 
 blessed, light, joy, and the fulness of all blessings, and 
 shall dwell in them forever (Rev. 21:3 sq.)" (Gerhard). 
 
 4. Testimony to the Resurrection from the Practice and 
 Sufferings of Christians. 
 
 29-34. Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead ? If the 
 dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them ? why do 
 we also stand in jeopardy every hour? I protest by that glorying in you, 
 brethren, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. If after the 
 manner of men I fought with beasts at Ephesus, what doth it profit me ? 
 If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die. Be 
 not deceived : Evil company doth corrupt good manners. Awake up right- 
 eously, and sin not ; for some have no knowledge of God : I speak t/iis to 
 move you to shame. 
 
 Ver. 29. Else explained in the next sentence. The 
 
 1 Compare, for practical applications, Luther's eloquent exposition 
 among his most eloquent passages in Commentary on i Cor. xv. above 
 cited. 
 
XV. 30-32-] BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD. 135 
 
 meaning is: " If this be not so," referring to the entire 
 argument for the resurrection. Baptized for the dead. 
 The Apostle refers to the custom whereby hving persons 
 were baptized, in tlie place and for the benefit of those 
 who had died unbaptized. Such vicarious baptism is 
 mentioned by Tertullian, Chrysostom, and Epiphanius. 
 This plain meaning of the words has been disputed under 
 the impression that the mention of the practice without 
 rebuke would imply its endorsement by Paul. But this 
 does not necessarily follow, as the example in Matt. 1 2 : 27 ; 
 Luke II : 19, shows. It would have led the Apostle 
 away from his argument to have refuted the principle un- 
 derlying the practice. Hence Calovius notes no less 
 than twenty-three interpretations, and Bengel says that 
 the mere enumeration of them would fill an entire volume. 
 Luther's interpretation was that it means over the graves 
 of the dead, and Bengel's, in prospect of death. But the 
 Greek hyper has nowhere such meaning in the N. T. 
 The reference is here made to a well-known practice 
 which, however erroneous it may have been, nevertheless 
 confesses that the doctrine of the resurrection had a firm 
 hold upon those who adopted it. Even Christianity in a 
 diseased form confesses it. 
 
 Ver. 30. Without faith in the resurrection, the conduct 
 of the Apostles and other early Christians would have 
 been absolutely inexplicable. If there be no resurrection, 
 to what end were all their sacrifices? (See ch. 4 : 9-13. 
 Comp. ch. 9:25.) 
 
 Ver. 31. I protest, etc. Just as certainly as I make a 
 boast of you Corinthians, is it that I am dying daily. A 
 graphic statement of his sufferings and dangers. (Comp. 
 2 Cor. 4:11; 11:23; Rom. 8 : 36.) 
 
 Ver. 32. If after the manner of men, i. e. : Without a 
 divine call, and a divinely inspired hope of eternal life, 
 
136 /• CORINTHIANS. [xv. 33, 34. 
 
 viz. from merely human and earthly motives. I fought 
 with beasts. In the absence of any record in Acts, and 
 with the protection from such ordeal as Paul would 
 have enjoyed from his Roman citizenship, this must be 
 regarded as a forcible description of some great peril 
 which Paul experienced from the enemies of the Gospel 
 at Ephesus. If the dead are not raised. The argument 
 is greatly strengthened by the change which the A. V. 
 has made in the position of this conditional clause. The 
 thought is : If there be no resurrection, why should we 
 not make food and drink the main and sole object of 
 life? (Comp. Is. 22 : 13.) 
 
 Ver. 33. Be not deceived indicates the danger of infec- 
 tion from materialistic theories. Evii company, etc. 
 Either a quotation from the Greek poet, Menander, or a 
 current proverb which Menander also uses. In Acts 
 17 : 28, Paul quotes from Aratus ; and, in Tit. 1:12, from 
 Epimenides. 
 
 Ver. 34. Awake up righteously, or : " Become sober 
 as becometh those who are righteous." The stupor that 
 had befallen some, in which the resurrection was ques- 
 tioned, he compares to drunkenness. A spiritual stupor 
 could be the only explanation of such procedure. Some 
 have no knowledge of God. In other words, they were 
 practical agnostics. The thoughts of God and claims of 
 God were banished from their attention. They were 
 living without God and without hope (Eph. 2 : 12). 
 
 5. Tlie Manner of the Resurrection. 
 
 The fact has been overwhelmingly proved. What 
 follows constitutes no argument to its reality ; but only 
 answers objections urged because of the inability of 
 opponents to understand the mode. Paul shows that 
 
XV. 36.] THE RESURRECTION-BODY. 137 
 
 similar objections can be urged against matters con- 
 cerning the truth and reaHty of which the objector can 
 have no doubt, and then proceeds to treat of the nature 
 of the resurrection-body. 
 
 35-58. But some one will say, How are the dead raised ? and with what 
 manner of body do they come 1 Thou foolish one, that which thou thyself 
 sowest is not quickened, except it die : and that which thou sowest, thou 
 sowest not the body that shall be, but a bare grain, it may chance of wheat, 
 or of some other kind ; but God giveth it a body even as it pleased him, 
 and to each seed a body of its own. All flesh is not the same flesh : but there 
 isoneyftj// of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and 
 another of fishes. There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial : but 
 the glory of the celestial is one, and i}a.Q glory of the terrestrial is another. 
 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another 
 glory of stars ; for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the 
 resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption ; it is raised in incorrup- 
 tion : it is sown in dishonour ; it is raised in glory : it is sown in weakness ; 
 it is raised in power : it is sown a natural body ; it is raised a spiritual body. 
 If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also it is written, 
 The first man Adam became a living soul. The last Adam became a life- 
 giving spirit. Ilowbeit that is not first which is spiritual, but that which is 
 natural ; then that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy : 
 the second man is of heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are 
 earthy : and, as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And 
 as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall a' .0 bear the image of 
 the heavenly. 
 
 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom 
 of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a 
 mystery : We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, 
 in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump : for the trumpet shall sound, 
 and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For 
 this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on im- 
 mortality. But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and 
 this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the say- 
 ing that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is 
 thy victory .' O death, where is thy sting ? The sting of death is sin ; and 
 the power of sin is the law: but thanks be to God, which giveth us the vic- 
 tory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be 
 ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, foras- 
 much as ye know that your lal)our is not vain in the Lord. 
 
 Ver. 36. Thou foolish one. A much milder word than 
 
138 /. CORINTHIANS. [xv. 37-39. 
 
 in Matt. 5 : 22. Here simply : One who does not stop to 
 reflect. That which thou thyself sowest. The thought 
 is : Every farmer knows better than that. He expects 
 his harvest only through the death and corruption of the 
 grain which he sows. Our Lord had previously used the 
 same illustration (John 12 : 24). Life out of death is the 
 condition of all life in this transitory Avorld. 
 
 Ver. 37. Not the body that shall be. The plant which 
 springs from the seed is not a precise reproduction of the 
 seed. The apple-tree is more than the apple-seed, and 
 the oak is more than the acorn. Even the grain that is 
 reaped is not in every respect the same as that which is 
 sown. Modifications from occult causes constantly ap- 
 pear. So the resurrection-body, while identical with that 
 which is buried, has new properties. It is the same, and 
 yet is not the same. But a bare grain, i. e. without a 
 plant, as a body. " Not yet clothed with the body which 
 shall be. (Comp. 2 Cor. 5 : 3.)" (Ellicott.) Only a 
 grain of wheat when sown ; not the stalk, with the ripened 
 head, that is to be swayed by next summer's breezes. 
 
 Ver. 38. God giveth it a body, ' lc. Why is it that, 
 with all these variations, the identity of the species is pre- 
 served ? Why does the grain of wheat yield wheat and 
 not grapes or oranges? Simply because God has so 
 arranged from the beginning (Gen. i : 11). But if this 
 is God's order with respect to herbs and fruits, what 
 difficulty can there be in the way of His doing the 
 same with our bodies if He should so will it? That He 
 has so willed has been proved in the preceding paragraph. 
 
 Ver. 39. All flesh is not the same flesh, etc. " By 
 these words, he means to teach that as diverse species 
 unite in one common genus, and nevertheless differ 
 according to external accidents in specific form ; so, after 
 the resurrection, the bodies of men will be equal, in that 
 
XV. 40-43] THE KESUKRECriON-BODY. 139 
 
 they will all be human bodies, but that there will be the 
 greatest difference in external brightness and glory " 
 (Baldwin). Another of fishes. If the eating of flesh be 
 unlawful at any season of the year, then fish must also be 
 proscribed, since fish are here called flesh. 
 
 Ver. 40. Celestial bodies. The word " body " should 
 not be used here with absolute literalness. It may denote 
 the form which an angel assumes for some communica- 
 tion with man, or the glorified bodies of saints; e. g. as 
 seen at the Transfiguration (Matt. 17 : 3) ; or hereafter to 
 be seen at the resurrection. Terrestrial, viz. those of be- 
 lievers in this life. The terrestrial bodies of believers are 
 temples of the Holy Ghost (ch. 6 : 19), and have, therefore, 
 a peculiar glory. The thought suggested is both that 
 each body will have a peculiar glory in this life and in the 
 life to come, and that in the world to come there will be 
 . distinctions among the glorified. Ver. 40 we believe 
 refers to the difference between earthly and heavenly 
 conditions, and ver. 41 to the difference between different 
 bodies within the same heavenly sphere. 
 
 Ver. 42. It is sown. " A delightful word in place of 
 burial " (Benc;el). " The sowing is man's act ; but the 
 raising is God's act, corresponding to the antithesis of 
 * thou ' in ver. 36, and * God ' in ver. 38 " (Meyer). 
 
 Ver. 43. In dishonour, i. e. marred, disfigured, rendered 
 loathsome, so as to compel even those who cherish it most 
 to hide it from their sight. Called, in Phil. 3: 21, "the 
 body of oui humiliation." In glory, such as that in which 
 Moses and Elias appeared at the Transfiguration. In 
 weakness. All power has vanished from a dead body. 
 It cannot resist corruption, or the violence of men or 
 beasts ; neither can it perform any act. In power. The 
 agility and strength of resurrection bodies, surpassing that 
 even of the body in this life. " So strong that with a 
 
I40 /• CORINTHIANS. [xv. 44. 
 
 finger it will carry this church, and with a toe overthrow a 
 tower, and will play with a large mountain as children do 
 at ball, and in an instant leap to the clouds or go a hun- 
 dred miles" (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 44. A natural body. Lit. : " A physical body, or 
 body pervaded by, or adapted to the uses of the soul." 
 For the distinction between the natural {^psychical) and 
 the .spiritual, see note on ch. 2 : 14. In general the 
 natural body is one adapted to the necessities of the 
 present life. The spiritual body is one, not only more 
 completely under the control of the spirit, or the higher 
 part of man's nature, but also one that is peculiarly fitted 
 for the higher life into which the spirit, unencumbered 
 by present temptations, has entered. But the natural 
 body and the spiritual body are identical, only with the 
 exception that the latter has received new and higher 
 properties. The relation is the same, as that between the 
 old man and the new man (Eph. 4: 22, 24), or between 
 the old and the new heart (Ez. 11 : 19; 18 : 31). Nothing 
 more, however, must be afifirmed of the identity of the 
 resurrection-body with that of this life than that which 
 is essential to the conception of the identity of the body 
 of the mature man with that of the infancy in which it 
 began. In neither case can this be atomistic or numer- 
 ical identity. In both cases, the bodily organism is a 
 correct expression of the informing spirit. The person- 
 ality is enstamped upon the body, and acts through it 
 upon the external world. But this does not exhaust the 
 mystery. Even granting that the atoms as placed in the 
 tomb, and gradually resolved into dust, are taken up into 
 new organic forms, first through the functions of vege- 
 table, and then of animal life, the Scripture references to 
 the graves of believers are too explicit to admit of any 
 doubt, that there is a certain localization of that from 
 
XV. 45-] THE SPIRITUAL BODY. 141 
 
 which, in ordinary cases, God shall, by a new act, restore 
 to the soul its body, and endow it with new functions. 
 We need not be troubled by the difficulties that may be 
 suggested. These we shall find everywhere, not only in 
 revelation, but even in Nature. " The resurrection-body, 
 however, will be spiritual, i. e. not an ethereal body, 
 which the antithesis of psychical forbids ; but a spiritual 
 body, inasmuch as the spirit, the power of the super- 
 sensuous, eternal life, in which the Holy Spirit carries on 
 the work of regeneration and sanctification (Rom. 8:16, 
 17), will be its life-principle, and the determining element 
 of its whole nature " (Mever). If there is a natural 
 body, there is also a spiritual, i. e. the reality of the one 
 is just as certain as that of the other. The latter is even 
 more real ; for it is changeless. In the Greek, the em- 
 phasis is on the word " is " in each clause. 
 
 Ver. 45. It is written. This applies only to the first 
 sentence, which is quoted from Gen. 2 : 7. Two contrasts 
 are here made. One, between " soul " and " spirit " ; 
 the other, between " living " and " quickening." In say- 
 ing that Adam was made " a soul," there is no absolute 
 denial that he was also a spirit. (See note on ch. 2 : 14.) 
 But in Adam, the soul predominated, and the spiritual 
 life was present only in its primitive form. Even in the 
 state of original innocency, his bodily capacities related 
 to the wants of the present life, and not to those of the 
 world to come. The last Adam, i. e. Christ, as the second 
 Head of the race. (Comp. above ver. 22 ; Rom. 5 : 14 sq.) 
 He became a life=giving spirit, through the personal 
 union, whereby Divine power was communicated to His 
 humanity. This Divine power was especially exercised 
 in His resurrection, which thenceforth became the source 
 of spiritual life to all in Christ (John 14:19; Rom. 6 : 8-10 ; 
 8 : 11). Thus, through Christ, man becomes far more than 
 
142 r- CORINTHIANS. [xv. 46-48. 
 
 he could ever have become through Adam in his in- 
 nocency, 
 
 Ver. 46. First the natural, then the spiritual. A 
 
 statement of a principle. God's law of development. 
 The psychical life is, in a sense, the basis of the spiritual. 
 In the order of growth, first the body is developed, then 
 the soul, i. e. man's merely intellectual, emotional, and 
 volitional nature, and then the spirit, whereby he com- 
 munes with God and reaches forth towards the eternal 
 world. In accordance with this law, whereby generation 
 precedes regeneration, the psychical body precedes the 
 spiritual. 
 
 Ver. 47. Is of the earth. The reference is to the origin 
 of Adam's body. Earthy. Adapted only to earthly 
 conditions, even in a sinless world. No support can be 
 found here for the statement that Adam's body was 
 originally mortal, but had potential or possible immor- 
 tality. The original state was only the basis, from which 
 the higher spiritual nature would have grown to maturity, 
 if sin had not intervened and brought mortality. Of 
 heaven. This does not deny that Christ, like Adam, had 
 a body of the earth, earthy ; but it declares that this 
 body was pervaded by new, heavenly, and divine prop- 
 erties, belonging to the Divine Person whose home was 
 in the bosom of the Father, who abode and abides to all 
 eternity within it. 
 
 Ver. 48. As is the earthy. Nothing can rise higher 
 than its source. The most complete product of a purely 
 earthly development can never transcend the condition 
 of Adam. Even were there no sin, that which is born of 
 the flesh is flesh (John 3 : 6). As is the heavenly. The 
 sharers in Christ's divine life must become partakers of 
 all its blessings. Death must vanish, where heavenly 
 spirits dwell, even though they sojourn in earthly bodies. 
 
XV. 49, 50-] THE KESUKRECTION-BODY. 143 
 
 As the body shares in the properties of the soul that 
 animates it, so the human spirit shares in the heavenly 
 gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit energizing it, and of 
 the Son of God Himself with whom it is mystically united 
 (Gal. 2 : 20; John 15 : 5). 
 
 Ver. 49. As we have borne the image of the earthly, 
 i. e. our entire inheritance from Adam, both in its essen- 
 tial features that remain over from the Fall, and in its 
 accidental one, viz. sin and all its consequences. The 
 image of the heavenly, i. e. : We shall share in all that 
 Christ is in His heavenly glory (John 17:24; i John 
 3:2; Rom. 8:18, 29). Instead of we shall also bear, 
 the best MSS. have " let us bear," but good authority 
 has this text. If the other reading be adopted, it means 
 that we should receive in faith and with joy this assurance 
 of our future glory. 
 
 Ver. 50. Flesh and blood. (See note on Matt. 16 : 17.) 
 A repetition of the thought of ver. 48. The earthly 
 cannot develop into the heavenly. The heavenly must 
 first enter into the earthly and transform it. The mean- 
 ing is not that our heavenly bodies will be without flesh 
 and blood, since this is abundantly disproved by the 
 nature of Christ's post-resurrection body (Luke 24 : 39, 
 43) ; but that in order to enter heaven, these bodies 
 must acquire new properties. LUTHER throws emphasis 
 on the fact that the reference here is not directly to 
 the resurrection, but to entrance into the Kingdom. 
 " Understand here flesh and blood in the condition in 
 which they now are ; for our flesh shall be partaker of the 
 glory of God, but only as renewed and quickened by the 
 Spirit of Christ " (Calvin). Neither doth corruption in= 
 herit. Flesh and blood, even though incorrupt, would 
 not, according to vers. 45,47, be adapted, without change, 
 to the conditions of the spiritual life of the world to 
 
144 ^- CORINTHIANS. [xv. 51-54. 
 
 come. But flesh and blood are no longer incorrupt, and 
 hence their want of adaptation to the future world is 
 still more evident. In order to receive the incorruptible, 
 flesh and blood must be raised above the domain of the 
 corruptible. 
 
 Ver. 51. A mystery. A truth which man can never 
 discover by his reasbn ; one that must remain forever un- 
 known, except by a special revelation of God. For ex- 
 amples how the natural man regards the doctrine of the 
 resurrection, see Acts 17 : 18, 32 ; 24 : 21 ; 26 : 23, 24. 
 We shall not all sleep. Not all believers shall await in 
 their graves the summons to the Kingdom. Some shall 
 be alive on the earth when the Lord returns. But their 
 bodies shall undergo a change identical with that which 
 occurs in the bodies that are raised. 
 
 Ver. 52. The suddenness of the change, leaving no 
 time for any passage of the living through death again to 
 life, is expressed by the double expression, in a moment, 
 in the twinkling of an eye. At the last trump, viz. at 
 the Divine summons which is to conclude the present 
 order of things, and, therefore, called " the last." (Comp. 
 Matt. 24 : 31 ; i Thess. 4 : 16.) Be raised incorruptible, 
 i. e. be given bodies that are without the possibility of 
 any change. We, i. e. all of us; the dead, with resurrec- 
 tion-bodies, and the living, with their bodies suddenly 
 endowed with all the properties of those that have been 
 raised from death. 
 
 Ver. 53. Everything corruptible and mortal in our 
 bodies shall vanish. 
 
 Ver. 54. The prophecy to be fulfilled is a combination 
 of Is. 25 : 8, with Hos. 13 : 14. The freeness of the 
 rendering, be it remembered, is under the guidance of the 
 Holy Spirit, and thus affords a divinely inspired applica- 
 tion of the leadincf thoughts of those texLs. These texts 
 
XX. 56-58.] THE VICTORY. 145 
 
 in R. V. read : " He hath swallowed up death forever " 
 (Is. 25 : 8). "O death, where are thy plagues? O grave, 
 where is thy destruction?" (Hos. 13 : 14). "I certainly 
 think that he did not mean to quote the prophet as a 
 witness, but that he only in passing adapted a sentence 
 received in common usage, to his argument " (Calvin). 
 It is the note of triumph over death that he here sounds. 
 To the believer in this life, the fulfilment of all that is 
 here said has been begun. Its completion comes with 
 the resurrection. 
 
 Ver, 56. The sting of death is sin. The scorpion can 
 inflict death only by its sting. Death cannot harm where 
 there is no sin. Sin alone, therefore, subjects us to the 
 power of death. When all sin is gone, death's work is 
 done, and its reign is over. The power of sin is the law. 
 This thought Paul has expanded in Rom. 7 : 7-13. It 
 IS the oflfice of the law to pass sentence of death upon 
 the guilty (Gal. 3 : 10). The crushing blow that over- 
 comes the sinner is the consciousness that he is beneath 
 the wrath of God. 
 
 - Ver. 57. The victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 Because He has perfectly fulfilled the law for us, and all 
 its condemning power is destroyed. This is the great 
 theme of the Epistle to the Romans, especially Rom. 
 8 : 1-4. With the law satisfied, death is abolished 
 (2 Tim. I : 10). 
 
 Ver. 58. Now comes the practical application. The 
 resemblance to the Ninetieth Psalm, treating of God 
 as man's refuge from death, is striking, in the fact that 
 the closing verse of that Psalm and this chapter concern- 
 ing the resurrection are very similar. He urges to firm- 
 ness and patience in the Christian profession, in view of 
 the absolute certainty of the resurrection from the dead, 
 and the blessed future, with body and soul reunited, that 
 10 
 
146 /. CORINTHIANS. [xv. 58. 
 
 awaits every child of God. He does not console them 
 with mere hopes. He says : " Inasmuch as ye knoivy 
 Though there be labour, i. e. work unto extreme weari- 
 ness, it is nothing compared to the reward. Men may not 
 recognize it here, and life may seem a failure. But only 
 wait, and you shall find that every effort made in Christ's 
 name shall not be in vain. How can Christians, whether 
 ministers or laymen, men or women, with this chapter 
 before them, lament that they are are not appreciated 
 and their labor not recognized? (Comp. i Tim. 5 : 25.) 
 
PART V. 
 
 CONCLUDING DIRECTIONS (Ch, i6). 
 
 I. TJic Collection. 
 
 1-4. Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I gave order to 
 the churches of Galatia, so also do ye. Upon the first day of the week 
 let each one of you lay by him in store, as he may prosper, that no col- 
 lections be made when I come. And when I arrive, whomsoever ye shall 
 approve by letters, them will I send to carry your bounty unto Jerusalem : 
 and if it be meet for me to go also they shall go with me. 
 
 The greatest of theologians, the profoundest of think- 
 ers, the most skilful and conclusive of reasoners, the most 
 aggressive of missionaries, combined with these distinc- 
 tions the highest qualities as an organizer and as a 
 thoroughly practical business man. The most careful 
 attention to details and the most exquisite tact are dis- 
 played in his conduct of the measures needed to supply 
 the wants of the impoverished Christians at Jerusalem. 
 As a minister of the Gospel and even an Apostle, he did 
 not hesitate to undertake, when the call was pressing, 
 what maybe regarded as the secular side of church work ; 
 and to whatever he undertook, he devoted himself with 
 all the concentration of energy, persistency of purpose, 
 and earnest thought, that distinguished him in other 
 spheres. His faith in no way paralyzed, but only stim- 
 ulated his attention to system and close study of the 
 adaptability of various plans to the attainment of his end. 
 Every plan of Paul is flexible, and seeks to adapt itself 
 
 147 
 
148 /. CORINTHIANS. [xvi. i, 2. 
 
 to circumstances of time and place, and the peculiarities 
 of those with whom he has to deal. 
 
 Ver. I. The collection for the saints. Similar collec- 
 tions are mentioned in Rom. 1 5 : 26 ; 2 Cor. 9 : i sqq. ; 
 Acts 24:17. The appeal is made, not simply because 
 their poverty was extreme, but because those in such 
 extremity were brethren in Christ. In Rom. 15 : 26, they 
 are designated as " the poor among the saints." From 
 the first accounts of the church at Jerusalem, mention 
 is made of a considerable number of poor persons among 
 its members. The communistic plan of Acts 4 : 34-37, 
 was a mere temporary arrangement, which was not suc- 
 cessful very long. Local famines, political agitations, and 
 the proscription of Christian laborers and salesmen by 
 the Jews, probably all contributed their share to the 
 destitution. As I gave order to the churches of Qalatia. 
 Paul shortly after this reminded the Galatians (Gal. 2 : 10) 
 of the pledge he had made, that the poor at Jerusalem 
 should be helped. The allusion here is probably to some 
 more specific instructions of which we have no record. 
 Here we find an evidence of Paul's tact. " He proposes 
 the Galatians as an example to the Corinthians, the 
 Corinthians to the Macedonians, the Corinthians and 
 Macedonians to the Romans (2 Cor. 9:2; Rom. 15 : 26). 
 There is great force in examples" (Bengel). 
 
 Ver. 2. Upon the first day of the week. This shows 
 that the Lord's day was already observed for the assem- 
 blies of Christians. (Comp. Rev. i : 10.) " If a man every 
 Lord's day has laid by something, he is likely to have 
 collected more than one would have given at once " 
 (Bengel). Let each one. This admits of no exceptions. 
 The poorest, if he have anything, is expected as well as 
 the richest to contribute something, according to his 
 means. That no collections be made. This is a pledge, 
 
XVI. 3. 4] PAUL, AS A BUSINESS MAN. 149 
 
 that, if the plan he suggests be adopted, they may be 
 assured that he will not urge upon them any personal 
 appeal. Otherwise, they might excuse their remissness, 
 by the plea that they would have to give, at any rate, on 
 P^aul's arrival. " No," he says, " my word stands for it, 
 that, if you adopt this plan, you shall not be asked for a 
 cent when I reach you." 
 
 Ver, 3. Whomsoever ye shall approve by letters. 
 Paul is unwilling personally to transmit or carry the 
 funds. The factional prejudices at Corinth might lead 
 tea misunderstanding and interfere with his work as a 
 preacher of the Gospel, if the immediate handling of the 
 funds were entrusted to him. Let the Corinthians choose 
 their own treasurer of the fund, and almoners to carry it 
 to the destitute. Paul wants the direct administration 
 of the business interests of the Church to be in the 
 hands of laymen, selected by the congregations, upon 
 whose time and experience they have just as much claim 
 as they have upon that of pastors. That there was no 
 lack of business talent in the Corinthian Church, is man- 
 ifest from the fact, that the treasurer of the city of 
 Corinth • belonged to the congregation (Rom. 16 : 23). 
 Paul further requires that those chosen to distribute the 
 fund should have written endorsements and vouchers. 
 When he comes to business, nothing is at loose ends. 
 So in Rom. 15 : 28, he informs the Romans that he 
 must see to it, that these contributions of the Corin- 
 thians are not only conveyed, but that they are in due 
 form receipted. The margin has : " Them will I send 
 with letters ; " i. e. the Apostle would give them a written 
 certificate, of their appointment. 
 
 Ver. 4. If it be meet for me, i. e. : If the collection be 
 such that it is worth while for the Apostle to travel to 
 Jerusalem on such an errand. " A just estimate of self 
 
150 /• CORINTHIANS. [xvi. 5-8, 
 
 is not pride (2 Cor. i : 19) " (Bengel). The Epistle to 
 the Romans, written later from Corinth, declares the 
 Apostle's purpose to go to Jerusalem, and, therefore, 
 shows that his hopes concerning the collection had been 
 realized. That the purpose was carried out, we read in 
 the Book of Acts. (See Acts 24 : 17.) 
 
 The plan proposed by Paul for the collection at Corinth 
 cannot be urged as an absolute law for all church collec- 
 tions. It was the plan which Paul believed would work 
 best in the peculiar circumstances of that church. But 
 when the liberality of the Corinthians has been called 
 forth, he finds it necessary, in appealing to the Romans, 
 only to mention the necessity, and to state what the 
 Corinthians have done. 
 
 2. His Approaching Visit. 
 
 5-9. But I will come unto you, when I shall have passed through Mace- 
 donia; for I do pass through Macedonia; but with you it may be that I 
 shall abide, or even winter, that ye may set me forward on my journey 
 whithersoever I go. For I do not wish to see you now by the way ; for I 
 hope to tarry a while with you, if the Lord permit. But I will tarry at 
 Ephesus until Pentecost ; for a great door and effectual is opened unto me 
 and there are many adversaries. 
 
 Vers. 5-8. When I shall have passed. The confusion 
 in the Church at Corinth had induced him to change his 
 plans. He had intended to go to Macedonia by way of 
 Corinth (2 Cor. i : 15, 16). But under the circumstances, 
 he deems it better to keep at a distance for some time 
 (2 Cor. I : 23 ; 2 ; i ; 12 : 20), in order that this Epistle 
 may be maturely considered and do its work (2 Cor. 
 7 : 8-12 ; 13 : 10). Hence he proposes to go to Corinth 
 by way of Macedonia. His words in ver. 7 are strong, 
 and seemingly severe : I do not wish to see you now by 
 the way. But it must be remembered that of the one 
 
XVI. s-S.] THE GREAT DOOR. 151 
 
 reasons of the change, is also that his visit may not be a 
 hurried one, but that when he does reach Corinth, he 
 may have ample time to personally correct all wrongs 
 and conciliate all differences in the Church. A brief visit 
 might do only injury. Paul thinks of all these things. 
 If the Lord permit. All his plans are liable to change 
 according to circumstances ; since he regards these as 
 determined by God's will. Ver. 8. I will tarry at Ephesus. 
 Hence the note at the close of the Epistle, stating that 
 it was written at Philippi, is incorrect. Ver. 9. A great 
 door. A peculiar opportunity. The time was most 
 propitious for preaching the Gospel. (Comp. Acts 
 14 : 27 ; 2 Cor. 2:12; Col. 4:3; Rev. 3 : 8.) For the 
 fact, see Acts 19 : 17-20. Effectual. The Greek word 
 is of the same origin as '* energetic," and means, there- 
 fore, " a door through which the energy of the Gospel is 
 communicated," a sphere in which there is both work 
 and promise of great results. In Heb. 4 : 12 it is trans- 
 lated " powerful." Many adversaries. Read the entire 
 nineteenth chapter of Acts, if you would understand the 
 allusion. Paul knew well that he was not to permanently 
 suppress them (Acts 20 . 29, 30). But the presence of 
 opponents was, in Paul's mind, no reason why he should 
 change his field of labor, as it is sometimes urged by 
 pastors of to-day. On the contrary, the number and 
 strength of the adversaries was only an additional in- 
 ducement for him to remain. The soldier of the cross 
 must not always avoid battle. 
 
 3. Concerning Certain Ministers of tJic Word. 
 
 10-12. Now if Timothy come, see that he be with you without fear; for 
 he worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do : let no man therefore 
 despise him. But set him forward on his journey in peace, that he may 
 come unto me : for I expect him with the brethren. But as touching 
 
152 /. CORINTHIANS. [xvi. 10-12. 
 
 Apollos the brother, I besought him much to come unto you with the 
 brethren : and it was not all his will to come now; but he will come when 
 he shall have opportunity. 
 
 Ver. 10. Without fear. Alluding to Timothy's well- 
 known constitutional timidity. It was a number of 
 years later, that Paul enjoined Timothy : " Let no man 
 despise thy youth " (iTim.4 : 12). Paul had commended 
 Timothy before in this epistle (ch. 4 : 17). The Corin- 
 thians are here enjoined to do everything to encourage 
 him, and to sustain him in asserting his divine call to the 
 work. As I also do. This is intended to emphasize 
 Timothy's authority. Regard not the person, but the 
 work; not his age, but his office. He is just as truly 
 divinely-appointed as I am. His words are to be heard, 
 and his efforts received, just as you would mine. 
 
 Vcr. 1 1. Let him forward on his Journey. His mission 
 to Corinth was only temporary. Having been sent by 
 way of Macedonia (Acts 19 : 22), he arrived at Corinth, 
 after this Epistle, forwarded by other messengers, and a 
 shorter route, reached there, and is to return with them 
 directly to Ephesus. In peace, i. e. : Do not allow his 
 name to be involved in your miserable Corinthian 
 quarrels. 
 
 Ver. 12 shows that differences of opinion concerning 
 the policy to be pursued in particular cases, were found 
 even among the leaders in the Apostolic Church. Paul 
 thought that if Apollos would go to Corinth, the factions 
 that attempted to array their names against each other 
 would soon disappear. But Apollos had his reasons for 
 declining. The second clause of the verse renders it 
 possible that he felt at the tim'e that the obligation of 
 his present labor, was too strong to admit of his depart- 
 ure. The entire harmony of spirit between the two, is 
 clearly read in these words. 
 
XVI. ij, 14.] FIVE RULES. 153 
 
 4. Exhortations. 
 
 13, 14. Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you Uke men, be strong. 
 Let all that ye do be done in love. 
 
 Five rules for the Christian Hfe : i. Forget not your 
 danger; but guard against Satan, the world, the flesh. 
 Recall your sins and infirmities, and examine yourselves 
 as to how the battle within progresses. 2. Live in the 
 light of the unseen and invisible, and regard not the in- 
 vitations of that which dazzles the sight and charms the 
 senses. Above all, cleave to Christ, and abide in Him 
 as the most substantial of all realities. 3. Fight your 
 spiritual enemies with the weapons God has furnished. 
 Be not dismayed by their power or number ; but hold 
 your ground. 4. Exert your divinely given spiritual 
 powers in every duty God has laid upon you. 5. Do not 
 forget the thirteenth chapter of this Epistle. 
 
 These five rules are the best prescription for the 
 partisan zeal and controversial fever from which the 
 Corinthians were suffering. " Where love is, there can 
 be no schism " (Grotius). 
 
 5. Concerning Three Corinthians. 
 
 15-18. Now I beseech you, brethren (ye know the house of Stephanas, 
 that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have set themselves to 
 minister unto the saints), that ye also be in subjection unto such, and to 
 every one that helpeth in the work and laboureth. And I rejoice at the 
 coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus : for that which was 
 lacking on your part they supplied. For they refreshed my spirit and 
 yours : acknowledge ye therefore them that are such. 
 
 Stephanas was mentioned in ch. i: 15. He and his 
 family are here designated as the first converts at Cor- 
 inth. Their home was probably a centre of Christian 
 and Church influence for Corinth and the surrounding 
 
154 I- CORINTHIANS. [xvi. 15-1S. 
 
 country. Set themselves to the ministry, i. e. made the 
 service of their fellow-Christians their main object in life. 
 Be in subjection unto such. Gratefully revere them, and 
 cheerfully receive and follow their advice. Those who 
 have the kingdom most at heart in a congregation, arc 
 often misunderstood by their brethren of less faith, who 
 cannot appreciate or understand the intensity of their 
 service, and are frequently unwilling to follow their lead- 
 ership. The coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and 
 Achaicus, It has been suggested that the two latter 
 were members of the household of Stephanas. At any 
 rate, these three persons had visited Paul at Ephesus and 
 brought him the information that led to the writing of 
 this Epistle. Looking on your part, viz. your presence, 
 they supply by their tidings. Even though the news in 
 many respects was sad and disheartening, it was a satis- 
 faction to have heard from Corinth, and to have had 
 intimate association with prominent members of that 
 church, with whom he could freely converse. Hence he 
 says: They refreshed my spirit. Besides, as their con- 
 versation with him was the occasion for writing this 
 epistle, he adds with much grace, and, perhaps, a slight 
 touch of humor : And yours. Paul was confident that, 
 although the letter might temporarily irritate, neverthe- 
 less that its ultimate beneficial effect would be recognized 
 by the Corinthians. 
 
 6. Salutation., Warning, and Benediction. 
 
 19-24. The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Prisca saUite you 
 much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. All the breth- 
 ren salute you. Salute one another with a holy kiss. 
 
 The salutation of me Paul with my own hand. If any man loveth not 
 the Lord, let him be anathema. Maran atha. The grace of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ be with you. My love be w'.th you all in Christ Jesus. Amen. 
 
XVI. 19. 24-] TWO IVATCHWORDS. 155 
 
 Vcr. 19. Asia. The Roman province of that name, on 
 the western coast of Asia Minor, in which Ephesus was 
 located. Aquila and Prisca. (See note on Rom. 16: 3.) 
 Corinth had been their former home ; and with them in 
 Corinth Paul had lived (Acts i8: i). They were with 
 Paul at Ephesus. Afterwards, when Paul went to Cor- 
 inth, and wrote thence the Epistle to the Romans, 
 they were at Rome. The church that is in their house. 
 (See note on Rom. 16: 3.) They had a church in their 
 house, both at Ephesus and at Rome. A bright testi- 
 mony to their devotion and earnestness. On the house- 
 church, see, also. Col. 4:15; Philemon (ver. 2). 
 
 Ver. 20. All the brethren. All the members of the 
 church at Ephesus. On the holy kiss, see note on Rom. 
 16: 16. 
 
 Ver. 21. With mine own hand. An autographic con- 
 clusion to a letter written by an amanuensis. Here this 
 amanuensis may have been Sosthenes (i : i), as the Epistle 
 to the Romans was written by Tertius (Rom. 16: 22). 
 
 Ver. 22. In his own autograph, he adds two watch- 
 words for the Corinthians to remember and repeat. The 
 first calls them to the love of the Lord — a call rendered 
 necessary by their want of love to their fellow-Christians, 
 manifested by their divisions and controversies. Without 
 this love to Christ, Paul says, they are under the wrath 
 of God, and cannot be Christians. (See note on Rom. 
 9: 3, and above, ch. 12: 3.) The second watchword, 
 often connected with the preceding sentence, is iTlaran 
 atha, meaning either " Our Lord has come," or " Our 
 Lord is coming." Another rebuke of the abuses prevail- 
 ing in the Corinthian Church. 
 
 Ver. 23. For the benediction, see Rom. 16: 20, and 
 note on Rom. i : 7. (Comp. i Cor. i : 3.) 
 
 Ver. 24. All is ended by the assurance of his unchanged 
 
156 /■- CORINTHIANS. [xvi. 24. 
 
 love. Notwithstanding the manner in which some of the 
 Corinthians had misrepresented and attacked him in his 
 absence, and the necessity they had imposed upon him 
 of devoting so large a portion of this letter to a defence, 
 he nevertheless declares : fly love is with you all. The 
 Greek has neither "is" nor "be." In benedictions, the 
 verb is suppressed, because optative and indicative co- 
 alesce. (Cf. on Rom. 1:1.) What the Christian prays for 
 from God he has, and what he has of God he prays may 
 be continued. All, however, is limited and explained by 
 the words: In Christ Jesus. As they are in Christ, he 
 loves them. As they are out of Christ, he loves them 
 only that they may be brought to Christ. As Christ is 
 persistently repelled, or finally completely excluded from 
 their hearts. His love, like the love of the Father, must 
 at last forever surrender the deluded one to its own sad 
 fate. 
 
ANNOTATIONS 
 
 ON THE 
 
 SECOND EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL 
 
 TO THE CORINTHIANS 
 
 BY 
 
 GEORGE FREDERICK SPIEKER, D.D, 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The connection between the two Epistles to tlie Cor- 
 inthians is very close, even as to the time of their compo- 
 sition. Written in the same year, the Second Epistle has 
 its roots in the First, and supplements it, looking to the 
 future. St. Paul was led by the report which Titus 
 brought him concerning the Church at Corinth to write 
 this Second Epistle from some point in Macedonia, not 
 definitely known. In no other Epistle do we obtain such 
 an insight into the character, the inner life, the workings 
 of the Apostle's mind and heart. The strong internal 
 evidence in favor of its genuineness is emphasized by this 
 fact. Opposition on the part of false teachers at Corinth, 
 by which the welfare of the Church was put in jeopardy, 
 forces the Apostle to lay open the secrets of his soul. 
 There is something gained, moreover, in another direc- 
 tion. By this stirring up of his love and zeal for the 
 Corinthians, he has given to the Church a pastoral 
 Epistle, rich in suggestive thoughts for the pulpit as well 
 as the life of the individual pastor. We have before us 
 in this Epistle the portrait of a model pastor, a practical 
 man, who knows heaven and who understands the life of 
 earth, a man of sincerity and of tact, who can exhort, 
 rebuke, if need be, and comfort as well. The Epistle is 
 a thesaurus of Pastoral Theology. No wonder that Bes- 
 ser wished to spend three years, in the lifting of its treas- 
 ures, instead of one. 
 
 >S9 
 
l6o INTRODUCTION. 
 
 On the linguistic side, too, the Epistle is remarkable. 
 How St. Paul wrestles with the ductile Greek in order to 
 bring out the fine shadings of his thoughts, the themes 
 of his peculiar Apostolic experience. Even with as 
 pliant and elastic an instrument as the Greek language is 
 for the purposes of expression, he realizes the difficulties 
 which confront him who is to discourse on the spiritual 
 and the Divine. Was he successful ? The way in which he 
 does it often excites our admiration and astonishment. 
 Doubtless St. Paul was a chosen vessel, and without the 
 Spirit of God even his lips would not have found such 
 utterance. 
 
 Augustine, De Doctrina Christiana, Lib. IV., quoting 
 chapt. II : i6 et seq., speaks of the eloquence here 
 met with in these words: " Quanto vcro etiain cloqucn- 
 tice cucurrcrint fiiiininc'' How great the stream is ! 
 The chief aim of the Apostle in this Epistle is to have 
 the Church at Corinth understand him thoroughly, and to 
 this end he writes in such a way as to enable them to 
 judge of his motives. All his statements, given in detail, 
 including what he writes concerning the collection for the 
 poor saints at Jerusalem, tend in this direction. The 
 Corinthians are to have a full knowledge of everything 
 that will throw light on his Apostolic career, before he 
 visits them again. 
 
 Seeming digressions, which have laid this Epistle 
 open to the charge of being unsystematic, are due to the 
 personal element, which is predominant, but which at the 
 same time furnishes the thread of unity. The present 
 exposition has aimed at preserving the continuity of the 
 Epistle, by commenting on every, part of the text, a kind 
 of treatment which seems to be more especially demanded 
 in this case. As to the literature of the Epistle, the 
 author has availed himself of everything that could aid 
 
INTRODUCTION. l6l 
 
 him in reaching a conclusion, or that would furnish in 
 formation of value to the reader. The works of Baldwin, 
 Calovius, Hunnius, Bengel, Besser, Meyer, Kling in Lange, 
 Dietrich, Vilmar, Plumptre, and Lias have been helpful. 
 On the philological side one would wish that the excel- 
 lent work of Cremer had taken a still wider range, since 
 the study of the original text is always of transcendent 
 importance. It is hardly necessary to add that the ex- 
 ternal testimony to the genuineness of this Epistle, by 
 Irena^us, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria and Ter- 
 tullian, is in harmony with the internal evidence. 
 
 The bulk of this Epistle is taken up with a description 
 of the ministry of the New Testament in its character 
 and motives, which is throughout apologetic in tone, 
 having reference to the official position of the Apostle. 
 Incidentally the consideration of the collection is inter- 
 jected so as to divide the Epistle into three parts : 
 
 I. St. Paul's Description of the Christian 
 Ministry, I.— VII. 
 II. The Collection for the Poor Saints at 
 
 Jerusalem, VIII. — IX. 
 III. St. Paul's Vindication of his Apostolic Au- 
 thority, X. — XIII. 
 II 
 
I. St. Paul's Description of the Christian Min- 
 istry (Ch. 1-7). 
 
 (A.) Salutation (1:1,2). 
 
 I, 2. Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and 
 Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all 
 the saints which are in the whole of Achaia : Grace to you and peace from 
 God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 Ver. I. Paul, Apostle of Christ Jesus. An emphatic 
 repetition of i Cor. 1:1, intended for the Christians at 
 Corinth who were the seal of St. Paul's Apostleship in the 
 Lord. Through the will of God. To this he confidently 
 appeals as the only source of Apostolic authority. And 
 Timothy our brother. Literally the brother. Timothy 
 is thus associated with the Apostle in several Epistles, as 
 Sosthenes is in the preceding one, because of his being a 
 fellow-worker in the ministry, and well known to the 
 Corinthians. Christian brotherhood is well illustrated by 
 this association. Unto the church ... at Corinth. 
 (Comp. I Cor. 1:1.) With special reference to the con- 
 dition of the Church at Corinth, but not exclusively 
 limited to it, as the contents of the Epistle and the suc- 
 ceeding clause indicate. Each Epistle has an abiding 
 value for all the churches. Saints . . . Achaia. The 
 Roman province of Achaia comprehended Hellas and the 
 Peloponnesus, and fairly corresponds to the modern king- 
 dom of Greece. Intimate intercourse between the mem- 
 bers of the churches is implied in this remark, which 
 enables us to account for the general diffusion of the 
 
 163 
 
1 64 II- CORINTHIANS. [L 2. 
 
 Apostolic Epistles. This Epistle is intended for the 
 benefit of all the saints, i. e. all the members of the 
 Church of God, who are under the sanctifying influence 
 of the Means of Grace. 
 
 Ver. 2. Grace to you and peace. First grace, then 
 peace. Peace as the sequel of grace is to be kept in view. 
 Grace of and from God, peace to man. This is Paul's 
 salute, a prayerful wish for all the congregations. From 
 God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Not divid- 
 ing the essence, but distinguishing the ofifices, as Baldwin 
 puts it. The source of grace and peace is in the Father 
 and the Son, as the order of the words indicates.^ The 
 work of redemption is included in the setting of the 
 sentence. 
 
 (B.) Comfort in Affliction (i : 3-14). 
 
 3-14. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the 
 Father of mercies and God of all comfort : who comforteth us in all our 
 affliction, that we may be able to comfort them that are in any affliction, 
 through the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For 
 as the sufferings of Christ abound unto us, even so our comfort also abound- 
 eth through Christ. But whether we be afflicted, it is for your comfort and 
 salvation; or whether we be comforted, it is for your comfort, which work- 
 eth in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: and 
 our hope for you is stedfast ; knowing that, as ye are partakers of the 
 sufferings, so also are ye of the comfort. For we would not have you igno- 
 rant, brethren, concerning our affliction which befell iis in Asia, that we were 
 weighed down exceedingly, beyond our power, insomuch that we despaired 
 even of life : yea, we ourselves have had the answer of death within our- 
 selves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the 
 dead : who delivered us out of so great a death, and will deliver : on whom 
 we have set our hope that he will also still deliver us ; ye also helping 
 together on our behalf by your supplication ; that, for the gift bestowed 
 upon us by means of many, thanks may be given by many persons on our 
 behalf. 
 
 For our glorj'ing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness 
 and sincerity of God, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we 
 
 ' Bald. ag. Avians, argument. 
 
1.3,4] COMFORT IN AFFLICTION. 165 
 
 behaved ourselves in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward. For 
 we write none other things unto you, than what ye read or even acknowl- 
 edge, and I hope ye will acknowledge unto the end: as also ye did 
 acknowledge us in part, that we are your glorying, even as ye also are ours, 
 in the day of our Lord Jesus. 
 
 Ver, 3. Blessed, thanked, praised, be the God and 
 Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God whom we 
 
 know through Christ. (Compare ver, 2.) The Father of 
 mercies and God of all comfort. Mercies imply comfort. 
 The stream of comfort flows from the fountain of all 
 mercies. Father and mercies are happily conjoined. 
 Like as a father pitieth his children. (Ps. 103 : 13.) The 
 multitude of mercies show the Father's heart. Mercies 
 multiplied are in the Apostle's mind. Many tribulations, 
 many mercies. It is significant that the Father of mer- 
 cies is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. All comfort. 
 Lias notes the frequent repetition of the word comfort, 
 or the corresponding verb in this and the next four 
 verses. The Revised Version uniformly uses the word 
 comfort, an improvement on the Old Version, which 
 followed Tyndale. Comfort implies encouragement, 
 strengthening, cheer. God is described as the source of 
 all comfort. How is this ? Does not man also comfort ? 
 Yes, but only when he has himself experienced comfort 
 from God. 
 
 Ver. 4. In all our affliction. The assurance of con- 
 stant comfort. Like David, St. Paul has been trained in 
 the school of experience. Timothy and all believers are 
 included. No afifliction can be too severe. Comfort is a 
 reality and the Christian looks for it, as the disciples 
 awaited the coming of the great Comforter, the Holy 
 Ghost. That we may be able to comfort them that are 
 in any affliction. " He who has experienced one kind 
 of affliction can best comfort others who suffer in like 
 
1 66 /^- CORINTHIANS. \\. 5, 6. 
 
 manner, he who has endured all kinds can comfort in all " 
 (Bengel). " The divine power to comfort which belongs 
 to our tempted and compassionate Saviour imparts itself 
 to all believers ; as along an electric chain this divine 
 comforting power in Christ passes from one to another 
 in the Church, the assembly of the Comforter " (Besser). 
 
 Ver. 5. The sufferings of Christ. Hunnius includes 
 those sufferings which Christians endure as members of 
 His majestic body. The same thought is thus expressed 
 by Luther: "The sufferings of Christ are the sufferings 
 of innocence." The Church suffers as the bride of Christ, 
 for righteousness' sake. Doubtless persecutions occupy 
 the hio-hest place. Abound unto us. Unto us, as though 
 waves of suffering were rushing toward them. Lit. super- 
 abound. (See chap. 1 1 : 23-27.) Our comfort aboundeth 
 through Christ. " And as thy days, so shall thy strength 
 be" (Deut. 23 : 25). Had it not been for the comfort, 
 the Apostle's strength would have failed. The cup of 
 comfort, like the cup of suffering, runneth over. The 
 cup is filled through Christ. 
 
 Ver. 6. We be afflicted, ... for your comfort and 
 salvation. How can this be ? Certainly not by merit, 
 for, according to ver. 5, the comfort comes through Christ, 
 but rather, as Hunnius points out, by way of example. 
 To this may be added the increased efficiency of min- 
 isters like Paul and Timothy. The rule certainly holds 
 good : " And whether one member suffereth, all the 
 members suffer with it " (i Cor. 12:26). Yet this pas- 
 sage has particular reference to the benefit derived by 
 the Church from the sufferings of the ministry. The 
 word " salvation " proves this. ' The ministry labors in 
 the sphere of the application of grace, the great aim 
 being salvation. We be comforted, ... for your com- 
 fort. The comfort of God's servants, coming from God, 
 
I. 7, 8.] ENDURAIVCE AND HOPE. 167 
 
 is fruitful of comfort for the Church. The patient endur- 
 ing of the same sufferings. Comfort, in the present, 
 enables the Church to look forward to the salvation 
 which is to come. In her sufferings the same comfort is 
 active, working in the patient endurance of all that must 
 be borne for Christ's sake, and enabling her to be faith- 
 ful to the end. 
 
 Ver. 7. Hope . . . stedfast. The ground of this hope 
 is the assurance of comfort. This hope is sure, firm, 
 which cannot be said of every hope. The reality of 
 the sufferings and the comfort is a matter of knowledge. 
 It stands out before St. Paul's mind as a fact. As 
 ye are partakers of the sufferings, so also are ye of the 
 comfort. This Epistle is the vehicle of the comfort, as 
 the first had been one of reproof. 
 
 Ver. 8. Not have you ignorant, brethren. False apos- 
 tles would have remained silent concerning such grievous 
 experiences of the soul. Not so Paul. The Corinthians 
 are to know of his weakness, as well as outward distress. 
 Complete information, to complete the picture drawn (i 
 Cor. 4 : 9-13). This accounts for the frequent use of the 
 expression. Nothing essential is to be withheld from the 
 brethren. Our affliction ... in Asia. No particular 
 trouble is specified. Most likely the affliction was cumu- 
 lative, so Hunnius. " The words in Asia suggest a wide 
 range of suffering " (Plumptre). This may well include 
 the Demetrius tumult at Ephesus, which Meyer would 
 exclude entirely. Weighed down exceedingly, beyond 
 our power. The quality of the affliction, its magnitude, 
 its crushing pressure, is apparent from these words. An 
 extraordinary burden, a weight beyond measure, bore 
 him down. Exceptional affliction, even beyond his 
 ordinary strength. Despaired even of life. Despaired, 
 could see no other issue but death. He was utterly at a 
 
1 68 //. CORINTHIANS. [i. 9, lo. 
 
 loss, to see how he could live. To despair of life is the 
 extreme of weakness, the climax of the burden. The 
 cry of the soul is out of the depths. " The context leads 
 us to think of bodily illness as well as of perils and anx- 
 ieties " (Plumptre). 
 
 Ver. 9. The answer of death. Yea, rather but, indi- 
 cating a strong contrast, having reference to what follows. 
 The word translated " answer " is found only in this pas- 
 sage, and was rendered by the word " sentence " in the 
 Old Version. It means that the Apostle in his distress 
 can arrive at but one conclusion : Death is inevitable. 
 Luther asks the question : How is this, dear Paul? Why 
 art thou not happy and full of courage ? This leads us 
 to notice the force of the word " but." Not trust in our= 
 selves. How much is required to bring man, even an 
 Apostle, to that point, the removal of the false founda- 
 tion of trust in self. The fruit of the discipline of Paul's 
 affliction thus in part manifests itself. God . . . raiseth 
 the dead. Trust in God is the positive side. Trust in 
 man and human remedies had been swept away : trust in 
 God takes its place. As Besser puts it : " Paul makes a 
 practical application of the doctrine of the resurrection 
 of the dead." He was face to face with death ; to whom 
 should he fly for deliverance from death, but to Him 
 which raised the dead. The greater includes the less. 
 Faith's in God's power to raise the dead, invites to faith 
 in His power to deliver from death. 
 
 Ver. 10. So great a death. Great comparatively speak- 
 ing, in view of all the circumstances just related by the 
 Apostle. So great in quality as well as in the quantity of 
 afflictions. And will deliver. These words are wanting 
 in some of the better manuscripts, and the A. V. uses the 
 present tense. The connection is better maintained by 
 what follows. In whom we have set our hope that he 
 
I. II, 12.] PRAYER AND PRAISE. 169 
 
 will also still deliver us. In whom we have hoped, ex- 
 pressing a hope which reaches into the present and reaches 
 out toward future deliverance. A well-grounded hope, 
 as Erasmus puts it. Hope for deliverance until his 
 Apostolic mission shall have been fulfilled. 
 
 Ver. II. Ye also helping. . . supplication. This is 
 another proof of the communion which marked the life 
 of the early Church. Dean Stanley refers to it as a pro- 
 duct of Christianity. Such intercessory prayer is taken 
 for granted by the Apostle as something natural among 
 Christians, especially for pastors who have the care of 
 souls. Added to his own prayer is that of the Church 
 whom the Apostle serves in the Lord. Community of 
 affliction, of comfort, of prayer. Prayer for the brethren 
 is a helping together, enjoined by the Lord, a privilege to 
 be used with alacrity. The gift bestowed upon us. De- 
 liverance is the gracious gift, and many persons have 
 prayed for it and become the means under God toward 
 its bestowal. Thanks by many persons on our behalf. 
 Deliverance is the gift of God by the means of many 
 persons. Thanks are the gift of man ; in this instance, 
 common thanks. The community of prayer becomes a 
 community of thanksgiving, an object which the Lord 
 has in view. Prayer is followed by deliverance and 
 deliverance by thanks. The Holy Spirit moves men 
 unto common prayer and to common thanksgiving. 
 Affliction teaches us to sing : " From all distress, deliver 
 us, good Lord ! " Divine comfort calls forth the offer- 
 ing of praise : " Now thank we all our God " (Besser). 
 
 Ver. 12. For our glorying is this. Glorying, boasting 
 concerning his relations to the Corinthians, stating the 
 ground of his confidence in their intercession and thanks. 
 Not vain glory, idle boasting, but rather — The testimony 
 of our conscience. That most eminent treasure, as 
 
lyo II- CORINTHIANS. [l. 12. 
 
 Baldwin terms a good conscience, is more than once em- 
 phasized by St. Paul. (See Acts 23: i ; 24: 16; Rom. 9 : i.) 
 His boast against histraducers is the testimony of a good 
 conscience (HUNNIUS). (Compare Heb. 13: 18 with the 
 above passages.) That, in holiness and sincerity of God. 
 Holiness is the word given in the better manuscripts. 
 St. Paul here describes his life, a walk under the influence 
 of grace, the sanctifying influence which begets holiness. 
 For the numerous interpretations at variance with this, 
 see Meyer. Sincerity, cleanness, purity. As if tested 
 by the sun's rays, clear, transparent. Not in fleshly 
 wisdom, i. e. the wisdom of sinful human nature, of the 
 natural man, wisdom falsely so-called, having carnal aims 
 and motives directly opposed to the wisdom which is by 
 grace, as the flesh is opposed to the Spirit. Fleshly wis- 
 dom has alway abounded. ' False teachers abound in it. 
 But in the grace of God, which is the source of pure 
 and holy wisdom, of all right life. Were it not for grace 
 St. Paul's glorying would be in vain. Not in himself 
 does he glory. Grace is his boast. Not miracles (Chry- 
 SOSTOM), not spiritual gifts (Grotius), but divine grace, 
 life-giving and life-sustaining, is here meant. Behaved 
 ... in world. Grace for every-day life with all its de- 
 mands, its contact with the world. Behavior, conduct, 
 one's walk (Luther). Constant contact with the world, 
 yet by grace not of the world, such was the life of the 
 Apostle. No ascetic retirement from the world, as it 
 moves and pulsates around us. Intercourse with the 
 world is not dreaded, but rather courted, in order that 
 the great missionary may extend the kingdom which is 
 not of this world. His life is naked and open before the 
 world. And more abundantly to you . . . ward. To 
 whom was the Apostle better known than to the Cor- 
 inthians? (See I Cor. 9 : 2.) They were his work, the 
 
I. 13, 14.] MUTUAL GLORYING. I?! 
 
 seal of his Apostleship in the Lord. They knew the 
 character of his walk more thoroughly than the world 
 could know it. 
 
 Ver. 13. Write none other things . . . than . . . 
 read . . . acknowledge. While there is a play upon the 
 words anaginoskete and epiginoskete which cannot be 
 reproduced in English, the sense of the passage is per- 
 fectly clear. There is to be no reading between the lines. 
 What the Apostle has written is just what is meant. The 
 living voice of Paul, by which he founded churches, does 
 not differ from that found in his Epistles (Baldwin). 
 As he spoke, so he wrote. The spoken and the written 
 Apostolic Word have the same meaning. Unto the end, 
 not till my death (Hoffman), but till the advent of the 
 Lord Jesus, the end of the world, the Parousia. (Comp. 
 I Cor. 1:8; 15:51 f.; Heb. 3:6). See the following 
 verse, where the " end " is defined. 
 
 Ver. 14. Did acknowledge us in part. In this verse 
 the past, did acknowledge, is referred to as something 
 known, but which applies only to a part of the Church at 
 Corinth. The phrase " in part " is found in Rom. 11:25; 
 15 : 15, 24 ; I Cor. 11 : 18 ; 12 : 27 ; 13:9. We . . . your 
 glorying. Better ground of rejoicing or glory, a word 
 frequently found in St. Paul's Epistles of this period, 
 forty-six times in Romans, i Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, 
 and Galatians, and only six times in his other Epistles 
 (Plumptre). They will glory in the Apostle as their 
 teacher in the Gospel. Men are proud of their teachers 
 in temporal knowledge ; in that day they will glory in 
 those who have taught them in things eternal. Ye . . . 
 ours, teachers boast of their disciples, who honor their 
 teachers by their lives : it has always been so. It will be 
 so. In the day of our Lord Jesus. The day of judg- 
 ment, when naught of earth shall count before the Lord, 
 
172 //■ CORINTHIANS. [i. 15. 
 
 except the saved children of men, when all the glory of 
 earth has passed away, then the Christian minister will 
 glory in his people, and his people will glory in him, be- 
 cause of the Lord, who joined them together in Himself. 
 Only the Pauline kind of glorying will survive in that 
 day. 
 
 (C.) St. PauVs Reason for Putting off his Coming 
 (i : 15-24). 
 
 15-24. And in this confidence I was minded to come before unto you, 
 that ye might have a second benefit; and by you to joass into Macedonia, 
 and again from Macedonia to come unto you, and of you to be set forward 
 on my journey unto Judcea. When I therefore was thus minded, did I 
 shew fickleness ? or the things that I purpose, do I purpose according to 
 the flesh, that with me there should be the yea yea and the nay nay ? But 
 as God is faithful, our word toward you is not yea and nay. For the Son 
 of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by \.\^,ez'en by me and 
 Silvanus and Timothy, was not yea and nay, but in him is yea. For how 
 many soever be the promises of God, in him is the yea: wherefore also 
 through him is the Amen, unto the glory of God through us. Now he that 
 stablisheth us with you in Christ, and anointed us, is God; who also 
 sealed us, and gave us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. 
 
 But I call God for a witness upon my soul, that to spare you I forbear 
 to come unto Corinth. Not that we have lordship over your faith, but are 
 helpers of your joy : for by faith ye stand. 
 
 Ver. 15. And in this confidence. That the Corinthians 
 knew him and rejoiced in him as the minister of the Lord 
 Jesus unto them. To come before. St. Paul's original 
 plan, before he wrote (i Cor. 16:5-7), was to proceed 
 directly from Ephesus to Corinth, thence to Macedonia, 
 and then to return to Corinth, thus making two visits to 
 Corinth instead of one. His opponents, thos;2 who were 
 puffed up, took advantage of the delay in his coming to 
 charge him with fickleness. A second benefit. This was 
 St. Paul's real motive in forming his plan. A double 
 visit, a twofold blessing of grace for the Corinthians, was 
 
I. i6, 17.] A SLAXDER REFUTED. 173 
 
 in his mind. A second benefit means a repetition of grace. 
 The word benefit, literally grace, doubtless implies the 
 blessing to be derived from the means of grace through 
 St. Paul's ministry. What made the charge of indecision 
 all the more grievous was the Apostle's intention to visit 
 Corinth first and Macedonia afterwards. 
 
 Ver. 16. By you into Macedonia, from Macedonia unto 
 you. Note the word "you." The Church at Corinth is 
 distinctly preferred for good reasons, and yet St. Paul's 
 motives are assailed by some of the members. Such con- 
 duct constantly repeats itself in the Church to this very 
 day. Set forward . . . unto Judaea. Mark this as an 
 additional proof of the Apostle's confidence in the Cor- 
 inthians. He relied on their help, looked forward to hav- 
 ing their company. In this manner the brethren were 
 "set forward" on their journeys (Acts 15:3; 20:38; 
 21:5; Rom. 1 5 : 24, etc.). The Church of Macedonia, not 
 that of Corinth, eventually had the privilege of " setting 
 forward " the Apostle on his journey to Judjea. 
 
 Ver. 17, Thus minded . . . fickleness? The mind of 
 St. Paul has been clearly expressed, his plan, his inten- 
 tions. Has he shown lightness, light-mindedness, " the 
 mind which abounds in promises rather than fulfilment " ? 
 (Bengel). The fact that be defends himself against a 
 slander which tends to hamper him in his Apostolic work 
 is notable. Slanders should be met promptly, especially 
 by ministers of the Gospel. Do I purpose according to 
 the flesh. What manner of man do you take me to be, 
 one who purposes according to the flesh ? Again the 
 question of motives arises. Do they take him to be a 
 man whose inner life contradicts his outward professions? 
 Are the things which he purposes ostensibly the things 
 of the Spirit, but really born of the flesh ? Do they take 
 him for a diplomat or a Jesuit ? With me the yea yea 
 
174 ^^- CORINTHIANS. [i. i8. 
 
 and the nay nay ? There are two things that invahdate 
 a promise, — Hghtness and a carnal purpose. Out of these 
 two there necessarily follows : yea and nay, i. e. mutability 
 of intention (BALDWIN). Rather, double-mindedness of 
 the wicked sort, of the treacherous kind, vacillation which 
 is of evil. Yea and nay are both at hand, to be used as 
 policy requires ; it is the casuistry of mental reservation. 
 Luther has inserted the phrase " not so," before this 
 clause, as though it were a denial of the charge on the 
 part of the Apostle. Note the emphatic duplication of 
 yea and nay. Calovius discusses the clause at length, 
 and agrees with Hunnius and Baldwin in viewing it as an 
 illustration by the Apostle of the charge brought against 
 him. 
 
 Ver. 1 8. God is faithful. An exclamation of gratitude, 
 not a comparison nor oath or asseveration as Calvin, 
 Beza, and a number of recent writers have conjectured, 
 comparing it with the oath-formula " as I live " (Rom. 
 14 : 1 1). The translation in the Revised Version given 
 above is misleading. The word " as " is not found in the 
 original. It is simply " but God is faithful," and the 
 word " but " indicates the reason why. Not yea and nay. 
 Much more is involved than the lightness with which the 
 Apostle is charged respecting his visit to Corinth : the 
 truth of the Gospel is at stake in so far as St. Paul's 
 preaching of it is concerned. God is faithful ; i. e. He 
 can be implicitly trusted as the God of salvation, in the 
 carrying out, the completion of this great work (Cremer). 
 God will see to it that nothing interferes with the Word 
 of salvation. " God's faithfulness is seen in the selection 
 of men as the faithful heralds of the counsel of salvation " 
 (i Tim. I : 12). Prophets and Apostles can be trusted 
 because " God is faithful." The theology of redemption 
 is not " yea and nay." 
 
1.19,20.] SUKE PKOMISES. 175 
 
 Ver. 19. For the Son of Qod, Jesus Christ. Who is 
 
 Himself the sum and revelation of the divine faithfulness. 
 Preached among you by us, . . . Silvanus and Timothy. 
 
 Chri-st was the theme of this preaching. The Cor- 
 inthians knew this very well. Naught but Christ was 
 preached. Christ the incarnation of truth, the foe of all 
 falsehood and hypocrisy. Not only St. Paul, but Silva- 
 nus, called Silas in the Acts, and Timothy preached this 
 Christ. Note the coincidence with Acts 18:5, proving 
 the identity of Silas with Silvanus. Silas and Timothy 
 are here mentioned, while Apollos is omitted, probably 
 because the former were opposed by the same adversaries 
 as St. Paul (Baldwin). They were a unit, however, in 
 preaching Christ. It implies that the same Christ is to 
 be preached by all His servants throughout all time. 
 Was not yea and nay, but in him is yea. Jesus Christ, 
 as preached by St. Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, was 
 not a reed shaken with the wind, but a rock. Sinners 
 heard but one Gospel from His lips. Christ does not 
 contradict Himself. Nor are His disciples to vacillate. 
 
 Ver. 20. The promises of God. There are many prom- 
 ises of God unto His children. All are included in and 
 grow out of the great promise concerning the seed of the 
 woman — Christ. They are manifold, applicable to the 
 many various needs of life. In him . . . the yea. Of 
 assurance pointing toward fulfilment. Through him 
 . . . the Amen. Christ is the incarnate Amen of God's 
 promises, the faithful and true witness that the promise 
 of redemption has been fulfilled. A firm, emphatic 
 assurance upon which we can build all our hopes, as the 
 word Amen implies. Unto the glory of Qod through us. 
 Through His ministers God is glorified. They are the 
 bearers of the promises to the people. God will always 
 be glorified in His promises proclaimed by His servants. 
 
Ij6 II- CORINTHIANS. [i. 21-23. 
 
 Ver. 21. He that stablishest ... in Christ. Estab- 
 lishment in Christ is the Amen of every Christian hfe. 
 Not merely toward Christ, as Meyer maintains, not 
 simply in general relation, attitude, or tendency toward 
 the Lord, but rather into Him. Besser makes use of the 
 figure in Eph. 3:18, and compares it to the establishment 
 of a tree in the ground, a being rooted and grounded in 
 Christ, so that there is no vacillation from yea to nay. 
 Anointed us in God. Having anointed thus the tense 
 passes from the present " stablisheth " to the past. 
 Anointed at some time in the past. This anointing is 
 common to St. Paul and the believers whom headdresses. 
 Baldwin and Hunnius find the motion in Holy Baptism ; 
 Calovius in the work of the Holy Spirit within the indi- 
 vidual. The beginning of the Christian life is meant by 
 this unction. Sealed. The sealing has reference to the 
 confirmation or strengthening of those sealed. It is a 
 matter of experience, the sequel of faith (Eph i : 13). 
 The abundance of comfort belongs to the sealing. Gave 
 . . . earnest of the Spirit. The word arrabon, earnest or 
 earnest-money, originally a Hebrew word, current among 
 several ancient nations, is still used by a few modern ones 
 in abbreviated forms. It means a pledge or guarantee 
 that more is to come, that future gifts are in store for 
 those who have received it. Here it is the earnest or 
 first-fruits of the Spirit (Rom. 8 : 23), such as love, joy, 
 peace, etc. (Gal. 5 ; 22). These are in our hearts, the 
 fountain of the streams which appear on the surface. 
 
 Ver. 23. God . . . witness upon . . . soul. An oath 
 indicating the importance of having the Corinthians ap- 
 preciate the real motive of the Apostle. Who can judge 
 concerning motives but God ? St. Augustine appreciated 
 the gravity of the situation which alone can justify the 
 use of an oath. St. Paul appeals to God as the only 
 
1.24-] KINDNESS TO THE REPENTANT. 177 
 
 competent Judge to vindicate his character. Not indeed 
 against his soul, as Calvin and Grotius and even Baldwin, 
 Hunnius, and Calovius hold, for vengeance in case of 
 perjury, but as the One who knows his soul, the Witness 
 of his soul's thought. To spare you. To spare : 
 Bengel calls this a grand word, and such it is. St. Paul 
 would win them with, love, not with the rod of wrath. 
 
 Ver. 24. Lordship over . . . faith. Some might in- 
 terpret the words to spare you as the arrogance of one who 
 would lord it over them. The children of faith are free. 
 No man, not even an Apostle, can coerce them. Helpers 
 of . . . joy, by faith ye stand. Promoters of your joy, 
 by working together with the believers at Corinth that 
 their faith might abound, the faith by which alone they 
 could stand and which produced their joy. Abundant 
 proof of this co-operation had been given in instruction 
 and admonition. 
 
 (D.) St. PaiiVs Kindness to the Repentant (2 : i-ii). 
 
 i-ii. But I determined this for myself, that I would not come again to 
 you with sorrow. For if I make you sorry, who then is he that maketh me 
 glad, but he that is made sorry by me ? And I wrote this very thing, lest, 
 when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; 
 having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all. For out of 
 much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears ; 
 not that ye should be made sorry, but that ye might know the love which 
 I have more abundantly unto you. 
 
 But if any hath caused sorrow, he hath caused sorrow, not to me, but in 
 part (that I press not too heavily) to you all. Sufficient to such a one is 
 this punishment which was inflicted by the many ; so that contrariwise ye 
 should rather forgive him and comfort him, lest by any means such a one 
 should be swallowed up with his overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I beseech 
 you to confirm j«/r love toward him. For to this end also did I write, 
 that I might know the proof of you, whether ye are obedient in all things. 
 But to whom ye forgive anything, I forgive also : for what I also have for- 
 given, if I have forgiven anything, for your sakes have I forgiven it in the 
 person of Christ ; that no advantage may be gained over us by Satan : for 
 we are not ignorant of his devices. 
 12 
 
1^8 !!■ CORINTHIANS. [ii. 1-3. 
 
 Ver, I. Determined . . . for myself. Referring to ch. 
 I : 23, St. Paul expresses his own feelings concerning his 
 not coming unto Corinth. A deeper insight into the 
 heart of the Apostle is afforded us in the words " for my- 
 self." He, too, would have suffered grief by making the 
 visit. Not come again . . . with sorrow. As he had 
 come once before with sorrow, i. e. bringing sorrow. The 
 word " again " evidently qualifies the phrase " come to 
 you with sorrow." Any other interpretation, e. g. that of 
 Baur, — " inaccuracy of epistolary style," or that of Chry- 
 sostom, " the Apostle's own sadness," does violence to the 
 text and context. 
 
 Ver. 2. For if I make you sorry. Sorrow to the Corin- 
 thians would have been the effect of the visit. Nothing 
 prevented the Apostle from making the visit, but the con- 
 viction that to spare them would best tend to insure their 
 recovery. Who . . . maketh me glad. Christian joy is 
 not selfish ; it comes through others. He . . . made sorry 
 by me. Sin at Corinth saddens the Apostle. He looks 
 to Corinth for the joy, which comes not only to heaven, 
 but to earth by repentance. The return of the erring 
 prodigal gladdens the heart. 
 
 Ver. 3. I wrote . . . very thing. " He does not deny 
 the severity of the Epistle, but adds : it was demanded 
 by necessity " (Baldwin). \ should have sorrow. Sor- 
 row he has already, but he wants joy ; he rightfully ex- 
 pects joy ; he knows that he ought to rejoice. Sin has 
 brought sorrow ; repentance is to bring joy. '' Greater 
 joy have I none than this, to hear of my children walking 
 in the truth " (3 John 4). Confidence . . . my Joy . . . 
 joy of you all. Great is the confidence of the Apostle at 
 this point. He is consistent, for "love believeth all 
 things "(i Cor. 13:7). He rejoices over the saints at 
 Corinth ; he believes that they are partakers of his joy. 
 
11.4.5-] ST. PAULS TEARS. lyg 
 
 The outlook of the Christian is toward joy, which all 
 believers are to have in common. Herein St. Paul mani- 
 fests the spirit of a true pastor, and that because he 
 knows the mind of the Chief Shepherd of our souls. As 
 Besser well says, this Epistle is a practical commentary 
 on the 13th chapter of the first Epistle. 
 
 Ver. 4. Affliction . . . anguish of heart . . . tears. 
 Christ's tears are most precious ; St. Paul's tears are very 
 precious. They prove the sincerity of his conversion, of 
 his consecration as an Apostle of the Lord. They are 
 witnesses of the Apostle's heart, oppressed and depressed 
 by much affliction and anguish. They sealed the letter 
 of stern reproof to Corinth, in the sight of the Lord, who 
 gathered them all in His bottle. St. Paul was no Stoic, 
 yet his tears are not the fruit of weakness. Not that 
 ye . . . sorry. Not the bitterness of the medicine, nor 
 the pain of the operation, is the physician's aim in his 
 ministrations. Love . . . more abundantly unto you. 
 A mother's love is exhibited in its greatest tenderness in 
 her care for a sick child ; the shepherd's love as he goes 
 out to seek the lost sheep ; so St. Paul's heart beats for 
 the Corinthians who need him most. 
 
 Ver. 5. Any hath caused sorrow. Note the clemency 
 with which this is expressed. The name of the offender 
 is not mentioned. Tertullian's denial that the incestuous 
 person is meant is without adequate support, and is based 
 on his rigoristic position. No sufificient ground exists 
 for the supposition of an intermediate letter. The re- 
 pentance of the offender accounts for the clement tone 
 of this passage. Not to me. " For my sorrow (in this 
 matter) has not been on account of myself, but on your 
 account " (Luther). The words which follow have, ac- 
 cording to Luther, this kindly meaning ; only as a part of 
 you, as your Apostle and brother, have I been grieved, 
 
i8o //. CORINTHIANS. [ii. 6. 
 
 not isolated and solitary, were I to speak otherwise, I 
 would burden you all with the reproach of indifference 
 that you had grieved over your injury. Luther's version 
 accordingly is: " Except in part, that I may not press 
 too heavily on you all." The mildness shown to the 
 fallen brother, whose heart burned because of the sorrow 
 he had caused, is more clearly expressed by changing 
 the construction of the sentence: But in part. If the 
 offender sought and obtained the pardon of the offended 
 congregation, he was not to be filled with anxious doubt 
 as to whether the Apostle, who had been most deeply 
 offended, had forgiven him (comp, ver. io);the latter 
 ceased to be offended, as soon as the offence given to the 
 congregation had been changed into joy by the repent- 
 ance of the former. But in referring him who stood in 
 need of comfort to the congregation which grieved on 
 account of his offence, the Apostle is tenderly careful 
 not to press too heavily on him : he says concerning the 
 latter, that he had in part offended them all ; for if the 
 Apostle had designated the public violator of the con- 
 gregation's honor as the only one guilty of the sorrow, 
 which was spread in the congregation since the arrival of 
 the Easter Epistle, the Apostle would have measured 
 with a false measure, to the injury of the one under 
 discipline, as well as of those who administered the 
 discipline. 
 
 Ver. 6. Sufficient . . . punishment ... by the many. 
 Sufficient, a forensic word. To such a one, truly penitent, 
 as the Apostle believed him to be. Impenitent sinners, 
 such as Hymenaeus, Philetus, and Alexander, are men- 
 tioned by name ; here the name'is suppressed (Baldwin). 
 The punishment, a fitting rebuke, hardly went farther 
 than the course prescribed by St. Paul in i Cor. 5 : 3-5. 
 There is no indication of rigoristic severity in the Apos- 
 
II. 8.] THE CONFIRM A TION OF LOVE. 18 1 
 
 tolic discipline. There arc no time limits prescribed for 
 penitents. Sufficient for the Church that they are peni- 
 tent, and sufficient is that punishment which leads to 
 repentance. It was inflicted by the many ; actually, by 
 the majority. A minority evidently dissented, and did 
 not condemn the crime. Who were they ? Persons of 
 lax views concerning the gravity of the offence. Their 
 laxity may have been the motive of their opposition to 
 St. Paul. A majority on the side of right is always grati- 
 fying, and was particularly so in this case. Rather for= 
 give. He has been punished; he is filled with sorrow: 
 the opposite of punishment is now in order, as becometh 
 Christians, who delight to forgive and comfort. They 
 are fitly joined together ; neither is an easy task. Luther 
 says aptly that it is more difficult to comfort a troubled 
 conscience than to raise up the dead. Swallowed up . . . 
 overmuch sorrow. Overmuch sorrow without comfort 
 leads to despair. Despair of God's mercy is the deepest 
 gulf by which a man can be swallowed up. " The con- 
 text gives nothing more precise than the notion : to be 
 brought by the sadness to despair, to the abandonment 
 of all hope and of all striving after the Christian salva- 
 tion " (Meyer). 
 
 Ver. 8. Confirm . . . love toward him. The omission 
 of the word '' your " in the original before " love " is signifi- 
 cant. Love as the principle of Christian life here requires 
 a public expression, a ratification in a public way. The 
 formal restoration to fellowship of the sorrowing offender 
 was to be the " Amen " of the assembled congregation to 
 the absolution pronounced by the minister of Christ. 
 The Apostle has furnished a powerful reason "wherefore" 
 such a course should be pursued. His earnest entreaty 
 that it be done is expressed in the words " I beseech 
 you." 
 
l82 //. CORINTHIANS. [ii. 9, 10. 
 
 Ver. 9. To this end . . . write. Not the epistolary 
 aorist, as though " egrapsa " meant " I write," and re- 
 ferred to the present Epistle. Special stress is laid on 
 the written communication. The end of the Epistle was : 
 Know the proof. Evidence whether ye are genuine, lov- 
 ing, obedient children (Bengel). Proof which comes by 
 trial : the result proving their quality. A crucial test : 
 Obedient in all things. Obedience is strong proof, but 
 obedience in all things is still stronger, and this particular 
 obedience in regard to the discipline of the offender is 
 satisfactory to St. Paul. 
 
 Ver. 10. Ye forgive, I forgive. As they were united 
 in the exconununication of the sinner, so they are 
 united in the absolution. The form of the expression is 
 general, but the api:)lication is clearly intended to be 
 specific. Baldwin calls attention to the solemn words 
 prescribing the act of discipline (i Cor. 5 : 4). As the 
 Apostle's participation in his exclusion made the punish- 
 ment of the sinner more grievous, so now the Apostle's 
 forgiveness gives him additional comfort. If I have for= 
 given anything. The entire context proves that this 
 latter clause is not problematical (De Wette), or event- 
 ual, turning on the supposition of the Church granting 
 forgiveness (BILLROTH), but contains a delicate reference 
 back to ver. 5 in this sense, namely : if — seeing that the 
 sinner, according to ver. 5, has not in fact grieved me, but 
 you — that which I designate as "kecharismai " is really 
 this ; for the having pardoned presupposes the pardoner 
 to be the injured party, which St. Paul, however (ver. 5), 
 denies himself to be (Meyer). The verb being in the 
 perfect, implying that the matter is at an end, the most 
 natural interpretation of the matter is this : " Assuming 
 or taking for granted that I have already forgiven any- 
 thing." For your sakes ... in the person of Christ. 
 
1 1. 1 1 .] SA TAN'S DE VICES, 183 
 
 For the sake of the congregation, whose welfare was at 
 stake, for the edification of the Church, the Apostle acts 
 as a true minister of Christ, in the person of Christ, lit. in 
 the face of Christ. According to the Vulgate, the A. V., 
 Luther and others, St. Paul acts in this matter as Christ's 
 representative. The word here used, prosopon, means 
 "person" in ch. i : 11, and "face" in ch, 3:7, 13, 18. 
 The close connection between this expression and " for- 
 giveness" favors the rendering " in the person of Christ," 
 i.e. in His stead, an official absolution from sin, as pre- 
 scribed by the Lord (John 20 : 23), 
 
 Ver. II. No advantage . . . by Satan. The erstwhile 
 sinner at Corinth had been given over to Satan, but by 
 the grace of God had been delivered from the grasp of 
 the father of lies. To regain his lost prey Satan will re- 
 sort to cheating, to fraud, in order to gain an advantage 
 over the Church (i Pet. 5 : 8). Not ignorant . . . de- 
 vices. Knowing the devices of Satan should make us 
 vigilant. " God has betrayed Satan to us, and warned us 
 to be on our guard against his tricks and stratagems " 
 (Luther). Satan's devices, what he has in mind, his 
 plans, are directed especially against the Church. The 
 Church at Corinth had suffered from these devices, e. g. 
 by the leaven of sensuality ; should she suffer again by 
 allowing this penitent sinner to be swallowed up by over- 
 much sorrow? One of Satan's chief devices is to bring 
 men to despair. Li this instance, not only the individual, 
 but the whole Church, might have suffered loss. 
 
 (E.) St. Paul's Rejoicing in the Gospel (2 : 12-17). 
 
 12-17. Now when I came to Troas for the gospel of Christ, and when a 
 door was opened unto me in the Lord, I had no relief for my spirit, be- 
 cause I found not Titus my brother : but taking my leave of them, I went 
 forth into Macedonia. But thanks be unto God, which always leadeth us 
 
l84 /^- CORINTHIANS. [li; 12. 
 
 in triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest through us the savour of his 
 knowledge in every place. For we are a sweet savour of Christ unto God, 
 in them that are being saved, and in them that are perishing; to the one a 
 savour from death unto death ; to the other a savour from life unto life. 
 And who is sufficient for these things } For we are not as the many, cor- 
 rupting the word of God : but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of 
 God, speak we in Chri^st. 
 
 Ver. 12. To Troas. St. Paul here takes up the train of 
 thought which was interrupted by the reference to the 
 case of the offender (verses 5-1 1). He again comes to 
 Troas, a memorable place in his Apostolic experience. 
 Even if "Troas" refers to the entire district, i.e. the 
 angle of territory to the south of the Hellespont, on which 
 Troy was situated, yet the city of Troas, built by An- 
 tigonus, Alexander's lieutenant, and supposed to occupy 
 the site of ancient Troy, was the scene of the Apostle's 
 brief stay. For the gospel of Christ. Not merely as a 
 traveller, but to preach the Gospel. Probably the im- 
 pression made on him by the place during his first visit 
 had something to do with this intention. Door ... in 
 the Lord. The open door here, as elsewhere in the New 
 Testament (i Cor. 16 : 9; Rev. 3 : 8), is the door of op- 
 portunity, because of readiness on the part of some to 
 hear the Gospel. The Lord opens the door. St. Paul 
 was not unmindful of this opportunity, but he has 
 another matter on his mind, which leads him to say: 
 No relief. His inmost being, his very higher life activity, 
 as Meyer puts it, was under an unbroken strain, with no 
 relaxation from the burden. His spirit, not simply his 
 mind, was under pressure. The anxiety was not carnal, 
 but spiritual. I found not Titus. Titus had been sent 
 to Corinth for information concerning the effect of the 
 former Epistle. St. Paul expected to find him at Troas. 
 The absence of Titus increased the anxiety of the Apostle 
 to such an extent that he could not bear to tarry longer 
 
II. 14] A TRIC/MPHA.VT SERVICE. 185 
 
 at Troas. Taking my leave. Leave of whom? Who 
 else can be meant but the children of the open door ? 
 What had St. Paul wrought at Troas? Calvin and 
 Estius discuss the propriety of St. Paul's departure from 
 Troas, as though it were a neglect of opportunity. Aside 
 from what the Apostle accomplished during his stay at 
 Troas, there was something else which had a prior and 
 a stronger claim. The Church at Corinth, that weak part 
 of Christ's fold, required his attention. Went forth . . . 
 Macedonia. In the expectation of meeting Titus there, 
 which was in all likelihood realized. The very abrupt- 
 ness of the burst of thanksgiving in the following verse 
 seems to point in that direction. 
 
 Ver. 14. Thanks . , . unto God. The burden has 
 been lifted from the Apostle's spirit. His thoughts 
 revert to the joy of his meeting with Titus and the good 
 news concerning the Church at Corinth. In his joy he 
 is before all else moved to thanks unto God. Leadeth 
 us in triumph. Not the factitive rendering " causeth us 
 to triumph," but as Baldwin, following Ambrose, inter- 
 prets, '* leading us with Him in triumph," as partakers in 
 the triumphant march of God. Not " triumphed over 
 by God " (Meyer) ; not led in triumph as vanquished 
 ones (cf. Col. 2 : 15), but joined with God in His triumph, 
 which is always in progress, a triumph in Christ. Maketh 
 manifest . . . the savour. In keeping with the illustra- 
 tion taken from a Roman triumphal procession. Incense 
 was an essential part of a Roman triumph. The savor 
 of the knowledge of God in Christ, is made manifest, like 
 the odor of incense, through the ministry of the Gospel. 
 In every place. The blessed scenes of his labors in the 
 Lord pass in review before the mind of the Apostle. In 
 wonder and adoration he views the field of victory. In 
 every place the Gospel had celebrated its triumphs. 
 
1 86 //• CORINTHIANS. [ii. 15, 16. 
 
 Ver. 15. Sweet savour of Christ unto Qod. The testi- 
 mony of the ministry, the Gospel, makes ministers a 
 sweet savour, if Christ is preached. The Gospel is always 
 sweet in itself, intrinsically. There is no savor like it. 
 A sweet influence to bring men unto God. Through 
 Christ unto God is its tendency. It is a sacrificial odor 
 from Christ, the atoning sacrifice. In them . . . being 
 saved. To whom salvation is being applied, who are 
 within the circle of sanctifying power, and who do not 
 resist the Holy Spirit. By such the sweetness of the 
 savor is realized and appreciated. In them . . . per= 
 ishing. Again we have the present tense. The process 
 is going on at the present time. Men are being saved, 
 and men are perishing, beneath the influence of the same 
 sweet savor of Christ. Many are perishing, because they 
 will not perceive the sweetness of Christ's savor. 
 
 Ver. 16. Savour , . . death. They that perish change 
 the blessing into a curse, the sweet savor into a savor of 
 death, a death-savor. A savor of death refers to the 
 process. In its course it implies spiritual death. One 
 may abuse the bounty given for the purchase of food by 
 procuring poison for one's self-destruction. God's best 
 gift may be made a savor of death unto death. Savour 
 . . . life. This is their proper, normal function — to bring 
 life. Ministers are God's messengers, bearing life which 
 leads to the fulness of eternal life. " Christian hearts are 
 converted to God by the preaching of the Divine Word, 
 and are saved, and the Gospel is to them a savor unto 
 eternal life, yea, a power of God which saves them " 
 (Luther). Who is sufficient ? Nothing can surpass 
 these things in importance. The highest interests of 
 time and eternity are involved. Earthen vessels bear the 
 treasure. Their sufificiency is of God. (Cf. i Cor. 2 : 
 12-16.) 
 
II. 17.] SINCERE PREACHING. 187 
 
 Ver. 17. Corrupting the word. Many false teachers 
 at that time corrujotcd the Word of God, and the hin- 
 guage might imply that " the many " will continue this 
 most nefarious work. The word translated " corrupt " 
 occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It means 
 to "adulterate," and is formed from a word which signi- 
 fies a " huckster," or " tavern-keeper," especially a dealer 
 in wine, which was mixed with worthless or ev^en injuri- 
 ous substances, for personal ends. They adulterate the 
 Word of God by the Jewish ceremonial law, by false 
 philosophy, by license substituted for liberty, by scep- 
 ticism, by personal interests. St. Paul is above such 
 things, by the grace of God. Of sincerity, — the holy 
 censer, upon which he laid the sweet incense (Besser), 
 pure and unadulterated, in truth and uprightness. An 
 honest Christian minister is first pure, then peaceable. 
 Of God, in the sight of God. His sincerity might seem 
 to be a subjective matter were it not of God. But for 
 God, the Apostle would still be a Pharisee and a perse- 
 cutor. But one power controls him, that is, God, He 
 knows that the eyes of God are upon him. His own 
 eyes are lifted up to God in response. Speak we in 
 Christ. Out of a life whose roots are in Christ, " all my 
 springs are in thee " (Ps. 87 : 7). Whatever is not spoken 
 in Christ cannot be the Gospel. St. Paul lived in Christ 
 and therefore spoke in Christ. " I believed, therefore 
 have I spoken." 
 
 (F.) The Ministration of the Spirit (3 : i-ii). 
 
 l-ii. Are we beginning again to commend ourselves ? or need we, as do 
 some, epistles of commendation to you or from you } Ye are our epistle, 
 written in our hearts, known and read of all men; being mad^ manifest that 
 ye are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with 
 the Spirit of the living God ; not in tables of stone, but in tables that arc 
 hearts of flesh. And such confidence have we through Christ to Godward : 
 
i88 //. CORINTHIANS. [iii. i. 
 
 not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to account anything as from our- 
 selves ; but our sufficiency is from God; who also made us sufficient as 
 ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the 
 letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. But if the ministration of death, 
 written, «;/</ engraven on stones, came with glory, so that the children of 
 Israel could not look stedfastly upon the face of Moses for the glory of his 
 face ; which glory was passing away : how shall not rather the ministration 
 of the spirit be with glory ? For if the ministration of condemnation is 
 glory, much rather doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory : 
 for verily that which hath been made glorious hath not been made glorious 
 in this respect, by reason of the glory that surpasseth. For if that which 
 passethaway %vas with glory, much more that which remaineth is in glory. 
 
 Ver. I. Beginning again to commend ourselves? Is 
 
 there any reason why we should endeavor to impress the 
 Christians at Corinth by referring to the quahty and 
 quantity of our work? Others, false teachers, corrupters, 
 may assert that we boast of our work in order to improve 
 our standing at Corinth. That is not what we have in 
 mind when we speak of our sincerity. Not self-com- 
 mendation, but the character of the Christian ministry. 
 Need we . . . epistles of commendation ? Some evi- 
 dently need letters of introduction, because they are not 
 sufificiently well known to the Church at large. We have 
 here one of the earliest, if not the very first reference to 
 a practice which became quite common and important in 
 the life of the early Church. These '^ litcrce forniata;^' 
 issued by the home Church to a travelling Christian, at- 
 tested his standing in his own congregation, and assured 
 him a hearty welcome in others. Julian, the apostate 
 emperor, realized their value, and tried to introduce them 
 into the sphere of heathen life, a tribute to the religion 
 whose destruction he sought. St. Paul, however, stood 
 in no need of such letters. He was better known to the 
 Church at Corinth and outside of Corinth than any other 
 Christian of his time. He is justified in becoming iron- 
 ical over against his adversaries. He does not forget, on 
 
III. 2, 3.] A LIVING EPISTLE. 189 
 
 the other hand, that there is a serious side to the matter, 
 to which he now turns. 
 
 Ver. 2. Ye are our epistle. Living men are his epistle ; 
 men at Corinth and elsewhere, the fruits of his ministry. 
 They are the best letters of commendation, speaking 
 louder than words. Written in our hearts. How natu- 
 ral is this thought ! How can the Apostle help but think 
 of it. Inscribed as the Corinthians were in heart of St, 
 Paul, time itself could not erase them. Olshausen's view 
 that this clause refers to St. Paul's intercession for the 
 Corinthians is hardly the chief thought in his mind. Not 
 merely written in the Apostle's " own good conscious- 
 ness" (Meyer), but rather in his " love " (Chrysostom), 
 in his inner life of affectionate recollection. Known and 
 read of all men. Not only written in the hearts of the 
 ministry, but known to all men with whom they came in 
 contact, open to inspection and criticism, wherever they 
 were. The Church at Corinth, next to the Church at 
 Rome, was a garden of the Lord's planting, whose sweet 
 perfume made itself felt in the great city, and bore testi- 
 mony for the Apostle. When corrupters sought to tam- 
 per with this letter, he protested with energy and effect. 
 That a hostile world would read this epistle, i. e. the 
 Church at Corinth, critically, was to be expected, but the 
 Apostle does not fear the result. 
 
 Ver. 3. Manifest ... an epistle of Christ. The au- 
 thor of the epistle is Christ, the Lord, who makes mani- 
 fest the children of light. Christ is really the writer. 
 Ministered by us. We are the instruments, the amanu- 
 enses of the Lord. Without Him there would be no 
 ministration. Dean Stanley remarks on the number and 
 variety of the similes with which this chapter is crowded. 
 Not with ink, but with the Spirit. Better than the 
 black pigment (atramentum) used as ink, which flows out 
 
190 //• CORINTHIANS. [in. 4, 5. 
 
 from the reed pen upon the paper (papyrus) and makes 
 the epistle, is the flow of the Holy Spirit's influence into 
 the lives of men. The living God sends the Spirit of life 
 to breathe upon the spiritually dead, and make them an 
 epistle full of life. Not in tables of stone. The slight 
 incongruity thus introduced into the simile, since one 
 does not write with ink on tables of stone (Lias), is 
 readily understood. The tables of the Law arise before 
 the mind of the Apostle. The promise that the law 
 should be written in the heart occurs to him, and he at 
 once proceeds to use this illustration. In tables . . . 
 hearts of flesh. A living epistle is not one inscribed on 
 the mere surface of life, producing an external observance 
 by the letter of the law, separated from its spirit, or by 
 constraint of the law, but is one written in human hearts, 
 producing spontaneous, cheerful obedience to the will of 
 God. The gracious promise of God was fulfilled in such 
 living epistles (Ezek. 36 : 26). 
 
 Ver. 4. Such confidence. " Confidence that we have 
 prepared you to form the epistle " (Luther). " Confi- 
 dence in his Apostolic mission of which the Corinthian 
 Church is a sufficient guarantee" (Lias). Such confi- 
 dence is to be expected on the part of the ministry. 
 Through Christ to Qod=ward. Through Christ, who 
 gave some to be Apostles, — for the perfecting of the 
 saints, unto the work of ministering (Eph. 4: 11, 12). 
 St. Paul, called to be an Apostle, by the Lord Christ, 
 knows that the Lord is with him in his work, hence his 
 confidence to God-ward. Christ mediates the religious 
 direction. 
 
 Ver. 5. Not . . . sufficient of ourselves. " That which 
 Paul here confesses is an article of great importance, and 
 contains a great deal, casts down all pride, presumption, 
 wantonness, glory, self-confidence, and exalts God alone, 
 
III. 6.] THE SPIRIT VS. THE LETTER. igj 
 
 because He does all things. It is easy to say, but a great 
 thing to believe and apply to one's life " (Luther). To 
 account anything as from ourselves. To judge any- 
 thing we have done as originating with ourselves. Re- 
 viewing the work we cannot conclude that any part of it 
 was done by any ability of our own. Our sufficiency 
 . . . from God. The sufficiency flows from God as its 
 source : originates with Him (Plumptre). 
 
 Ver, 6. riade us sufficient as ministers of a new 
 covenant. The word " sufficient " occurs three times in 
 succession : each time in a new setting. Ministers of a 
 new covenant in contrast with the old. Newness implies 
 freshness of life and energy (Plumptre), but it implies 
 more : the wider range and greater fulness of the new 
 covenant ministry. Not of the letter, but of the Spirit. 
 The Law is here contrasted with the Gospel. The Law 
 was given in the form of the letter graven in tables of 
 stone. It was the Law of commandments, of command, 
 of injunction. The spirit does not come as the letter, as 
 a command, but as a power, wielding direct influence. 
 The letter killeth . . . the Spirit giveth life. " Letter " 
 does not mean 'Miteralness," i.e. the real, native, genuine 
 meaning of words, but that letter which, like the stone 
 into which it is graven, has no life, and is incapable of 
 giving life. This letter of the Law is not only devoid 
 of life in itself, but is destructive of life : " Killeth." 
 " When the Law and nature clash, and learn to know 
 one another, then conscience and sin are first brought to 
 the surface, Man sees how deeply evil he is heart, how 
 great his sins are, even in those things which he before re- 
 garded as good works, and not as sin. He is forced to 
 the conclusion that he of himself is nothing but a child of 
 death, of wrath, and of hell " (Luther), The Spirit, on 
 the other hand, giveth life to those whom the Law has 
 
192 I!- CORINTHIANS. [iii. 7, 8. 
 
 thus put to death. The letter has this effect, that no 
 one abide before the wrath of God ; the Spirit this 
 effect, that no one can perish before the grace of God 
 (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 7. The ministration of death. That of Moses, 
 which he accompHshed by bringing down to the people 
 the Tables of the Law from Sinai. On stones. The 
 ministration of death in letters, which was engraven in 
 stones. There is no antithesis between written and 
 engraven. The Apostle follows the former train of 
 thought, and adds another idea by way of comparison. 
 Came with glory. Came into being with a glory as an 
 accompaniment. The function of the Law is glorious, 
 albeit it killeth ; it kills because of sin, that sin may be- 
 come manifest, and that life may ensue. Could not look 
 stedfastly ... for the glory of his face. A manifesta- 
 tion of glory visible upon the face of Moses, which the 
 children of Israel could not behold steadfastly. They saw 
 tlie brightness ; they shrank from it in awe. Which 
 glory was passing away. It was but a transitory glory, 
 in the act of passing away when the children of Israel 
 saw it. How different the impression made on the 
 disciples by the appearance of Moses and Elias on the 
 Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17 : 4). 
 
 Ver. 8. riinistration of the Spirit . . . with glory. 
 Luther renders the office the ministration which gives 
 the Spirit, i. e. imparts the Spirit (Acts 10 : 44). The 
 gift of the Holy Spirit is synonymous with the gift of 
 life. The ministration of death takes away life, that of 
 the Spirit confers life. Here- we have nothing but the 
 evangelical giving of the Spirit" (Besser). This glory 
 does not pass away ; it is rather constantly passing for- 
 ward into the future, as the work of the Spirit goes 
 onward. 
 
III. 9-11.] TWO MINISTRATIONS. 193 
 
 Ver. 9. riinistration of condemnation is glory. Even 
 the wrath of God is glorious (Rom. 4 : 15). The ministry, 
 which is the medium of condemnation (Meyer) : which 
 preaches condemnation (LUTHER). flinistration of 
 righteousness exceed in glory. Two ministries : that of 
 the letter, of condemnation ; that of the Spirit, of right- 
 eousness. The latter implies the opposite of the former, 
 namely, the forgiveness of sin. Far beyond the glory of 
 condemnation is the superabundance of the glory of 
 righteousness, as manifested in the ministration of each. 
 Not only does the glory differ in mode, in kind, but in 
 degree, in quantity. 
 
 Ver, 10. That made glorious. The glory is acknowl- 
 edged to be a fact. The glory of the ministry of con- 
 demnation is meant. Hath not . . . glorious. Com- 
 paratively speaking. The moon, though visible, loses its 
 glory when the sun is shining. In this respect. When 
 compared with the ministry of righteousness. By reason 
 of . . . surpasseth. " That is, if we view this glory, 
 which we have in Christ through the preaching of the 
 Gospel, rightly, then that part of the glory, namely, of 
 the Law, which is only a diminution, brief and transitory 
 glory, is also no glory, but merely dark clouds, compared 
 with the light of Christ, which now enlightens us out of 
 sin, death, and hell, unto God and eternal life (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 1 1. Passeth away. That which was in the act of 
 passing away. The ministration of condemnation is 
 meant. No argument is offered by this text in favor of 
 the Antinomians, who sought to abolish the preaching of 
 the Law, The Law finds its end in Christ, who takes 
 away the condemnation (Rom, 10 : 4). A glance at 
 "I Cor. 13 : 8-1 1 may help to throw some light on the re- 
 lation expressed in this verse ; especially as the same 
 verbs are used in the Greek, That which remaineth. 
 13 
 
ig4 ^I- CORINTHIANS. [in. 12 
 
 The sententious brevity of the Greek is necessarily lost 
 in the translation of both clauses. The ministration of 
 righteousness remains unto the end of the world. The 
 transient is absorbed by the permanent ; finds its fulfil- 
 ment in that which remains. The transient service 
 which is through glory finds its goal in Christ, who has 
 instituted a new service, which remains in glory as an 
 abiding stream of light. 
 
 (G.) The Veil Done Away in Christ (3 : 12-18). 
 
 12-18. Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech, 
 and a7-e not as Moses, who put a veil upon his face, that the children of 
 Israel should not look stedfastly on the end of that which was passing 
 away: but their minds were hardened: for until this very day at the read- 
 ing of the old covenant the same veil remaineth unlifted; which veil is 
 done away in Christ. But unto this day, whensoever Moses is read, a veil 
 lieth upon their heart. But whensoever it shall turn to the Lord, the veil 
 is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit : and where the Spirit of the 
 Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, witli unveiled face reflecting as a 
 mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from 
 glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit. 
 
 Ver. 12. Having . . . hope. As just described, a hope 
 of glory belonging to the permanent ministration, A 
 hope that putteth not to shame, because already proved, 
 tested (Rom. 5 : 5). Boldness of speech. Boldness 
 which is marked by frankness, holding back nothing. 
 Fulness, openness of speech, is the original force of the 
 Word. Why should not the ministry of the Gospel have 
 that boldness implied in this fulness of speech ? Yea, 
 more, the boldness may be a joyous utterance as in- 
 dicated by Luther's rendering. Others, men who corrupt 
 the Word, may have reasons for using reserve, but we 
 use great boldness of speech. So great, so abundant is 
 this boldness that it has been called the resplendent dawn 
 of eternity, the early morning radiance of eternal light 
 (Besser). 
 
III. 13-15] THE VEIL OF MOSES. 195 
 
 Ver. 13. Not as Moses . . . The narrative in Exod. 
 34 : 29-35 seems to imply that Moses put the veil upon 
 his face, because the skin of his face shone, and the people 
 were afraid to come nigh him. In the following clause 
 St. Paul adds another thought. Children of Israel . . . 
 not look stedfastly , . . end of . . . passing away. 
 The children of Israel did not see the end of this tran- 
 sitory glory. The Apostle directs the minds of his 
 readers back to the difference between the two ministra- 
 tions and their respective glory. The permanent glory 
 is one that needs no veil. The transitory glory brings 
 terror to the minds of sinners, of all sinful men. As 
 long as the state of terror obtained the end of that 
 which was passing away could not be seen. 
 
 Ver. 14. riinds hardened. The state of mind and 
 the nature of the glory must be considered together. 
 The Law has its own dread glory until the end is seen, 
 aside from the manifestation at Mt. Sinai. Their minds, 
 i. e. their thoughts, in their entire range were hardened. 
 They were under the dominion of fear. Taken as a 
 people the same cast of thought has prevailed in Israel, 
 until the time of the Apostle and still obtains at the 
 present day. Reading of the old covenant. The old 
 covenant and the Law are synonymous. Whenever and 
 wherever the Law is read by Israel in hardness of mind, 
 the effect is the same, the end is not seen. The same 
 veil . o . unlifted. Not the veil which was upon the 
 face of Moses, but the real obstruction caused by the 
 hardness of their minds. The hardness is primary and 
 radical, the veil worn by Moses only secondary. Veil 
 . . . done away in Christ. Christ alone can remove the 
 veil. He tells the Jews: "Ye will not come to Me that 
 ye may have life " (John 5 : 40). 
 
 Ver. 15. But unto this day. A repetition clearly 
 
1^6 II' CORINTHIANS. [m. i6, 17. 
 
 showing that the Law is meant by the Old Covenant or 
 Testament. (See above ver. 14.) Moses read is Hke 
 Moses speaking (Besser). Moses is the representative 
 of the Old Covenant, his name stands for the Law. Veil 
 . . . upon their Iieart. Not upon their face, but upon 
 the inner man — the heart. The fountain of their being is 
 covered, obstructed. " The hypocrites make a veil for 
 themselves, namely, the presumption of their works and 
 external holiness ; they have no desire to look fairly into 
 the eye of the Law, and come to know that such right- 
 eousness amounts to naught " (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 16. Turn to the Lord. What shall turn ? Various 
 nominatives to the verb have been suggested. Nothing 
 else than the heart of Israel can be thought of as the 
 subject. When this heart shall turn to the Lord. Con- 
 version, to the Lord, of which the Apostle is a striking 
 example. The Lord is essential to the turning by His 
 power of attraction, and not merely as an object or goal. 
 The way is always open. Veil . . , taken away. The 
 turning to the Lord and the removal of the veil are 
 simultaneous. The Hand which draws the heart of 
 Israel, takes the veil away. Both are parts of the same 
 gracious operation of the Holy Spirit. The whole pro- 
 ceeding is viewed as future, but in that future, the 
 taking away of the veil is regarded as present. 
 
 Ver. 17. The Lord . . . Spirit. Bengel terms this a 
 sublime expression, i. e. the Lord, Christ is not the letter, 
 but the Spirit and the end of the Law. The Apostle 
 reverts to ver. 6: " For the letter killeth, but the Spirit 
 giveth life. We are told (i Cor. 15 : 45), "The last 
 Adam became a life-giving Spirit." Absolute life belongs 
 to the Lord from eternity, and with it the power of 
 giving life. Even His words are spirit and life (John 
 6 : 63). All the means of grace are full of this quicken- 
 ing, life-giving power. The Spirit of the Lord. Note 
 
III. iS.] LIBERTY AND TRANSFORMATION. 197 
 
 the difference between the two expressions : " The Lord 
 is the Spirit," and " The Spirit of the Lord." There is 
 no tautology here. While the former refers to the essence 
 of God, the hitter has reference to the person of the 
 Holy Spirit, promised by the Lord to the Church. (See 
 also Rom. 8:9; Gal. 4 : 6; Phil, i : 19; i Pet. i : 11.) 
 There is liberty. The liberty of the glory of the children 
 of God (Rom. 8 : 21). Over against this liberty is the 
 spirit of bondage unto fear. The sons of God are led by 
 the Spirit of God. The children of bondage are coerced 
 by the letter of the Law. " Even as one whose sight is 
 good needs not to be taught how to see, but sees freely 
 and more than all instruction could help or enable him 
 to do ; but if his sight be unsound, his liberty is at an 
 end, one cannot find instructions enough for him, to help 
 to guard and protect him, but he must exercise special 
 care and precaution in every glance, to enable him to see " 
 (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 18. Unveiled face. All the children of God, from 
 whose hearts the veil has been taken away. Now their 
 sight is clear to behold wondrous things in the Law. 
 They see aright in the light of the Gospel. Reflecting as 
 a mirror. Following Chrysostom, Luther and a number 
 of others prefer the above rendering. But the usage of 
 the Greek language is against it. The middle voice which 
 is here used means to look into a mirror, to behold one- 
 self in a mirror. Beholding as in a glass is the rendering 
 of the Old Version. Lit. Beholding in the mirror. The 
 person of Christ cannot be the mirror, nor the believing 
 heart as Osiander held. We now behold the glory of the 
 Lord in the mirror of the Gospel (Meyer). Transformed. 
 While we thus behold the glory of the Lord the change 
 is going on. Not suddenly, biit gradually, the increase in 
 glory takes place. The image is the same which is be- 
 
198 //. CORINTHIANS. [iv. i. 
 
 held in the mirror, the image of the Lord. From the 
 Lord. One thing is not to be forgotten : the work is not 
 ours, but the Lord's. The restoration of the lost image 
 of God could only be accomplished by the Son of God. 
 His breath causes the spiritually dead to rise up into 
 newness of life. 
 
 (H.) St. Paul Faints not in his Ministry (4 : 1-6). 
 
 1-6. Therefore seeing we have this ministry, even as we obtained mercy, 
 we faint not : but we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walk- 
 ing in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully ; but by the mani- 
 festation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in 
 the sight of God. But and if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled in them that 
 are perishing : in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of 
 the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is 
 the image of God, should not dawn upon them. For we preach not our- 
 selves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' 
 sake. Seeing it is God, that said, Light shall shine out of darkness, who 
 shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God 
 in the face of Jesus Christ. 
 
 Ver. I. Therefore . . . this ministry. Therefore, i. e. 
 in view of all the Apostle has said concerning this minis- 
 try. By way of comparison he has brought out the 
 glorious character of this ministry of the New Covenant. 
 Besides he lays stress on the fact of having this ministry 
 as a possession, as something of intrinsic value. We 
 obtained mercy. Mercy as well as glory belongs to this 
 office. Tender mercy marks all the dealings of God with 
 His children. To be called into this service is the height 
 of mercy. We faint not. Great are the burdens and 
 trials of this ministry : no one realizes the strain more 
 than the tried Apostle ; but he has also tried the springs 
 of strength and always found them equal to every emer- 
 gency. Never failing mercy means never failing strength. 
 Special grace never fails to be given to those to whom 
 special work is assigned. 
 
IV. 2.] THE HIDDEN AND THE MANIFEST jgg 
 
 Ver. 2. The hidden things of shame. Christians are 
 constantly called upon to renounce evil. Every weight 
 must be laid aside (Heb. 12 : i). Whatever tends to 
 bring reproach or shame upon the Lord's cause must be 
 renounced. Shame has its hidden side, or, better, its 
 hidden sides. Even though that which is shameful may 
 be hidden, it must be renounced. Jacob Andreas, one of 
 the authors of the Formula of Concord, desired, in every 
 part of his ministry, to live as bearing two windows, one 
 through which he might look up to God, and one through 
 which all men might look into his inmost being. Not 
 walking in craftiness. Not resorting to the tricks of 
 cunning, to mischievous devices, to means of guile in 
 order to carry out certain designs. St. Paul was no 
 Jesuit, no schemer. Handling . . . word of God deceit= 
 fully. Craftiness and deceit arc illustrations of the 
 hidden things of shame. The w^orst of all frauds is per- 
 petrated when the Word of God is handled deceitfully, 
 made to convey a wrong impression, injurious to the soul. 
 Meyer says that it is done by alterations and foreign ad- 
 mixtures. No matter by what method of presentation 
 or interpretation the result is achieved, it is of all decep- 
 tions the most dire. When Luther was criticised for his 
 unbending position and besought to yield in matters of 
 conviction, he replied : " The Word is not mine, but 
 belongs to God." Manifestation of the truth. Saving 
 truth, the truth of revelation, of which St. Paul here 
 speaks, is altogether meant for publication. The tidings 
 that concern the Kingdom of God are to be made mani- 
 fest. Manifestation is demanded by the very nature of 
 the Gospel. Commending ourselves . . . conscience. 
 Such commendation of self to others is desirable, yea, 
 commendable in itself. When ministers commend them- 
 selves by the manifestation of the truth, they are deserv- 
 
200 //• CORINTHIANS. [iv. 3, 4. 
 
 ing of the highest praise. Every man's conscience will 
 bear witness concerning the truth proclaimed, whether 
 the message be accepted or rejected. In the sight of God. 
 Who observes the conscience of every man and the only 
 One who is able to search the heart. The truth, the 
 searchlight of God, is applied to the conscience of man. 
 The minister who wields it ought himself to stand in the 
 sight of God. 
 
 Ver. 3. Our Gospel . . . veiled. Probably the objec- 
 tion was raised that the Gospel was not regarded by all 
 men as the truth. God has not veiled His Gospel. 
 Veiled in . . . perishing. In them who are on the way 
 to destruction. Veiled "in them," Meyer says "among 
 them," but how? Their inward attitude of mind and 
 heart certainly is the source of the obstruction. There is 
 no ground in the text for limiting the application to a 
 particular class, such as the Judaizing teachers. The use 
 of the present participle is significant, as not excluding 
 the possibility of a change (Plumptre). 
 
 Ver. 4. The god of this world. The nearest parallel to 
 this designation of Satan is given by the Lord (John 
 14: 30). "The prince of this world." (See also Eph. 
 2 : 2.) Doubtless the powerful influence of the devil is 
 prominent in this passage, but not without a reference to 
 the awful relation which exists between him and his 
 subjects. They have practically put him in the place of 
 God, have made him their god. Hence his influence in 
 them that are perishing, which is, however, limited to 
 this world in its duration, i. e. to time. Blinded . . . 
 unbelieving. Unbelief gives the devil an opportunity 
 to blind the thoughts of the mind when they deal with 
 the truth of the Gospel. Hence the veiling of the Gospel. 
 Man's unbelief and Satan's malice darken the minds of 
 men. Gospel of the glory. A much better rendering 
 
IV. 5, 6.] CHRIST THE APOSTLE'S THEME. 201 
 
 than that of the A. V. " the glorious Gospel." What is 
 the crowning excellence of the Gospel? The glory of 
 Christ. Where the Gospel is, there is the glory of Christ. 
 Against the light of Christ's glory as it pours out from 
 the Gospel the thoughts of unbelief are blinded. The 
 light is the illuminating radiance of the glory in its 
 activity directed towards the minds of men, its energetic 
 outflow. But one thing can check its course, the sin, 
 that men believe not on Him. Who is the image of God. 
 The very picture of the Father, manifested in the flesh, 
 to whom men are to look if they would see the Father, 
 as beholding Him who is invisible. Not dawn. Should 
 not illuminate them. Notwithstanding the very glory of 
 Christ pours forth its flood of light, darkness is the chosen 
 portion of the unbelieving. 
 
 Ver. 5, Preach not ourselves. Some of the Corin- 
 thians had unduly exalted St. Paul. Perhaps he was 
 charged with magnifying himself ; at any rate, he calls 
 attention to this point. A preacher may easily preach 
 himself, put himself in the foreground, and make his 
 hearers lose sight of Christ. But Christ Jesus as Lord. 
 Christ is the Apostle's theme, over against aught else. 
 Christ as the one Lord over all, blessed forever. A ser- 
 mon without Christ as Lord is blasphemy. Ourselves 
 . . . servants. The Apostle knows his position. Ser- 
 vants, Greek " doulous,'" slaves, is the strongest term ex- 
 pressive of ministering to others. Its opposite is the 
 word '* freeman." Thus the Apostle holds himself bound 
 to serve his fellow-man. For Jesus' sake. Jesus has 
 made him willing to be a servant unto his brethren. 
 Even in the service of men he finds glory for Jesus' 
 sake. 
 
 Ver. 6. God that said, Light ... of darkness. God 
 is the Creator of li£jht. His first creative word made the 
 
2 02 //• CORINTHIANS. [iv. 6. 
 
 light shine out of darkness. God is the author of spiritual 
 light, but the god of this world opposes the light of the 
 Gospel by blinding the minds of men to God's work of 
 light. Who shined in our hearts. Darkened by sin 
 these hearts are filled with light. How different the case 
 of those who are perishing ! To give the light. Luther's 
 rendering is : " that by us the enlightenment should come 
 about." First the Apostles receive the light, then they 
 become the bearers of the light for the enlightenment of 
 others. The light proceeds from the glory of God which 
 is made known to men. In the face of Jesus Christ. 
 The glory of Christ (ver. 4) is the glory of God. Christ 
 as the image of God shows this glory in His face. The 
 expression may be translated : " In the person of Jesus 
 Christ." In either case the glory is seen in Christ and 
 revealed by Him. 
 
 (I.) The Treasure in Earthen Vessels (4 : 7-18). 
 
 7-18. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the exceeding 
 greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves ; ive are 
 pressed on every side, yet not straitened ; perplexed, yet not unto despair ; 
 pursued, yet not forsaken ; smitten down, yet not destroyed ; always bear- 
 ing about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life also of Jesus may be 
 manifested in our body. For we which live are always delivered unto death 
 for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal 
 flesh. So then death worketh in us, but life in you. But having the same 
 spirit of faith, according to that which is written, I believed, and therefore 
 did I speak ; we also believe, and therefore also we speak : knowing that 
 he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also with Jesus, and 
 shall present us with you. For all things are for yoursakes, that the grace, 
 being multiplied through the many, may cause the thanksgiving to abound 
 unto the glory of God. Wherefore we faint not ; but though our outward 
 man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. For our light 
 affliction, which is for the moment, worketh for us more and more exceed- 
 ingly an eternal weight of glory : while we look not at the things which are 
 seen, but at the things which are not seen : for the things which are seen 
 are temporal ; but the things which are not seen are eternal. 
 
IV. 7, 8.] TREASURE IN EARTHEN VESSELS. 203 
 
 Vcr. 7, Treasure in earthen vessels. Which treas- 
 ure ? We are not left to conjecture. The knowledge of 
 the glory of God, together with the ministry of it, is 
 the treasure. We have it in earthen vessels. A poor, 
 weak body, frail as a potter's vessel, holds the treasure. 
 When the everlasting Light came into the world, it en- 
 tered the stable at Bethlehem. A babe wrapped in 
 swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger, was the sign 
 given to the Shepherds (Besser). The fulness of the 
 Godhead, the greatest of all treasures, is found in an 
 earthen vessel. Exceeding greatness of the power. Who 
 would be likely to associate power with the person of 
 men like Paul and Peter and John ? History bears wit- 
 ness to the power of their ministry. But its exceeding 
 greatness is not seen on the surface, in extent, in num- 
 bers, in works, but is to be sought in its regenerating 
 influence on the millions who are saved. May be of God. 
 Something which belongs to God is God's own power. 
 Divine power, all other power exercised by man differs 
 from this power in quality, which is indicated by the mark 
 of exceeding greatness. And not from ourselves. Great 
 power is the prerogative of some men. An Alexander 
 founds an empire, but the human side of the power im- 
 presses us at once. The men of such power were not 
 called to be Apostles. As little as the Gospel itself, so 
 little did the power of the ministry originate with the 
 men who ministered. The power is through them, but 
 not from them. Note the distinction in the text : " Of 
 God, but not from ourselves." 
 
 Ver. 8. Pressed . . . not straightened. In this and the 
 following antitheses, the weakness of the vessels and the 
 sustaining power of God are contrasted. All that is so 
 tersely expressed in these clauses had been abundantly ex- 
 perienced by the Apostle. Pressed, hemmed in, in every 
 
204 II- CORINTHIANS. [iv. 9, lo. 
 
 way, in all things, yet not straitened for want of room. 
 " A way out is never wanting " (Bengel). Israel on the 
 shore of the Red Sea was hemmed in, but not straitened. 
 Perplexed. Here we have the inward state, that condition 
 of mind in which one is at a loss what to do, bewildered. 
 Pushed to its extreme, the end of perplexity is despair. 
 God did not allow that dread state to be reached. 
 
 Ver. g. Pursued . . . not forsaken. Like a soldier on 
 a field of battle, pursued by the enemy, but not abandoned 
 by his friends. Driven like deer by those who persecuted 
 his soul, the thought, " I will not leave thee, nor forsake 
 thee," was a blessed reality. Smitten down, . . . notde= 
 stroyed. " The gates of hell shall not prevail against us " 
 (Matt. 16:18). Plumptre thinks that the imagery in this 
 and the preceding antithetic clauses belong to the life of 
 the soldier on active service. The illustration from this 
 source is certainly apt. The soldier is smitten down by 
 some dart or javelin, but is not killed. Often cast down, 
 but enabled to rise every time, ready for further service 
 (Ps. 118 : 17). 
 
 Ver. 10. In the body the dying of . . . Jesus. The 
 word dying expresses a state, a dying condition (comp. 
 Rom. 4 ; 19), the only other passage in which the word 
 is found. That this " dying is a condition is made em- 
 phatic by the words always bearing about." What is 
 the specific thought in the mind of the Apostle? Meyer 
 takes it to be " the great danger to life generally involved 
 in the continual persecutions and afflictions, but this 
 hardly explains the " bearing about in the body." It 
 must be something " always borne about in the body," 
 e. g. sufferings (ch. i : 5), or wounds (Eichhorn), the 
 latter based on (Gal 6 : 17), "I bear branded on my body 
 the marks (stigmata) of the Lord Jesus." A dying coming 
 from the Lord, to make way for the manifestation of Life. 
 
IV. 11,12.] DEATH AND LIFE. 205 
 
 Life . . . manifested. Thus we have two conditions in 
 the body, we may say : dying and living, both to be 
 traced to the Lord. Two phases of experience are 
 joined in the same subject, which suggests a parallel in 
 " The Small Catechism " : That the old Adam is to be 
 drowned and destroyed by daily sorrow and repentance, 
 and that again the new man should daily come forth and 
 rise that shall live, etc. Dying is to be followed by life. 
 
 Ver. II. We which live . . . delivered unto death. 
 Although alive they are constantly confronted by death : 
 death stares them in the face. For Jesus' sake. If it 
 were not for the service of Jesus, they would not be con- 
 stantly the " living prey of death." If this verse is an 
 elucidation of ver. 10, to which the word " for" at the be- 
 ginning seems to point, Meyer is right in his interpreta- 
 tion of that verse, and the expression, " for Jesus' sake," 
 is equivalent to the genitive in " the dying of the Lord 
 Jesus." Life . . . manifested . . . flesh. An allusion 
 to the frail, earthen vessel which holds the treasure. 
 All along this thought has been at the root of the an- 
 tithesis : " Strength made perfect in weakness." The 
 remarkable work of St. Paul is a confirmation and illus- 
 tration of these words. 
 
 Ver. 12. Death worketh in us. In the ministers of 
 Christ who bear the cross of Christ in a peculiar, we may 
 say, exceptional, official way. Satan is set against the 
 preaching of the Gospel, and the ministry of the Gospel 
 are made to feel it. Sober, serious words these. Strange 
 that Calvin and others should find something ironical 
 in this verse. But life in you. The life of Jesus mani- 
 fested in the bodies of His ministers steadily flows out 
 from them into the members of the Church. Therein 
 lies its preciousness. The effectual working, the applica- 
 tion of the energy, is in the members of the Church. 
 
2o6 //. CORINTHIANS. [iv. 13, 14. 
 
 Death working in the ministry is intended to bring Hfe 
 to the Church. 
 
 Ver, 13. The same spirit of faith. Wherever there 
 are true believers one will find the same spirit of faith. 
 The reference is explained by what follows, and applies 
 to faith among believers of the Old Testament. One in- 
 stance is singled out in this verse, but the same spirit is 
 met with in others, as the Epistle to the Hebrews abun- 
 dantly proves. The true relation to God always has trust 
 as its chief element. This same spirit belongs to be- 
 lievers of the Old and the New Testament. According 
 to that which is written. The Apostle appeals to Holy 
 Scripture, and accepts it, and manifests his faith in the 
 Word, by this very citation from the Book of Psalms, 
 a citation which illustrates and holds up an example of 
 faith. I believed, . . . did I speak. Faith is the foun- 
 tain from which his testimony flows. The words are a 
 part of the i i6th Psalm, in itself a great Easter Halle- 
 lujah, full of the devotion of faith. In another verse the 
 Psalmist declares : " I will take the cup of salvation, and 
 call upon the name of the Lord. We also believe, and 
 therefore also we spenk. Believing unto righteousness 
 with his heart, the Apostle was constrained with the 
 mouth to make confession unto salvation (Rom. 10 : 10). 
 Thus, in his Apostolic testimony, the prophet's word was 
 realized: " How beautiful are the feet of them that bring 
 glad tidings of good things " (Rom. 10 : 15). 
 
 Ver. 14. Knowing . . . raised up the Lord Jesus. 
 The Apostle rejoices in the knowledge of a day to which 
 men like the Psalmist looked forward. Abraham rejoiced 
 to see the day of the Lord Jesus ; and he saw it, and 
 was glad (John 8 : 56). But Abraham saw that day 
 with the eye of faith. St. Paul knew it as an accom- 
 plished fact. How much stronger the appeal to his faith, 
 
IV. 15.] MULTIPLIED GRACE. 207 
 
 and to ours ! Us also with Jesus. With Jesus, as the 
 firstfruits of them that are asleep, — at His coming (i Cor. 
 15 : 20, 23). The context makes it clear that the resur- 
 rection of the body is here meant. The strongest argu- 
 ment for this was the fact that the Lord Jesus had been 
 raised up from the dead. And shall present. Where is 
 the presentation to take place? In the Lord's own pres- 
 ence, and most likely before the judgment-seat. \\\ 
 Rom. 14 : 10 the same verb is used in connection with 
 the formal presentation of all men before the judgment 
 seat. 
 
 Ver. 15. All things ... for your sakes. Note how 
 comprehensive the expression "all things." All those 
 things just mentioned by the Apostle work together for 
 good to them that love God (Rom. 8 : 28). All things, 
 both great and small, and here in particular the work 
 and sufferings of the Apostolic ministry. Grace, multi- 
 plied through the many, A num.ber of commentators 
 have connected the words " through the many " with the 
 word " thanksgiving " in the succeeding clause. Aside 
 from the construction in the Greek, which does not fit in 
 with this view, the reference seems to be to what precedes, 
 i. e. as all things are for your sakes, so the grace being 
 multiplied through you, as the many. What the Apostle 
 has in mind is the multiplication of grace, beginning with 
 the few who minister, and then proceeding to the many 
 who are brought to Christ. This multiplication of grace 
 is a fact, a proof of God's will that grace shall grow from 
 more to more. Thanksgiving to abound. Mark the 
 correlation : multiplied grace, abundant thanksgiving. 
 Does St. Paul mean to say : Where grace abounds, there 
 thanksgiving will much more abound ? Hardly, yet 
 thanksgiving is the holy fruit of grace, found in every 
 believer, and the more believers, the more thanksgiving. 
 
2o8 //. CORINTHIANS. [rv. i6. 
 
 is the sense of the text. Unto the glory of God. All 
 things are to tend towards this goal. St. Paul keeps the 
 glory of God steadily before the Church. The members 
 of the Church, the many, are to declare the glory of God 
 by a life of thanksgiving, man's response to God's 
 grace. 
 
 Vcr. 1 6. We faint not. The thought of ver. i is here 
 resumed. The chief reason for not fainting is the knowl- 
 edge of the resurrection of the Saints (ver. 14), eternal 
 life. Waiting upon the Lord, they know that they shall 
 renew their strength (Isa. 40 : 31). Outward man . . . 
 decaying. The " outward man " is not identical with the 
 " old man," but is the visible part of man's nature, the 
 whole body, the tabernacle of the soul. This is decay- 
 ing, wasting away, being destroyed, by the constant 
 pressure of the manifold sufferings endured in the service 
 of Christ. Inward man , . . renewed. St. Peter terms 
 the "inner man "" the hidden man of the heart" (i 
 Pet. 3 : 4). The spiritual part of man's being is not de- 
 pendent on the condition of the body for the develop- 
 ment of its life. Even in decay the body is influenced by 
 the renewal of the inward man, and kept under, made 
 subservient to the purpose of the Christian life. In direct 
 contrast with and even opposition to the true relation of 
 the "outward " and the "inward man " is the notion of 
 "an inward invisible body " (Menken), and that of " a 
 corporeality of the soul " (Tertullian). Day by day 
 the renewal of the inward man goes on. The Apostle 
 has found the never-failing fountain of youth and life. 
 To him the kingdom is within. Day by day he is re- 
 freshed within. (See Rom. 1242; CoL 3 : 10; Titus 
 3 : 5.) Day by day the renewal takes place. " Woe unto 
 the man who is already wholly renewed, that is, who 
 imagines himself to be renewed already. Beyond a 
 
IV. i;.] AFFLICTION AND GLORY CONTRASTED. 209 
 
 doubt, such a man has not yet begun to be renewed, 
 and has not \'et tasted what it means to be a Christian. 
 For he who has begun to be a Christian does not take 
 himself to be a Christian, but his great desire is to be- 
 come a Christian ; and the more he grows and increase's, 
 the more he seeks to become one, and the less he takes 
 himself to be one" (LUTIIER). (Comp. Phil. 3 : 12-15.) 
 Ver. 17. Light affliction, . . . for the moment. Lit- 
 erally, " the momentary lightness of our affliction." Com- 
 paratively speaking, looking to the anthithesis in the 
 following clause. The children of God are comforted in 
 view of the brevity of their affliction (Isa. 54 : 7 ; i Pet. 
 I : 6). Cyprian compares the affliction of the Church to 
 a swiftly passing cloud before the sun. " Here we must 
 remember that the Spirit is speaking. For our reason 
 is unable to believe that temptation is brief and but for 
 a moment, since reason adheres only to the feelings of the 
 present. It sees nothing, hears nothing, thinks of noth- 
 ing, understands nothing, but present pain, and present 
 evil. Hence we should take spiritual exercise by letting 
 go those frightful pictures, which we behold, and accus- 
 tom our heart to turn to the unseen, that is, take firm 
 hold of the Word by faith " (LUTHER). Worketh . . . 
 eternal weight of glory. This is not the view of a Stoic, 
 who rates neither joy nor sorrow at their real value, but 
 that of a Christian, who grasps the true relation of things. 
 Affliction has a work to perform, and an end to accomplish. 
 Glory is the goal. Affliction and glory are closely re- 
 lated. The Apostle weighs them both, affliction is light 
 over against the eternal weight of glory ; nay, more, this 
 light affliction is active, operative, working out the prob- 
 lem of life, whose solution is glory. The problem is 
 solved by the exceeding greatness of the power of God 
 (ver. 7), working out an eternal weight of glory through 
 14 
 
2IO II. CORINTHIANS. [iv. i8. 
 
 affliction. This is done more and more exceedingly, lit. 
 according to excess unto excess. Both manner and de- 
 gree are predicated of this working. Abundance, beyond 
 anything that we can ask or think, mark its course and 
 i!s fruition. The result is an eternal weight of glory. 
 Weight here means fulness, good measure, pressed down, 
 shaken together, running over (Luke 6 : 38). It is not 
 a burden, but a joy, adapted to the bearer of the 
 weight. 
 
 Ver. 18. Look not at , . . things . . . seen. The 
 Greek verb, rendered " look at," suggests the word 
 " scope," that at which one aims, the thing or end to which 
 the mind directs its view. The Apostle's horizon was not 
 bounded by the things which are seen. All visible things, 
 Avithout exception, no matter how grand or how wretched, 
 are not that which attracts his view. He looks beyond 
 them all. But . , . things . . . not seen. The invis- 
 ible is the real, has the highest reality. God, heaven, 
 eternity, faith, hope, love, all of them invisible, are the 
 great realities. Things . , . seen . . . temporal. They 
 last for a season, are temporary. But time cannot be the 
 standard for the scope or view of man. Even Seneca, 
 the heathen, felt this truth. Time marks the limited, 
 the incomplete, the imperfect, according to man's own 
 judgment. He longs for more. Things . . . not seen 
 . . , eternal. Invisible now, to our eyes, not absolutely 
 invisible to man. Invisible in time, " many things which 
 are not seen will be visible, when the journey of faith is 
 finished " (Bengel). Eternity is the aim of the Apostle. 
 Nothing else can satisfy him. The resurrection of the 
 Lord quickens him unto this goal, and only those things 
 which bear the stamp of eternity determine his course 
 in action as well as affliction. 
 
V. I.] EARTHLY HOUSE AND ETERNAL BUILDING. 211 
 
 (J.) St. Paul's Longi)ig to be Clothed upon zvith hntnortal 
 Life (5 : i-io). 
 
 T-io. For we know that if the earthly house of our tabernacle be dis- 
 solved, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal 
 in the heavens. For verily in this we groan, longing to be clothed upon 
 with our habitation which is from heaven : if so be that being clothed we. 
 shall not be found naked. For indeed we that are in this tabernacle do 
 groan, being burdened ; not for that we would be unclothed, but that we 
 would be clothed upon, that what is mortal may be swallowed up of life. 
 Now he that wrought us for this very thing is God, who gave unto us the 
 earnest of the Spirit. Being therefore always of good courage, and know- 
 ing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord 
 (for we walk by faith, not by sight) ; we are of good courage, I say, and are 
 willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be at home with the 
 Lord. Wherefore also we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to 
 be well-pleasing unto him. For we must all be made manifest before the 
 judgment-seat of Christ ; that each one may receive the things done in the 
 body, according to what he hath done, whether // be good or bad. 
 
 Ver. I. For we know. The reason for the remark that 
 
 " affliction worketh glory " (ch. 4 : 17), given in this verse. 
 " We know " is the language of certainty, based on the 
 universal promises of divine grace, and confirmed by the 
 witness of the Spirit (Calovius). Timothy has it ; all 
 believers have it ; it is, therefore, not to be ascribed to 
 the Apostles alone as the result of special inspiration 
 (ch. 4: 13, 14). Tabernacle . . . dissolved. Our taber- 
 nacle-house, our body, is like a tent, not meant to be our 
 permanent abode, but liable to be removed at any time. 
 An earthly house, erected upon the earth, to stand here 
 awhile, but when it is taken down, and here the compar- 
 ison is stronger: a tent is removed from one place to an- 
 other on earth, but this house is dissolved. To think of 
 the shifting of a tent was quite natural for St. Paul the 
 tent-maker. But he goes farther. A complete breaking 
 up of the tabernacle, so that it shall no longer be an 
 
2 12 II. CORINTHIANS. [v. 2. 
 
 earthly house for the Christian, suggested itself of neces- 
 sity. He looks farther still. A building from God. The 
 metaphor seems to be mixed. The consensus of opinion 
 on the part of commentators views the preceding clause as 
 referring to the " body." We confess, however, that wc 
 are not in the clear as to how far the mixture of the 
 metaphor extends, if it be mixed at all. We are inclined 
 to think, with Vilmar, that, in this second part of the 
 comparison, at least, the Apostle has in view the heavenly 
 home, the new Jerusalem, as the contrast with the pre- 
 ceding. Vilmar qualifies the interpretation which makes 
 the "house" mean the "body," by inserting the word 
 " zunaechst," i. e. in the first place the body is meant. 
 Besser, too, seems to favor the inclusive interpretation. 
 The building, at all events, is one whose builder and 
 maker is God. Not made with hands. Earthly houses 
 are built with hands : the building which is to be ours 
 has its existence without the intervention of human in- 
 strumentality. The contrast here is evidently not be- 
 tween this " building" and the " body " ; the term, how- 
 ever, may be considered independently. Eternal, in the 
 heavens. Whilst these expressions may be predicated of 
 the " resurrection-body," they would seem to fit in more 
 naturally with the general conception of the heavenly 
 home. 
 
 Ver. 2. In this we groan. In this condition of ours, in 
 this our earthly environment, perhaps specifically, " our 
 body." Luther: Ueber demselbigen, during or pend- 
 ing this condition. We groan, because we are hemmed 
 in and under pressure. Longing, Having a desire for 
 or towards. Luther regards the longing as implied in 
 the groaning or sighing, and we may consider the groan 
 as an inarticulate prayer for relief. To be clothed upon. 
 To have put on over the mortal body without tasting 
 
V. 3, 4] THE TABERNACLE OF GROANING. 213 
 
 death, as one puts on a robe. Habitation . . . from 
 heaven. Mark the distinction between " house," oikia, 
 which has a more absolute signification, and " habitation," 
 oiketerion, which has reference to the occupant (Ben- 
 GEL). The habitation with which the Apostle woukl be 
 clothed upon is heavenly in its origin, and is therefore 
 adapted for the heavenly sphere of life. 
 
 Ver. 3. Clothed . . . not be found naked. Various 
 and very divergent views have been advanced concerning 
 the import of this verse. An allusion to the resurrection 
 of the body over against heathen denial of this doctrine 
 has been held to be the gist of the passage. " The Greek 
 writers were accustomed to use the word * naked ' in de- 
 scribing disembodied spirits." (See Stanley in loco.) 
 The allusion is also made to apply specifically to those of 
 the Corinthians who denied the resurrection. Meyer, 
 who adopts this view, thus paraphrases the text : That 
 we shall be met Avith at the Parousia really clothed with 
 a body, and not bodiless. Baldwin and Besser explain 
 "clothed" to mean "having put on Christ," i. e. clad in 
 Christ, His righteousness, else one is naked, and cannot 
 be clothed upon with the habitation which is from heaven. 
 " The Apostle excludes unbelievers from the communion 
 of heavenly glory, namely, those who are found naked, 
 i. e. void of faith and not adorned Avith the wedding gar- 
 ment, not clothed with Jesus Christ and His innocence 
 and righteousness. Only to those clothed with the 
 righteousness of Christ does he ascribe the being clothed 
 upon with the glory of Christ" (HUNNIUS). 
 
 Ver. 4. In this tabernacle do groan. A repetition of 
 ver. 2, with the addition of the word " tabernacle." The 
 body, as a " tabernacle to be dissolved," is uppermost in 
 the mind of the Apostle. Everything about it points to 
 dissolution, to the last enemy (i Cor. 15 : 26). The sting 
 
214 II- CORINTHIANS. [v. 5. 
 
 of death makes itself felt and we do groan. Being bur= 
 dened. A burden whose pressure can only be understood 
 in the light of the triumphant exclamation : " O death, 
 where is thy sting" (i Cor. 15 : 55). Our Lord's agony 
 in Gethsemane brings home the full weight of the burden. 
 Not . . . would be unclothed. He would rather, as 
 Luther renders, not be unclothed. He submits to the 
 will of God, whether he shall be " unclothed " or " clothed 
 upon," but he would prefer the latter. Would be clothed 
 upon. Not die, but live through and through, become 
 living (Besser), i. e. at once be possessed of full, perfect 
 life. A transition without a break. The groan is a de- 
 sire for life, for relief from this body of death (Rom. 
 7 : 24), relief without a rupture between the body and the 
 soul. Mortal . . . swallowed up of life. This is the 
 climax of the Apostle's deepest longing. Words can but 
 feebly express the thought. Yet, the figure is a power- 
 ful one. The fountain of life opens its mouth and swal- 
 lows up what is mortal into its blessed waters. Mortality 
 has disappeared without a pang. It is gone. For such a 
 change, such a consummation, St. Paul yearns. 
 
 Ver. 5, He that wrought . . . is God. For the victory 
 of life God has prepared us, lit., has wrought us out, so 
 that we are fitted for the absorption of that which is mor- 
 tal. Christians are under the influence of the Divine life. 
 God, the Giver of life, does the work. No one else can 
 do it. The earnest of the Spirit. A repetition of the 
 thought expressed (ch. i : 22). St. Paul lays great stress 
 on the earnest of the Spirit. We have the forgiveness of 
 sins, the beginning of life ; the perfection of life is guar- 
 anteed, assured thereby. " Since our soul has obtained 
 its portion of spiritual being, and by faith is already in 
 the new, eternal, heavenly life with Christ, and cannot 
 die and be buried, we have nothing else to expect than 
 
V. 6-8.] FAITH, NOT SIGHT. 215 
 
 that this poor tabernacle and this old robe also become 
 new and pass away no more, because the best part is 
 above, and cannot leave us behind " (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 6. Always of good courage. Because we have the 
 assurance of God's work and the earnest of the Spirit, 
 our courage never fails. We are not afraid of death in 
 any form. At home in the body. At home for a few 
 years, a little while. The body is our dwelling, though 
 it be but a tabernacle ; our home, more than any other 
 earthly home. Absent from the Lord. Christians know 
 this : the world neither knows nor cares to have this 
 knowledge. But is not the Lord with us, whilst we are 
 in the body ? Beyond a doubt : but we are not with 
 Him. We do not see Him face to face in His glory. 
 In this sense we are absent or, as Luther puts it, we 
 roam, i. e. we are pilgrims and wanderers. 
 
 Ver. 7. Walk by faith, not by sight. Said by way of 
 comment on the preceding verse, briefly marking the 
 difference between the two states. Faith on earth ; sight 
 in heaven. Our entire walk in the body, as Christians, is 
 one of faith over against the walk by sight. The very 
 form, the cidos, the appearance, will greet us, when we 
 walk by sight. Faith looks forward to those things, not 
 as yet seen, knowing that the things hoped for are sub- 
 stantial, and proving them, testing them (Heb. 1 1 : i). 
 
 Ver. 8. We are of good courage. Once more St. Paul 
 takes up the thought of ver. 6 and emphasizes the fact 
 of constant Christian courage. Whether it be " courage 
 in suffering " (ver. 6), or " courage in death," implied in 
 this verse (Hoffman), makes but little difference. The 
 courage is the same. Absent from the body. Opposed 
 to " at home in the body " (ver. 6), Next to his desire 
 to be clothed upon with the body of heavenly life, St. 
 Paul's highest wish was to leave the strange tenement of 
 
2i6 II. CORINTHIANS. [v. 9, lo. 
 
 this body, " to depart and be with Christ" (Phil, i : 23) 
 (Besser). At home with the Lord. Opposed to 
 " absent from the Lord " (ver. 6). Whether it be by 
 " being clothed upon," or by being " absent from the 
 body," i. e. by death, his great desire is to be in the 
 presence and company of the Lord, i. e. the higher home. 
 St. Paul knows that the idea of " home " can be fully 
 realized only in the abiding visible presence of Christ. 
 
 Ver. 9. We make it our aim. Because of this desire 
 to be at home with the Lord, we make it our aim, i. e. 
 we exert ourselves, we strive as a m'^.tter of honor, of am- 
 bition. The only legitimate ambition (Bengel), worthy 
 of the zeal, or diligence (Luther), implied in the Greek 
 philotimoumetha. Whether at home or absent. 
 " Wliether we, at the Parousiaor coming of the Lord, are 
 still at home in the body, or are already from home out 
 of it, consequently, according to the other figure used 
 before, already unclothed, i. e. already dead, so that we 
 come to be judged before Him (more precisely; before 
 His judgment-seat, ver. 10), not through the being 
 changed, like those who are still in the body, but through 
 the being raised up " (Meyer). The words " at home " 
 and " absent," which embrace time and eternity, are not 
 to be connected with "we make it our aim," but with 
 that which follows (Besser). Well=pleasing unto him. 
 All that sanctifies the Apostle's ambition is condensed 
 in these words. What the Lord thinks of Him is the 
 main thing. 
 
 Ver. 10. Hanifest before the judgment=seat of Christ. 
 The aim of the Apostle has the judgment in view. 
 Manifestation before the judgment-seat furnishes the 
 objective motive to be well-pleasing unto the Lord. The 
 counsels of all hearts will then be made manifest. All 
 Christians are included in the manifestation, and Christ, 
 
V. lo.J BEFORE THE JUDGMENT-SEAT. 217 
 
 the Judge, makes them manifest. The Hfe hid with 
 Christ in God will appear. Receive the things ... in 
 
 the body. Whilst we are in the life of the body. 
 Luther — bci Lcibcs Lcbcti. Lit. : The things through the 
 body. This body, this our tabernacle, is here conceived 
 of as the instrumental vehicle of the soul's life. As 
 man sows by means of the body, so he shall reap. 
 According to . . . good or bad. The good or bad 
 quality of man's works depends entirely on the relation 
 of the life of man to the life of Christ (ch. 4 : 1 1). Christ 
 for us, our justification, means, on the one hand, the 
 remission of all sins, and on the other, postulates, demands 
 newness, goodness of life in every deed done in the body. 
 The entire activity of all men, in their relation to Christ, 
 is what the Apostle has in mind, not as the ground of 
 salvation, but as the measure of reward or punishment. 
 It is either good or bad. In Christ it is good, out of 
 Christ it is bad. But in either case, it is the entire life, 
 with all its individual deeds. The light of judgment 
 manifests the one as good, the other as bad. By this 
 conception of the demand for the whole heart, a Chris- 
 tian's course is determined. The offering must be a whole 
 offering. 
 
 (K.) vS7. Paul an Ambassador on Behalf of Christ 
 (5:11-21). 
 
 11-21. Knowing therefore the fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we 
 are made manifest unto God; add I hope that we are made manifest also 
 in your consciences. We are not again commending ourselves unto you, 
 but speak as giving you occasion of glorying on our behalf, that ye may have 
 wherewith to answer them that glory in appearance, and not in heart. For 
 whether we are beside ourselves, it is unto God ; or whether we are of sober 
 mind, it is unto you. For the love of Christ constraineth us ; because we 
 thus judge, that one died for all, therefore all died ; and he died for all, that 
 they which live should no longer live unto themselves, but unto him who 
 
2i8 II. CORIaWTHIANS. [v. II, 12. 
 
 for their sakes died and rose again. Wherefore we henceforth know no man 
 after the flesh : even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now 
 we know him so no more. Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new 
 creature ; the old things are passed away ; behold, they are become new. 
 But all things are of God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and 
 gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation ; to wit, that God was in Christ 
 reconciling the world unto himself, not reckoning unto them their tres- 
 passes, and having committed unto us the word of reconciliation. We are 
 ambassadors therefore on behalf of Christ, as though God were intreating 
 by us : we beseech jj'c// on behalf of Christ, be ye reconciled to God. Him 
 who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; that we might become 
 the righteousness of God in him. 
 
 Ver. II. The fear of the Lord, Careless, indifferent, 
 superficial life is not Christianity. The fear of the Lord, 
 moreover, is nothing strange to the Apostle. He knows 
 it ; he lives in it : to him it is the beginning of pastoral, 
 yea, Apostolic wisdom. Not a terror or dread which 
 drives him to his work, but the solemn consciousness of 
 what is required in every act. We persuade men. We 
 treat men so as " to win them over " (LlAS). In the Spirit 
 of the Gospel, to win them over to faith, by a love born 
 of faith, we go on our way of winning men to Christ. " A 
 beautiful treatment of men, as Luther puts it, no tyranny 
 or driving of men with the ban or outrageous governance, 
 but in the fear of God. The same verb is used (Acts 
 12 : 20). Manifest unto God. Our motive is known to 
 God. The enemies of the Gospel may put a false con- 
 struction on our mode of dealing with men, but we look 
 unto God to whom we are responsible. Also in your 
 consciences. There are always some who will judge the 
 work of the ministry conscientiously. Conscientious 
 opinion is always to be valued. All who are led by the 
 Holy Spirit are conscientious in their opinions concern- 
 ing their fellow-men, the ministry in particular. 
 
 Ver. 12. Not again commending. (See ch, 3:1.) 
 Even the slightest appearance or semblance of self-com- 
 
V. 13-] I/YPOCR/TICAL GLORYING. 219 
 
 mendation is felt by St. Paul. He is sensitive on this 
 delicate point. " He has scarcely uttered the words that 
 precede this sentence when the poison of the barbed 
 arrow of the sneer to which he had referred in ch. 3 : i 
 again stings him " (Plumptre). Yet we are not to re- 
 gard this sensitiveness as personal. It is not Paul, as a 
 man, but Paul, as an Apostle, who feels thus. Occasion 
 of glorying on our behalf. The appeal to their consciences 
 was to give the Corinthians occasion, i. e. a starting- 
 point, a point whence comes an impulse or impetus, just 
 as a fund of capital becomes the basis of production. 
 Hence it is an endowment towards glorying, over against 
 the adversaries of St. Paul, since he stood for the truth. 
 When men are the faithful ministers of the Church, their 
 cause is the Church's glory, their work must be defended 
 by the Church (ch. i : 14). Wherewith to answer them. 
 Antagonism to the servants of the Church is opposition 
 against the Church. Ministers are often obliged to take 
 the lead, to give occasion, in resisting the attacks of foes, 
 when the Church itself might be expected to rise as one 
 man to repel the onslaught of the enemy. That glory in 
 appearance. The hypocritical glorying of these oppo- 
 nents is well described by this terse antithesis. The glory 
 of hypocrisy is all on the surface ; the glory of the heart 
 is deep and full of the life-giving current by which all the 
 members of the body are nourished. All the glory of 
 hypocrisy is doomed ; the heart alone will win the victory. 
 Ver. 13. Beside ourselves, . . . unto Qod. Another 
 charge brought against the Apostle by his enemies, 
 namely, that he had been out of his senses, had been 
 mad. The verb exestemen is in the aorist. The majority 
 of commentators are agreed in viewing it as a hostile 
 charge. What is meant by " beside ourselves " becomes 
 apparent by comparison with the verb in the next clause, 
 
220 //■ CORINTHIANS. [v. 14. 
 
 as well as the use of the same word as applied to the 
 Lord (Mark 3:21). What gave rise to the charge? St. 
 Paul's conversion and the extraordinary character of his 
 work may have led to it, but most of all the visions and 
 revelations of the Lord. Observe that the charge is not 
 altogether denied. There is an ecstatic side to the 
 Apostle's life, but "it is unto God." His enemies misin- 
 terpret the ecstasy. Of sober mind, . . . unto you. To 
 be of sober mind is to have a sound, healthy mind, to be 
 rational, hence, capable of sound judgment, of wise and 
 correct action (Mark 5:15; Luke 8 : 35). Madness had 
 been laid to the Apostle's charge. He has briefly refuted 
 it. His conduct of the Church's affairs proved him to be 
 a man of sound judgment, a truly practical man. The 
 Church has derived the benefit of this eminent pastoral 
 prudence, of which this Epistle is a striking illustration. 
 
 Ver. 14. Love of Christ constraineth. Not our love to 
 Christ, but the love of Christ to us constrains us to walk 
 and labor for the glory of God and the good of the 
 brethren. The context indicates that the love of Christ 
 to us is the motive power, which constrains, i. e. holds 
 within the proper bounds, prevents excess and promotes 
 sober action. The concentric force of Christ's love is the 
 only safeguard against all eccentricity to which a minis- 
 ter may be tempted (Gal. 2 : 20). We thus Judge. Lit. 
 having judged this, having come to this conclusion upon 
 sufficient evidence. An instance of the highest kind of 
 human judgment, an illustration of the sound judgment 
 of the Apostle. One died for all, ... all died. In the 
 death of Christ His love to men reached its consumma- 
 tion. For all, i. e. for the sake of all, for the benefit of 
 all. Hence, all are comprehended in the death of Christ. 
 His death is their death in the full reach of its atoning 
 efficacy. 
 
V. 15, i6.] LIVING UNTO CIIRTST. 221 
 
 Ver. 15. He died for all. The word " for " is emphatic, 
 and looks to the purpose of the Lord, the object He has 
 in view. All participate in the Lord's death ; some par- 
 take of His life. That they which live. They in whom 
 the love of Christ has wrought life, to whom the death 
 of Christ has been applied and by whom it has been ap- 
 propriated through faith ; those who arc alive in Christ. 
 No longer live unto. The death of Christ, the great 
 Sacrifice, is a protest against selfishness. Living unto 
 themselves, out of Christ, they had sought to please 
 themselves. Their life was centred in self, a life of self- 
 gratification, — egotism ; this was no longer to be (Rom. 
 14 : 7-9). But unto him. Man was created to live unto 
 God. Sin made him selfish. The love of Christ restores 
 him to the right life. His death and resurrection are a 
 constant appeal for consecration unto Him. Christ the 
 living head claims the life of all His children. It is all 
 " for their sakcs," that they may be blessed in Him. 
 
 Ver. 16. Henceforth . . , after the flesh. Henceforth, 
 i. e. from now on, designates the Christian period of life 
 or point of view. Since he judges as a Christian (ver. 14), 
 his standard of judging men is a different one, a new one. 
 Our estimate of men is not determined after the flesh, 
 whether they be of high or low birth, Jew or Gentile, 
 bond or free, rich or poor, male or female. The world 
 knows men after the flesh, according to the selfish stand- 
 ard. " To know another man after the flesh is to know 
 him no farther than the flesh is able to know. Now the 
 flesh can do no more than seek its own in everybody 
 else ; it hates, envies, and does all manner of evil to an 
 enemy ; it seeks pleasure, favor, enjoyment, friendship 
 from everybody for its own profit. In this way the 
 children of the world know one another" (Luther). 
 Known Christ after the flesh. The world still judges 
 
222 //• CORINTHIANS. [v. 17. 
 
 Christ after the flesh. St. Paul himself had so regarded 
 Christ before the scales fell from his eyes. To Saul, the 
 persecutor, the Lord was known as a false Messiah, justly 
 persecuted and crucified. Judged by his Pharisaic stand- 
 ard, the Lord was the enemy of Israel, the cross of Christ 
 an offence. Now ... no more. Now he knows that 
 " one died for all." Now his standard of knowledge is 
 changed. Now the knowledge after the flesh has yielded 
 to the influence of the light of love. No more : for the 
 old knowledge has vanished. Henceforth he knows 
 *' after the Gospel" and not " after the flesh." A higher 
 standard of knowledge there is none. 
 
 Ver. 17. If any man ... In Christ. Moreover, it 
 follows of necessity, as regards Christians, that the old 
 has given place to the new. But, first of all, one must 
 be *' in Christ," i. e. in communion with Him by faith, 
 which means self-surrender to Christ. A new creature. 
 A new element is introduced into the life of man by the 
 power of God. An entirely new relation, a new energy 
 marks this new creation. The change is in the nature 
 of a gift, an endowment, here a restoration by God of 
 that which man had lost. Old things , . . passed away. 
 Doubtless the reference here is, primarily, to the passing 
 away of the guilt of sin and its dominion. So Theodoret 
 and others. We are inclined to think, however, that the 
 Apostle, continuing the line of thought begun in ver. 14, 
 has in mind the Christian's point of view, according to 
 which he passes judgment, in its fullest scope. Under 
 "old things," then, would be included : " Jewish expec- 
 tations of a Jewish kingdom, chiliastic dreams, heathen 
 philosophies, lower aims, earthly standards " (Plumptre), 
 in fact all old views that were incompatible with the 
 Gospel. Behold . . . new. Attention is called to this 
 remarkable fact. Behold not novelty to gratify Athenian 
 
V. iS, 19.] THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION. 223 
 
 curiosity, but newness of view and action. How this 
 affected the ministry of the Apostle could readily be 
 seen. The world could not help but notice the change. 
 
 Ver. 18. All things ... of God. All things that be- 
 long to the new life. All the phases and manifestations 
 of this life are of God, to whom alone the marvellous 
 change is due. Who reconciled us. Reconciliation is 
 the work of God. No one else could effect it. It is the 
 foundation of the new life. Before the new could assert 
 itself, the old called for the reconciliation of- man to an 
 oiTended God. St. Paul recognizes in a special way that 
 he and his fellow-workers in the ministry have been 
 reconciled to God. — Reconciliation is the atonement 
 through Christ, whose sacrifice removed the enmity be- 
 tween God and man and restored the relation of peace, 
 thus ending the estrangement. And gave . , . ministry 
 of reconciliation. In order that man may appropriate 
 the reconciliation wrought out by Christ, St. Paul and 
 others have received the ministry, by which the fruit of 
 Christ's work is offered to all for acceptance. 
 
 Ver. 19. God in Christ, reconciling. God was in Christ, 
 else the work of Christ would have been of no avail. 
 Christ's incarnation was the condition without which the 
 atonement could not have been made. The world was 
 reconciled to God. For this He gave His only-begotten 
 Son. God's love to the world is proved by this Gift. 
 Not reckoning . . . trespasses. Literally "■ trespasses," 
 Greek, paraptomata, means " fallings aside from the path," 
 and is akin to the word " transgressions." An actual 
 falling away from God is the idea. Sin multiples into 
 a series of "fallings away" on the part of the world. 
 Christ, having taken away the sin of the world, by assum- 
 ing it as a whole, has taken the burden upon Himself. 
 The meaning becomes plainer by a glance at the word 
 
224 I^- CORINTHIANS. [v. 20. 
 
 " reckon," which signifies (i) to consider (as in Rom. 
 8 : 18), and hence (2) to consider a thing as having been 
 done, to reckon or impute. Thus we speak of an objec- 
 tive reconciliation, by God, through Christ, an acquisition 
 intended for man ; and, in hke manner, of an altered 
 judicial relation, a changed relation of God to man, to 
 the sins of men. Committed . . . word of reconciliation. 
 Literally, "having placed in us," as Wiclif renders it, 
 " puttid in us," differs from the general term " gave" 
 (ver. 18), by regarding the thing given as a deposit, sacred 
 capital to be dispensed to others. Reconciliation through 
 Christ is a treasure intended for all men. The Word 
 contains the treasure, and is committed to the ministry, 
 who are to offer it to all men, everywhere, until the end 
 of time. 
 
 Ver. 20. Ambassadors ... on behalf of Christ. 
 Therefore, i. e. because the Word has been committed 
 unto us we do the work of an ambassador. Just as a 
 king sends an ambassador to represent him, to act as his 
 mouthpiece, his spokesman, so the Lord sends His minis- 
 ters to represent Him (John 2:21; Luke 10 : 16). They 
 represent Him by presenting His cause, and thus act " on 
 His behalf," as well as " in His stead." To drop the 
 latter would be contrary to the legitimate analogy of 
 Scripture. The arguments to the contrary, advanced by 
 Meyer, lose sight of the expression " God was in Christ " 
 (ver. 19). God . . . intreating by us. The wrath of 
 God has given way to an earnest appeal, an exhortation, 
 which some regard as having the force of an entreaty. 
 A. V. " Beseech." God does actually exhort men, ad- 
 monish them of the great importance of His offer of 
 reconciliation. Ministers preach the Word by which God 
 exhorts. Beseech . . . behalf of Christ. The context 
 shows that Christ's own entreaty is meant : Christ Himself 
 
V. 21.] CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US. 225 
 
 entreats through His servants, just as God exhorts by 
 them. A powerful climax is reached as we proceed from 
 exhortation to entreaty. The love of Christ appeals to 
 sinners in the message of His ambassadors. Be . . . 
 reconciled. Let the love of Christ draw you, win you, 
 from sin to God. Sin has estranged you from God, and 
 justly brought His wrath upon you : God comes to you, 
 in Christ, with the offer of peace. Although this appeal 
 is meant for the unbelieving in particular, believers are 
 reminded by it of daily repentance. In these words of 
 entreaty we hear the voice of Christ, the constant plea 
 that voices His hunger for souls, the yearning to see of 
 the travail of His soul (Isa. 53). 
 
 Ver. 21. Him who knew no sin . . . sin on our behalf. 
 Literally, who knew not sin, i. e. who was not conscious 
 of sin on His own part in any way. Sin was to Him, 
 because non-existent in Him, a thing unknown from His 
 own experience (Meyer). The sense is evidently that 
 Christ was altogether without sin. He knew of our sin 
 in its bitter effects, when He endured the cross, but He 
 did not know sin as a sinner. Nevertheless, He was 
 made "sin," not, indeed, a sinner, but "sin." Made to 
 be sin, put in the place of sin, by becoming the sin-bearer, 
 in order that He might take it away from us. Let us 
 reverentially say with LUTHER on Gal. 3 : 13 : "It pleases 
 me better to leave to the words their common, customary, 
 and natural meaning, which contains something greater 
 and more than the comment I have just made can give." 
 We . . . the righteousness of God in him. We knew 
 not righteousness, but we knew sin. In Christ we are to 
 become righteousness, which comes from God, is the gift 
 of God, and is opposed to all self-righteousness. This is 
 the object of the mystery with which the verse opens. 
 Christ's identification with sin is not merely the pardon 
 IS 
 
226 //• CORINTHIANS. [vi. i. 
 
 of sin, but the imparting of righteousness, so that, as 
 God beholds man in Christ, He beholds righteousness. 
 Two great mysteries are presented in the text. 
 
 (L.) Ho%v the Ministers of God Commend TJiemselves 
 (6 : i-io). 
 
 i-io. And working together uiith him we intreat also that ye receive 
 not the grace of God in vain (for he saith, 
 
 At an acceptable time I hearkened unto thee, 
 And in a day of salvation did I succour thee : 
 behold, now is the acceptable time ; behold, now is the day of salvation) : 
 giving no occasion of stumbling in anything, that our ministration be not 
 blamed ; but in everything commending ourselves, as ministers of God, in 
 much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in im- 
 prisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings ; in pureness, 
 in knowledge, in longsuffering, in kindness, in the Holy Ghost, in love 
 unfeigned, in the word of truth, in the power of God ; by the armour of 
 righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by glory and dishonour, 
 by evil report and good report ; as deceivers, and yd true ; as unknown, 
 and yet well known ; as dying, and behold, we live ; as chastened, and not 
 killed ; as sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing ; as poor, yet making many rich ; 
 as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. 
 
 Ver. I. And working together with him. As ambas- 
 sadors of Christ, we labor with Christ in the unity of the 
 work in His cause. That is, the work is a unit in its in- 
 ception and direction, as well as its object (ch. 5), and we 
 are joint laborers, fellow-workers with Christ in bringing 
 the word of reconciliation to the world. Hence, the 
 humblest sermon is not to be neglected or despised by 
 any one (Luther). We intreat also. We also admonish 
 you to consider well the nature and importance of this 
 offer of reconciliation. The hortatory element dare not 
 be wanting in the preaching of' the Gospel, since all men 
 need a word of exhortation. The grace of God in vain. 
 Grace may be received in vain, i. e. unto emptiness, in 
 an unfruitful way, by all who are mere hearers of the 
 
VI. 2, 3-] THE DA Y OF SAL VA TION. 227 
 
 Word, and also by those whose faith is checked, impeded, 
 or choked, rendering them barren. Grace aims at ful- 
 ness ; man can interfere and emptiness is the result. 
 
 Ver. 2. For he saith. The passage is found in Isaiah 
 49 : 8, and is cited according to the Septuagint translation. 
 At an acceptable time. The language is prophetic, ad- 
 dressed to the servant of the Lord, a Messianic prophecy 
 referring to and fulfilled in Christ. He is the representa- 
 tive Head of the true people of God, and His prayer is 
 heard " at an acceptable time," a time of favor. In a 
 day of salvation . . . succour. In prophetic speech the 
 future is here regarded as already past ; the fulfilment is 
 viewed by the prophet. The day of salvation is a day 
 of succor, of help. The fulness of time brings with it 
 the fulness of help through the Servant of the Lord. 
 Behold now . . . acceptable time. The Apostle ex- 
 claims, Behold ! because the prophecy has been fulfilled, 
 and the Lord has visited His people. How acceptable 
 the time is to the mind of St. Paul is seen in the use of 
 the stronger word, euprosdektos, which Tyndale trans- 
 lated " well-accepted," thus emphasizing the thought, 
 wuth the same end in view, as that contained in the word 
 "now." Behold, . . . the day of salvation. Twice, the 
 words " behold " and " now " are used. "Now" is the 
 emphatic word. It is God's day of deliverance ; it should 
 be your day of salvation. The acceptable should be ac- 
 cepted. " Now " is the word that tells of opportunity. 
 
 Ver. 3. Giving no . . . stumbling. The participle 
 connects with ver. i. St. Paul here begins a description 
 of the quality of the w^ork there referred to. Like a 
 rapid stream this description flows through eight verses 
 (Besser). The giving of offence first claims his atten- 
 tion. The word proskope, stumbling, is found only here 
 in the N. T. Other Greek words are used to express the 
 
228 II' CORINTHIANS. [vi. 4, 5. 
 
 same idea, i. e. anything which causes one to fall. How 
 careful the Apostle is not to give occasion to cause any 
 one to stumble is evident from the expression " in any- 
 thing." Ministration be not blamed. Criticism of the 
 work must be expected, but the poison of the barbed 
 arrow of hostile criticism is rendered innocuous by the 
 careful conduct of the ministry. Only by such conduct 
 can the exalted dignity of the work be maintained. 
 
 Ver. 4. Commending ourselves as ministers of God. 
 In the service of God we may commend ourselves, and 
 the commendation is to extend to " everything," to 
 every part of the service. A high ideal of the ministry 
 is implied in this remark. How it is realized will appear 
 from that which follows. In much patience, . . . dis= 
 tresses. Abounding in patience, or rather, endurance, 
 of which proofs are given in abundance. Various at- 
 tempts have been made to classify the different points of 
 commendation, e. g. Bengel, Dean Stanley. In afflic- 
 tions, under pressure, being pressed upon ; in necessities, 
 under constraint that leaves no choice of action; in dis- 
 tresses, so hemmed in that there is no room to move 
 (Plumptre). 
 
 Ver. 5. In stripes. (Comp. ch. 1 1 : 23-25 ; Acts 16:23) 
 In Imprisonments. But one of these, that at Philippi 
 (Acts 16 : 24), is recorded up to this time. Ch. ii : 23 
 leads to the conclusion that the Book of Acts does not 
 give us all the details of St. Paul's life. In tumults. 
 The word akatastasia in the N. T. means cither con- 
 fusion in the sense of disorder (e. g. i Cor. 14 : 33), or 
 tumult (as in Luke 21 19), never banishment, as Chrysos- 
 tom here interprets. Several instances are mentioned in 
 Acts; tumults at Antioch in Pisidia, Lystra, Thessalonica, 
 Corinth, and Ephesus. They were a source of great 
 anxiety to the Apostle, as the Gospel was made respon- 
 
VI. 6, 7] ACTIVE AND PASSIVE MINISTRATION. 229 
 
 sible for them. In labours. Extraordinary work, de- 
 manded by his ApostoHc ministry. Cumulative work, 
 because of the Gospel, and certainly not confined to his 
 toil as a tent-maker. In watchings. Which may have 
 been caused to some extent by his labors, and his other 
 burdens, and as the word " watching," sleeplessness, 
 seems to imply ; in the plural, it would mean, nights 
 spent without sleep. In fastings. Voluntary fastings 
 in order to make himself more fit and alert in the service 
 of the Lord (Acts 14 : 23). lie brings his body into 
 bondage (i Cor. 9 : 27). The word is never used of com- 
 pulsory fasting. 
 
 Ver. 6. In pureness. Like that of Nathanael, in whom 
 there was no guile (John i : 47) ; cleanness of heart ; 
 purity of soul (i Pet. i : 22) ; the fundamental virtue, 
 which includes chastity. In knowledge. Pureness of 
 heart is the condition upon which this knowledge is ob- 
 tained. It is the knowledge of the mystery of Christ 
 (Eph. 3 14); pastoral knowledge for the v.'ork of the 
 ministry. In long=suffering. To bear the infirmities of 
 the weak (Rom. 15 : i), not impatient to have at once 
 the full corn in the ear (Mark 4 : 28), but appreciating the 
 gradual growth of the Lord's work (Besser). In kind= 
 ness. A gentle, quiet, and lovely virtue, thoroughly 
 adapted to social life, and enticing the whole world to hold 
 communion with her (LuTllER). In the HoSy Ghost. 
 The fountain of these virtues, placed in the centre, sending 
 forth its streams in every direction, and marking their 
 unity. In love unfeigned. Genuine affection for all man- 
 kind. No hypocrisy in the exercise of that which the world 
 delights to counterfeit. A gift of the Holy Ghost, show- 
 ing that the extraordinary gifts are not meant in the pre- 
 ceding reference to the Holy Ghost. 
 
 Ver. 7. In the word of truth. The word whose charac- 
 
230 //. CORINTHIANS. [vi. 8. 
 
 teristic is truth, as opposed to all false teaching. Whether 
 regarded as subjective, i. e. as distinct from insincerity 
 of speech, or objective, i. c. as equivalent to the" Gospel " 
 the substance of the Apostle's word or teaching remains 
 the same. In the power of God. Namely, that particular 
 exercise of the power of God which qualifies His servants 
 to do their work unto the salvation of men. Hence, the 
 power is not limited to the works of performing miracles, 
 but bears on the conscience and heart of men. By the 
 armour of righteousness. The armor, i. e. the weapons, 
 not instruments or tools, as in Rom. 6 : 13, but weapons 
 which righteousness furnishes. We find the same thought 
 in ch. 10 : 4, and in an expanded form in Eph. 6 : 1 1- 
 17:1 Thess. 5 : 8. The righteousness, which provides 
 the weapons, is the righteousness of faith in Christ. On 
 the right hand . . . left. Aggressive and defensive are 
 both needed. The warrior wielded the weapon of attack 
 with the right hand ; thus the Christian uses " the sword 
 of the spirit," the left hand held the weapon of defence ; 
 in like manner, " the shield of faith " is used for defence. 
 Polemics are called for to the breaking down of strong- 
 holds ; Apologetics are needed to quench all the fiery 
 darts of the evil one. St. Paul teaches how to use 
 both. 
 
 Ver. 8. By glory and dishonour. Glory was not sought, 
 but was conferred by the Lord : dishonor from man 
 could not be avoided. Neither caused the Apostle to 
 swerve from his way. Both were tests of his faith, and 
 of his fidelity in the service. By . . . report. Con- 
 cerned only for the cause of his Lord ; content to let the 
 Lord bring about the triumph of the truth in His own 
 time and manner, although by no means indifferent, the 
 Apostle continues to walk in the footsteps of His Lord 
 (John 15 : 20). As deceivers and yet true. The Lord 
 
VI. 9, lo.] THE PARADOXES OF THE MINISTRY. 231 
 
 was called a deceiver (Matt. 27 : 6-"^. Jews and Gentiles 
 charged St, Paul with leading men astray ; all the while 
 he was conscious of being true to their real, abiding in- 
 terests : True to God and true to men. " All Christians 
 and pious people must have the title of ' deceiver,' and 
 if we fail to have this title, we do not belong to Christ "' 
 (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 9. As unknown, and yet vveIl=known. Probably 
 " unknown " refers to some contemptuous remark desig- 
 nating the Apostle as " obscure," a mere tent-maker, 
 neither wise, nor mighty, nor noble (i Cor. i : 26), in the 
 eyes of the world. A few knew his true quality at that 
 time ; the knowledge of him was even then growing 
 with marvellous rapidity ; and is growing more and more 
 as the years roll on. The word " well-known " sounds 
 almost like prophecy. Dying, . . . behold, we live. 
 Something about the Apostle seemed to indicate his 
 speedy death. It is altogether likely that his enemies 
 rejoiced at the prospect. The burden of his sufferings 
 must have made the frail tabernacle appear frailer still. 
 Behold, we live, for our Avork is not finished as yet. 
 As chastened, and not killed. Evidently the language 
 of Ps. 118 : 18 was in the Apostle's mind. He realized 
 that he was being chastened, i. e. trained, disciplined, edu- 
 cated by the Lord. As long as the works of the Lord are 
 to be declared. His servant shall not die, but live. 
 
 Ver. 10. As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing. The first 
 of these seeming paradoxes, ancj perhaps the greatest. 
 How can this be ? Sorrowful, nevertheless, alway re- 
 joicing. This is not the world's view of the case, but a 
 simple statement of the fact. It is not a psychological 
 problem, but a profound spiritual reality. Through the 
 clouds, yea, through the tears, the light of the Sun of 
 righteousness is always streaming, and its rays are the 
 
232 //. CORINTHIANS. [vi. lo. 
 
 bearers of joy. As poor, yet making many rich. Poor, 
 not only in spirit, which is required of all Christians, but 
 poor also in this world's goods, the Apostle enriches 
 many with the unsearchable riches of Christ. Abiding 
 wealth, eternal riches, whereat the world may smile, but 
 what Christian would part with his treasure? Having 
 nothing. . . . possessing all things. Without posses- 
 sions, as the world would reckon, he yet makes the broad, 
 sweeping assertion that he possesses, i. e. controls, has 
 under himself, has at command, all things. How is this to 
 be understood ? Baldwin says: " He possessed all things 
 because he was not in want of anything he needed, since 
 God always supplied him with all the necessaries of life." 
 But " all things " is hardly limited to the mere sustenta- 
 tion of the Apostle's life. Whatever is needed by any 
 Christian, be it ever so much, is his (i Cor. 3 : 22). God 
 will provide it. (Comp. Rom. 8 : 28, 32.) 
 
 (M.) The Recompense Expected from the Corinthians 
 ■ (ch. 6 : II — 7 : i). 
 
 VI. ii-iS — VII. I. Our mouth is open unto you, O Corinthians, our heart 
 is enlarged. Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own 
 affections. Now for a recomi>ense in like kind (I speak as unto wy chil- 
 dren), be ye also enlarged. Be not unequally yoked with unbelievers v for 
 what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity .'' or what communion hath 
 light with darkness ? And what concord hath Christ with Belial ? or what 
 portion hath a believer with an unbeliever ? And what agreement hath a 
 temple of God with idols .-' for we are a temple of the living God ; even as 
 God said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them ; and I will be their God, 
 and they shall be my people. Wherefore 
 
 Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, 
 saith the Lord, 
 
 And touch no unclean thing; 
 
 And I will receive you, 
 
 And will be to you a Father, 
 
 And ye shall be to me sons and daughters, 
 
VI. II-I3.] A LARGE HEART. 233 
 
 saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, beloved, let 
 us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holi- 
 ness in the fear of God. 
 
 Ver. II. Our mouth is open. Here the Apostle pauses 
 for a moment, as though he felt the force of the stream 
 of thought just poured out. The exclamation is re- 
 markable, but perfectly plain in the light of the context. 
 To the Corinthians St. Paul's mouth is open, i. e. he 
 speaks without reserve, with entire frankness. The form 
 is therefore intentionally picturesque. Our heart is en= 
 larged. A large-hearted man has spoken from the fulness 
 of his heart. A large heart and an open mouth go to- 
 gether. The reason for the great flow of thoughts con- 
 cerning the ministry is given in this verse. 
 
 Ver. 12. Not straitened in us. Luther takes the verb 
 as an imperative, but the Greek negative is against it. 
 Vers. II and 12 are parallel. " Straitened " is the oppo- 
 site of " open " and " enlarged." There is abundance of 
 room in the Apostle's heart for the Corinthians. They 
 are not narrowed down within him. Straitened in your 
 own affections. The word " affections," literally, 
 "bowels," a Hebraism, meaning the "seat of love," like 
 the word " heart." The Corinthians narrow themselves, 
 are narrowed within themselves so as not to have room 
 for the Apostle. Some think that this indicates a want 
 of personal affection for St. Paul. The real nature of the 
 want becomes apparent from the admonition which fol- 
 lows (vers. 14-18). 
 
 Ver. 13. A recompense in like kind. A return by way 
 of reciprocity is wished for, asked for, expectantly. The 
 expression is constructed absolutely, grammatically in- 
 dependent, in the accusative, but looks forward to the 
 rest of the verse, by which it is explained. Unto my 
 children. Laconic brevity marks this parenthetic phrase 
 
234 ^^' CORINTHIANS. [vi. 14, 15. 
 
 in the original. The Corinthians are his children in the 
 Gospel. What a father may expect of his children, he 
 expects of them. Be ye also enlarged. This is the re- 
 turn in like kind. St. Paul asks for filial love to receive 
 him and his admonitions in return for the large-hearted 
 reception which he has accorded them. 
 
 Ver. 14. Be not unequally yoked. Instead of there 
 being " a remarkable dislocation of the argument here," as 
 Dean Stanley observes, there is the closest connection. 
 " Unbelievers," i. e. all who do not believe on the Lord 
 Jesus, in this case the heathen, whose influence made itself 
 felt at Corinth by divers temptations. The rule, however, 
 is general. Christians are not to bear any other yoke than 
 that of Christ (Matt. 1 1 : 29), for the yoke is the symbol 
 of service. Heathen life, with its carnal aims and pleas- 
 ures, was calculated to draw the weak under the strange 
 and therefore unequal yoke. To this very day the rule 
 applies to all co-operation with unbelievers, contrary to 
 the faith. What fellowship . . , righteousness and 
 Iniquity ? Righteousness, which is of faith in Christ, is 
 the opposite of iniquity, which serves the Avorld, the flesh, 
 and the devil. How can there be fellowship between 
 the two? They are essentially incompatible. Commun= 
 ion . . . Light with darkness ? Each of these contrasts 
 is in itself an argument. Light banishes darkness. 
 Christianity is light ; heathenism is darkness. A con- 
 flict there will be, even between the new and the old 
 man in the regenerate, but no communion. 
 
 Ver. 15. And what concord hath Christ with Belial? 
 Concord, symphony, Gr. symphonesis, an exceptional 
 form, confined to the N. T. 'Belial, the devil, the rep- 
 resentative of darkness, of wickedness, of iniquity in the 
 concrete, the adversary of Christ and His Kingdom. 
 Wickedness is personified in him, as righteousness is 
 
VI. 1 6] THE TEMPLE OF THE LIVING GOD. 235 
 
 personified in Christ. The form BcHar instead of Belial, 
 found in the Fathers and elsewhere, is due to a Hellen- 
 istic interchange of 1 and r. The " sons of Belial " (Deut. 
 13 : 13) v/cre the worthless and the vile (Plumptre), 
 how can the " sons of Christ " be in concord with them ? 
 Portion . . . believer with an unbeliever ? Faith and 
 unbelief have no portion or share, Greek meris, in common. 
 Hence the strangeness of the yoking together of two 
 elements so heterogeneous in all that pertains to religion. 
 Not even a partial combination is admissible in this 
 respect (Calovius). 
 
 Ver, 16. Agreement . . . temple of God with idols? 
 This is the last of the five words used to indicate shades of 
 fellowship. Not only these words vouch for the com- 
 mand which the Apostle had over the Greek language 
 (Meyer), but the entire Epistle. (Comp. i Cor. ch. 
 8 : 10.) The verb on which the Greek for " agreement " 
 is based occurs in the Septuagint (Ex. 23 : i). " Put 
 not thine hand with the wicked." Agreement, a com- 
 pact, a treaty, a concordat. Idols were utterly at variance 
 with the temple of God. The two were antagonistic, 
 contrary. The presence of idols desecrated the temple. 
 Ahaz and others incurred the wrath of God by causing 
 such defilement. We . . . temple of the living God. 
 Christians are a temple of God in the mystic sense. 
 (Compare i Cor. 3 : 16; Eph. 2 : 21, 22; i Tim. 3:15; 
 Heb. 3 : 6; I Pet. 2 : 5.) What applies to the Church is 
 true of the individual members. "The living God," op- 
 posed to dead idols, imparts life to these temples of His 
 love. Even as God said (Ex. 29 : 45 ; Lev. 26 : 12). 
 A word of promise applicable to Israel after the spirit 
 at all times. I will dwell . . . walk in them. The 
 Divine presence in the voice, the pillar of cloud and fire, 
 in the tabernacle and temple, was regarded as typical of 
 
236 //. CORINTHIANS. [vi. 17. 
 
 better things to come. " Will dwell," signifies the con- 
 stant Divine presence, " will walk," the work of God 
 (Bengel). The citation is a composite one, combining 
 the two above texts, unless indeed the setting of the 
 tabernacle (Lev. 26: 11) be taken as implying the in- 
 dwelling of God. Their God, . . . my people. An ex- 
 pression of the gracious communion between God and 
 man which, on the one hand, is the pledge of every 
 blessing, and, on the other, excluded all fellowship with 
 the idolatry of unbelief. God institutes the covenant for 
 the benefit of the people. On God's part the covenant 
 is perfect. 
 
 Ver. 17. Come ye out. As the priest and the Levites 
 were to leave Babylon, with its idolatry, so the Chris- 
 tians of Corinth were to depart from the circle of 
 heathenism by which they were environed. Of course 
 this applied to all in similar communities. Be ye 
 separate. Separation is sometimes the only safeguard 
 against contamination. Israel was isolated by the Lord, 
 separated from the Gentiles. The Church and the world 
 must be " separate." The Lord Himself draws the line 
 of demarcation. Touch no unclean thing. Heathen- 
 ism is meant by the unclean thing. All the practices 
 which had grown out of the spirit of idolatry are in- 
 cluded, and the term " unclean " is to betaken in a much 
 wider sense than the worship of idols. Receive you. 
 When the Lord gathers His people in their flight, acts as 
 their rere-ward, He receives them (Isa. 52 : 12). This 
 is the view of Osiander and most expositors (20 : 34). 
 Separation from the heathen often demanded the giving 
 up of intimate social relations, even the breaking up of 
 home-ties, because heathenism penetrated into the life 
 of the family, e. g. at the table, where libations were made 
 to the gods : hence, the comfort contained in the words : 
 
VI. iS— vii. I.] THE FATHERHOOD OF GOD. 237 
 
 " I will receive you." The Church received those who 
 had left their heathen friends for Christ's sake, with open 
 arms, and above all the Lord was their refuge. 
 
 Ver. 1 8. To you a Father. The Fatherhood of God 
 depends on the conditions just laid down. In various 
 passages of the O. T. the children of God receive this 
 assurance, which shows them the heart of the Father, 
 who will provide for those w^ho have left all in obedience 
 to His command (Ex. 4 : 22 ; 2 Sam. 7 : 14). 5ons and 
 daughters. Instead of the word " children," the Apostle, 
 following Isa. 43 : 6, extends the comfort of the assurance 
 to women by special designation, because their obedience 
 to the command to come out from among the heathen 
 and be separate was rarely rendered without experienc- 
 ing exceptional affliction (Besser). Saith the Lord 
 Almighty. The thought of the text is presented by 
 the entire Scripture, and expresses the mind of Scripture 
 as a whole. This verse is a combination of various 
 passages (LlAS), as it were, a mosaic of citations 
 (Plumptre). The appellation "Lord Almighty" may 
 have been suggested to St. Paul by the Septuagint ren- 
 dering of 2 Sam. 7 : 8. Besides the magnitude of the 
 promise, which it indicates (Bengel), we have in this 
 appellation a reference to covenant love associated with 
 the unlimited power of God. 
 
 Ver. I. Having , . . promises. An affectionate ex- 
 hortation in the first person, based on the promises just 
 mentioned and applicable to all Christians. Because we 
 have these promises, " therefore " we should be moved by 
 them as the children of promise. Cleanse ourselves. 
 Purity of life is required of us. Sin is uncleanness. 
 Through Christ w^e are pardoned sinners ; in Christ we 
 are to be clean children. The word molusmos, defile- 
 ment, occurs only in this passage in the N. T, The 
 
238 //. CORINTHIANS. [vii. i. 
 
 Septuagint uses it (Jer. 23 : 14) of the sin of Sodom and 
 Gomorrah. The cognate verb is found in Rev. 14 : 4, de- 
 noting sexual impurity, and i Cor. 8 : 7, concerning defile- 
 ment of conscience. "All defilement" includes both, 
 and especially the sexual corruption which honeycombed 
 the literature and the life of the Roman Empire. Defile- 
 ment of flesh is mentioned first, because of its grossncss. 
 But even from the defilement of the Spirit, those " secret, 
 subtle vices by which the spirit or the man inwardly de- 
 files himself before God, although before the world it does 
 not so appear " (Luther), we are to cleanse ourselv^cs. 
 Perfecting holiness. That holiness which has been be- 
 gun in us is to be persevered in with a view to its com- 
 pletion. The end is to be kept in view constantly, Greek 
 epitelountes (Luther). " Continuing (the work ofj 
 sanctification. To begin is not enough : the end crowns 
 the work" (Bengel). Growth in grace, increase in holi- 
 ness. Perfection is the aim of the Christian. Perfect 
 consecration, holiness, can only be striven for in the fear 
 of God, which brings home to our hearts the fact that we 
 are not perfect, and urges us to more earnest cleansing of 
 flesh and spirit (Phil. 3:12). Not to advance in the nar- 
 row way means to go backward (St. Bernard). The 
 Apostle closes with the fear of God, as he began the train 
 of thought in ch. 5:11, with the same motive as a basis, 
 narrowing the conscience, but enlarging the heart. 
 
 (N.) St, PanVs Joy because of Godly Sorroiv (7 : 2-16). 
 
 2-16. Open your hearts to us : we wronged no man, we corrupted no 
 man, we took advantage of no man. I say it not to condemn yoit : for I 
 have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die together and Uve together. 
 Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying on your 
 behalf: I am filled with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our affliction. 
 
 For even when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no relief, 
 but we were aftiicted on every side; without 7uere fightings, within loere 
 
VII. 2.] CARE NOT TO GIVE OFFENCE. 
 
 239 
 
 fears. Nevertheless he that comforteth the lowly, ei'cn God, comforted us 
 by the coming of Titus: and not by his coming only, but also by the com- 
 fort wherewith he was comforted in you, wliile he told us your longing, 
 your mourning, your zeal for me ; so that I rejoiced yet more. For though 
 I made you sorry with my epistle, I do not regret it, though I did regret ; 
 for I see that that epistle made you sorry though but for a season. Now 
 I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye were made sorry unto 
 repentance : for ye were made sorry, after a godly sort, that ye might suffer 
 loss by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salva- 
 tion, a rcpeiitaucc which bringeth no regret : but the sorrow of the world 
 worketh death. For behold, the selfsame thing, that ye were made sorry 
 after a godly sort, what earnest care it wrought in you, yea, what clearing 
 of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what longing, 
 yea, what zeal, yea, what avenging! In everything ye approved yourselves 
 to be pure in the matter. So although I wrote unto you, I wrote not for 
 his cause that did the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered the wrong, 
 but that your earnest care for us might be made manifest unto you in the 
 sight of God. Therefore we have been comforted ; and in our comfort 
 we joyed the more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit hath 
 been refreshed by you all. For if in anything I have gloried to him on 
 your behalf, I was not put to shame ; but as we spake all things to you in 
 truth, so our glorying also, which I made before Titus, was found to be 
 truth. And his inward affection is more abundantly toward you, whilst he 
 remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye re- 
 ceived him. I rejoice that in everything I am of good courage concerning 
 you. 
 
 Ver. 2. Open your hearts. A free rendering of the 
 Greek verb '' CJiorcsate^' lit. "make room for us;" the 
 A. V. "receive us." The reference is to ch. 6 : 12, 13. 
 St. Paul speaks as one who loves them ; he could be 
 understood and appreciated only by the heart. We 
 wronged no man. By asperity, tyrannical conduct, a 
 domineering course, men may be wronged. The Apostle 
 asserts his innocence to those familiar with the circum- 
 stances. We corrupted no man. By false doctrine, by 
 evil example, men are corrupted. But the Apostle had 
 not abused his Christian liberty ; on the contrary, he had 
 been careful not to give offence. Advantage of no man. 
 The man who wrought with his own hands to make pro- 
 
240 //. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 3, 4. 
 
 vision for his temporal wants could not be charged with 
 avarice. Covetousncss leads men to overreach or defraud 
 others. Enemies might charge St. Paul with such things ; 
 he appeals to those who know better. 
 
 Ver. 3. Not to condemn. Not condemnation, but 
 reformation, improvement, is the purpose. Literally the 
 clause reads : " I speak not unto condemnation." The 
 Apostolic object is to raise up, not to cast down. Said 
 before. (See ch. 6 : 11 ff.) From this passage they could 
 for themselves see the attitude of his heart. With 
 genuine pastoral anxiety he would avoid all misunder- 
 standing. In our hearts, to die together and live. An- 
 other appeal to the heart. Note the scope of the 
 explanatory words. Union in death and life, Christian 
 union, is a matter of the heart. The heart knows of no 
 separation ; its love abides. Love shares death and life, 
 and when a loved one dies, the heart is drawn into that 
 death. St. Paul is ready to die with them, if need be, to 
 live with them and for them, if it can be. 
 
 Ver. 4. Great . . , boldness of speech. With the 
 frankness that arises from confidence, he addresses them. 
 (Comp. Eph. 3 : 10.) The context of the verse describes 
 the frame of mind which causes him to speak plainly, 
 fully, and without reserve. Joyous confidence opens his 
 mouth. Great . . . glorying on .your behalf. • Instead 
 of condemning, he boasts of them. The act of glorying 
 is meant. He glories on their behalf. Overlooking the 
 past, he thinks only of the present. Filled with comfort. 
 For this he had yearned when his heart was heavy on 
 their account. Comfort was his first theme at the begin- 
 ning of the Epistle. His steadfast hope has been realized 
 in its fulness. I overflow with joy in . . . affliction. 
 My cup runneth over is the saint's experience. And this 
 in the midst of affliction, of which there was much. " All 
 
VII. 5, 6.] NO RELIEF FOR THE FLESH. 241 
 
 our affliction." The superabundance of present joy rises 
 above the multitude of present afflictions. 
 
 Ver. 5. Into Macedonia. (Comp. ch. 2:13.) At Troas 
 the Apostle had found no relief for His spirit. Even in 
 Macedonia there was no change for the better. Flesh 
 ... no relief. The unrest in his spirit continued. He 
 attributes this to the "flesh," the natural man, "the 
 purely human essence composed of body and soul and 
 determined by this combination, in its moral impotence 
 and sensuous excitability, apart from Divine Spirit," 
 weak human nature. His flesh found no rest. The 
 spirit indeed was willing, but the flesh was Aveak (Matt. 
 26 : 41). But we were afflicted on every side. Not 
 merely surrounded with afflictions pressing in upon the 
 flesh in its weakness from without, but the added pressure 
 of affliction from within. Fightings . . . fears. In all 
 likelihood he was between two fires from without, kindled 
 and kept alive by Jews and Gentiles. But these were 
 not as grievous as the waves of fear which surged within 
 and threatened to engulf him in despair. The Lord hears 
 His saints and brings them out of the horrible pit. To 
 learn to understand the sighs of the saints was Luther's 
 wish. God solves the mystery and fills the emptied 
 earthen vessel with power from on high, the power of 
 Christ. 
 
 Ver. 6. Comforteth the lowly. In His dealings with 
 men God has ever been the Comforter of the lowly. 
 God delights in the lowly. He hath exalted them of low 
 degree (Luke i : 52). The Lord says that those who are 
 lowly in heart, like Himself, shall find rest unto their 
 souls (Matt. 1 1 : 29). Coming of Titus. The arrival 
 of Titus, with cheering news from Corinth, was the 
 very best way of bringing comfort to those whose 
 principal burden was their concern for the Corinthian 
 16 
 
242 //• CORINTHIANS. [vii. 7, 8. 
 
 Church. God alone knows what particular comfort is 
 needed. 
 
 Ver. 7. Not . . . coming only. The very sight of this 
 beloved disciple, his true son in the faith, was quicken- 
 ing. Aside from every other consideration the arrival of 
 a dear friend is a comfort. How closely men like St. 
 Paul, Timothy, and Titus were bound together in Christ. 
 Comfort wherewith ... in you, Titus had been com- 
 forted by his experience at Corinth ; his comfort is re- 
 newed as he brings the message to Paul and Timothy, 
 who are refreshed by the comforting report and the com- 
 forted messenger. Thus there is a communication of 
 comfort in a twofold way : from the fact that Titus was 
 comforted and from that which he related. See how the 
 lives of these brethren were intertwined. Longing, . . , 
 for me. All the fears of St. Paul were allayed. The 
 Corinthians were not estranged. On the contrary, their 
 longing was to see his face, their mourning that they had 
 grieved him by their conduct ; their zeal to atone for the 
 past by obeying his instructions ; of which zeal their 
 course had furnished proof. They had repented and were 
 now in earnest : the admonition of the Apostle had fallen 
 on good ground. Rejoiced yet more. Joy was added to 
 joy. With the arrival of Titus his joy began, and it grew 
 while Titus related what he had seen at Corinth, and the 
 effect of St. Paul's letter. 
 
 Ver. 8. 5orry . . . not regret. Why the accumulation 
 of joy just mentioned? The fact of the sorrow stood 
 out in indelible relief ; it belonged to the past. The 
 Apostle does not now regret it in view of its fruits. 
 That sorrow was a salutary necessity. Did regret. In- 
 stead of causing perplexity the outspoken regret of the 
 Apostle gives us an insight into the character of the man. 
 He is frank and sincere. He did regret. Why should 
 
VII. 9] SORRROIV UNTO REPENTANCE. 243 
 
 an inspired Apostle regret having written as he did ? 
 His love for the Corinthians, which would fain have 
 spared them the sorrow, overcomes him in his hours of 
 depression and human weakness : he is lost for the moment 
 in their sorrow, and regrets the act. But he could not 
 undo it. The letter contained the truth of God, inspired 
 by the Holy Ghost. Epistle . . . sorry, . , . for a 
 season. The most natural explanation of the difficult)', 
 which has led to various punctuations of the text, is that 
 found in Luther's translation, which makes this last part 
 of the verse parenthetic, and joins the next verse to the 
 preceding words : if I did regret it. The regret is ac- 
 knowledged. According to this construction we would 
 read : If I did regret it (for I see that that Epistle made 
 you sorry, though but for a season) now I rejoice. We 
 notice the gratification of the Apostle that the sorrow 
 was only for a short time, as showing his love for his 
 spiritual children. He is thoroughly consistent in his 
 attitude toward them. 
 
 Ver. 9. Rejoice, not . . . sorry. The time of rejoicing 
 had come for him, but in his affectionate solicitude that 
 they may see how far he is removed from anything like 
 taking pleasure in their pain, he expressly guards against 
 it. Sorry unto repentance. Not sorrow by itself, but 
 sorrow unto repentance has given him joy. In vain do 
 men sorrow if not to repentance. Sorrow often finds an 
 outlet in penance, self-inflicted punishment, but the word 
 " repentance " differs widely from penance. " Repent- 
 ance," iiictanoia, one of the fundamental ideas of the 
 N. T., is expressive of a change of mind, a changed 
 relation to God, strongly practical in its bearing on the 
 life of the individual. Sorry . . . godly sort. Literally, 
 sorry according to God, by which the quality of the re- 
 pentance is pointed out. Such a sorrow, as God wills, 
 
244 ^^- CORINTHIANS. [vii. lo. 
 
 looks unto God and follows the will of God in the entire 
 bearing and conduct of life. All other sorrow is apart 
 from God and leads men farther away from Him. Loss 
 ... in nothing. Satan would have had them suffer loss 
 through the Apostle's letter of correction. Their mind 
 might have been turned away from God by his devices. 
 As it was, their sorrow of the right kind prevented the 
 loss of any spiritual possession. The clause is one of 
 purpose, connected with the preceding one. 
 
 Ver. lo. Godly sorrow worketh . . , unto. That this 
 sorrow is effective, that it is not of a kind to stop short, 
 but operates by bringing about repentance under the in- 
 fluence of the Gospel, is the first point taught in this 
 verse. That the final object for the sorrowing is salva- 
 tion, eternal salvation, is the second point. Thus there 
 is a steady advance until the goal of perfection is reached. 
 The precise significance of "worketh" and "salvation" 
 must be taken from the general tenor of the Pauline 
 teaching. Repentance ... no regret. The A.V. reads : 
 " repentance unto salvation not to be repented of." The 
 Revised Version inserts the words " a repentance " in 
 italics, and by so doing makes a comment on the text, as 
 though the clause " which bringeth no regret " qualified 
 the " word " repentance. The question is, whether 
 " repentance " or " salvation " is qualified by the above 
 clause. Meyer argues at length in favor of this qualifi- 
 cation of " salvation," but the majority of interpreters, 
 including Augustine and Luther, are of the opinion that 
 " repentance" is the word thus qualified, while some with 
 Erasmus and Pkimptre, are not altogether decided, 
 though leaning toward the connection of the clause with 
 " salvation." Plumptre says that the phrase may qualify 
 either " repentance " or " salvation," but that the latter 
 seems preferable. In view of all this we are justified in 
 
VII. II.] THE SORROW OF THE WORLD. 245 
 
 taking the more natural view, .since " salvation " is cer- 
 tainly not something to be regretted, that it is the " re- 
 pentance which bringeth no regret, for the very reason 
 that it is a " repentance unto salvation." Sorrow of 
 the world . , . death. Eternal death, as opposed to 
 eternal salvation. Between the sorrow of the world and 
 death there is no transition at all comparable to that 
 between " godly sorrow " and "salvation." There isno 
 victanoia, no "change of mind," nothing, indeed, but a 
 steep descent from " sorrow " to " death," ungodly 
 sorrow being also active and working its proper conclu- 
 sion, i. e. the extinction forever of all hope, of all life. 
 The word "world" is here used to designate all those 
 who are living apart from God, the ungodly, whose sor- 
 row is not " according to God." Death marks the end 
 of the operation of this sorrow, not the particular mode 
 of leaving this life, such as suicide from despair, but 
 eternal death, as can be seen by comparison with the end 
 of godly sorrow, which is salvation. 
 
 Ver. II. Behold, . . .selfsame thing. An emphatic 
 exclamation, which prepares the way for the statement 
 as to what is meant and calls attention to the delightful 
 effect produced by it. Sorry . . . godly sort. A repeti- 
 tion which evidently partakes of the emphasis of the pre- 
 ceding words, in view of the details which now follow. 
 St. Paul analyzes well, because he has a fruitful theme : 
 the abundance of spiritual effect wrought by godly 
 sorrow. Earnest care. Earnest care, activity, diligence 
 (Luther), whereas they had been negligent and indiffer- 
 ent in the matter of discipline. Clearing. Each of these 
 points is from now on introduced by the Greek word 
 'M //(■?," emphatic in its bearing and equivalent to "Yea, 
 rather." The "clearing," i. e. defence, was first made to 
 Titus and by him communicated to St. Paul. Indig- 
 
246 //. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 12. 
 
 nation. They were vexed at themselves on account of 
 their conduct and at the offence given in the Church. 
 Fear. Like that of the Church at Jerusalem after the 
 judgment visited on Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:11), 
 connected with the question of the Apostle : " What will 
 ye? Shall I come unto ye with a rod? " (i Cor. 4:21), 
 Longing. Coupled with their fear was the yearning to 
 behold the Apostle and enjoy his presence. Zeal. Zeal 
 for the purification of the Church by the proper method, 
 having the good of the offender as its object. Avenging. 
 In the punishment of the offender (ch. 2 : 6). Approved 
 . . . pure. All the points just mentioned in detail evi- 
 dently lead the Apostle to the conclusion reached in this 
 clause, which has been needlessly burdened with com- 
 ment as though there were some serious difficulty in it. 
 The verse is complete in itself and explains itself. St. 
 Paul is not speaking in a tone of clemency (Bengel), in a 
 conciliatory way, as one who wishes to be as kind as pos- 
 sible, nor yet of acquittal from positive participation in 
 the offence (Meyer), nor of the sin of impurity generally 
 (Plumptre), nor of forbidden marriages (HuNNlus), but 
 of the purity of the Church restored to its obedience in 
 the Lord, and purged of " the matter" which had defiled 
 it. This seems to be the view of Baldwin ; it is clearly 
 that of Besser and agrees with the sequence of thought. 
 Ver. 12. Although I wrote. St. Paul might have re- 
 frained from writing, but what would have been the 
 result? His own conscience and the Church at Corinth 
 would have suffered loss. Silence is not always golden. 
 Not for his cause . . . v^^rong. Concern for individuals 
 was not the motive which inspired the letter. The 
 wrong-doer could only be reached through the action of 
 the Church. To heap abuse on, or wound the feelings of, 
 the sinner would not have entered St. Paul's mind. Nor 
 
VII. 12.] WHO SUFFERED THE WRONG? 247 
 
 . . . suffered the wrong. Who suffered the wrong ? The 
 same verb is used, first actively, then in the passive. 
 Some one inflicted an injury and another suffered the in- 
 jury. Who was the injured party? Was it St. Paul? A 
 number of interpreters have taken this view, Avhich, to say 
 the least, is strained and awkward as a way of referring to 
 himself ; besides the Corinthians were more directly in- 
 jured than St. Paul ; yet, it would hardly do to apply the 
 word to them, because it is used in the singular number. 
 Another forced interpretation is that of Theophylact, 
 who takes the adulteress to have been the person injured. 
 The most reasonable view regards the father of the in- 
 cestuous person as the one who suffered the wrong. 
 Theodoret assumes that he was already dead when the 
 incestuous marriage took place: all proof of this is wanting, 
 however, and the difficulty in regard to the obtaining of 
 a divorce, necessary to another marriage, vanishes, when 
 we bear in mind that, under the Roman law, wives had 
 the power of divorcing themselves. No more need be 
 said on this unpleasant subject : St. Paul himself would 
 rather have been silent altogether; but he was forced to 
 speak, however, reluctantly. Care for us. The reading 
 of the received text changes the order so as to make the 
 rendering: "Our earnest care for you." The weight of 
 authority is in favor of the former version, which is sup- 
 ported by the context (ver. 1 1), " what earnest care it 
 wrought in you ; " and which is also followed in Luther's 
 translation. The motive of St. Paul in writing looks to 
 the Church at Corinth for a result, shown in " earnest 
 care " or diligence. Manifest . . . God. The earnest 
 interest which is the mainspring of the diligence was to 
 make an impression on the Corinthians themselves. Mani- 
 festation lies in the nature of diligence, but the impor- 
 tant feature was to have the Corinthians realize that they 
 
248 //. CORINTHIANS. [vii. 13, 14. 
 
 were again in unity with the true servants of Christ. 
 These were again recognized as having their authority 
 from God, and this could not be made manifest to the 
 conscience of the Corinthians, except " in the sight of 
 God," by whom the eyes of their understanding were en- 
 lightened. They were to see themselves, as they were, 
 in the light or the fruit of their repentance, 
 
 Ver. 13. Therefore . . . comforted. For this reason, 
 because my object has been attained. Conscious dili- 
 gence on your part, the fact that you realize what has 
 been committed to us, has brought comfort to our hearts. 
 And in our comfort. Better: " Added to our comfort," 
 something which came •* upon our comfort " as an addi- 
 tion to it. We joyed the more . . . joy of Titus. What 
 an insight this gives us into the great heart of the 
 Apostle ! His was the genuine Advent spirit. No won- 
 der that he could rejoice in the midst of tribulations. 
 The man whose joy can be so much increased by the 
 sight of another's happiness must live very close to the 
 heart of God. To delight in the joy of others, to make 
 others happy, is St. Paul's blessed function as a minister 
 of the Gospel. His spirit . . . refreshed. The spirit of 
 Titus stood in need of refreshing. A delightful expe- 
 rience awaited him at Corinth : he was greeted there by 
 a united Church, eager to serve the Lord and to honor 
 His servants. All the members contributed their share 
 toward the refreshment of Titus. Opportunities to re- 
 fresh the spirit of others belong to the sphere of highest 
 Christian privilege. 
 
 Ver. 14. Gloried ... on your behalf. St. Paul admits 
 the fact that he had boasted of them. In all likelihood 
 the boast was an expression of confidence that they 
 would receive the letter of admonition in the right spirit, 
 a confidence based on his intercourse with them. Their 
 
VII. 15-] ALL THINGS IN TRUTH. 249 
 
 conduct during his stay among them doubtless furnished 
 him with grounds on which he could build his hope, and 
 of these things he had boasted. Not ... to shame. 
 The boast is not to be regarded as a polite statement 
 (Meyer) to please the Corinthians ; a thought which is 
 refuted by the suggestion that it would have been a 
 shame to them, if he had been put to shame by a differ- 
 ent course on their part. Anything less than compliance 
 with his letter would have been a disgrace to them. All 
 things ... in truth. Another reminder, and compre- 
 hensive withal ; not by any means limited to what St. 
 Paul had said to them about Ti^us (Chrysostom). The 
 clause is a brief sermon against the whole opposition to 
 the Gospel and its true ministers, in one word against 
 the " lie," active then as now, the characteristic of the 
 world in its league with the kingdom of darkness. No 
 exception is made to the implied duty of speaking " in 
 truth." St. Paul neither loveth nor maketh a lie. "All 
 things " is the sphere occupied by " the truth." Our 
 glorying . . . found to be truth. The glorying was 
 verified, proved to be truth. Tried, tested, like gold in 
 the crucible, St. Paul's boast concerning the Corinthians 
 endured the ordeal successfully. He had spoken the 
 truth ; their conduct bore him out, corroborated his 
 statements to Titus. 
 
 Ver. 15. Affection . . , more abundantly. Titus loves 
 the Corinthians more and more. The law of growth ap- 
 plies to Christian affection. Love is to grow toward the 
 brethren unto greater abundance. Past faults are not to 
 impede its progress, when true repentance has put forth 
 its fruitage. Remembereth . . , obedience. Obedience 
 is to be remembered by the brethren : sin is to be for- 
 gotten. Titus remembers their obedience with loving 
 joy, all the more because it was general obedience on 
 
250 II- CORINTHIANS. [vii. 16. 
 
 the part of all. Obedience toward Titus ; nay more, 
 obedience toward God, because they were convinced of 
 the Divine truth of the message. With fear . . . re= 
 ceived. That is, as the ambassador of God. No fear of 
 Titus as a man, no trembling before him out of personal 
 dread. The affection of Titus toward them would have 
 been diminished rather than increased by any such ex- 
 hibition of fear. A higher fear had taken hold of them : 
 the fear of God, of His judgment, moved them to receive 
 Titus as the bearer of the Divine message. 
 
 Ver. 16. I rejoice . . . of good courage concerning you. 
 The first part of the Epistle finds a fitting conclusion in 
 this expression of joy. There is nothing abrupt about it, 
 so that the word " therefore " which occurs in the A. V. 
 is not needed to point out the connection of the verse 
 with all that precedes. A kind of independence marks 
 the verse, indicating that it is a summary declaration of 
 the Apostle made in view of all that has transpired and 
 all that he has written, and, at the same time, expressive 
 of his confidence for the future. Looking backward and 
 forward, he fortifies the way for the same expression of 
 confidence met with in the second part of the Epistle. 
 The joy of the Apostle here arises from his " good cour- 
 age " concerning the Corinthians. The demands of the 
 future rise up before him, the needs of the Church, the 
 duty of the Church. He looks upon the Church at 
 Corinth. Now that the great trial of their faith has 
 reached its joyful consummation, he is of good courage 
 concerning them " in all things." 
 
II. The Collection for the Poor Saints at Jeru- 
 salem (ch. 8, 9). 
 
 (A.) St. Paul's Pastoral Wisdom in this Matter (ch. 8). 
 
 1-24. Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God 
 which hath been given in the churches of Macedonia; how that in much 
 proof of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty 
 abounded unto the riches of their Uberality. For according to their power, 
 1 bear witness, yea and beyond their power, they gave of their own accord, 
 beseeching us with much intreaty in regard of this grace and the fellowship 
 in the ministering to the saints : and this, not as we had hoped, but first 
 they gave their own selves to the Lord, and to us by the will of God. In- 
 somuch that we exhorted Titus, that as he had made a beginning before, 
 so he would also complete in you this grace also. lUit as ye abound in 
 everything, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and /// all earnestness, 
 and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also. I speak not 
 by way of commandment, but as proving through the earnestness of others 
 the sincerity also of your love. For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that 
 ye through his poverty might become rich. And herein I give w^' judg- 
 ment : for this is expedient for you, who were the first to make a beginning 
 a year ago, not only to do, but also to will. But now complete the doing 
 also ; that as there 2uas the readiness to will, so there may be the completion 
 also out of your ability. For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable ac- 
 cording as a man hath, not according as he hath not. For / say not this, 
 that others may be eased, and ye distressed : but by equality ; your abun- 
 dance beinj^ a supply at this present time for their want, that their abundance 
 also may become a supply for your want; that there may be equality : as 
 it is written. He that ^^^-^^r^^much had nothing over ; and he that^'(////<7V(/ 
 little had no lack. 
 
 But thanks be to God, which putteth the same earnest care for you into 
 the heart of Titus. For indeed he accepted our exhortation ; but being 
 himself very earnest, he went forth unto you of his own accord. And we 
 have sent together with him the brother whose praise in the gospel is spread 
 through all the churches; and not only so, but who was also appointed by 
 
252 //■ CORINTHIANS. [viii. i, 2. 
 
 the churches to travel with us in the matter of i\\is grace, which is minis- 
 tered by us to the glory of the Lord, and to shew our readiness : avoiding 
 this, that any man should blame us in the matter ^y" this bounty which is 
 ministered by us : for we take thought for things honourable, not only in 
 the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men. And we have sent with 
 them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many 
 things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence 
 which he hath in you. Whether any inquire about Titus, he is my partner 
 and viy fellow-worker to youward ; or our brethren, they are the messengers 
 of the churches, thty are the glory of Christ. Shew ye therefore unto them 
 in the face of the churches the proof of your love, and of our glorying on 
 your behalf. 
 
 Ver, I. rioreover, . . . make known. A new topic 
 is introduced by these words. At the close of the first 
 Epistle St. Paul had given directions concerning the col- 
 lection for the poor saints at Jerusalem. The subject 
 still engrossed his attention, and he now proceeds to 
 make known to the Corinthians what others had done, 
 and in what spirit they had proved their interest in the 
 welfare of their needy brethren. The grace of God . . . 
 in the churches of Macedonia. A gift is announced, 
 but not a gift for the relief of the poor at Jerusalem, 
 nay, a greater gift, that of the grace of God to the 
 churches of Macedonia. In this way the Apostle intro- 
 duces the subject of the collection. His object in so 
 doing was to remove any false notions concerning merit 
 in the benefaction. Grace is the gift of God, and with- 
 out it there is no such thing as Christian giving. This 
 truth is made prominent, lest Christians be tempted to 
 glorify themselves in their gifts to others. 
 
 Ver. 2. Proof of affliction. While the afifliction is not 
 specified, we are justified in referring it to persecution, 
 to which the Christians were always exposed in heathen 
 communities ; an instance of which is given in Acts, ch. 16. 
 But the trial of their faith had been a test, which verified 
 the quality of their profession. Abundance . . . joy. 
 
VIII. 3, 4] POVERTY ABOUNDS UNTO LIBERALITY. 253 
 
 Connected with the "proof of affliction." In the midst 
 of affliction, or, perhaps, in spite of it, there was much 
 joy. DeHverance from affliction brought joy to them, 
 after they had stood the test (LUTIIER). Deep poverty 
 abounded unto. On the other hand, poverty marked by 
 depth, which has gone down to the depth, abounded. 
 In what way? Out of the depth of poverty riches came 
 forth. Macedonia had been impoverished by a succes- 
 sion of wars. Other causes doubtless contributed to 
 subject the Christians to exceptional poverty. Notwith- 
 standing this, or even because of this, they were fruitful 
 in giving. Their very poverty became abundant " unto 
 the riches of their liberality." Paradoxical as it may 
 sound, their poverty made them rich, more inclined to 
 give what they could. The primary meaning of the 
 Greek word translated "liberality," as used in ch. i : 12, 
 is singleness of heart, absence of all selfish motives, 
 which, when applied to the spirit of giving, furnishes the 
 secondary meaning, i. e. " liberality." 
 
 Ver. 3. According to their power. Which is in itself 
 a rarity, since simplicity, singleness of heart, in the esti- 
 mate or valuation of one's ability is so rare (Besser). 
 One may easily think himself unable to give as much as 
 could be given without personal deprivation. Beyond 
 their power. They went farther ; they made a personal 
 sacrifice ; they gave according to the testimony of 
 St. Paul, who knew their circumstances, " beyond tbeir 
 power." Own accord. Without any urging or pressure 
 on the part of the Apostle. Appeals are often necessary, 
 persuasion must be employed, to induce men to give to 
 the needy. Knowledge of the distress is all that was 
 needed by the Macedonian Christians ; the grace of God 
 did the rest. 
 
 Vcr. 4. Beseeching . . . intreaty. Another phase of 
 
254 ^^' CORINTHIANS. [viii. 5. 
 
 their single-hearted Hberality is disclosed by their earnest 
 intreaty to be permitted to give as they wished to give. 
 The use of the two terms " beseeching," and "much in- 
 treaty," or exhortation, renders the clause emphatic and 
 proves how very anxious they were to avail themselves 
 of the privilege of "brotherly love." This grace. Kind- 
 ness toward the donors, not a favor from them, but to 
 them. This is a reflection of the divine grace. St. Paul 
 may have dissuaded these poor people from giving be- 
 yond their power. Such love for the brethren could 
 only come from a greater love, from Divine grace itself. 
 Fellowship in the ministering. The " grace," the " fel- 
 lowship," are both connected with the service or " minis- 
 tering " to the saints. Grace indicates their motive and 
 fellowship the participation in the service; hence, the 
 favor of taking part in the ministering. The communion 
 of saints demands a communication of love, an idiomatic 
 communication necessitated by the communion. It is 
 idiomatic because it is peculiar to Christians. 
 
 Ver. 5. Not as . . . hoped. He had not hoped for so 
 much ; they had exceeded his expectations in this whole 
 matter of giving. A blessed and rare disappointment. 
 But first . . . own selves. What led the Apostle to 
 this conclusion ? Evidently the self-sacrificing spirit 
 manifested by them. First self had to be given, every- 
 thing else followed. Men may give much, and j^et not 
 give " their own selves." Money is not the measure of 
 the gift, but the spirit which shows that nothing will be 
 kept back if the Lord hath need of it. Self means, v.o\ 
 only all that a man hath, but all that he is. To the Lord. 
 The highest gift, that of one's own self, is due to tlic 
 Most High. Grace had taught the Macedonians this 
 lesson. They had become true disciples, ready to for- 
 sake all and follow the Lord (Acts 4 : 32). And to us. 
 
vrii. 6, 7.] THOROUGH WORK'. 255 
 
 First to the Lord Himself, and then to His minister. 
 " Because the surrender is not 3. priits in time, but in de- 
 gree : to the Lord before all, and to us " (Meyer). Ac- 
 cording to God's own arrangement, which led the Chris- 
 tians of Macedonia to appreciate the relation of the 
 ministry to God and to themselves. They knew that it 
 was the will of God that they should obey His servant 
 unselfishly. 
 
 Ver. 6. Exhorted Titus. The grace of God in its work- 
 ing among the Macedonians had the effect of urging the 
 Apostle to exhort Titus. The A. V. renders "desired" 
 instead of " exhorted," which is stronger and expresses 
 the force of the original more vividly. A series of im- 
 pulses is given by the grace of God : first, the Macedo- 
 nians are impelled ; then St. Paul is impelled by the Mace- 
 donians and Titus by St. Paul. A beginning before. 
 Toward the collection for the poor at Jerusalem accord- 
 ing to the Apostle's directions (i Cor. 16 : 1-3), Titus 
 had made a beginning during his visitation at Corinth. 
 The verb, which is an exceptional compound verb in the 
 Greek, but clear in its significance "to make a beginning 
 before." Complete . . . this grace. What has been be- 
 gun by Titus is to be completed, including this grace. 
 " He shall complete among you — in addition to whatever 
 else he has already begun and has still to complete — also 
 this benefit " (Meyer). Grace as in ver. 4, kindness, " this 
 grace," this particular illustration or application of kind- 
 ness, a work of love, charis. Christian charity. 
 
 Ver. 7. Abound in everything. Similar to i Cor. i -.5, 
 where " enrich " is used as a synonymous active term, 
 abundance thus far characterized every relation of their 
 life. The Apostle passes over to a direct exhortation to 
 the Corinthians, introduced by the word " but," somewhat 
 like " however." The duty of praise is plainly exempli- 
 
256 //. CORINTHIANS. [viii. 8. 
 
 fied by this tribute. In faith . . . earnestness. Faith 
 leads the list, as the fruitful daughter of grace, and 
 mother of all the Christian graces ; abundant faith will 
 find abundant utterance ; the Divine Word will find its 
 response in the human word ; in like manner the abun- 
 dance of Christian knowledge is not to be inactive, but 
 applied science, in all diligence or earnestness, knowledge 
 as manifested in practical activity. Love to us. A 
 favorite thought with St. Paul, and yet only a transition 
 to love for others. Much as he values their love to him- 
 self, he mentions it here to prepare the way for an ex- 
 tension of their love to the poor saints at Jerusalem, 
 In this grace also. They knew St. Paul, but the poor 
 saints at Jerusalem were strangers and remote. St. Paul 
 is not pleading for himself, but for others. Ye abound 
 in everything, ye abound in your love to me, let this 
 same abundance make itself felt among your needy 
 brethren, whom you have never seen. 
 
 Ver. 8. Not . . commandment. Not as he speaks 
 (i Cor. 14 : 37). (Compare also i Cor 7 : 6.) If a com- 
 mandment had heen received by the Apostle in regard 
 to this matter, he would have used the language of com- 
 mand ; the object to be attained was, however, not to be 
 brought about by an assertion of authority. Proving. 
 A test is to be made. The medium for the test is the 
 earnest diligence of others, not members of the Church 
 at Corinth, but of the Macedonian Churches. Sincerity. 
 Whether your love is sincere, i. e. genuine, legitimate, as 
 coming from the right source. The quality of their love 
 is to be tested. Love is not always unfeigned, nor is all 
 giving the fruit of sincere love. The Greek word for 
 " sincere " primarily means " of genuine descent, legiti- 
 mate." St. Paul applies the adjective to Titus and Tim- 
 othy. (See Tit. 1:4;! Tim. i : 2, and also Phil. 4 : 3.) 
 
VIII. 9, 10.] IFJ7V CHRIST BECAME POOR. 257 
 
 Ver 9. Know the grace of . . . Christ. Grace is in- 
 separable from the Lord Jesus Christ. Its meaning in 
 the N. T. is bound up with the Lord. Much stress is 
 laid upon the knowledge of it. The Corinthians had this 
 knowledge. It is to furnish them with the motive, as it 
 furnishes the Apostle with a reason for not speaking by 
 way of commandment. Though . . . rich. Possessing 
 wealth without limit, rich in all the treasures of the 
 Godhead, absolutely rich beyond all things visible and 
 invisible, beyond the conception of any creature. This 
 was a part of their knowledge, and they knew it but in 
 part. A knowledge, not agnostic, indeed, but transcend- 
 ent. Your sakes . . . poor. Still greater knowledge, 
 of more interest to them and to all sinful men. They 
 knew this also, the poverty of our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 They knew that the Son of God, Divinely rich, had be- 
 come the Son of man, humanly poor, yea, very poor 
 " for their sakes." Hence the application, first to them- 
 selves. That ye . . . rich. The Lord became poor for 
 your sakes, ye are to become rich through His poverty. 
 In both these lies a personal motive. The Lord's pov- 
 erty, and their riches, are to move them to make another 
 application of the truth contained in this knowledge. 
 Their riches in Christ far surpassed all earthly wealth. 
 Christ's poor needed a part of their earthly store. The 
 application is to press itself home to their hearts by its 
 own force. 
 
 Ver. 10. riy judgment. It is simply as a matter of 
 opinion, not of command, that the Apostle proceeds to 
 give suggestions concerning the collection. Certain 
 points commend themselves to his judgment. Expedient 
 for you. Because this course of advice or suggestion is 
 " expedient," i. e. profitable, one that will bring about 
 the best results. An explanatory clause, assigning the 
 17 
 
258 //• CORINTHIANS. [viir. 10. 
 
 reason for the course pursued. Who were the first to 
 make a beginning a year ago. Once more a compari- 
 son is made : Corinth had actually preceded Macedonia 
 in the work of collection, A year ago, i. e. last year, 
 an approximate phrase, not fixing the precise limit, in- 
 tended for and understood by the recipients of the 
 Epistle. When did the year begin ? The first Epistle was 
 written about Easter. While other reckonings have had 
 their advocates, especially the Attic and the Macedonian, 
 in view of the fact that St. Paul was addressing Greek 
 Christians, as also the Jewish ecclesiastical year, beginning 
 with the month Nisan (March), the view which appears to 
 be the most natural and which has found considerable 
 acceptance, is that he followed the reckoning of the Jewish 
 civil year, beginning with the month Tisri (September). 
 Accordingly the Apostle, writing after the beginning of 
 the New Year, could speak of the work as having been 
 begun "last year." Not only to do, but also to will. 
 Much unnecessary discussion has been devoted to the 
 order of the verbs, not because of any difficulty in the 
 meaning of words, but on account of the placing of 
 " to will " after " to do." As early as the second century 
 an inversion of the natural order is assumed by the Syriac 
 Version. " To will " has also been regarded as referring 
 to the future, willingness to do still more, and "to do "to 
 what had already been accomplished. The motive is of 
 greater moment than the deed itself. All the "doing" 
 depends upon the " willing," i. e. the cheerfulness which 
 precedes and leads to the act. "To will," in the Greek, is 
 in the present tense, and denotes the attitude of readi- 
 ness which prevailed in the case, " not mere acting upon 
 the impulse of the moment, nor by imitation, nor from 
 constraint," but from deliberate conviction of the heart. 
 To this the Apostle proceeds to appeal. 
 
VIII. 11-13-] ^ WILLING MIND. 259 
 
 Ver. II. Complete the doing. Something seems to 
 have interfered with the prompt performance of the work. 
 The trouble was not a lack of willingness, as the con- 
 text amply proves. Readiness to will. The word " was " 
 which is not in the original is apt to make the impression 
 that the " readiness " belongs to the past, whereas there 
 is a parallel between this expression and the following. 
 " Readiness " signifies the " bent " or " inclination " of the 
 willingness. Completion . . . ability. In proportion to 
 the inclination of the mind which marks the willing, so 
 the completion is to be. Ability, lit. what one has, one's 
 means. A necessary qualification by which the propor- 
 tion is made clear. 
 
 Ver. 12. Readiness. Rut one absolute condition is 
 laid down : a willing mind. The actual giving is alto- 
 gether relative. The proposition is general and funda- 
 mental, since God looks to the motive. Quality, not 
 quantity, is the rule in the Kingdom- of God. Accept- 
 able. This readiness of mind is acceptable and the 
 measure is what a man hath, which is a conditioned 
 form, referring to the circumstances of the donor, " as he 
 may prosper " (i Cor. 16 : 2). A gift may be very small, 
 and yet highly acceptable. The widow's mite (Mark 
 12 :43). Not according. The Lord is not like an austere 
 man, reaping that He did not sow (Luke 19 : 21.) There 
 is no injustice in Him. A rich man's gift is not more 
 acceptable than a poor man's contribution. Poverty 
 may be, and very often is, discounted by the world ; but 
 the Church is to form its estimate according to the 
 Divine standard. 
 
 Ver. 13. Others . . eased, . . . ye distressed. Some 
 might object that the collection would redound to the 
 " ease " or refreshment of others, i. e. the Christians in 
 Jerusalem, while the Corinthians bore the burden and 
 
26o //. CORINTHIANS. [viii. 14. 
 
 were distressed by depriving themselves for the sake of 
 Jewish brethren. Narrow-minded people would say : 
 " Charity begins at home." It is the same old argument 
 with which the Church is obliged to deal in her mis- 
 sionary and charitable work at the present day. Human 
 nature being the same, in its weakness, then as now, we 
 can easily account for St. Paul's disclaimer. " No, our 
 Lord Christ does not desire that I make a beggar of my- 
 self with my property and make a lord of the beggar, 
 but I am to assist him in his needs, and help him as well 
 as I am able, that the poor man may eat with me, and I 
 with him " (Luther). Equality. Communism has in- 
 sisted upon the word " equality " as though an absolute 
 level of possession were meant, one to have as much as 
 another. The Anabaptists were of this opinion, and at 
 the present day the current of communism has assumed 
 vast proportions. St. Paul takes up the subject of 
 Christian equality of goods, and shows what is really 
 contained therein. (Comp. Acts 2 : 44.) 
 
 Ver. 14. Your abundance . . . supply . . . want. 
 Now is the time of Jerusalem's need ; this is Corinth's 
 opportunity to aid the needy. Not communism, but 
 communication. " But to do good and to communicate 
 forget not " (Heb. 13 : 16). Communism would put an 
 end to the equalizing work of love, which is a part of 
 genuine Christian life. At that time the Church of 
 Corinth had abundance, Jerusalem was in want. The 
 overflowing cup of Corinth is to pour of its abundance 
 into the empty vessel of Jerusalem, that her want be 
 supplied. Their abundance also . . . supply. Not 
 only ver. 13 (Meyer) but also, ver. 15 indicates a parallel 
 of earthly abundance and want. Reciprocity is the idea. 
 At this present time your abundance is to supply their 
 want ; you may look to them for a return of the grace 
 
VIII. 15-] COMMUNICA T/OiV NO T COMMUNISM. 261 
 
 in case your relative position is inverted by a change of 
 circumstances. A number of commentators, both an- 
 cient, mediccval, and modern, interpret the "abundance" 
 mentioned in this clause of spiritual blessings to accrue 
 to the Gentile Christians from their Jewish brethren. 
 Among them are Jerome, Chrysostom, Theodoret, An- 
 selm, Estius, Bengel, and Michaelis, Estius arrives at 
 the conclusion that " this expression of the Apostle 
 shows over against the heretics of our time (Protestants), 
 that Christians of less holiness can be assisted even unto 
 the future life by the merits of the saints." This Roman 
 Catholic perversion falls to the ground with the principal 
 assumption that " spiritual " gifts are meant, which is 
 not only unhistorical, but also out of harmony with the 
 context. That there may be equality. Not disparity 
 caused by want, on the part of some, while others enjoy 
 abundance. Equal relief from the burden of want, not 
 an equality as to the amount of property ; of special 
 force as it concerns giving by Christians to their needy 
 brethren (CHAMBERS). These dare not be allowed to 
 suffer by their more favored fellow-Christians, whose 
 equals they are in Christ ; hence the importance attached 
 by the Apostle to this " equality." 
 
 Ver. 15. As it is written. (Exod. 16: 18.) Quoted 
 with sententious brevity, a familiar passage well known 
 as a miracle, and containing a practical lesson, taught by 
 God Himself and emphasized by the Lord in the peti- 
 tion : " Give us this day our daily bread." Gathered 
 much . . . nothing over. Man gathered the manna in 
 the wilderness, but God did the measuring. Some were 
 doubtless bent on gathering as much as possible, but 
 when it came to the measuring in the tent, it was found 
 that he had just as much as his family needed : nothing 
 over. The miracle is a mighty protest against the spirit 
 
262 //• CORINTHIANS. [viii. i6, i;. 
 
 of greed, of hoarding merely for the purpose of accumu- 
 lation. Worms spoiled that which was hoarded for the 
 morrow in unbelief. Little ... no lack. Here we have 
 an illustration of equality from the hand of God. Each 
 was to have enough for his wants, and it was so, because 
 God willed it. A miracle wrought this equality. A 
 greater miracle is seen when human hearts are turned 
 away from their selfishness by the grace of God and give 
 of their abundance to those that have little in order that 
 they may have no lack. 
 
 Ver. 1 6. Same earnest care for you . . . Titus. Note 
 St. Paul's estimate of a minister's relation to the work 
 of taking up a collection. He is glad that another 
 brother is animated by the same spirit of earnest activity 
 in the promotion of this cause. Devout thankfulness 
 moves him, as he beholds the same activity on the part 
 of Titus. He recognizes the fact that God had put the 
 same earnestness of diligence into the heart of Titus 
 which had been put into his own heart. It is a gift of 
 God. " Putteth," literally " giveth " in the Greek. Such 
 earnest care comes from above, from the great Giver. 
 How clear this becomes when we observe that the earnest 
 care is " for you," i. e. for the Corinthians, for their own 
 benefit, the benefit of the givers, and not exclusively of 
 the beneficiaries, since the gift is even more blessed to the 
 givers than to the receivers (Acts 20 : 35). 
 
 Ver. 17. Accepted . . . exhortation. As stated in 
 ver. 6. He was authorized by St. Paul to attend to the 
 work. Without this he would not have taken the step 
 on his own responsibility. When the word was given he 
 accepted it with the modesty- of a disciple. Earnest, 
 . . . own accord, A climax is reached in his earnest- 
 ness and spontaneous action. He went because his heart 
 was in the work, and not merely in obedience to author- 
 
VIII. i8, 19-] THE BROTHER NOT NAMED. 263 
 
 ity. In this way his course presents itself in beautiful 
 completeness: filial regard for order, and fulness of that 
 zeal which acts of its own accord, i. c. spontaneously. 
 
 Ver. 18. The brother. Who was the brother sent along 
 with Titus? St. Paul has left it an open question and 
 much conjecture has taken place in consequence. Not a 
 brother according to the flesh, but a brother in Christ, 
 whose praise is spread through all the churches, i. e. most 
 probably the churches of Macedonia, referred to in ver. i. 
 If he had been known to the Corinthians as Titus was, 
 St. Paul would have mentioned his name. Barnabas, 
 Silas, Luke, Mark, and even Trophimus and Aristarchus, 
 have severally been suggested and upheld with various 
 arguments as being here meant, but without clear proof. 
 Even if the expression " in the Gospel " refers to the 
 preaching of the Gospel, the theory that it was a Mace- 
 donian presbyter is not excluded. But the phrase " in the 
 Gospel " doubtless means everything that concerns the 
 furtherance of the Gospel. Moreover, if the question of 
 fitness or adaptation, which Plumptre urges in favor of 
 St. Luke, is to be of special weight in deciding who is 
 meant, the argument would tell strongly in favor of a 
 Macedonian brother who had gained experience in the 
 gathering of the collection in those churches, all of whom 
 united in his "praise." 
 
 Ver. 19. Appointed by the churches. Not only was 
 this brother " praised " by the churches, but a special 
 appointment was conferred upon him. The word " ap- 
 pointed," Greek clicirotonctJicis, points to a popular elec- 
 tion by show of hands on the part of the congregations. 
 Of the other details we are not informed. To travel with 
 us. This statement of the purpose for which the brother 
 was elected is made in so general and comprehensive a 
 way as to imply his assistance in the promotion of the 
 
264 I J- CORINTHIANS. [viii. 20, 21. 
 
 collection, as they travelled from church to church in 
 Macedonia. We may well include in this the delivery 
 of the " grace " at Jerusalem (Bengel). Which is 
 ministered. In their service two things were to be fur- 
 thered : the glory of God and their readiness or willing- 
 ness. Not indeed to show our readiness, i. e. to prove 
 it, but rather to promote it. As the work went on and 
 increased, their readiness also gained in intensity. The 
 appointment of the brother had the happy effect of 
 promoting both objects. 
 
 Ver. 20. Avoiding . . . blame us. In perfect har- 
 mony with the prudence of the Apostle, who would not 
 have the ministry to be blamed. Of the two senses in 
 which the verb may be rendered, the translation in the 
 text, " avoiding," fits in much more appropriately with 
 the clause which follows than the other : " arranging," or 
 " making the arrangement." Precaution is necessary, that 
 we be not blamed. Bounty . . . ministered by us. 
 Men are only too ready to suspect those who handle the 
 funds of the Church. St. Paul manifests his knowledge 
 of human nature in the matter of this bounty, i. e. the 
 abundance of the gifts, no doubt amounting to a con- 
 siderable sum in the aggregate. Here was the world's 
 opportunity to cast suspicion on a man, who indeed real- 
 ized that he was only ministering in the matter, i. e. that 
 it meant labor and trouble to him, but whose position 
 made it all the more important to avoid blame, in pro- 
 portion as it singled him out as a representative of the 
 Gospel, in whose person the cause of Christ might be 
 most effectively injured. The Greek word rendered 
 " bounty " occurs only here in the N. T. 
 
 Ver. 21. Things honourable. " Providing for honest 
 things." A.V. A certain beauty and nobility of conduct, 
 which is generally recognized, is implied by the word 
 
cm. 22.J MOTIVES AND MOVEMENTS. 265 
 
 " honourable." Honesty in financial dealings is an im- 
 portant phase of " things honourable." Toward these 
 St. Paul directs his mind, takes thought for them, is sin- 
 cerely anxious to act honourably, as a Christian. His 
 plans for future work are carefully prepared, with a view 
 that no blot or even shadow of dishonor may cast a re- 
 proach on his movements. Not only in the sight of the 
 Lord. Which is his first and chief concern, and absolutely 
 essential to his own conscience. He first seeks the 
 Divine approval of his motives ; some might deem this 
 sufficient ; it w^as indeed intrinsically so for his relation 
 to God. Looking no farther, sincere in his purpose, St. 
 Paul might have given no further thought to the matter 
 and acted "honourably," in assuming sole charge of those 
 money matters, and acting entirely on his own respon- 
 sibility. But also ... of men. God sees him and 
 judges him aright ; but men also see him, and they may 
 judge differently of actions which are right and honest 
 in the sight of God. His motives are approved by God, 
 but his movements are watched by men. Even the 
 heathen appreciate "honesty" w^hatever their practice 
 may be. His movements will be criticised by men, ready 
 to find fault. Great care is necessary, in order that his 
 movements may be as unimpeachable in the sight of men 
 as his motives are pure in the sight of God. 
 
 Ver. 22. Our brother. Another nameless brother sent 
 with Titus and the brother designated in vers. 18, 19. 
 He is not named for the same reason which caused the 
 name of the other to be withheld. In fact all attempts 
 to arrive at a conclusion are purely conjectural. Epense- 
 tus, Apollos, Luke, Zenas, Sosthenes, Clement, Tychicus, 
 and Trophimus have been suggested as probable, but the 
 very array of names is in itself proof of our ignorance. 
 Whom . . . proved earnest. A strong personal com- 
 
266 //• CORINTHIANS. [viii. 23, 24 
 
 mendation of this brother, who does not seem to have 
 been quite as prominent as the other. The Apostle had 
 evidently had abundant opportunity to prove his earnest- 
 ness in various ways. Now much more . . . confidence. 
 Additional force is given to the recommendation by these 
 words. The brother's earnestness grew as he looked 
 toward Corinth, full of confidence that their efforts would 
 be crowned with success. His confidence in the Corin- 
 thians, we may well believe, arose from the accounts given 
 by St. Paul, Timothy, and Titus. 
 
 Ver. 23. About Titus, . . . partner. If any one 
 should ask any questions concerning Titus, the Apostle 
 gives the answer: His relation tome is that of a partner, 
 an associate, a partaker with me in the cause which we 
 have in common, as implied in the Greek word koinonos ; 
 his relation to you-ward is that of a fellow-worker, ready 
 to render you every assistance and to do his part of the 
 work. Both relations are based on fellowship. Our 
 brethren . . . messengers . . . glory of Christ. They 
 are our brethren in Christ ; that is their first and strongest 
 claim on you ; again, the churches have sent them as 
 their messengers, Greek apostoloi, to you. Phil. 2 : 25, a 
 similar use of the word " Apostle " occurs. By these 
 two predicates the Church of Corinth is to be guided in 
 receiving them. The last predicate represents these 
 brethren as " the glory of Christ." A distinguished 
 tribute : they were men who glorified Christ in their 
 lives. 
 
 Ver. 24. Shew ye therefore . . . the proof of your 
 love. Our version following Westcott and Hort has 
 retained the imperative " shew," which is a gloss, in- 
 stead of the correct participial reading, indorsed by 
 Tischendorf. In place of the direct exhortation of the 
 imperative we have an indirect one, which really takes 
 
Mil. 24.] A CHKISTIAX RECEPTION. 267 
 
 the conduct of the Corinthians toward these brethren 
 for granted. Their cordial reception is assumed as cer- 
 tain. The Corinthians arc not commanded to show the 
 proof of their love ; they are expected to do so because 
 they are Christians. " Therefore," i. e. in compliance 
 with the Apostle's recommendation of the brethren, 
 " accordingly," the proof of their love will be shown in 
 a reception and treatment corresponding to the recom- 
 mendation. Their conduct is witnessed by the churches, 
 in the face, i. e. in presence of the churches, ideally 
 present in the case (Mever). St. Paul's idea is that the 
 churches would judge concerning the treatment accorded 
 to the brethren. Their conduct would not only prove 
 their love to those brethren ; it would also prove that 
 St. Paul's boast, his favorable estimate of their character, 
 was not misapplied. 
 
 (B.) TJie Principle of CJiristian Liberty (ch. 9). 
 
 1-15. For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for 
 me to write to you : for I l<now your readiness, of which I glory on your 
 behalf to them of Macedonia, that Achaia hath been prepared for a year 
 past ; and your zeal hath stirred up very many of them. But I have sent 
 the brethren, that our glorying on your behalf may not be made void in this 
 respect ; that, even as I said, ye may be prepared : lest by any means, if 
 there come with me any of Macedonia, and find you unprepared, we (that 
 we say not, ye) should be put to shame in this confidence. I thought it 
 necessary therefore to intreat the brethren, that they would go before unto 
 you, and make up beforehand your aforepromised bounty, that the same 
 might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not of extortion. 
 
 But this/j(?j, He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he 
 that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Let each man do 
 according as he hath purposed in his heart; not grudgingly, or of necessity ; 
 for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound 
 unto you ; that ye, having always all sufficiency in everything, may abound 
 unto every good work ; as it is written. 
 
 He hath scattered abroad, he hath given to the poor; 
 
 His righteousness abideth for ever. 
 
268 //• CORINTHIANS. [ix. i, 2. 
 
 And he that suppUeth seed to the sower and bread for food, shall supply 
 and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteous- 
 ness ; ye being enriched in everything unto all liberality, which worketh 
 through us thanksgiving to God. For the ministration of this service not 
 only filleth up the measure of the wants of the saints, but aboundeth also 
 through many thanksgivings unto God ; seeing that through the proving of 
 yon by this ministration they glorify God for the obedience of your confes- 
 sion unto the Gospel of Christ, and for the liberality oi yoici- contribution 
 unto them and unto all; while they themselves also, with supplication on 
 your behalf, long after you by reason of the exceeding grace of God in you. 
 Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift. 
 
 Ver. I. Touching the ministering , . . superfluous 
 ... to write. The word " for" indicates the close con- 
 nection with the preceding chapter ; we are not, there- 
 fore, entering upon a new topic, as has been surmised, 
 contrary to the setting of the text. We observe that 
 " ministering," or " ministry," is used in the sense of the 
 diaconate, i. e. providing for the bodily needs of the 
 saints. To write to the Corinthians touching their duty 
 in this regard is superfluous : they knew their duty. Not 
 as to " what " was to be done, but as to " how " it should 
 be done, is his object. All Christians are called " saints," 
 without any distinction. 
 
 Ver. 2. Fori know your readiness. Much stress is laid 
 upon this point, which the Apostle has already commend- 
 ed (ch. 8:11,12). He again alludes to their forwardness 
 of mind, not as a mere compliment, but on account of its 
 fundamental necessity and importance. Note the posi- 
 tive declaration : " I know." Of which I glory. Man's 
 readiness reflects the Divine glory. Wherever it appears, 
 whether in Corinth or Macedonia, it fills the Apostle with 
 exultation because of the power of Christ, by which men's 
 minds are made " ready," inclined to every good work. 
 St. Paul glories in the triumphs of Christianity, and well 
 he might with the darkness of heathenism everywhere 
 staring him in the face. That Achaia . . . prepared for 
 
IX. 3, 4-] PROMPTNESS OF ACTION. 269 
 
 a year past. Achaia, instead of Corinth, leads us to infer 
 that the central cliurcli was not the only one thus pre- 
 pared. The wave probably extended to all Christians in 
 the province, e. g. those at Cenchreee. The effect of the 
 zeal shown by Achaia was what the Apostle desired ; 
 Macedonia was aroused by the zeal of the brethren in 
 Achaia, and many were stimulated by this example to 
 salutary emulation. 
 
 Ver. 3. Sent the brethren, . . . glorying . . . not be 
 made void. St. Paul has a particular point or feature in 
 mind, which has led him to send the brethren to Corinth. 
 We may term it one of the sides of the " glorying," i. e. 
 the ground or contents of the glorying. As to this point 
 the Apostle is anxious that no failure, no void or total 
 lack should occur. Prepared. " That no collections be 
 make when I come" (i Cor. 16 : 2), is the exhortation 
 alluded to. Promptness of action does not always follow 
 on readiness of mind. Much depends on the right 
 method to insure promptness ; the requisite qualifications 
 for the management of the details are not always present, 
 and this makes itself felt most keenly when obstacles 
 present themselves. Some such retarding influence had 
 already hampered the movement and interfered with its 
 completion. 
 
 Ver. 4. Lest . . . find you unprepared. A glance 
 forward to the time of the Apostle's own arrival at 
 Corinth. From the probability or contingency that he 
 might be accompanied by Macedonians, it has been in- 
 ferred that the unnamed brethren (ch. 8:18, 22) were 
 not of that province. But this does not follow of neces- 
 sity, as the Apostle speaks of what would be expected, 
 not only by himself, but the Macedonian brethren, on his 
 reaching Corinth. He has, therefore, made his arrange- 
 ments to insure promptness, because he wishes to find 
 
270 //. CORINTHIANS. [ix. 5. 
 
 them prepared. We (that we say not, yej. The blame 
 would belong to the Corinthians and the shame really be 
 theirs, but the Apostle would have felt ashamed of his 
 boasting, albeit the same arose from the confidence re- 
 posed in them. With great delicacy he puts his own 
 feelings first : surely they would not put him to shame on 
 account of his confidence in them. This " confidence," 
 Greek hypostasis, originally foundation, base, ground, 
 was based on the readiness of the Corinthians. 
 
 Ver. 5. Necessary to entreat. Necessary under the cir- 
 cumstances that everything might be ready when St. Paul 
 came. He entreats the brethren to assume the burdens 
 connected with this journey, which was asking a great 
 deal of them, and accounts for the way in which he pre- 
 sents the request to them. All concerned, the Churches 
 of Macedonia, as well as St. Paul, were familiar with the 
 details of the arrangement, of which the journey of Titus 
 and the two brethren to Corinth, constituted the first 
 step. Beforehand . . . bounty. We arc impressed with 
 the repetition of the word " before," occurring as it does 
 three times in this verse. St. Paul had promised their 
 bounty, or better, blessing, afore, and so he prepares be- 
 forehand that everything may be ready when he comes, 
 which is to be the limit for the completion of the work. 
 Ready . . . not of extortion. The bounty is to be ready, 
 and thus give evidence that the givers look upon it as a 
 " blessing," a view which the Apostle impresses upon 
 them by the use of this word. The word rendered " ex- 
 tortion " has also been translated as signifying " covetous- 
 ness " (Meyer), i, e. greed on the part of the givers. 
 But if we consider the use which the Apostle makes of 
 the corresponding verb (ch. 7:2; 12 : 17, 18), we are led 
 to conclude that it applies to St. Paul's part in the col- 
 lection, and that " extortion " is the better word. If the 
 
IX. 6, 7-] SOWING AND REAPTNG. 271 
 
 collection were not completed on the arrival of St. Paul, 
 and he were obliged to use his influence to that end, it 
 would seem to have been secured under personal pressure 
 on his part, and thus '' extorted " by him. 
 
 Ver. 6. Soweth sparingly. The figure of the harvest 
 comes up in a fruitful way to illustrate the condition of 
 scantiness or plenty. (Comp. ver. 5.) Other features are 
 presented by it, e. g. Gal. 6 : 7, 8. The word " this " refers 
 to the preceding verse, and continues the thought by 
 stating the Divine rule of recompense. " But in regard 
 to this," i. e. ver. 5, is better than " but this I say," for the 
 latter phrase points forward to the rest of the verse. He 
 that soweth " sparingly," parsimoniously, thinking to 
 gain by what he deems economy, withholding more than 
 is meet, will find that it tends to poverty (Prov. 1 1 : 24). 
 " Shall reap sparingly," not that he will receive no har- 
 vest, but that he will receive less, i. e. in the kingdom of 
 God, in which there are degrees of blessedness. Soweth 
 bountifully. Sowing bountifully is literally sewing with 
 blessings, having blessings in mind as the real quality of 
 the act : liberality of the right sort as distinct from all 
 extravagance. Such bounties are blessings (ver. 5), first 
 to the giver, and then to the receiver. They return to the 
 bosom of the giver, good measure, pressed down, shaken 
 together, running over (Matt. 6 : 38). All depends upon 
 the blessing, which cometh from above, and provides the 
 needed conditions of fruitfulness, the state of heart which 
 sows unto blessings so that merit is excluded. (See Cal- 
 ovius on this verse.) 
 
 Ver. 7. Let each man do. Having the requisite knowl- 
 edge, the performance becomes a matter of individual 
 responsibility. Let each man look to his heart : out of it 
 are the issues of the doing; out of it the purpose is to 
 proceed to the act. The verb " purpose " does not occur 
 
272 //. CORINTHIANS. [ix. 8. 
 
 elsewhere in the New Testament, and has no reference to 
 an arbitrary decision, but rather implies careful, consci- 
 entious determination, making up of one's mind. All 
 constraint is excluded by it. Not grudgingly. Anything 
 that interferes with a voluntary purpose of the heart is 
 opposed to right giving. He who gives grudgingly, i. e. 
 sadly (lit.) out of sadness, because he looks upon the gift 
 as a personal deprivation or loss, and he who gives of 
 necessity, because of some outward pressure, have not 
 rightly purposed in their heart. Reluctance of every kind 
 is excluded. God loveth a cheerful giver. A general 
 principle applicable to giving in the widest range of 
 blessedness. Kind words are often as truly gifts as the 
 bounty of alms to the needy. St. Paul here quotes from 
 the Septuagint (Prov. 22 : 8), substituting the word 
 "love " for " bless." There can be no doubt about the 
 truth and the sweep of the facts. The emphasis is on 
 the word " cheerful." The great Giver who so loved the 
 world that He gave His only begotten Son, loves every 
 cheerful giver who gives for Christ's sake. 
 
 Ver. 8. God is able ... all grace abound. The love 
 of God is not limited, as human love is, in regard to abil- 
 ity. Love which can give is made prominent at the be- 
 ginning of the verse. The God of love is the God of the 
 harvest, able to make all grace, i. e. every good gift, both 
 spiritual and temporal, abound unto you, pour out their 
 fulness upon you. All sufficiency. Nothing to be want- 
 ing. God is able to provide always, without cessation, 
 all sufficiency, that frame of mind which raises man above 
 controlling wants, and makes him content (Phil. 4 : 11). 
 Contentment is the word used ,to express the idea in 
 I Tim. 6 : 6. The word is used by Aristotle to designate 
 that self-sufficiency which is a quality of happiness as 
 consisting in the activity of the intellect, and thus dis- 
 
IX. 9, 10.] UNSELFISH GIVING. 273 
 
 tinguished from wealth and pleasure, and the other acci- 
 dents of life which men constantly mistook for it. St. 
 Paul was probably familiar with this, and the constant 
 use made of the word by the Stoics of his time, but he 
 raises the word into the region of grace, and teaches that 
 it is a gift of God, a reliance on the ability of God. Unto 
 every good work. Sufficient in everything, in every gift 
 needed for the requirements of life, they are especially 
 well equipped for every call which Christian duty makes 
 on them. We are struck with the accumulation of the 
 words " all " and " every " in this verse. No room is left 
 for exceptions : there are none. 
 
 Ver. 9. As it is written. An exact quotation from 
 the Septuagint (Psalm 112 : 9), where the subject is "the 
 man who fears the Lord." Scattered abroad. Bounti- 
 fully, " to scatter, a word indicative of generosity, with a 
 full hand, without anxious thought, as to where the in- 
 dividual grains may fall " (Ben(;ei.). To the poor. Not 
 to the rich, according to the selfish practice of the world, 
 which has its reward. The w-orthy poor, God's own 
 charges laid upon the hearts of His people, like the 
 poor saints at Jerusalem, bless the giver. " Whosoever 
 does this, and lets the fruits of faith burst forth, his 
 righteousness will be everlasting. For it is a righteous- 
 ness which is well pleasing to God, since no one acts in 
 this manner, unless he is full of faith " (LUTPIER). 
 
 Ver. 10. And he that supplieth seed. From the in- 
 exhaustible granary of God's ability the supply for the 
 sower is furnished. God not only leads the chorus, but 
 provides for it, furnishes the material. The Greek word, 
 epichoregein, to defray the expenses of the chorus in a 
 Greek, then to provide generously for any cause. Here 
 it is the bounty of the Lord, the highest provision for 
 man's wants, that he may have bread for food, flultiply 
 18 
 
2 74 II. CORINTHIANS. [ix. 11,12. 
 
 . . . for sowing. On the spiritual field. From year to 
 year God supplies and multiplies seed for food ; in like 
 manner He will abide abundantly for the needs of His 
 kingdom, even in those gifts which are not strictly 
 spirtual, i. e, in all that is needed for the temporal sup- 
 port of His children. And increase the fruits of your 
 righteousness. The fruits are the outgrowth of right- 
 eousness (ver. 9), Their increase shall be like the mul- 
 tiplication of the seed for the field. In the spiritual and 
 natural world, the great Giver pursues the same course. 
 The analogy is also expressed in Isa. 55 : 10, 11. (Comp. 
 Hos. 10 : 12.) 
 
 Ver. II, Enriched . . . unto all liberality. The con- 
 nection with ver. 10 is clear: they, i. e. the righteous, are 
 made rich through the abundance which God supplieth. 
 In everything, whatever the demand, they are made 
 equal to the occasion. While the outward manifestation 
 may appear in the form of temporal bounty, the real 
 source is found in the internal riches, as seen from the 
 aim, " unto all liberality," simplicity, in which they are 
 to be rich and become richer. Genuine liberality is to 
 characterize all their giving. Worketh thanksgiving. 
 This completes the circle. God gives the blessing and 
 the receivers give thanks unto God, St. Paul rejoices 
 that he js privileged to be a link in the chain which 
 worketh thanksgiving. He looks forward to the time 
 when the poor saints at Jerusalem shall sing : " O give 
 thanks unto the Lord, for He is good." All have their 
 share in the crowning glory of the work. 
 
 Ver. 12. flinistration . . . service. Those who min- 
 ister, in this case, are the givers- of the bounty, according 
 to the context (ver. 1 3). The word " Icitourgia, service," is 
 not to be confounded with " diakonia," ministration, Avhich 
 directly precedes it, showing that the word " service " 
 
IX. 24-] LOVE PUT TO THE TEST. 275 
 
 has a specific meaning. Its use in this verse associates 
 it with the ritual and sacrificial services of the Tabernacle 
 and Temple, according to its general application in the 
 Greek version of the Old Testament. Here we are 
 taught that such giving is a true service of God. Among 
 the Greeks Icitourgia meant certain public services 
 rendered to the State and regulated by it. In the Church 
 its use was at first confiuctl to the celebration of the 
 Lord's Supper. Not only filleth up. A twofold service 
 meets us here : first, the filling up of the wants of the 
 saints. The urgent necessity for help seems to find a 
 peculiar expression in the word wants. Their poverty 
 was great ; their wants manifold. Much must be added 
 before the measure of their wants was filled up. This is 
 one part of the service. It leads on to another, flany 
 thanksgivings. Of this the Apostle is certain. He 
 knows the situation and the feelings of the needy saints 
 at Jerusalem. With help coming from distant brethren 
 their hearts would be cheered, and then, as the measure 
 of their wants was filled up, there would be an over- 
 flow of thanksgivings. Again the bounty of Corinth 
 would abound ; its fruitfulness would be seen in the 
 abundance of thanksgivings. Through the proving. 
 The Corinthians were put to the test as regards their 
 love for all the members of the household of faith, by 
 this very ministration to the saints at Jerusalem. The 
 proof would not be void of effect on the latter, because 
 it touched them in particular, as the beneficiaries of the 
 bounty. They glorify God. In the original the con- 
 struction is participial, glorifying God, with no direct 
 grammatical construction with what precedes, but evi- 
 dently having reference to the Church at Jerusalem. 
 These give glory to God for the blessing wrought through 
 His servants. Obedience of . . , confession. The Gos 
 
276 //• CORINTHIANS. [ix. 14, 15. 
 
 pel is the power which brings forth deeds of love as the 
 fruits of faith. Christ was confessed by the churches ; 
 Corinth had confessed Him ; but confession is not 
 always obedient to the Gospel. Obedience is the test of 
 one's confession. An obedient confession is the only one 
 which is approved by Christ. And for the liberality of 
 . . . Contribution unto . . . all. Jerusalem was the 
 mother church of Christendom, and since contribution 
 literally means fellowship, the Apostle regards the spirit 
 of unselfish liberality manifested toward the Church at 
 Jerusalem, as in its nature giving proof of the same dis- 
 position toward all the churches. 
 
 Ver. 14. Supplication on your behalf. Intercessory 
 prayer is one of the characteristics of Christian fellow- 
 ship. We are not surprised to find it prominent in the 
 response of the saints at Jerusalem for those at Corinth. 
 Prayer for those who have aided us in our distress flows 
 spontaneously from Christian hearts. This is the more 
 natural explanation of the genitive absolute used in this 
 verse. Thus God is glorified by supplication for fellow- 
 Christians. Long after you. Their longing finds ex- 
 pression in prayer for their distant brethren, whom they 
 love all the more because the grace of God has manifested 
 itself in them exceedingly, probably beyond their ex- 
 pectations. 
 
 Ver. 15. Thanks . . . unspeakable gift. With this 
 doxology the Apostle closes his remarks on the collection 
 as in a summary. He is not speaking for himself alone ; 
 his heart indeed is full of thanks, as he views the increase 
 of grace in the churches which he had planted. All who 
 read his words are to join in the expression of thanks. 
 But to what gift does he allude? The gift is indescrib- 
 able, beyond the power of human thought and language 
 to grasp and present in its Divine fulness. "A gift 
 
IX. 15-] THE UNSPEAKABLE GIFT. 277 
 
 which wc cannot depict to people in words, so that they 
 will appreciate it as dearly, as it is precious in itself " 
 (Luther). Does St. Paul mean the gift of the Holy 
 Spirit or the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ and His re- 
 deeming work. Both would be right, for both share in 
 the gift. The mind of the Apostle seems to have gone 
 back to the beginning of the section (ch. 8 : i). He began 
 with the grace of God, and this gift he magnifies at the 
 close. But how can we separate grace from the Son and 
 the Spirit } 
 
III. St. Paul's Vindication of his Apostolic Au- 
 thority (Ch. 10-13). 
 
 (A.) The Apostle s Glorying is in the Lord (ch. 10). 
 
 1-18. Now I Paul myself intreat you by the meekness and gentleness of 
 Christ, I who in your presence am lowly among you, but being absent am 
 of good courage toward you : yea, I beseech you, that I may not when 
 present shew courage with the confidence wherewith I count to be bold 
 against some, which count of us as if we walked according to the flesh. 
 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh (for 
 the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to 
 the casting down of strong holds) ; casting down imaginations, and every 
 high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing 
 every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; and being in readi- 
 ness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience shall be fulfilled. Ye 
 look at the things that are before your face. If any man trusteth in him- 
 self that he is Christ's, let him consider this again with himself, that, even 
 as he is Christ's, so also are we. For though I should glory somewhat 
 abundantly concerning our authority (which the Lord gave for building you 
 up, and not for casting you down), I shall not be put to shame : that I may 
 not seem as if I would terrify you by my letters. For, His letters, they say, 
 are weighty and strong; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of 
 no account. Let such a one reckon on this, that, what we are in word by let- 
 ters when we are absent, such aie we also indeed when we are present. For 
 we are not bold to number or compare ourselves with certain of them that 
 commend themselves: but they themselves, measuring themselves by them- 
 selves, and comparing themselves with themselves, are without understand- 
 ing. But we will not glory beyond our measure, but according to the mea- 
 sure of the province which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach 
 even unto you. For we stretch not ourselves overmuch, as though we 
 reached not unto you : for we came even as far as unto you in the gos- 
 pel of Christ ; not glorying beyond ojir measure, that is, in other men's 
 labours; but having hope that, ?s your faith groweth, we shall be magnified 
 in you according to our province wwio further abundance, so as to preach the 
 gospel even unto the parts beyond you, and not to glory in another's prov- 
 
 278 
 
X. I, 2.] A PERSONAL VINDICATION. 279 
 
 ince in regard of things ready to our hand. But he that glorieth, let him 
 glory in the Lord. For not he that commendeth himself is approved, 
 but whom the Lord commendeth. 
 
 Vcr. I. I Paul . . . intreat. A new section is begun 
 with an emphatic personal statement on the part of the 
 Apostle. It is I myself, Paul, who am concerned. The 
 language is strong, but not proud and defiant. The verb 
 intreat shows that the vindication is not conceived in this 
 spirit. His adversaries have a different spirit, but St. 
 Paul opposes them by the mind of Christ. He has 
 learned of Christ to be meek, i. e. mild, toward all men, 
 and to treat them with gentleness, i. e. reasonably, con- 
 siderately, with fairness. Not by arrogance, but by meek- 
 ness and gentleness the world is to be won for Christ. 
 In your presence am lowly. A charge brought by his 
 opponents, who interpreted his genuine humility, his 
 diffidence (i Cor. 2 : 3), as base cowardice and grovelling 
 servility. How difficult it is for the world to appreciate 
 lowliness in heart, learned in the School of Christ (Matt. 
 1 1 : 29). St. Paul had learned to take upon himself the 
 yoke of the Lord. Absent ... of good courage. 
 Cowardly inconsistency is laid to his charge by those who 
 were offended at the necessary severity of his letter con- 
 cerning the discipline of the offender. Stumbling at the 
 moral courage of the Apostle, which renders him bold in 
 the Lord's cause, they wilfully misrepresent him as a base 
 coward. Their aim was to undermine his influence. 
 
 Ver. 2. Yea, I beseech you, . . . courage. Again the 
 Apostle appeals to the Corinthians, with increasing earn- 
 estness, that he may not be obliged to use bold- 
 ness over against the whole Church of Corinth, which 
 would have to be done, if the Church did not deal ener- 
 getically with this factional antagonism against himself 
 and the cause of Christian purity. Energy was still 
 
28o //. CORINTHIANS. [x. 3, 4. 
 
 needed, for the danger was not yet past. Certain indi- 
 viduals stood in need of bold treatment. They were 
 carnal, and persisted in their course. He might prefer 
 not to use the language of correction, but he has confi- 
 dence, feels assured that he will be bold toward those 
 who need stringent treatment, even as he counts to, as is 
 his intention. Confidence has reference to this particular 
 necessity of being bold against some. Which count of 
 us. A reference to the charges implied in ver. i. Not 
 being spiritually minded themselves, they count of the 
 Apostle as though he were carnal. They are the dis- 
 turbers of the Church ; they would open the way for 
 carnal influence in the Church, and they are the men who 
 regard St. Paul as carnal. 
 
 Ver. 3. Walk in the flesh. Our personal condition is 
 that of all men who are sinful by nature. We have the 
 same flesh with its tendency to evil. We are exposed to 
 all the temptations to which sinful human nature is liable. 
 Baldwin thinks that bodily wants are meant, but this is 
 contrary to the application in the word " warfare." We 
 do not war . . . flesh. The Christian conflict, in the 
 environment of the flesh, is the illustration that clearly 
 shows us what is in the mind of the Apostle. We must 
 fight, but we do not war, i. e. we do not take the field, 
 we do not conduct the campaign, according to carnal 
 motives and methods. Vain glory, revenge, duplicity, 
 sinful lusts, have no place in determining our mode of 
 warfare. 
 
 Ver. 4. For the weapons. As the spirit of the cam- 
 paign, so the weapons of Christian warfare. The state- 
 ment is negative, " not of the -flesh ; " the weapons are 
 not specified, yet there can be no doubt as to the mean- 
 ing: not of the flesh, not carnal, means spiritual weapons 
 furnished by the Holy Spirit, who is the antithesis of the 
 
X. 5-] MIGHTY SPIRITUAL WEAPONS. 281 
 
 flesh. These are contrary the one to the other (Gal. 5 : 17). 
 The nature of the weapons is made plain in the descrip- 
 tion of the panopl}' of God (Gal. 6 : 1 1-17). Mighty be- 
 fore God. In God's sight, spiritual weapons are mighty ; 
 carnal weapons are weak. The world reverses the view, 
 trusts in the carnal and despises the spiritual armament. 
 Carnal weapons are essentially weak, though they seem 
 to be strong for a while. Power, ability to accomplish 
 that which the Lord pleases is the quality of all spiritual 
 weapons, notably and primarily of the Word of God. 
 Strongholds. In which men intrench themselves against 
 the Gospel, whether erected in the hearts of individuals 
 or communities. A host of such bulwarks of carnal 
 security confronted the Apostle. Heathen idolatry, Jew- 
 ish self-righteousness, Greek pride of wisdom, Roman civil 
 pride, heresy, were some of the fortifications, erected by 
 the god of this world to oppose the course of the Word. 
 Strong they seemed to be ; herculean efforts were put 
 forth to save them ; the fate of the majority is a matter 
 of history. One little word overthrows them. 
 
 Ver. 5. Casting down imaginations. Better thoughts, 
 i. e. plans, calculations, evolving devices contrary to the 
 knowledge of God. Rationalism, with its broad theories, 
 ever prolific of new positions, is cast down. Reason, mag- 
 nifying self at the expense of the Gospel, is cast down. 
 And every high thing. All heights of obstruction to the 
 truth, is spoken in general, covering the whole ground, 
 while thoughts presents the species (Benc;el). The knowl- 
 edge of God is the object against which the high things are 
 lifted up. The sphere, therefore, is the same. Height 
 on height of speculation, and of negation, is invented, 
 elaborated, and exalted by the carnal mind. As one goes 
 down, another takes its place. The knowledge of God, 
 i. e. of the love of God in Christ, is safe over against all 
 
2S : //• CORINTHIANS. [x. 6, 7. 
 
 such exaltation. Every thought into captivity. A re- 
 sult which is reached in individuals, St. Paul being a 
 striking example. Every product of the thinking faculty, 
 all these hostile theories and speculations, are brought 
 into captivity, i. e. captured for Christ and made obedient 
 to Christ. The pride of the sinner is laid low, and all 
 his lofty thinking is cast down before the feet of Christ. 
 The captivity of such thinking is the enfranchisement of 
 thought ; its obedience to Christ is the glorious liberty of 
 the children of God. 
 
 Ver, 6. Readiness to avenge all disobedience. Words 
 spoken from the standpoint of necessary discipline. Not 
 all are obedient to the Gospel. All disobedience includes 
 every form of opposition to Christ's kingdom. Let no 
 one imagine that the Apostle will permit the children 
 of disobedience to disturb the peace of the Church. 
 He holds himself in readiness to avenge, i. e. to exercise 
 his authority as a minister against those who are per- 
 sistently, obstinately disobedient. (See i Cor. 5 : 5.) 
 Punishment beyond this is left to God. Your obedience 
 . . . fulfilled. Until then St. Paul is willing to wait in 
 the hope that his serious warning will be heeded. He 
 will not act with undue haste, but be patient, for the 
 sake of the weak (Bengel). He confidently expects the 
 fulfilment of the obedience of those who have shown this 
 spirit. He is no coward, as some have insinuated, but 
 his courage is regulated by a prudent concern for the 
 highest welfare of all the souls that would be affected by 
 his conduct. 
 
 Ver, 7. Ye look at . . . face. Surface criticism, super- 
 ficial judgment is reproved by Jthis language, whether it 
 be taken in the indicative as here, or in the form of a 
 question. Merely to look at what is before the face, i. e. 
 before one's eyes, is to judge, as most men do, without 
 
X. 8.1 RELATIOX TO CUR/ST ALL-IMPORTANT. 283 
 
 going to the heart of the subject. SuperficiaHty in the 
 Church is a source of weakness, promoted by Satan, and 
 seldom rightly gauged as an element of danger. The 
 context (ver. 10) is altogether against the imperative. 
 Trusteth . . . that he is Christ's. There is no super- 
 ficiality in this: a man's relation to Christ is chief; it is 
 of primary importance. Here we must begin : from this 
 point of view alone can the matter be settled. Hence it 
 is a profound treatment of the situation. It also follows 
 that one must be confident of his personal relation to 
 Christ. To trust in himself, i. e. within himself, that one 
 belongs to Christ, is a matter of faith. Let him consider. 
 Let him take another step ; let him do some thinking 
 concerning others. He does not stand alone ; he is not 
 the only one who is Christ's. The first position as regards 
 himself is a matter of trust, of confidence ; the second, 
 respecting others, is a matter of opinion, an estimate at 
 which he arrives, a conclusion. He is Christ's, . . . we. 
 It is a striking fact that St. Paul does not impeach the 
 relation to Christ of those to whom he refers, for the 
 theory of ironical speech is sccv-cely entitled to considera- 
 tion. From the use of the word *' if " in this verse we 
 might infer that the weaker brethren, who have been un- 
 duly influenced, are referred to, which would seem to be 
 a reasonable conjecture. At all events, the Apostle 
 claims for himself the same consideration which he ex- 
 tends to them, namely, that he also is a Christian. 
 
 Ver. 8. For though I should glory , . . authority. 
 Great stress is laid by the Apostle on his authority-. 
 Executive power is the force of the word as here used, 
 and in this St. Paul has practically gloried (ver. 6). Now, 
 if he should go somewhat farther in this direction he 
 has no fears as to the result. He could glory still more 
 abundantly, because he knows his ofifice, and in the con- 
 
284 II- CORINTHIANS. [x. 9, 10 
 
 sciousness of the purity of his motives he is always 
 ready to magnify his office not his person. The au- 
 thority in which the Apostle gloried is a gift of the 
 Lord, bestowed upon the ministry for the edification of 
 the Church (Rom. 1:5; Matt. 28 : 18, 20). To build up 
 the Church is a favorite thought of St. Paul. The bul- 
 warks of the evil one are to be cast down, the same word 
 being employed here which occurs in ver. 4, but the 
 Church is to grow up, an holy temple of the Lord. Even 
 the Power of the Keys is not intended for casting the 
 Church down, but for removing the obstacles to growth, 
 and for farthering its onward and upward progress. Not 
 be put to shame. Not at any time, nor anywhere ; 
 Corinth not excepted. As long as he gloried in the Lord, 
 in humble reliance on His promise, he felt confident that 
 he 'would be qualified for all the duties of his office. 
 Nothing but unfaithfulness on his own part could put 
 him to shame. 
 
 Ver. 9. Not seem . . . terrify you by my letters. Ex- 
 planatory words to connect this verse with the preceding 
 are not needed, since the sequence is perfectly natural. The 
 Apostle will not be put to shame, that he may not seem 
 to be a mere terrifier by his letters. Reality is aimed at 
 and not semblance. This boast is no brutum fulmen 
 (Lias). Not a threat in words, no bugbear to create ter- 
 ror, and have the matter end there without deeds. 
 
 Ver. 10. Letters . . . weighty and strong. " They 
 say " is to be taken as impersonal, equivalent to " it is 
 said." There are able commentators, however, who main- 
 tain that St Paul has a particular individual in mind. No 
 fault can be found with the first part of this hostile criti- 
 cism. The letters are weighty, not empty, nor trivial, 
 but well freighted with thoughts which command respect- 
 ful attention. Moreover, they are strong, there is force, 
 
X. 11.] SUPERFICIAL CRITICISM CORRECTED. 285 
 
 power in them, an energy which may be ascribed to the 
 style of the composition. Brief, but highly appreciative 
 commendation, if it were not for the real animus as seen in 
 what follows. Bodily presence is weak. Much has been 
 written on this point, but for obvious reasons not to the 
 point. Bodily weakness, noticeable to the eye, seems to 
 be the sense of the passage. (Comp. Gal. 4:13, 14.) The 
 theory of diminutive stature probably was based on Acts 
 14: 12. Speech of no account. One is almost reminded 
 of similar criticism in our own day. St. Paul's speech 
 was regarded as of no account, literally, counted as 
 naught, i. e. despised. Whatever the reason may have 
 been, whether caused by a weak or unmusical voice, or 
 due to want of rhetorical ability, he had failed to make 
 an impression as an orator, at least when judged by the 
 standard of a Greek audience. Over against this critical 
 fault-finding we have the fact of the Apostle's powerful 
 influence and success. 
 
 Ver. 1 1. Let such a one reckon this. Any one of this 
 stamp who does not properly discriminate, whose criti- 
 cism is superficial and unfair. It does not follow that 
 such a one refers to a particular individual, as has been 
 maintained, in support of the same view concerning the 
 words " if any man trusteth " (ver. 7). Let such a one ex- 
 tend the range of his reckoning or computation. The 
 quality of the letters had been acknowledged by such as 
 made the distinction between the power of the letters and 
 the deficiency of his speech. His letters made a strong 
 impression, although he was not present to reinforce them 
 by any direct personal influence. Now, if his oral speech 
 was of no account, what was to be said about his " speech " 
 in his letters, for the same term is used to designate his 
 "word " by letters and his " speech " as orally delivered 
 (ver. 10). Doubtless there was power in the " word," 
 
286 //• CORINTHIANS. [x. 12. 
 
 whether written or spoken. This they were to reckon. 
 In deed . . . present. Deed is not the antithesis of word 
 in such a way as to imply a contradiction. The Apostle 
 is not playing a double part : word and deed correspond 
 in his activity. His opponents admitted the force of his 
 letters, but argued against the energy of his action when 
 present. 
 
 Ver. 12. Not bold to number or compare. Keen irony 
 is noticeable in the opening words : we are not bold, i. e. 
 we dare not, we may not venture, or we have not the 
 courage. St. Paul has been charged with a lack of 
 courage ; he has denied it ; but here he admits the want 
 of courage ; he does not venture to number himself; i. e. 
 to enrol himself or place himself in the same category 
 with a certain class of persons whose standard of self- 
 measurement is exclusively selfish. Their lofty conceit 
 raised them so far above him that he did not venture to 
 insert his name in their list. Nor did he have the heart 
 to compare himself with them, as though there could be 
 anything like equality between them and himself. With 
 certain . . . commend themselves. Again we observe a 
 reference to a charge which had been brought against the 
 Apostle. In addition to cowardice his opponents ha\e 
 accused him of self-commendation. He now turns the 
 spear on them, and asserts that they are the real egotists. 
 Into this company he does not venture ; here his courage 
 fails him. fleasuring themselves by themselves. In 
 order to clear one's mind in view of the critical diflficulties 
 which present themselves because of different readings in 
 some of the manuscripts, it is best to observe the continuity 
 of the argument. The charge of self-commendation just 
 noticed is followed by a statement of the grounds, the 
 very fountain of it, which makes the mental process lead- 
 ing to it apparent. These self-commenders measure by 
 
X. 13-] ST. PAUVS PROVINCE. 287 
 
 a standard which inevitably leads to self-commendation. 
 Self is the standard by which they measure. Practical 
 egotism, vainglorious boasting, all the manifestations of 
 selfishness, are the result. Of all standards self is the worst. 
 And comparing. No comparison with others. Why 
 should they compare themselves with others ? Self is 
 their ideal ; they are too much absorbed in self ; they are 
 sufficient of and unto themselves. But is this wise, is it 
 a sensible course ? Let us follow the trend of St. Paul's 
 thoughts. Are without understanding. Undoubtedly, 
 even from the standpoint of good common sense, such a 
 course is the height of folly. With this remark on the 
 irrationality of such conduct, the Apostle ends his direct 
 statement concerning it, which is so thoroughly Pauline 
 as to render any discussion of the various other construc- 
 tions of the text unnecessary. 
 
 Ver. 13. Not glory beyond our measure. A contrast 
 rather than a comparison with what precedes. Conscious 
 that a limit has been set to him, the Apostle will not glory 
 beyond measure, literally " unto the measureless things," 
 those which are not determined by a genuine measure. 
 An allusion to the standard of self which imposes no 
 limitations. But . . . measure of the province. The 
 Greek word kanon, here rendered province, but in the 
 A. V. rule, literally a measuring-rod, and then a drawn 
 measuring-line. From the latter meaning as designating 
 a boundary, we have the space thus marked expressed by 
 the word province. The limits within this boundary-line 
 are the measure to which the Apostle refers. His glory- 
 ing is restricted to a locality, a region, which is the 
 measure beyond which he will not glory. Which God has 
 apportioned. In his work the Apostle followed the lead- 
 ing of Providence, and thus God Himself drew the line 
 which His servant accepted as the measure of his work. 
 
288 //. CORINTHIANS. [x. 14, 15. 
 
 He knew that God was mapping out his sphere and direct- 
 ing his steps, and he was wilhng to abide by the Divine 
 apportionment. The language is positive as to the sphere, 
 and not simply negative as indicating where he should 
 not labor. To reach . . . you. Corinth belonged to the 
 sphere which God had assigned to St. Paul. He had 
 founded this church, and his Epistles prove the deep in- 
 terest he took in its welfare. He takes special pleasure 
 in calling the attention of the Corinthians to the fact that 
 they too are his spiritual charges. The words " Even 
 unto you " have the emphasis of affectionate care. 
 
 Ver. 14. For we stretch not . . . overmuch. Liter- 
 ally, For not, as (those) not reaching unto you, do we over- 
 stretch ourselves, i. e. if we had come to you, if we had 
 no claim on you, then we would be overstepping the 
 bounds of modesty, stretching beyond the limits of pro- 
 priety in thus admonishing you. To interpret the word 
 overstretch, as referring to the transgression of a territorial 
 boundary line, as Meyer does at length, the latter part of 
 the passage is rendered exceedingly obscure. For we 
 came . . . into you. Corinth had been reached, the limit 
 of the Apostle's work up to that time. The fact that he 
 had arrived there and labored among them was some- 
 thing to which he could appeal. His arrival was in the 
 Gospel, for the spread of the Gospel, as his entire con- 
 duct proved. 
 
 Ver. 15. Not glorying beyond. A repetition, looking 
 toward a specific point, which enables St. Paul to illus- 
 trate the truth of his assertion. In other men's labors. 
 Spoken from sad experience with others who plumed 
 themselves with the results of his work. Others had in- 
 truded into that very field at Corinth and were gathering 
 the laurels to which the Apostle was entitled. They 
 recognized no limits in their glorying ; St. Paul respects 
 
X. t6.] a holy ambition. 289 
 
 the labors of other workers in the great vineyard. But 
 having hope . . . faith groweth. Hope is the daughter 
 of faith ; hope looks to growing faith for increasing 
 fruitage. St. Paul has this hope for the future of the 
 Church at Corinth. He has reason to believe that their 
 faith is growing : on this faith he grounds his hope. 
 Magnified in you. Magnified, i. e. enlarged, increased, 
 made greater, not as a man is magnified with plaudits for 
 mere personal glory aside from God and his work, but 
 magnified among them in such a way that the work 
 which God had assigned him will be furthered. According 
 . . . further abundance. The secret of the Apostle's 
 magnitude is found in the abundance of his labors. In 
 this magnitude he rejoices. His efforts had thus far 
 been blessed with abundance ; he hopes for more. He 
 is looking forward with holy ambition unto further abun- 
 dance. Great cities in Asia and Europe had become 
 centres for Christ through his work in the Gospel ; but 
 this accumulation of past achievement for His Lord does 
 not satisfy him. But all his work is to be according to 
 his province, within God-given lines. God made his prov- 
 ince large enough : no other in the history of the Church 
 equals it. 
 
 Ver. 16. To preach the gospel . . . parts beyond you. 
 The Apostle to the Gentiles dare not rest. When he 
 has brought his task at Corinth to its proper issue, and 
 this is what he means by his being magnified among 
 them, then he is qualified, placed in a position to make 
 an advance into other parts. This one thing I do ; then 
 the next. Greece, Rome, and Spain presented fields 
 ready for the harvest, and his syes are turned unto the 
 parts beyond Corinth (Rom. 15 19-24). To evangelize 
 other countries, to carry the Gospel still farther, in a word 
 the great idea of Church extension, filled his soul. And 
 19 
 
290 //. CORINTHIANS. [x. 17, 18. 
 
 not to glory in. Why should he interfere with the work 
 of another, because he found it ready to his hand, already 
 prepared and affording an excellent opportunity to an in- 
 truder, when so many fields were open to him, when the 
 harvest was so great and the laborers so few ? The Church 
 at Corinth had been disturbed and divided by inter- 
 lopers who cared not how they built on the foundation 
 laid by St. Paul in the Gospel. 
 
 Ver. 17. But he that glorieth ... in the Lord. Much 
 has been said about glorying in this Epistle. The Apostle 
 constantly glories. In this admonition we have the ex- 
 planation. The servant glories in his Lord and not in 
 himself. All other glorying is naught but empty boast- 
 ing. By the grace of God the Apostle is what he is ; by 
 grace he is enabled to labor more abundantly than all the 
 other Apostles (i Cor. 15 : 10). The Lord lays down the 
 same maxim in the Old Testament (Jer. 9 : 23, 24). The 
 words " in the Lord " are to be understood from the Chris- 
 tian point of view, as having special reference to Christ. 
 
 Ver. 18. For not . . . approved. To commend one's 
 self is easy and of frequent occurrence, even in matters 
 pertaining to the work of the Lord. The individual is to 
 be neither standard nor judge. In the affairs of secular 
 life and effort, the verdict is more likely to be against the 
 self-commender ; for the judgment of others will claim 
 its right to determine whether a man is " approved," i. e. 
 fit, qualified, competent, which really means that he has 
 been tested and has stood the test. The Lord com= 
 mendeth. The approval of the Lord is final and supreme 
 in regard to all men and in all matters of conduct, for 
 they all have a religious bearing. Man's approval is in- 
 ferior to God's approval, though all men were united in 
 their opinion. Individual self-approval is seen in all its 
 insignificant vanity, when compared with the approval of 
 
XI. I.] DEFENCE BY CONSTRAINT. 291 
 
 the Lord. No one can be commended by the Lord 
 whose springs are not in Him. 
 
 (B.) St. Paul Constrained to Speak in his ozun Defence 
 (ch. 1 1 : 1-15). 
 
 1-15. Would that ye could bear with me in a little foolishness: nay in- 
 deed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for 
 I espoused you to one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin 
 to Christ. Rut I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in 
 his craftiness, your mind should l^e corrupted from the simplicity and the 
 purity that is toward Christ. For if he that cometh preached another Jesus, 
 whom we did not preach, or //^ye receive a different spirit, which ye did not 
 receive, or a different gospel, which ye did not accept, ye do well to bear 
 with him. For I reckon that I am not a whit behind the very chiefest 
 apostles. But though / he rude in speech, yet am /not in knowledge : nay, 
 in everything we have made it manifest among all men to you-ward. Or 
 did I commit a sin in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I 
 preached to you the gospel of God for nought ? I robbed other churches, 
 taking wages of them that I might minister unto you; and when I was 
 present with you and was in want, I was not a burden on any man; for the 
 brethren, when they came from Macedonia, supplied the measure of my 
 want; and in everything I kept myself from being burdensome unto you, 
 and so will I keep myself. As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall 
 stop me of this glorying in the regions of Achaia. Wherefore? because I 
 love you not.' God knoweth. But what I do, that I will do, that I may 
 cut off occasion from them which desire an occasion ; that wherein they 
 glory, they may be found even as we. For such men are false apostles, de- 
 ceitful workers, fashioning themselves into apostles of Christ. And no 
 marvel ; for even Satan fashioneth himself into an angel of light. It is no 
 great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers 
 of righteousness ; whose end shall be according to their works. 
 
 Ver. I. Would that ye could bear . . . foolishness. 
 
 A wish is here expressed with reference to the self-com- 
 mendation mentioned in the preceding verse (ch. 10: 18). 
 St. Paul is about to commend himself, and some will call this 
 foolishness, because they do not perceive that it is neces- 
 sary under the circumstances. Let men call it foolishness, 
 if they will, but do you bear with me in it. To bear, i. e. 
 to tolerate, is necessary in viewing the statement from 
 
292 //. CORINTHTANS. [xi. 2. 
 
 the human side as though it were mere boasting. A 
 little foolishness is too much for the Apostle, and he 
 would refrain even from that little bit of folly, if he felt 
 justified in so doing. Bear with me. Either the imper- 
 ative or the indicative may be used in rendering this 
 clause, but the imperative harmonizes best with the trend 
 of the succeeding verses. The imperative is not to be 
 taken as a command, but must be understood in the light 
 of the first clause, the sense being: Do bear with me. 
 
 Ver. 2. For I am jealous. St. Paul's zeal which makes 
 him jealous over the Corinthians is a divine zeal. God 
 Himself has filled the Apostle with this jealous care. 
 This is the reason why they are to bear with him in what 
 he is about to state. They are to understand the source 
 and the nature of his affectionate zeal which is not 
 carnal, but divine, in its origin. For I espoused. I have 
 espoused you to one husband in order that you may 
 cleave to Him only : hence the Divine jealousy. St. Paul 
 is not acting for himself, but for another ; for he is the 
 friend of the bridegroom (John 3 : 29), to whom he has 
 betrothed the bride, to whom alone she is to remain 
 wedded, and he is jealous with goodly jealousy lest any 
 one divert her from Him, who has a just right to the 
 supreme place in her affections. The middle voice of the 
 verb is used in the active sense, a departure from classical 
 usage, but met with in later Avriters, such as Philo. To 
 join together is the original force of the verb. Virgin to 
 Christ. When the Apostle uses the marriage-union to 
 illustrate the union of Christ and the Church, he speaks 
 of the latter as a great mystery. As the husband is one, 
 so there is but one bride. The Corinthians espoused to 
 Christ are taken collectively. The Church in its unity 
 IS the bride of the one Lord. As a pure virgin, cleansed 
 by Christ, who loved the Church, — having cleansed it by 
 
XI. 3, 4] THE GUILE OE THE SERPENT. 293 
 
 the washing of water with the Word (Eph. 5 : 25, 26 and 
 I Cor. 6 : 11), for this very purpose. The presentation 
 takes place at the second Coming of Christ (Matt. 25:1 f f , 
 Rev. 19 : 7-9); this is the view taken by Meyer and sus- 
 tained by the above passages. (Compare Epli. 5 : 27.) 
 
 Ver. 3. Serpent beguiled Eve . . . craftiness. That 
 Eve was beguiled by the serpent is so alluded to as to 
 direct the minds of the Corinthians to the genetic im- 
 portance of the first temptation as an historical fact. St. 
 Paul uses the word " serpent " in conformity with the 
 original narrative, rightly assuming that it was well un- 
 derstood. Stress is laid on the method of operation, a 
 leading astray from God, by craftiness {panourgid), that 
 cunning versatility which does not scruple in the use of 
 means to beguile, and which knows how to avail itself of 
 every device. The bride of Christ is to be on her guard, 
 lest the fear of the Apostle be realized, for he knows the 
 guile of the enemy. Your minds . . . corrupted. l\ 
 like danger confronted the Corinthians, namely, such a 
 devastation of the thoughts of their minds as would lead 
 to destruction. The Apostle's fear is that the same 
 serpent, the enemy of souls, would, by the arts supplied 
 to the false apostles, cause the Christians at Corinth to 
 become corrupted. From the simplicity . . . toward 
 Christ. All the thoughts of the faithful bride arc directed 
 toward Christ. They are distinguished by simplicity, 
 singleness of purpose and aim, and by purity. When 
 these marks are wiped out by the seducer, all is lost. 
 Single-minded and pure she must be, else she ceases to 
 be the bride of Christ. False teaching will turn her away 
 from Christ if, like Eve, she lends her ear to the prom- 
 ises of the evil one. Her only safety lies in steadfast 
 devotion to Christ. 
 
 Ver. 4. Another Jesus. There is but one Jesus, one 
 
294 ^^- CORINTHIANS. [xi. 4. 
 
 Saviour, yet another, and even others, may be preached. 
 Jesus may be so preached, so presented to the minds of 
 men, by him who cometh, i. e. by any one of the class of 
 false apostles or teachers, that he will not be the Jesus of 
 the Gospel and the cross, but another Jesus, entirely dif- 
 ferent from the true Christ. This was actually being 
 done at Corinth and elsewhere, and is done at the present 
 day. Whom we did not preach. The Saviour whom St. 
 Paul preached is unmistakable : Jesus Christ and Him 
 crucified, risen and exalted to glory. This Jesus had been 
 preached at Corinth by the Apostle, as the Corinthians 
 well knew. They are to compare this Jesus with any 
 other who may be preached. St. Paul's doctrine concern- 
 ing Christ has not changed. He knows but one Lord, 
 and his answer to the question : " What think ye of 
 Christ ? " abides the same. A different spirit . . . not 
 receive. Discrimination is just as easy in this case. As 
 Christ is, so is His Spirit. The Spirit whom Jesus sends 
 is readily distinguished. The entire sphere of the Holy 
 Spirit's work, inclusive of the fruits, belongs to Jesus. 
 A different gospel . . . not accept. Observe the use 
 of the word "accept," instead of "receive." A fine and 
 apt distinction to which Bengel calls attention in compar- 
 ing the two statements. Although tempted to accept a 
 different Gospel, by those who criticised St. Paul's preach- 
 ing, the Corinthians had not accepted the base substitute. 
 Ye do well to bear with him. Similar in keen ironical 
 force to the words of our Lord : " Full well do ye reject 
 the commandment of God, that ye may keep your tradi- 
 tion " (Mark 7 : 9). When a man comes to you Corin- 
 thians with such proud offers and such splendid promises 
 of a more lofty Christianity, " ye do well to bear with 
 him ; " a strong hint and food for reflection and self- 
 examination. 
 
XI. 5- 6.] CONSECRATED ORATORY. 295 
 
 Ver. 5. Not a whit behind . . . chief est apostles. The 
 
 chiefest, literally, the over-great, apostles are the oppo- 
 nents of St. Paul, whose arrogant pretensions are alluded 
 to by this designation. Most of the older commentators, 
 together with many of our own period, have supposed 
 that the expression applied to James, Peter, and John, 
 because St. Paul refers to them as reputed pillars (Gal. 
 2 : 9). But the entire drift of the context is opposed to 
 this view. The argument is directed against the false 
 apostles who exalted themselves and are therefore termed 
 the " over-great apostles," whose criticism of St. Paul's 
 gifts and methods is now answered. In no respect what- 
 ever has he remained behind the conceited critics, who 
 point out defects in his personality and his work, and 
 boastfully offer to supplement what they assert to be 
 wanting. 
 
 Ver. 6. Rude in speech. This is a specimen of the 
 criticism to which the false apostles subjected St. Paul. 
 He is said to be rude, idiotes, \. e. unlearned, unskilled 
 in speech. A Greek audience, especially in a centre like 
 Corinth, familiar with the exhibitions of orators trained 
 in the art, might be impressed with the lack of this ac- 
 complishment. Much that belonged to Greek rhetorical 
 art, however, had no attraction for an earnest, single- 
 minded man like St. Paul. Not in knowledge. Which 
 is the first gift of an Apostle, according to Bengel. There 
 maybe skilled oratory without knowledge. Of one thing 
 the Apostle is certain, namely, that he has something to 
 communicate when he does speak, and we can safely 
 assume that the form of expression was not altogether 
 out of keeping with the contents ; at least, judging from 
 the results. Trained in knowledge before he became a 
 Christian, he had since then received a higher training 
 from the Spirit which alone qualifies men to be Apostles. 
 
296 //• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 7. 
 
 Manifest among all men. As if he would say : It is 
 almost superfluous to speak of these things to you, who 
 know us so well, to whom our career has been like an 
 open book, in every respect, among all men, wherever 
 our relation to you is known. You yourselves are my 
 best witnesses. 
 
 Ver. 7. Did I commit a sin . . . abasing ? A second 
 reproach was based on the fact that the Apostle had 
 worked for his living with his own hands. In i Cor. ch. 9, 
 he discusses this feature of his relation to the Corinthian 
 Church at length, and while he states the rule: " Even so 
 did the Lord ordain that they which proclaim the Gospel 
 should live of the Gospel," he gives the reason why he 
 has made an exception to the rule in this particular case. 
 He acknowledges that, in so doing, he has abased himself, 
 when he might easily have insisted on his rights and his 
 dignity, but, was this to be charged against him as a sin, 
 with the great example of Christ's humiliation before 
 them? That ye . . .exalted. The welfare of the Corin- 
 thians had moved him to act as he did, in imitation of 
 Christ. Was not tlie humble, self-denying conduct of 
 St. Paul a living proof of his own sincerity and a power- 
 ful argument by example against the foolish pride which 
 evidently was one of the Aveak spots of Corinthian life ? 
 To exalt them, not in their own minds, but in Christ, was 
 St. Paul's great object, and this determined his course of 
 action. Because I preached . . . gospel . . . for ought. 
 Without the remuneration to which he was justly en- 
 titled. It is better to render the word " dorcan " accord- 
 ing to its original meaning; "as a gift or present," instead 
 of " for nought." There is a marked difference between 
 the two English terms. St. Paul makes them a present 
 of the Gospel, so far as his work is concerned. For good 
 reasons, wise and truly pastoral, he waives all claims of 
 
XI. 8, 9-] CIRCUMSTANCES ALTER CASES. 297 
 
 his own, and asks no compensation. The Gospel itself 
 is not a matter of price, but far beyond all valuation. It 
 cannot be purchased, nor can it be sold ; but the laborer, 
 who is worthy of his hire, can bestow his work as a free 
 gift, provided the glory of God and the good of souls 
 point to this as the best course. Here too, the exception 
 only proves the rule, as the next verse shows. 
 
 Ver. 8. I robbed other churches. Comparing himself to 
 a soldier (see i Cor. 9 : 7), St. Paul speaks of the wages 
 which he took from other churches as spoils or booty. 
 The word " robbed " is too strong and apt to lead to a 
 misconception ; it must be interpreted in the light of the 
 contrast in the conduct of the Apostle toward the Corin- 
 thian Church over against other churches. He took away 
 from the latter, most likely those of Macedonia, in order 
 to give to the Corinthians. He applied the wages re- 
 ceived from others, which by comparison he views as a 
 deprivation, in order to supplement the scanty income 
 derived from his handicraft. Minister unto you. Be- 
 coming all things to all men that he might by all means 
 win some, St. Paul abases himself and uses the wages 
 taken from other churches to promote his ministry at 
 Corinth. Everywhere the ministry is essentially the 
 same, but circumstances and conditions vary. Corinth 
 must know itself, before it can appreciate the ministry of 
 St. Paul. 
 
 Ver. 9. In want. A simple statement of the fact that 
 he was in want, without entering into details. The in- 
 come derived from his handicraft was evidently limited, 
 and probably so because the Apostle could not, under the 
 circumstances, devote his whole time to the work of 
 providing for his subsistence. He may, besides, have felt 
 himself bound to render assistance to others who where 
 more needy than himself. That he felt the pressure of 
 
298 //• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 10. 
 
 poverty is apparent ; yet he is unwilling to change his 
 course. I was not a burden. Not a single individual 
 was called upon to take the burden from St. Paul. A 
 burden is a burden even if cheerfully borne. The verb, 
 Katanarkao, to be a burden, is a rare form in the original, 
 not found elsewhere in the New Testament, and not at all 
 in the Septuagint. Hippocrates is the only Greek author 
 who makes use of it. The root means to benumb, whence 
 the word narcotic ; then in the compound to benumb 
 thoroughly, to produce torpor, to drain of vitality, to 
 exhaust. How sensitive the Apostle was in regard to 
 this point appears clearly from the force of the verb. 
 For the brethren . . . from Macedonia, supplied . . . 
 want. The names of the brethren are not mentioned. 
 On the strength of Acts 18: 5, it has been conjectured 
 that Silas and Timothy are meant. Very different feel- 
 ings move the Apostle in this case. He does not object 
 in the slightest degree to accepting aid from these 
 brethren. The reason for this is no doubt to be sought 
 in the difference of circumstances, his judgment being 
 based on the comparative view of the factors which 
 entered into the situation. And in everything . . . from 
 being burdensome. No burden of any kind is laid on the 
 Corinthians for the personal benefit of St. Paul. The 
 word ** burdensome" means that which produces pressure 
 by weight, and thus becomes a burden. Under the fire 
 of hostile criticism, the power of self-restraint and self- 
 denial manifested by St. Paul challenges our admiration. 
 And so will I keep myself. He has kept himself, he has 
 guarded himself, kept a close watch on himself in this 
 regard, and he proposes to be, consistent in the future. 
 Hence his resolve, his consecrated will-power, which is to 
 be measured by the past. 
 
 Ver. 10. As the truth of Christ is in me. What I now 
 
XI. II, 12.] THE TRUTH IN CHRIST. 299 
 
 say is the truth in Christ, (Comp. Rom. 9:1.) I say 
 the truth in Christ, I Ho not. This is not an oath, but a 
 solemn assurance having reference to the resolve, " and 
 so will I keep myself" (ver. 9). It is significant, as in- 
 dicating the earnestness with which the whole subject is 
 viewed by the Apostle. The interests of Christ's kingdom 
 are at stake, and the truth of Christ is the foundation of 
 his resolve. No man shall stop. Literally, this glorying 
 shall not be stopped as concerns me. Nothing on my 
 part shall be a hindrance, a hedge to hem in and thus 
 obstruct the course of this particular boast. If, as seems 
 likely, the figure is essentially the same as in Rom. 3 : 19 
 and Heb. 1 1 : n, the word glorying is personified, although 
 the word mouth is not expressed. The mouth of this 
 glorying will not be stopped, because it speaks the truth 
 in Christ. It will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia, 
 where the necessity for it exists, and where its influence 
 wiil make itself felt. 
 
 Ver. II. Wherefore? Is there any question concern- 
 ing my motive ? Does any one among you think that I 
 love you less than I love the Christians of Macedonia? 
 That does not enter into the consideration at all. But, 
 if you should entertain such an idea, I can safely appeal 
 to God, who knows my heart, and who knows the love I 
 bear for you. This very love lies at the root of my pres- 
 ent action. 
 
 Ver. 12. But what I do. Better and literally, but what 
 I do and will do. Here the course hitherto pursued by 
 the Apostle is actually expressed in the present, what I 
 do: the line of conduct up to the present. This same 
 course is to be continued by him, and he now proceeds to 
 specify the reason. That I may cut off occasion. The 
 adversaries of St. Paul were on the watch for an occasion, 
 Greek apliornie, i. e. some point of vantage from which 
 
300 //. CORINTHIANS. [xi. 13. 
 
 they could make an attack. They would have availed 
 themselves of any opportunity, but they were watching 
 this particular point, thinking that St. Paul might show 
 weakness in this respect, for they were studying the situa- 
 tion ; with a different motive, however. In the first use 
 of the word " occasion," we have the definite article ; it is 
 " the occasion," the desired occasion, which the Apostle 
 is determined to cut off. He grasps the situation and 
 knows tlie men with whom he is dealing. That wherein 
 they glory ... as we. There is so close a connection 
 between this statement and the preceding one as to force 
 one's mind to the conclusion that the matter wherein the 
 opponents of St. Paul gloried was the very point in which 
 they were seeking an occasion to show selfishness on his 
 part. They sought to shine as unselfish men, and the 
 reason why St. Paul insists on serving the Corinthians 
 gratuitously is to be found in the conduct of his op- 
 ponents, who were endeavoring to prove their superiority 
 in this respect. No doubt their pretended unselfishness 
 took a wider range, was more sweeping in its assertion. 
 St. Paul confines himself to this particular point where 
 they were seeking an occasion, and is resolved that " they 
 may be found even as we." " The comparison, he says, 
 must rest on other grounds " (Plumptre), and this 
 point Meyer seems to have forgotten in his argument 
 against gratuitous service on the part of St. Paul's op- 
 ponents. 
 
 Ver. 13. For such men are false apostles. The charge 
 which lies at the foundation of this entire verse is that of 
 hypocrisy, dissimulation. Men who preached another 
 Jesus and proclaimed a different Gospel were false to the 
 Lord and His truth, and, although they took the name of 
 Apostles, unworthy of it. Men who sought to destroy the 
 work which God had blessed in the Church at Corinth 
 
XI. 14, IS-] THE COUXTEKFEIT OF LIGHT. 301 
 
 might be workers indeed, but not sincere laborers in the 
 vineyard of the Lord. They did not, it is true, make 
 known their true inwardness ; they had outwardly under- 
 gone a change of form ; they had transformed themselves 
 in imitation of Apostles of Christ. But the change was a 
 mere change of form like the putting on of a garment to 
 deceive the unwary. 
 
 Ver. 14. Satan . . . angel of light. To him who knows 
 that false Christs and false prophets shall arise (Matt. 
 24 : 24), the appearance of false apostles is not a marvel. 
 The father of lies, who delights in counterfeiting Christian- 
 ity, sends out his emissaries to undo, if possible, the great 
 work of Christ's Apostles. Nay more ; Satan himself, the 
 head and front of the kingdom of darkness, in whom there 
 is no light at all, disguises himself as an angel of light. 
 He uses the words of light ; he tempts men by holding 
 out the promise of light ; he offers light to the world, but 
 only to bring greater darkness. If the prince of darkness, 
 whose very nature is darkness, can so mask himself, 
 what may we not expect of others ? We need not here 
 think of any special allusion. When Satan assumes a 
 form he does it in such a way as not to attract attention 
 to his real character. The contrast is between spiritual 
 light and the absence of it. This is not necessarily a 
 matter of material light in personal appearance, but rather 
 of actions, words, methods, outward deportment. In all 
 these arts and devices Satan is a master, and yet men 
 affect to ignore him. Not so St. Paul and Luther. 
 
 Ver, 15. No great thing, . . . his ministers also of 
 righteousness. There is nothing remarkable about this 
 conduct on the part of Satan's ministers. On the contrary, 
 it is just what one would expect from the ministers of the 
 arch-hypocrite. All his ministers, without distinction of 
 position, are included. If they can figure as Apostles, the 
 
302 II- CORINTHIANS. [xi. 15. 
 
 danger to the Church is increased, because of their greater 
 influence. The evil reaches its cHmax when the garb of 
 righteousness is assumed by the ministers of Satan. 
 Righteousness in Christ is the citadel of the Church's life. 
 It has been termed the eye and the sun of the kingdom 
 of God. Against it the arrows and darts of Satan are 
 directed, more than against anything else. How efTect- 
 uallyhis ministers can carry on their assaults, by appear- 
 ing as ministers of righteousness, Satan knows only too 
 well. St. Paul in these words sounds a note of warning 
 against those who would undermine the sure foundation. 
 Whose end. The false ministers of righteousness, who are 
 engaged in pernicious works, can only carry on their de- 
 ceitful labors for a while. Judgment awaits them, and 
 this will be according to their works. The inference is 
 plain. Destructive works are followed by destruction. 
 Their career and their end will be in harmony. In terse 
 words we are told that no other outcome is possible. 
 
 (C.) St. PauVs Manifold Trials and Labors (ch. 1 1 : 16-33). 
 
 I say again, Let no man think me foolish ; but if ye do, yet as foolish 
 receive me, that I also may glory a little. That which I speak, I speak not 
 after the Lord, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of glorying. Seeing 
 that many glory after the flesh, I will glory also. For ye bear with the 
 foolish gladly, being wise yourselves. For ye bear with a man, if he bringeth 
 you into bondage, if he devoureth you, if he taketh you captive, if he exalteth 
 himself, if he smiteth you on the face. I speak by way of disparagement, 
 as though we had been weak. Yet whereinsoever any is bold (I speak in 
 foolishness), I am bold also. Are they Hebrews ? so am I. Are they Lsrael- 
 ites ? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham ? so am L Are they ministers 
 of Christ ? (T speak as one beside himself) T more ; in labours more abun- 
 dantly, in prisons more abundantly, in stripes above measure, in deaths oft. 
 Of the Jews five times received T forty stripes save one. Thrice was I 
 beaten with rods, once was T stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and 
 a day have I been in the deep; /;/ journeyings often, irt perils of rivers, in 
 perils of robbers, iti perils from my countrymen, in perils from the Gentiles, 
 
XI. i6, 17.] A MIRROR FOR FOOLS. 303 
 
 in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, /;/ perils 
 among false brethren ; in labour and travail, in watchings often, in hunger 
 and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things 
 that are without, there is that which presseth upon nie daily, anxiety for all 
 the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak ? who is made to stumble, 
 and I burn not ? If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things that con- 
 cern my weakness. The God and Father of the T.ord Jesus, he who is 
 blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not. In Damascus the governor 
 under Aretas the king guarded the city of the Damascenes, in order to 
 take me : and through a window was I let down in a basket by the wall, 
 and escaped his hands. 
 
 Ver. 16. Let no man think. Some might think him 
 fooHsh, out of his mind, irrational, because of his utter- 
 ances, considered apart from his motive. (Comp. vers, i, 
 2.) He does not like the idea ; he would rather refrain 
 from making these statements ; but he is forced to it in 
 self-defence. I say again, i. e. for the third time he begins 
 the thread of glorying, (Comp. ch. 10: 8 ; 11 : i, 6.) This 
 time it is carried through. But if ye do, yet. But if 
 there is no other way, if you cannot divest yourselves of 
 this impression that I am foolish, whereby I am actually 
 placing myself in the same category with my opponents, 
 receive me nevertheless. Do not close yourself up against 
 me, but attend to my glorying. Others have gloried in 
 themselves ; they have sought to destroy what I have 
 built. Give ear now to a little glorying on my part. 
 Bear in mind the boasting of my adversaries. " Thus St. 
 Paul puts on the fool's cap and exhibits himself to these 
 dense fools as a mirror, in which they are to see what 
 sort of people they are. This means to use folly wisely 
 for the benefit and improvement of one's neighbor and for 
 the honor of the Gospel, so that even folly is wisdom to 
 the righteous, even as all things are pure and holy to 
 him " (Luther). 
 
 Ver. 17. Not after the Lord. Note how careful and 
 conscientious the Apostle is in the distinctions which he 
 
304 ' 1^- CORINTHIANS. [xi. 17. 
 
 makes concerning all that belongs strictly as a matter of 
 Divine revelation to the truth in Christ Jesus. He draws 
 the line between his own private opinion and the com- 
 mandment of God (i Cor. 7 : 6, 10, 12). He distinguishes 
 in the present case between a course of action, which he 
 deems to be proper under the circumstances, and the 
 direction of the Lord. He has no direct precept of the 
 Lord for this particular way of defence. He wishes it to 
 be distinctly understood that he is acting as a man, on 
 his own responsibility. On the other hand, while he, so 
 to say, relieves the Lord of all direct responsibility by 
 way of command and takes it on himself, he is persuaded 
 that he is acting wisely, properly, conscientiously, and 
 that the Lord will approve his motive, and will guide 
 him in the matter, else he would have refrained from it 
 altogether. Confidence of glorying. Before he enters 
 upon the details of the glorying, the Apostle again refers 
 to it as though it were foolishness, which it would indeed 
 be, apart from the occasion which made a personal refer- 
 ence necessary. Items of personal experience, such as he 
 is about to relate, require no illumination of revelation. 
 The truth which is necessary unto salvation can only be 
 obtained by revelation, and yet these personal experi- 
 ences are intimately associated with both revelation and 
 inspiration. St. Paul is not conscious of the inspiration 
 of this glorying. But who would miss it, or willingly 
 drop it from the record? The experience of the Apostle 
 is only incidental ; it is certainly not fundamental : no 
 personal experience is fundamental but that of the Son 
 of God. Nevertheless all Apostolic experience is im- 
 portant, illustrative, helpful in various ways, and there- 
 fore valuable. It is a part of the record, and the whole 
 of this verse is a powerful argument in favor of the in- 
 spiration of the Word of God. Apart from the Lord, 
 
XI. i8, 19.] SARCASM NEEDED IN REPROOF. 305 
 
 St. Paul's experience would amount to nothing ; of one 
 thing he is conscious, namely, of " this confidence of 
 glorying," i. e. of its substance, hypostasis, its substan- 
 tiality, or, in other words, its foundation ; he is conscious 
 that his glorying is well-founded. 
 
 Ver. 18. Many glory after the flesh, . . . also. The 
 natural man always glories after the flesh, and not after 
 the Spirit, but the many in this case are men who claim 
 to be Christians, even Christian teachers and apostles. 
 These must be met in a similar way, so that for the 
 moment it may appear as though the Apostle were also 
 glorying after the flesh. On the surface it might seem 
 as though the contest were being waged on equal terms, 
 boasters on both sides, as to who w^as to be regarded the 
 greatest after the flesh. Into this arena the Apostle en- 
 ters with inward repugnance : he would rather not speak 
 of himself, but of his Lord ; yet necessity being upon 
 him, he takes up the gauntlet for the sake of the cause. 
 The Christian Church of all ages has been the gainer, 
 and has rejoiced in the glorious recital of Christ's work 
 through His servant. 
 
 Ver. 19. For ye bear . . . foolish gladly, being wise. 
 Occasionally, as in i Cor. 4 : 8-10, the Apostolic language 
 of reproof takes on a keen edge of irony, which in this 
 verse is sharpened into sarcasm. The Corinthians had 
 proved that they not only were able to tolerate the fool- 
 ish, else they would not have endured the pretensions of 
 the false apostles ; they went a step farther, however, 
 and did it gladly, enjoyed the imposition. They would 
 not have acted thus, if they had realized how foolish 
 their conduct really was ; persuaded as they were, how- 
 ever, of their own wisdom, mental soundness, ability to 
 discern, they had promoted the work of the foolish. Why 
 should they not bear with St. Paul ? The world has 
 20 
 
3o6 //• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 20. 
 
 always been gladly tolerant of fools, because of its con- 
 ceit of wisdom ; but St. Paul's foolishness is of a different 
 order ; its object is to make men wise unto salvation, 
 
 Ver. 20. For ye bear with a man, . . . into bondage. 
 The particulars which illustrate the spirit of toleration 
 (ver. 19) give us an idea of what the Corinthians Avere 
 willing to endure. St. Paul had shown himself to be 
 true servant of the Lord in the Church : those men, on 
 the contrary, lorded it over the Church. How far this 
 was carried becomes apparent from the following words, 
 which prove that it was a veritable enslavement, not sim- 
 ply hierarchical in the imposition of oppressive laws, in a 
 Judaistic sense, but despotic and tyrannical. If he de= 
 voureth . . . captive. The first verb is used by the 
 Lord in reference to the conduct of the Pharisees (Matt. 
 23 : 13), in the devouring of widows' houses. Avarice 
 marked the course of the false teachers at Corinth, not- 
 withstanding their pretended unselfishness in the refusal 
 of compensation for their services. In other respects 
 they got men into their power, took them captive, liter- 
 ally took them, captured them as a huntsman takes his 
 game. This probably refers to moral enslavement by 
 means of diabolical arts. Exalteth himself, . . . smiteth 
 you. Self-exaltation would seem to be implied in the 
 tyrannical methods of oppression, but these might be 
 conducted with cunning and artful concealment. Here 
 the conduct is open, a pride of bearing, which insists on 
 superiority over others. The climax is reached in the 
 submission to the indignity of being smitten on the face, 
 which was of frequent occiyrence among the Jews (Acts 
 23 : 2), yet considered outrageous treatment. To all this 
 the Corinthians tamely submitted. Luther explains the 
 fact of submission as a righteous judgment of God, which 
 makes men give a thousandfold greater honor to the 
 
XI. 21-23-] TWiE" SEED OF ABRAHAM. 307 
 
 messengers of the devil, and to do all they demand and 
 suffer everything they impose. 
 
 Ver. 21. I speak, ... as though we had been weak. 
 
 If the conduct of the false apostles is an indication of real 
 power then we have been weak. There is no use of en- 
 deavoring a comparison, our strength does not lie in such 
 domineering over others. Speaking ironically, in order to 
 bring out the point, the Apostle says that he feels him- 
 self put to shame, dishonored, Kata ativiiaii, if his conduct 
 is to be compared with that of his opponents, the latter 
 being the standard. He is indeed incapable of such ex- 
 hibitions of power. Yet wherein any ... I am bold 
 also. But when it comes to the question of real bold- 
 ness, any real ground for boldness, any just claim to legit- 
 imate authority, then the Apostle is bold also, albeit he 
 would rather not enter into a comparative examination 
 of the claims on both sides, which he terms speaking in 
 foolishness. 
 
 Ver. 22. Are they Hebrews ? . . . These three ques- 
 tions must have arisen from some phase of the boasting 
 indulged in by the opponents of St. Paul in order to dis- 
 parage him. They deal with leading characteristics of 
 the chosen people. All the Apostles of our Lord were 
 Hebrews. St. Paul takes up the essential features of the 
 relation ; the Hebrew nationality, the covenant as devel- 
 oped in the theocratic institutions of the people of Israel, 
 the promise as given to Abraham and his seed. Of all 
 St. Paul can boast as well as they. He is their equal. 
 
 Ver. 23. Are they ministers of Christ? I more. A 
 different tone marks the language of St. Paul as he reaches 
 this higher sphere. In regard to his claims as an Israelite, 
 he is quite content with the expression of a simple "So 
 am I." As a minister of Christ, he speaks as one beside 
 himself, /rtr^r/>//r^;/t?//, as one who is mad. Up to this 
 
3o8 //• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 24. 
 
 time he has spoken in foolishness. Now, on higher 
 ground, his relation as a minister of Christ being so 
 strongly asserted, he will be called a madman. Are they 
 ministers of Christ ? No. But if they are ministers of 
 Christ, I am more. Comparing his ministry and theirs, 
 his goes beyond theirs, is higher than theirs. The word 
 hyper must be interpreted in the light of what follows, 
 the scope and quality of St. Paul's diakonia, his actual 
 service. In labours. As he said of himself as the least of 
 the Apostles : " I labored more abundantly than they all " 
 (i Cor. 15 : 10). His work stands out in such bold relief ; 
 its magnitude, as seen in the territory covered, and the 
 exceptional results achieved, is so striking, and the meagre 
 sketch of his exertions as given in the Acts of the Apostles 
 so telling, as to impress us with the mighty force of this 
 brief expression. In prisons. Only a few of these im- 
 prisonments have been recorded. The remark of Clement 
 includes the later ones in Jerusalem, Csesarea, Rome. As 
 there is but one imprisonment mentioned in the Acts up 
 to the time of the writing of this Epistle, the terse con- 
 clusion of Chrysostom is doubtless in place : " What is 
 left out is more than is enumerated." In stripes ... In 
 deaths. Pain and death are here placed side by side. 
 Excessive stripes and frequent deaths. Bodily suffering 
 and agony of soul, endured again and again, open up to 
 our minds the depths of misery and extremes of exhaus- 
 tion. 
 
 Ver. 24. Of the Jews five times. From his kinsmen 
 according to the flesh, whom he loved (Rom. 9: 1-3), he 
 received the punishment prescribed in Deut. 25 : 3 for the 
 wicked man. Forty stripes was the limit which, accord- 
 ing to the statute, could not be exceeded, and this ac- 
 counts for the practice of stopping short at one less than 
 forty. This is the explanation given by Maimonides. 
 
XI. 35] OUT OF THE DEPTHS. 309 
 
 Men in some cases died under the infliction. The breast 
 and the two shoulders each received thirteen of the lashes, 
 which were laid on by means of a leather scourge com- 
 posed of three knotted thongs. No wonder that St. Paul's 
 memory serves him so well in all these details. Five 
 times was he called on to face death in this way. 
 
 Ver. 25. Thrice with rods. Sufferings among the Gen- 
 tiles are now added to the list. One of these scourgings 
 is recorded as having taken place at Philippi (Acts 16 : 22). 
 From this servile punishment, which was inflicted by the 
 Romans on those who were not Roman citizens, St. Paul 
 could plead exemption. He did this at Jerusalem (Acts 
 22 : 25), and his plea was heard. In these three instances 
 he either would not or could not avail himself of it. Once 
 was I stoned. Of this solitary instance, which occurred 
 at Lystra, we are informed in Acts 14: 19. The words, 
 " supposing that he was dead," tell their own story. One 
 such trial was sufificient. Thrice . . . shipwreck. All 
 these perils from shipwreck occurred before the one related 
 in Acts ch. 27. A night and a day . . . in the deep. This 
 experience finds its most natural explanation in connec- 
 tion with one of the shipwrecks mentioned above. A 
 similar experience to the one in Acts 27 : 44, when those 
 on the ship were saved by clinging to planks or other 
 things from the ship, is most likely to be meant. Other 
 views, e. g.. that bythos, the Greek word translated 
 " deep," means a dungeon, like that into which Jeremiah 
 was cast (Jerem. 38 : 6). According to Bede, who relates 
 it on the authority of Theodore of Tarsus, there was such 
 a dungeon, called bythos, in his time at Cyzikus. But 
 the very phrase " in prisons more abundantly," is against 
 this view. Others, again, such as Lyra, Estius, and Calov, 
 claim that St. Paul was miraculously preserved, during 
 the nychthemeron, the twenty-four hours, spent in the 
 
3IO //• CORINTHIANS. [xi. 26, 27. 
 
 deep, for which assumption there is no ground in the 
 text. 
 
 Ver. 26. In journeyings often. Not in journeyings, 
 which were often dangerous, but in many, frequent jour- 
 neys, of which there is abundant evidence in the Acts. 
 In perils of rivers. The fact that bridges were few in 
 number, and that streams were sometimes swollen so as 
 to make them unfordable, indicates the danger to which 
 travellers were exposed in endeavoring to cross them. 
 Of robbers. By whom travel was made unsafe in the 
 countries of the East, traversed by the Apostle, an evil 
 which has continued to the present day. See the parable 
 of the Good Samaritan. From my countrymen. Liter- 
 ally, on the part of race, i. e. coming from his own race; 
 perils which were heightened because he was a Jew. 
 From the Gentiles. As, for instance, at Philippi (Acts 
 16 : 20), and at Ephesus (Acts 19 : 23). In the city . . . 
 wilderness . . . sea. The Apostle is hardly repeating 
 himself. Robbers do not present the only perils en- 
 countered in the desert : wild animals, hunger, and thirst 
 are other forms of danger. So also in the sea, pirates as 
 well as shipwreck are a menace to safety. The city, 
 with its multitudinous perils, certainly forms no excep- 
 tion. Among false brethren. Last, but not least, and 
 doubtless the most painful of all these perils. Men who 
 are false to Christ, under the cover of His name : what 
 may not be expected of them ? The perils with which 
 they threatened the Apostle were more satanic than all 
 the rest. They clearly mark the climax of peril. 
 
 Ver. 27. In labour and travail. (Comp. 2 Thess. 3 : 8.) 
 Labor, i. e. the weariness resulting from exertion ; travail, 
 the exertion itself. Ready to do double work, as shown 
 by the above expressions, the Apostle was one of those 
 men who did not spare himself. In watchings often. 
 
X 1 . 2 8, 29-] DA IL Y PRESSURE. 3 1 1 
 
 Depriving himself of needed rest, liis work did not end 
 with the setting of the sun. (See Acts 20 : 31.) Added 
 to this nights spent altogether without sleep, which is the 
 literal force of watchings, sleeplessnesses. In hunger and 
 thirst. Privations which he was obliged to endure amid 
 the vicissitudes of travel, willingly endured in the service 
 of Christ. In fastings often. Voluntary abstinence 
 from food when he felt such discipline to be necessary to 
 keep under the body, and as a preparation for important 
 work, (See Acts 13:2, 3.) In cold and nakedness. To 
 which he was exposed by the life of poverty which he 
 had chosen, especially during his frequent journeys. 
 
 Ver. 28. Beside those . . . without. Those things 
 are not the external trials of which the Apostle has just 
 been speaking, a view which has found supporters, but 
 additional matters which have been left out of the enum- 
 eration (Chrvsostom). Presseth . . . daily. A pres- 
 sure which came upon him and claimed his attention, 
 halted him, cpistasis (not a rush, onset, episnstasis), so 
 that he was under constant, daily pressure, without inter- 
 mission, as compared with the trials which came " often." 
 Anxiety . . . churches. These were all on his mind, 
 and he constantly felt the pressure. His heart embraced 
 all the churches, and he puts it in such a way that there 
 is no reason for limiting his anxiety to the Pauline 
 churches. 
 
 Ver. 29. Who is weak ? A few instances of his solic- 
 itude for all the churches illustrate it by its application 
 which descends to the individual members. The weak 
 need his sympathy, and not one is excluded from it. 
 Conscious of his own weakness, he enters into the weak- 
 ness of others, and it becomes his own. Who . . . 
 stumble ... I burn not. When he sees a Christian 
 stumble, by offences from without, he burns, his heart is 
 
312 //. CORINTHIANS. [\i. 30-32. 
 
 aflame with woe, with burning shame, as though he him- 
 self had fallen. The context decides the precise charac- 
 ter of the emotion denoted by the verb to burn. (Comp. 
 I Cor. 7 : 9.) 
 
 Ver. 30. If I must needs glory. If it is necessary to 
 boast, I do so with reluctance : others force me to it. 
 They have gloried of their strength. I will glory . . . 
 weakness. Strange boasting! Who would think of 
 boasting of that which belongs to weakness ? The natural 
 man hides his weakness from others. Not so the great 
 Apostle. His words describe the quality of his boasting. 
 It is not the pride of one who boasts to magnify himself. 
 
 Ver. 31. The Qod and Father. The God, whom we 
 know to be our God, because His is the Father of the 
 Lord Jesus. To Him the thoughts of the Apostle turn. 
 In his boast of weakness he has the Almighty God before 
 his mind. Him he praises. In what he is about to say, 
 he is conscious that not a word will detract from the 
 glory of the ever blessed One. Knoweth ... lie not. 
 A solemn assurance, an appeal of his conscience to God, 
 as his witness to the truth of what he is about to utter. 
 He places himself on record, in the most solemn man- 
 ner, well knowing the importance of his testimony con- 
 cerning these great facts of his Christian experience for 
 all ages to come, as a man who speaks the truth before 
 God. 
 
 Ver. 32. In Damascus, the governor ... in order to 
 take me. The Apostle's mind reverts to the earliest 
 part of his Christian career. Its importance will enable 
 us to understand this brief allusion to the event. In 
 Damascus, the ethnarch,governor or prefect under Aretas, 
 the Arabian king, to whom the city was temporarily 
 subject, and who was the father of the first wife of Herod 
 Antipas, — guarded the gates. There was evidently a 
 
XI. 3J] A SIGNIFICANT DELIVERANCE. 313 
 
 collusion between the governor and the Jews, who, ac- 
 cording to Acts 9 : 24, watched the gates. The Jews 
 were either authorized to guard the gates, or the governor 
 appointed a guard at their instigation. 
 
 Ver. 33. And through a window. The deliverance 
 from the prison at Philippi through an earthquake would 
 have seemed more imposing as an illustration of direct 
 Providential help, but Theodoret remarks : " He shows 
 the greatness of the danger by the mode of his flight." 
 The window was an opening high up in the city wall, and 
 the basket, one made of cords, a rope-work hamper. 
 (Comp. Josh. 2:15; I Sam. 19 : 12.) And escaped. This 
 was his first deliverance from enemies who hated him 
 because he had become a Christian. It was the begin- 
 ning of a series. It had a special significance for St. Paul. 
 It was uppermost in his mind as associated with his con- 
 version to Christ, and was so vividly before him as to 
 lead to its insertion at this point in preference to all 
 similar experiences. 
 
 (D.) Visions and Revelations of the Lord {ch. 12 : i-io). 
 
 i-io. I must needs glory, though it is not expedient; but I will come 
 to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ, fourteen 
 years ago (whether in the body, I know not; or whether out of the body, 
 I know not; God knoweth), such a one caught up even to the third heaven. 
 And I know such a man (whether in the body, or apart from the body, I 
 know not ; God knoweth), how that he was caught up into Paradise, and 
 heard unspeakal^le words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. On 
 behalf of such a one will I glory : but on mine own behalf I will not glory, 
 save in my weaknesses. For if I should desire to glory, I shall not be 
 foolish ; for I shall speak the truth : but I forbear, lest any man should 
 account of me above that which he seeth me to be, or heareth from me. 
 And by reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations — wherefore, 
 that I should not be exalted overmuch, there was given to me a thorn in 
 the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, that I should not be exalted 
 overmuch. Concerning this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it 
 
314 n. CORINTHIANS. [xii. i, 2. 
 
 might depart from me. And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient 
 for thee; for wj power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly there- 
 fore will I rather glory in my weaknesses, that the strength of Christ may 
 rest upon me. Wherefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in 
 necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake : for when I am 
 weak, then am I strong. 
 
 Ver. I. Not expedient. (Comp. ch. ri : 30.) There is 
 no doubt about the necessity of glorying, but at the same 
 time the Apostle is persuaded that it is not expedient for 
 him, that he Avill derive no benefit from it. He is never- 
 theless ready to discharge his duty to others even though 
 it involve a personal risk. The preferable reading in the 
 Greek is dci, and the divergences arose from the seeming 
 independence of the two clauses, for which, however, 
 there is no real ground. Both unmistakably, in view of 
 the context, apply to the Apostle, as the translation cor- 
 rectly interprets the verse. Visions and revelations. 
 How reluctantly the subject is approached can be seen 
 from the simple word " but." St. Paul will come, if he 
 must needs glory, to extraordinary manifestations of the 
 Lord's intercourse with His servant. Much rather would 
 he have allowed the veil of privacy to remain over it all. 
 The visions and revelations are the Lord's ; they come 
 from the Lord as they belong to Him. Vxsxows, opt asiai, 
 are sights not vouchsafed to the human eye, in the natural 
 way of ordinary seeing, even with the aid of the most 
 powerful helps, because these visions which the Apostle 
 saw are essentially supernatural in their character. 
 (Comp. Acts 9 : 4-6 ; 16 : 9 ; 18 : 9 ; 23 : 1 1 ; 27 : 23.) Rev- 
 elations which, in this case, were communicated by means 
 of the vision. The point is that St. Paul was exception- 
 ally enlightened by the Lord, and the reason is found in 
 his exceptional call and mission, and this fact accounts for 
 his reluctance to narrate these experiences. 
 
 Ver. 2. I know a man in Christ. He knows a man, a 
 
X 1 1 . 2. ] THE THIRD HE A VEN. 3 1 5 
 
 human being, the generic word. This man is spoken of 
 as a real being having a body, but as if he were some one 
 else. St. Paul speaks of himself objectively, a man in 
 Christ, so completely in Christ, that his own individuality 
 for the time being is swallowed up by the power of Christ, 
 who controls him absolutely in this unique experience. 
 Not the man, but Christ, is the factor in this case. The 
 man is in Christ, not simply as a Christian, but as one 
 possessed by Christ, entirely helpless of himself, super- 
 naturally led by Christ. Fourteen years had elapsed 
 since the event, but the occurrence is vividly present to 
 his memory. Taking the year 58 as the date of this 
 Epistle, the event belongs in point of time to the stay at 
 Antioch, or to the end of the stay at Tarsus. For four- 
 teen years, as it would seem, the Apostle had guarded it 
 as a holy secret, between his Lord and himself. It is 
 forced from him now. Whether in the body, I know 
 not. The state of ecstasy is marked by an elevation out 
 of and superior to ordinary mental conditions. The body, 
 for the time being, does not, indeed, cease to exist, but is 
 lost to the consciousness of the individual. Whether out 
 of. Whether body and soul participated in the experience, 
 or simply the soul, without the body, he knows not. He 
 voluntarily confesses his own ignorance of certain details 
 of the event, which concern his own state at the time. 
 God knoweth. The whole narrative points to the super- 
 natural. God, who made man to be of body and soul, 
 has exalted him above the limitations of the body in His 
 own way, which is known to Himself alone. Such a one 
 caught up even to the third heaven. Such a one, i. c. 
 the one who was in this state of ecstasy. Caught up, irre- 
 sistibly, by a superior power,which removed him out of and 
 beyond the conditions of earth. Over against these con- 
 ditions we have the sphere which is above and beyond 
 
3i6 IT. CORINTHIANS. t>^ii- 3- 
 
 them, the sphere of these remarkable visions and revela- 
 tions, namely, the third heaven. Let us bear in mind 
 the relation of this heaven to those heavens of which we 
 can and do have some knowledge from the point of view 
 of this earth. What is meant by the third heaven ? We 
 can at once dismiss the rationalistic interpretation of men 
 like Schoettgen, that it is only a figurative expression to 
 express the nearness in which St. Paul's spirit found itself 
 to God, and the fanciful notion of Calvin and Calovius, 
 that the holy number three stands for the highest and 
 most perfect heaven. Nor does the Rabbinical enumera- 
 tion of seven heavens, of which the third was the region 
 of the clouds, help us to a conclusion. Taking the division 
 of the visible heavens as being implied in the dual form 
 of the Hebrew word for heavens, we have : i. The region 
 of the clouds, and, secondly, the region of the stars ; or, 
 I. the cloud-heaven, and second, the star-heaven, and 
 with these our knowledge by sight ends. Beyond these 
 spheres is that heaven which eye hath not seen, and into 
 which the Apostle was caught up. Into the inner Sanctu- 
 ary, the Holy of holies, the Heaven of heavens, he was 
 transported, but we are not told what took place there, 
 which in itself points to the experience recorded in the 
 following verse. 
 
 Ver. 3. And I know. He knows this same man in 
 Christ, in the same ecstatic state. He has a clear knowl- 
 edge of what transpired, but not of how it took place. 
 The manner or mode transcends his faculty of knowl- 
 edge, but this ignorance of the mode does not, as Bengel 
 rightly observes, take away the knowledge of the experi- 
 ence itself. The repetition contained in these words 
 has led some to the conclusion fhat verses 2 and 3 are 
 altogether separate, whereas, repetition in St. Paul's lan- 
 guage, far from being mere battology, is solemnly cm- 
 
xii, 4-] PARADISE RESTORED. 317 
 
 phatic, and calls attention to some particular point. The 
 question naturally arises, if St. Paul mentions the third 
 heaven merely as " a break, as it were a resting-point of 
 the raptus " (Meyer), why is it mentioned at all ? There 
 must have been something in the third heaven in con- 
 nection with the transport ; or else, the mention of it 
 would seem idle, mere battology. The explanation both 
 of the mention of the third heaven and the repetition at 
 the beginning of this verse is, we think, furnished in the 
 remainder of t^iis verse. 
 
 Ver. 4. Paradise. This w^as the objective point of the 
 transport, which, with the experience added, really ex- 
 plains why St. Paul was caught up to the third heaven. 
 If the third heaven is heaven proper, the highest heaven, 
 and any other view, is hardly tenable ; then Paradise is 
 not a higher sphere than the third heaven, but belongs 
 to it ; and this view not only accords wath all that 4ias 
 been stated, but is the most satisfactory answer to the 
 questions that here present themselves. Much, however, 
 depends on our conception of the word Paradise. Why 
 should Paradise be the objective point, the great point 
 of St. Paul's rapture into heaven ? Paradise lost to earth 
 is the figure of Paradise restored in heaven. Paradise on 
 earth was a garden of delight, the home of man in his in- 
 nocence, set apart for man by God. Paradise in heaven 
 is the blessed abode of those to whom it is given to eat 
 of the tree of life (Rev. 2 : 7. Comp. Irenaeus, Adv. 
 Hacr. V. 5). The Apostle, whose work was of such 
 transcendent importance in the planting of the Lord's 
 Church among men on earth, was permitted to behold 
 the state of those who are in heaven, in bliss. It was a 
 wonderful and exalted privilege ; it could not fail to be 
 helpful, encouraging, comforting to this chosen vessel of 
 the Lord. The man who was obliged to deal with the 
 
3i8 II. CORINTHIANS. [xir. 5. 
 
 problems and difficulties of the Church's life on earth, 
 upon whom the burden of the ccclcsia prcssa, the Church 
 in its earthly tribulations, bore so heavily, was brought 
 face to face with the realities of the unseen world, where 
 he obtained a view of the beatitude of the Church tri- 
 umphant in that glory to which he bore constant testi- 
 mony in all his afflictions. No one can appreciate the 
 value of this vision, unless he takes the exceptional 
 work and trials of the Apostle into account ; if we add 
 to this his Christian character, we may be aided in ob- 
 taining a clue to his vision of Paradise. Unspeakable 
 words. Words which may not be spoken ; words not in- 
 tended for utterance on earth. Not, however, unspeak- 
 able words, in the sense of words that cannot be spoken, 
 as Luther and many others have interpreted the passage. 
 Nor does the Apostle give a hint as to the specific import 
 of those words. The great revelations were intended for 
 him alone, and, in his heart they were to be enshrined. 
 Their utterance was reserved for heaven ; on earth they 
 were not to be repeated. Heaven's language, in all its 
 fulness, may be spoken in heaven alone. Transcendent 
 words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter, since, as 
 speech, they belong to the glory of holy heaven, and are 
 withheld from the vocabulary of a sin-stained earth. 
 
 Ver. 5. On behalf of such a one. One who could not 
 help himself, one who was caught up and transported by 
 a higher Power, the man in Christ, who was not in pos- 
 session of himself, the man of the ecstasy ; of sucli a one 
 he will glory. But on mine own behalf. Why should 
 he glory concerning himself, when he contributes nothing 
 to his exaltation into heaven, when the whole work is tlic 
 Lord's, to whom alone the glory belongs. The instance 
 itself, the vision, is proof that he does not glory concern- 
 ing himself Save in my weaknesses. It is the same 
 
XII 6,7-] GROUND FOR SUPER-EXALTATION. 319 
 
 thought, expressed in a different way ; he does not glory 
 in any strong points of his own, which would be glorying 
 on his own behalf ; he glories in his weak points, his 
 weaknesses, not merely his weakness in general. In what 
 is a sinner to glory ? Weakness on weakness arises be- 
 fore him. 
 
 Ver. 6. For if I should. This refers to the future, con- 
 ditionally ; if he should wish to continue the strain of 
 glorying which he has begun, he would not be speaking 
 as one out of his mind, although men hearing him tell of 
 his wonderful vision, might think he was aphroii, i. e. de- 
 mented, insane. The truth. No matter how men may 
 judge ; especially those who hate the truth and who are 
 anxious to pervert all his statements. He lays no stress 
 on their opinions and utterances ; he is solely concerned 
 about the truth, albeit he is the only human witness to 
 it, and men must take him at his word. But I forbear. 
 He has said enough more than he cared to say concern- 
 ing his own experience, which might unduly exalt him 
 in the minds of those who only think of it as a special 
 distinction conferred upon him in preference to other 
 Christians. Lest any man should account of me. St. 
 Paul guards against such super-exaltation of his own per- 
 sonality, which would involve a distinction between him 
 and other Christians. As these are judged, in accounting 
 of them, so would he be judged. The ordinary sources 
 of evidence are to determine his standing among them. 
 No supernatural favors are to be placed in the balance to 
 his credit. These belong to a different sphere and have 
 another purpose in view. They have reference to the 
 cause of the Gospel ; St. Paul as an individual is to be 
 judged by the evidence of the senses. 
 
 Ver. 7. Exceeding greatness of the revelations. Ex- 
 ceeding greatness, Greek, hyperbole, i. e. tliq transcend- 
 
320 Z-^- CORINTHIANS. [xii. 7. 
 
 ent, the extraordinary, nature of the revelations. The 
 Apostle is speaking of the pgssible effect of these re- 
 markable revelations on his own character, as expressed 
 in the next clause. The construction is that of the in- 
 strumental dative, by reason of, i. e. by or through the 
 transcendence of the revelations. St. Paul is well aware 
 of the danger. Not be exalted overmuch. Self-exalta- 
 tion : this was the danger. The middle voice implies re- 
 flective action on the part of the Apostle ; hence, it may 
 be rendered, that I may not overestimate myself, or, in 
 other words fall into the sin of spiritual pride. From this 
 danger not even a man like St. Paul was exempt. He 
 had warned others not to exalt him unduly ; he also 
 thinks of himself and states how he is preserved from the 
 sin of self-exaltation. A thorn in the flesh. The history 
 of the interpretation of this passage reveals a comprehen- 
 sive series of conjectures. We have already observed 
 how St. Paul occasionally speaks of something which is 
 clearly specific in its nature, without mentioning the 
 name. In this instance the mystery acquires additional 
 interest from the personal allusion. Everything that 
 concerns the great Apostle as an individual is peculiarly 
 interesting to us as Christians. We may as well, how- 
 ever, at the very outset of our reflections on this passage, 
 remark with Luther, who at different periods indulged 
 in various surmises concerning the nature of the " thorn 
 in the flesh " : "I do not know what it was " (Walch, 22, 
 1248). Much of the interpretation has been subjective, 
 "it has taken a psychological turn. Men have taken their 
 own experiences as a mirror wherein they have found a 
 reflection of the supposed experience of St. Paul. Early 
 tradition, that of the Apostolic Fathers, Clement, Ignatius, 
 gives us no clue. Irenaeus does not specify. 
 
 At a later period, we have a subjective view, which de- 
 
XII. 7.] THE THORN IN THE FLESH. 321 
 
 pends on a general tendency, and which may be termed 
 the Roman Catholic view, advocated by Bellarmine, 
 Estius, Cornelius a Lapide, and in a less gross form by 
 Thomas Aquinas. A false estimate of what is meant by 
 chastity was followed by an undue emphasis on celibacy, 
 and a one-sided prominence of those sins of the flesh, 
 which come under the caption of sexual impurity. The 
 thorn in the flesh was looked upon as a painful strug- 
 gle against temptations to incontinence. The Church 
 Fathers do not incline to this opinion, which is of all the 
 least tenable, and is refuted by the Apostle's own state- 
 ments (i Cor. 7 : 7). He had the gift of chastity. 
 Among other forms of spiritual temptation are blasphe- 
 mous thoughts suggested by the devil ; again, stings of 
 conscience over his earlier life as a persecutor ; and lastly, 
 poignant grief over the attitude of his own kinsmen, the 
 children of Israel, toward the Gospel, a view which is 
 ably advocated by Besser. 
 
 Moreover, we have the theory that assaults from with- 
 out, opposition on the part of false teachers, which were 
 a constant menace to his apostolic work, and which 
 troubled him greatly, were the source of what must, ac- 
 cording to this view, have been a purely mental infliction. 
 Besides Chrysostom and Theodoret, Erasmus and Calvin 
 incline to this interpretation, which Chrysostom with 
 others limit to one pre-eminently hostile antagonist. 
 Such opposition, however, is a common experience, and 
 must be expected in the work of the ministry. There is 
 one view which is certainly unique. According to this 
 it is the assumption that there must have been some de- 
 fect of character in St. Paul calculated to interefere with 
 his success as a minister of Jesus Christ. This position is 
 taken by Lias, who argues that the defect was an in- 
 firmity of temper. 
 21 
 
322 //. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 7. 
 
 Lastly, we have the numerous conjectures concerning 
 various forms of bodily affliction. The language of Ire- 
 naeus in speaking of St. Paul's infirmity as a proof that God 
 does not despise the flesh of man, as the heretics sup- 
 posed, seems to point in this direction. Tertullian spec- 
 ifies the ailment as having been a pain in the ear or 
 head. The eyes, too, have been regarded as the seat of 
 the trouble, the afifliction being a consequence of St. 
 Paul's blindness at Damascus. Augustine also adopts 
 the theory of a severe bodily affliction. More recent 
 commentators have suggested hypochondria, epilepsy, 
 neuralgia of the head and inflammation of the eyes. From 
 all that has been said, it is apparent that no specific con- 
 clusion as to the precise nature of the affliction is within 
 our reach. 
 
 All the light we can obtain must come from the text 
 itself. Hints and suggestions are there, but nothing 
 definite. St. Paul looks upon it as a personal matter, and 
 as is his wont, deals with it in a general way. He has 
 been lifted up to dizzy heights, whether in the body or 
 out of the body, he knows not ; now, he is brought down 
 into the depth ; he knows that he has a body, that he is 
 in the body ; he is made to realize the fact that he is of 
 the earth, earthy. The thorn is a thorn in the flesh, and 
 taking the context as a whole, the flesh would seem to 
 mean the body. Through the body he is made aware of 
 the limitations of earth, of its painful limitations, of the 
 lowest form of its limitations. He who has been priv- 
 ileged to behold, to taste the glories of heaven, is made 
 to drink of earth's cup, in and by the body, which holds 
 him down to earth. He is m-ade to feel pain by the 
 thorn in his flesh, the skolops en sarki, not the stake, 
 which is the classical idea, but the thorn, which belongs 
 to the Septuagint and the later Greek. It is a single 
 
XII. 8, 9-] NO RELIEF BUT SUFFICIENT GRACE. 323 
 
 thorn, not a crown of thorns, so that we may well think 
 of some acute, piercing agony, which bore down into 
 some particular part of his body. But how the whole 
 recital reminds us of the physical agony of our Lord. He 
 is buffeted by it ; it comes upon him in blows. It is the 
 messenger of Satan, who smites him, as he did Job. 
 These are the lowest depths ; hell smites him through his 
 earthly part — his body. Satan is permitted to send his 
 messenger to trouble the body of God's servant, in order 
 that body and soul may remain the Lord's. Realism it 
 is : the reality of heaven and hell applied to earth. 
 Who can fathom the mystery ? That I should not be 
 exalted overmuch. There are no doubts in St. Paul's 
 mind. He understands the situation fully. He knows 
 himself the danger to which he is exposed ; he knows 
 what the Lord means. 
 
 Ver. 8. I besought the Lord thrice. Before he learned 
 to realize that his affliction was a necessary trial of his 
 faith, he besought the Lord, whom he served, three times. 
 Probably at each time the attack was unusually severe. 
 St. Paul would hardly at any time have prayed for de- 
 liverance from an ordinary afifliction, nor from one which 
 he recognized as inseparable from his calling as an Apostle ; 
 the latter Avas not impressed on his mind until the Lord 
 pointed out the necessity of its being patiently borne. 
 Like his Lordin Gethsemane, he prays thrice to be spared 
 a cup, whose remarkable bitterness may be judged of by 
 this succession of prayers. To the first two appeals there 
 was no answer of any kind. 
 
 Ver. 9. And he hath said. The third appeal brought 
 no relief, but in its stead the word of the Lord came unto 
 him, and it came to remain, to abide with him as a peren- 
 nial source of comfort. By the use of the verb in the 
 perfect tense this continuance is indicated, as well as the 
 
324 I^' CORINTHIANS. [xii. lo. 
 
 Apostle's abiding confidence in that word. Hy grace 
 . . . sufficient. Grace to bear, not relief from the thorn. 
 The grace of his Lord Jesus Christ is assured to him as 
 sufficient to sustain him in his sore afifliction. The same 
 grace which brought him to Christ is here held up to 
 him as actively sufficient for this and for all his needs, 
 without any qualification or limitation. Grace is suffi- 
 cient, and naught else can be. For my power is made 
 perfect in weakness. This is the Lord's doing, and it is 
 marvellous in our eyes. Paradoxical as it may seem, we 
 have here the way of God's working, a Divine principle 
 everywhere manifest in the history of God's dealings with 
 men. A weak instrument becomes the vehicle of almighty 
 power. Underneath His servant are the everlasting arms. 
 Thus God makes perfect His strength, i. e. He carries out 
 His plans to completion by means of weakness. It is 
 ever so : the weak vessel is filled with power for the pur- 
 poses of the Lord. Most gladly . . . therefore. There 
 fore, i. e. because the Lord carries out His power in weak- 
 ness, St. Paul glories in everything that manifests his own 
 want of power. He does this most gladly, notwithstand- 
 ing the suffering which may attend it, for he has learned 
 to take pleasure in that through which the Lord exhibits 
 His wondrous power. That the strength of Christ. The 
 strength or power of Christ is practically synonymous 
 with the grace of Christ. Applied grace is meant ; in- 
 dwelling grace, for the words " may rest upon me," liter- 
 ally mean " may make its dwelling upon me and in me. 
 A coming down from above like the Schechinah, and en- 
 tering into one's life, and thereby transforming weakness 
 into strength. 
 
 Ver. lo. Pleasure in weaknesses. Of these weaknesses 
 the thorn in the flesh was the acme. From this point of 
 view, he has learned to group all his weaknesses together. 
 
XII. lo.] FOR CI/R/ST'S SAKE. 325 
 
 in one bundle, as it were, and even to be of good cheer, 
 to take pleasure in thein, not a stoical delight, but an in- 
 telligent, Christian rejoicing. In injuries, in necessities, 
 in persecutions, in distresses. Lest any one should mis- 
 understand him, and form a wrong conception of the 
 word weaknesses, he points out the quality of the weak- 
 ness. All are visitations which come upon him from 
 without, and in which he is powerless. (Comp. ch. 11.) 
 For Christ's sake. From what motive does he take 
 pleasure in these weaknesses ? Because they promote 
 the glory of the Lord in the advancement of His king- 
 dom and the manifestation of His power. Weak, then 
 . . . strong. This is St. Paul's joyous response to the 
 word of his Lord ; this is his glad Amen. The word : 
 " My power is made perfect in weakness," has entered 
 into the consciousness of His servant, and has there be- 
 come a glad conviction. 
 
 (E.) What St. Paul Seeks (ch. 12 : 11-21). 
 
 11-21. I am become foolish : ye compelled me; for I ought to have 
 been commended of you : for in nothing was I behind the very chiefest 
 apostles, though I am nothing. Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought 
 among you in all patience, by signs and wonders and mighty works. For 
 what is there wherein ye were made inferior to the rest of the churches, 
 except // l>e that I myself was not a burden to you ? forgive me this wrong. 
 
 Behold, this is the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not 
 be a burden to you : for I seek not yours, but you : for the children ought 
 not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children. And I will 
 most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more abun- 
 dantly, am I loved the less ? But be it so, I did not myself burden you ; but 
 being crafty, I caught you with guile. Did I take advantage of you by any 
 one of them whom I have sent unto you .' I exhorted Titus, and I sent the 
 brother with him. Did Titus take any advantage of you? walked we not 
 by the same Spirit ? wal/ceit lue not in the same steps ? 
 
 Ye think all this time that we are excusing ourselves unto you. Tn the 
 sight of God speak we in Christ. But all things, beloved, are for your 
 edifying. For I fear, lest by any means, when I come, I should find you. 
 
326 //• CORINTHIANS. [vii. 11-13. 
 
 not such as I would, and should myself be found of you such as ye would 
 not ; lest by any means there should he strife, jealousy, wraths, factions, 
 backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults; lest, when I come again, my 
 God should humble me before you, and I should mourn for many of them 
 that have sinned heretofore, and repented not of the uncleanness and for- 
 nication and lasciviousness which they committed. 
 
 Ver. II. Ye compelled me. St. Paul's strain of glory- 
 ing is ended : some will say : Paul, thou art beside thy- 
 self ; but who is to blame ? The Corinthians themselves. 
 Commended of you. His friends should have conducted 
 his defence against the false apostles. For in nothing 
 . . . behind. (See note on ch. 11:5.) In nothing be- 
 hind those arrogant false apostles, although I am nothing ; 
 for as Luther well says : We are nothing ; Christ alone 
 is everything. Without Christ, nothing ; neither Apos- 
 tolic office, nor power, nor works. St. Paul holds to the 
 declaration : Christ all and in all. 
 
 Ver. 12. Signs of an apostle. By which an Apostle 
 could be recognized : truly characteristic works. Incon- 
 trovertible evidence seen but not appreciated. Were 
 wrought. In order that they might be convinced of his 
 Apostolic mission. In all patience because of their weak- 
 ness these signs were wrought, these mighty deeds done, 
 so that the Church might be firmly planted. By signs, 
 by which the salutary power of the Gospel was mani- 
 fested, in particular, probably, miracles of healing, done 
 in all patience. And wonders. Portents, calculated to 
 excite attention toward the Gospel. And mighty works. 
 Literally, powers, illustrative of the higher power by 
 which they were produced, attendant upon and confirma- 
 tory of the Word. 
 
 Ver. 13. Wherein . . . inferior. St. Paul means : 
 There is not a single Apostolic gift or benefit which you 
 have not enjoyed as fully as the other churches. Noth- 
 ing has been withheld from you, and there is no ground 
 
XI I. 1 4, 1 Si UNSELFISH DE VO TION. 327 
 
 for jealousy. This motive is excluded. All the churches 
 were on the same plane, in the relation of the Apostles 
 to them. Except . . . not a burden. Here there was 
 a distinction, if this was to be looked upon as placing 
 them at a disadvantage, which was certainly not the case. 
 The emphatic " I myself " makes the conduct of the 
 Apostle, in declining pecuniary compensation, excep- 
 tional. Forgive . . . wrong. (Comp. ch. 11 : 7.) Ac- 
 cording to the rule he should have accepted compensa- 
 tion. If they think he did wrong, he asks to be forgiven. 
 Could they fail to understand the well-deserved irony of 
 the self-sacrificing Apostle ? 
 
 Ver. 14. Behold, . . . the third time. His conduct 
 will be in harmony with that of his first two visits. 
 They remember how he lived and labored among them. 
 He is ready to come again ; he does not dread the jour- 
 ney, nor shrink from the work, which is not yet finished. 
 Not be a burden. Consistency marks his conduct. He 
 has not done wrong; he has no reason to alter his course. 
 Not yours, but you. A fine pastoral distinction, worthy 
 of a follower of the good Shepherd, who loves the sheep, 
 for their own sake, and not for the sake of gain. Chil= 
 dren ought not to lay up . . . but the parents. A law 
 of nature, ordained by God. The fourth commandment 
 rests upon this principle. Parents are to make provision 
 for their children, and the Corinthians are the Apostle's 
 spiritual children. He is under obligation, opJicilei, 
 to provide for them, and the accepting of a compensa- 
 tion would interfere with the greater, the spiritual 
 provision. 
 
 Ver. 15. Spend and be spent. Self-denial and self- 
 sacrifice on St. Paul's part are to furnish the proof that 
 he seeks them and not theirs. In doing and suffering, in 
 giving himself and being given for their souls, that ever- 
 
328 //. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 16-18. 
 
 lasting treasures may be theirs, he will find the greatest 
 pleasure. Am I loved the less ? This is put hypothet- 
 ically : he may be loved the less, in the face of his more 
 abundant love, but this will not diminish his affectionate 
 zeal. But there is no reason why their love should grow 
 less. Love should beget love. 
 
 Ver. 16. But be it so. The fact is cheerfully admitted, 
 be it so, whatever construction may be placed upon it. 
 St. Paul glories in it, no matter what his opponents say. 
 But being crafty. He is charged with being crafty and 
 using guile, with a bad motive and a wicked method. 
 Such dishonesty of purpose and action the Apostle re- 
 pudiates in the questions which follow, and which can be 
 answered by the Corinthians themselves ; they certainly 
 would know it, if they had been caught by the snare of 
 a hunter. 
 
 Ver. 17. Did I take advantage of you by any one ? 
 Did I substitute some one else to secure that which I 
 would not myself take from you ? He well knew the 
 quality of the men whom he had sent. The Church at 
 Corinth knew them. Their conduct corroborated his 
 motives. No fraud had been practised by circumvention, 
 in an indirect way. 
 
 Ver. 18. Did Titus take any advantage ? Of those 
 sent unto you, take Titus as a conspicuous example. 
 The brother, who was associated with him, to assist him, 
 is not known to us by name. Titus went to Corinth at 
 the desire of the Apostle, as his representative, acting 
 under his directions. He knew Titus well enough to 
 cause him to put this question in the assurance that there 
 could be but one answer. Walked we not by the same 
 spirit . . . same steps ? Concerning the walk by the 
 Spirit, sec Rom. 8:1, 14 ; as to its characteristics, 
 2 Cor. 1:12. The walk was the same ; moved by the 
 
XII. 19, 20.] EDIFICATION THE OBJECT. 329 
 
 same spirit, Titus trod in the footsteps of St. Paul, not 
 taking advantage of any one. 
 
 Ver. 19. Ye think all this time. All this time, Greek 
 palai, for a long time, you have been thinking that we 
 ■ are simply defending ourselves unto you. This view 
 might create the impression that the Apostle was merely 
 anxious for their verdict. He has them in mind, but not 
 as judges. But One could act as the Judge in regard to 
 his Apostolic authority and dignity. In the sight of God 
 speak we in Christ. (Comp. ch. 2:17; i Cor. 4 : 3, 4.) 
 As to motives, which was really the question at issue, 
 who could decide but God? It is an appeal to the 
 Supreme Judge, before whom, in whose sight the defence 
 is made. He speaks in Christ, as a Christian, whose rela- 
 tion to God is in Christ, w ho lives and labors by faith in 
 Christ. But all . . . for your edifying. To edify, to 
 build up the Church at Corinth, is the object which 
 St. Paul has in view. To this end all his acts among 
 them and for them arc directed. False teachers are aim- 
 ing at their destruction. St. Paul brings all his efforts 
 to bear for the edification of those Avhom he terms his 
 " beloved." Christian love is always unto edification. 
 
 Ver. 20. For I fear, . . . find you not such as I would. 
 In view of the work done by the false teachers at Corinth, 
 this fear was not groundless. No doubt is expressed 
 concerning the recognition of St. Paul's Apostolic author- 
 ity. His only concern is lest evils may present them- 
 selves, lest their spiritual state may not be in accord with 
 his desire. Be found . . . such as ye would not. How 
 they would like to find him, may readily be imagined. 
 He would himself prefer to be found of them as one filled 
 with approval, coming with no other language but that 
 of fatherly greeting. As it is, apprehension leads to 
 earnest admonition. Lest . . . strife. Literally, strifes, 
 
330 //. CORINTHIANS. [xii. 21. 
 
 partisan contentions. Jealousy, lit. jealousies, instances 
 of selfish zeal for individual preferment. Wraths, fac= 
 tions, i. e. angry disputes. Backbitings, whisperings. 
 Concerning the last two Alford aptly remarks : " Open 
 slanders, secret revilings." Swellings. Lit. pufifings up, 
 i. e. manifestations of conceited inflation. Tumults, i. e. 
 disorderly proceedings. 
 
 Ver. 21. Lest . , . my God should humble me. He 
 is anxious to avert this, inasmuch as he feels the mis- 
 conduct of his spiritual charges to be a personal humilia- 
 tion, a visitation from God by which his soul is cast down, 
 and which, so far from being necessary, is to be depre- 
 cated. And I should mourn . . . sinned heretofore. 
 Not all, but many, who had become Christians, and had 
 fallen into sin, but who had been admonished by the 
 Apostle during his second visit to Corinth, and who might 
 not have repented when he should come again. Such, 
 he fears, there may be, and they would cause him to 
 mourn. And repented not of . . . have committed. All 
 these sins belong to the same class. The first term is 
 general ; the second specific and well understood. The 
 third expresses the extreme of licentious abandonment, 
 utter wantonness. No reference is here made to the in- 
 cestuous person. 
 
 (F.) Apostolic Consistency (ch. 13). 
 
 I -1 4. This is tlie third time I am coming to you. At the mouth of two 
 witnesses or three shall every word be established. I have said beforehand, 
 and I do say beforehand, as when I was present the second time, so now, 
 being absent, to them that have sinned heretofore, and to all the rest, that, 
 if I come again, I will not spare ; seeing that ye seek a proof of Christ that 
 speaketh in me; who to you-ward is not weak, but is powerful in you : for 
 he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth through the power of God. 
 For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him through the power 
 of God toward you. Try your own selves, whether ye be in the faith ; 
 prove your own selves. Or know ye not as to your own selves, that Jesus 
 
XIII. I, 2.] A FINAL ADMONITION. 33I 
 
 Christ is in you ? unless indeed ye be reprobate. I>ut I hope that ye shall 
 know that we are not reprobate. Now we pray to (jod that ye do no evil ; 
 not that we may appear approved, but that ye may do that which is honour- 
 able, though we be as reprobate. For we can do nothing against the truth, 
 but for the truth. For we rejoice, when we are weak, and ye are strong : 
 this we also pray for, even your perfecting. For this cause I write these 
 thing.s while absent, that I may not when present deal sharply, according to 
 the authority which the Lord gave me for building up, and not for casting 
 down. 
 
 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfected ; be comforted ; be of the same 
 mind; live in peace: and the God of love and peace shall be with you. 
 Salute one another with a holy kiss. 
 
 All the saints salute you. 
 
 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the com- 
 munion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. 
 
 Ver. I. This is the third time. Repeated visits are 
 repeated proofs of affectionate interest. Every visit 
 should bring its particular blessing. The present tense 
 of the verb is used to express an intention. At the mouth 
 of . . . witnesses . . . every word be established. This 
 third visit is to be a decisive one. Nothing is to be de- 
 termined by hearsay, but by an orderly investigation in 
 accordance with the rule of the Old and New Testament 
 (Deut. 19 : 15 ; Matt. 18 : 16). A fair open trial, on the 
 ground, is to be held. 
 
 Ver. 2. I have said beforehand. The Apostle speaks 
 emphatically, in all seriousness, so that no one may mis- 
 take his meaning. Abundant admonition has been given, 
 and he stands by what he has said ; he repeats his words, 
 just as he had spoken at his second visit. So now, once 
 "more, being absent from Corinth, before he makes his 
 third visit, he addresses a final admonition. To them 
 . . . sinned heretofore. (Comp. ch. 12 : 21.) Those 
 sinners whom he had admonished during his second visit, 
 and who had continued in their sins. And to all the rest. 
 All unrepentant sinners are here included. Patience and 
 probation have reached their limit. The Church must 
 
332 //. CORINTHIANS. [xiii. 3, 4. 
 
 purge herself of these offenders. Not spare. There is 
 yet time, until he comes again, for he is reluctant to 
 proceed to that extreme which the welfare of the whole 
 Church imperatively demands. Then, however, he will 
 spare. Some have doubted his earnestness in the matter. 
 No room is left for doubt as to his purpose. 
 
 Ver. 3. Ye seek a proof of Christ, Why will he not not 
 spare ? In reply to their challenge, because they seek a 
 proof of his Apostolic authority, i. e. of Christ speaking 
 in him. They are really provoking Christ, tempting Him, 
 rather than St. Paul, who is but the organ, the mouth- 
 piece of Christ. Not weak, . . . powerful in you. The 
 power of Christ as it comes to the Corinthians by the 
 words of the Apostle, is a reality ; for Christ was not weak 
 toward them, a fact which they well knew from experi- 
 ence. Among them the same power will be made mani- 
 fest in the same way. Hunnius in this connection calls 
 attention to the Office of the Keys (Matt. 16 : 19). Christ 
 indeed condescended to become weak, in the days of His 
 humiliation ; but now. He comes with power. In djina- 
 tcin the Apostle has coined a word by adaptation ; it is 
 not met with elsewhere. 
 
 Ver. 4. Crucified through weakness. Christ's weak- 
 ness is a constant comfort to His children in their 
 weakness, since it was the gateway unto strength. The 
 death of the Lord on the cross finished all His weakness. 
 Weakness was necessary for a time, albeit voluntary on 
 His part, in order that power might appear. Liveth 
 through the power of God, The life of Christ once cruci- 
 fied and dead is the proof of this power. God's power 
 has overcome the greatest and fnost wonderful weakness 
 ever known. Weak in him. Our weakness is not an 
 isolated weakness. In so far as the Apostle has not ex- 
 hibited power in dealing with the Corinthians, in his spar- 
 
XIII. 5. 6.] SELF-EXAMINATION REQUIRED. 2,ZZ 
 
 ipg them, he has followed in the footsteps of Christ, in 
 all meekness and gentleness. But we shall live with 
 him. The manifestation of God's power will come in due 
 time. Life with Christ will be manifest in the course 
 pursued by the Apostle toward the Corinthians ; life 
 which grows out of the power of God. Quickened and 
 impelled by the power of God His servant will do His 
 will at Corinth. 
 
 Ver. 5. Try your own selves. They are to examine 
 themselves, rather than the Apostle. Self-criticism will 
 be of more profit to them, besides being called for in 
 view of the coming of the Apostle. Whatever the con- 
 clusion, they must put their spiritual condition on trial 
 and do it themselves. One may imagine himself to be in 
 the faith and thus deceive himself, but the fault is alto- 
 gether his own. The point is not whether one have the 
 faith, know it, and yield intellectual assent to it, but 
 whether a person is in the faith, in living communion with 
 Christ. Prove . . . selves. Apply the test in such a 
 way that you will stand convinced beyond a doubt of 
 your relation to Christ. Test yourselves so that you may 
 have proof for yourselves. Or know ye not . . . that 
 Jesus Christ is in you ? To be unconscious of the in- 
 dwelling of Christ is inconceivable. To have faith in 
 Christ and not to know it, is equivalent to saying that 
 Christ is the Rock of one's supreme trust and not to know 
 it, or that Christ is the way, the truth, and the life of one's 
 being and not to know it. How can this be ? Unless 
 . . . reprobate. It may be that you will fail of being 
 approved when you prove yourselves, that you will be 
 found reprobate, adokijuoi, not approved, tried but found 
 wanting, your faith not genuine, not of the right kind. 
 An evil conscience would force this conviction upon them. 
 
 Ver. 6. But I hope . . . not reprobate. He hopes for 
 
334 ^^- CORINTHIANS. [xiii. 7, 8. 
 
 their approval of his course when he comes to them. He 
 expects them to test him according to the standard of 
 Christ as to whether his conduct is genuine, i. e. the 
 work of a true Apostle. In regard to this he now invites 
 criticism on their part. As far as they can know, he hopes 
 they shall know him to be a workman approved unto 
 God. They are to try him and to prove him. 
 
 Ver. 7. We pray ... ye do no evil. That is noth- 
 ing that would bring reproach on their Christian pro- 
 fession. St. Paul is much concerned about this, prayer- 
 fully anxious. Not that we . . . approved. He has no 
 selfish motive. Their good conduct would reflect credit 
 on him and appear to approve his work, this, however, 
 does not concern him. But that ye may do . . . honour- 
 able. Literally that which is good, the positive comple- 
 ment to the avoidance of evil. Christian life, the fruits 
 of faith, are the aim of the Apostle. Though we be as 
 reprobate. If his desire were realized, by the absence of 
 evil and the presence of good among the Corinthians, 
 there would be no call for sternness of action on the part 
 of the Apostle, which might lead to hostile criticism, as 
 though he had not stood the test by showing severity. 
 
 Ver. 8. Nothing against the truth. Appearances count 
 for nothing ; we may be as reprobate, but we are bound 
 by our consciences to do nothing against the truth. To 
 act against the truth of the Gospel, which requires the 
 absolution of all who are truly penitent, would actually 
 make one reprobate. The Confessors of Christ have at 
 all times acted on this principle even at the risk of their 
 lives. The Augsburg Confession, Art. 28, appeals to this 
 passage. Everything for the tr-uth, nothing against it. 
 Every gift, every faculty, is consecrated to the advance- 
 ment of the truth, actively, with all energy ; an ability 
 for the truth, exclusive of all that resists it. 
 
XIII. 9-1 1. A WISE MASTER-BUILDER. 335 
 
 Ver. 9. For we rejoice, when we are weak, and ye are 
 strong. The Apostle does not delight in the power of 
 punishment. He would rather be deprived of the armor 
 of discipline by the conduct of those who otherwise 
 would have called forth an exhibition of his power. In 
 fact he rejoices at the strength of those who have been 
 made strong against sin through Christ. This we also 
 pray for. That the good work may be carried forward 
 to its consummation in everything concerning the Church 
 at Corinth is the burden of this prayer. Perfecting, 
 Greek katartisis, complete equipment, furnishing, that 
 nothing may be wanting to their strength. In this the 
 Church is to be a unit. 
 
 Ver. 10. For this cause I write . . . absent. As yet 
 what he writes is a matter of prayer and of hope, an ex- 
 pression of his heart's longing desire before he is required 
 to deal with them face to face. He has made earnest use 
 of his opportunity, will they do the same? Not when 
 present deal sharply. For this cause he writes, offi- 
 cially as an Apostle, in the first person, in the hope that 
 the written admonition may relieve him of the necessity 
 of sharp, severe, punitive action. According to the 
 authority. In all this he acts in accordance with the 
 authority which is a gift from the Lord. He knows the 
 spirit of the discipline prescribed by the Lord, and obeys 
 willingly, with genuine Apostolic submission. For build- 
 ing up. To build up, as a wise master-builder, is the 
 crowning excellence of his vocation, of his authority as 
 an Apostle. To rear temples of the Lord is his object, 
 even when, like a surgeon, he must use the knife for the 
 moment, and deal sharply, use sharpness, yet the great 
 aim is edification, not destruction. For this cause he 
 writes. 
 
 Ver. II. Finally, brethren, farewell. Rather, rejoice, 
 
336 //. CORINTHIANS. [xiii. 12-14. 
 
 i. e. in the Lord, in view of what has been written. " For 
 the joy of the Lord is your strength " (Neh. 8 : 10). Be 
 perfected. Be completely equipped as true Christians. 
 Be comforted. In the face of all your troubles as a 
 Church. Be of the same mind. Let your thoughts be 
 harmonious, bent in the same direction. Live in peace. 
 As the children of peace, among yourselves. And the God 
 of love and peace shall be with you. The love of God 
 fills His children with peace ; the assurance of Divine 
 love is inseparable from His peace in their hearts, in 
 them both are alway found together. 
 
 Ver. 12. Salute one another with a holy kiss. A 
 token of love and peace; Holy as becometh saints; a 
 protest against the unholy kiss of hypocrisy, the kiss of 
 Judas : a kiss in the Lord, the mutual salutation of those 
 who are consecrated to His service. (Comp. Rom. 
 16:16; I Cor, 16 : 20 ; i Thess. 5 : 26.) 
 
 Ver. 13. All the saints salute you. A salutation from 
 Church to Church. The entire Macedonian Church takes 
 an interest in the welfare of the Church at Corinth, 
 evidently being aware of the writing of the Epistle. 
 There are no salutations to individuals, probably Titus 
 was to deliver them in person. 
 
 Ver. 14. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Where- 
 by man is born again and nourished unto salvation, 
 through the gift of the only begotten Son of God. And 
 the love of God. The source of grace and of every other 
 gift needed by the members of the Church. And the 
 communion of the Holy Ghost, By whom the grace of 
 Christ is applied, in which believers participate, in the 
 fellowship of the spirit's gracious working. Be with you 
 all. In this benediction, so exceptionally full and com- 
 prehensive in its statement of the blessings of the Triune 
 God, we have the expression of St. Paul's great love for 
 
XIII. 14.] THE BENEDICTION. 337 
 
 the Church at Corinth. All the members are included ; 
 the Apostle loves them all. The benediction is the Amen 
 of his pastoral love to the whole Church at Corinth, a 
 fitting close to this remarkable pastoral Epistle. 
 
ANNOTATIONS 
 
 ON 
 
 THE EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL 
 
 TO THE GALATIANS 
 
 BY 
 
 CARL A. SWENSSON, Ph. D. 
 
 PRESIDENT OF BETHANY COLLEGE, LINDSBORG, KS. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 PaiiVs Epistle to the Galatians was probably written 
 57 or 58 A. D, It was certainly written after 54 A, D. 
 Paul had preached to the Galatians on his second mis- 
 sionary journey (50-51 A, D.), Acts 16: 6; Gal. 4: 13. 
 The letter was written after his second visit, on his third 
 missionary journey (54 A. D.), Acts 18: 23; Gal. 4 : 13. 
 It is generally admitted that it was written before the 
 Epistle to the Romans (58 A. D.), for which Galatians 
 is the draft, the outline, so to speak. The Epistle itself 
 gives us no definite information as to the exact time 
 when it was written. It se.ems to have been wTitten at 
 Ephesus (Acts 9 : 10). Some conclude from Gal. i : 2 
 that it was written during a journey, while Paul was on 
 his way to Macedonia (Acts 20 : i), in the winter or spring 
 of 57 or 58 A. D., thus placing it after the Epistles to the 
 Corinthians, but before the Epistle to the Romans. 
 
 The Epistle is undoubtedly genuine. The external 
 evidence is very ample. The evidence quoted in proof 
 that the Epistle to the Romans was written by Paul is 
 equally valid for that to the Galatians. The Epistle is 
 found in all Greek manuscripts of Paul's Epistles, and in the 
 Latin, Syriac, Egyptian, Gothic, Armenian, and Ethiopic 
 versions. In the Muratorian Canon (ab. 170 A. D.) it is 
 placed in the second place, next to i and 2 Corinthians. 
 Jerome says that Origen " wrote five volumes on the 
 
 341 
 
342 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Epistle of Paul to the Galatians." Irenaeus (>f« 202) 
 frequently quotes this Epistle by name as a work of the 
 Apostle Paul. The Epistle is quoted by Clement of 
 Alexandria {*^ 220), and by Tertullian (►!< 220). Several 
 passages in writings still earlier than the above suggest 
 that the authors had seen the Epistle to the Galatians. 
 It seems to be clearly proven, that towards the close of 
 second century the Epistle was everywhere accepted with 
 perfect confidence as a genuine work of the Apostle Paul. 
 
 The internal evidence is equally strong. What forger, 
 hoping to gain credence for his work, would dare to 
 write as the author of this Epistle has done, filling the 
 entire letter with severe censure of entire churches men- 
 tioned by name ; a censure hardly mitigated by a word 
 of approval ? 
 
 The Galatia of Paul was a broad strip of land a little 
 to the North of the centre of Asia Minor, stretching from 
 the Northeast to the Southwest, and about two hun- 
 dred miles in length. In all probability the principal towns 
 visited by Paul were Tavium, Ancyra, and Pessinus, and 
 at these places evidently were " the churches of Galatia " 
 (Gal. I : 2). 
 
 The Galatians wevQ a mixed people. First of all comes 
 the original Phrygian population. In the next place we 
 note the Gauls or Celtic conquerors, about 250 B. C. 
 (The theory of the Teutonic origin of the Galatians is 
 now given up not only in England but in Germany as 
 well.) Then follow the Greek settlers, who were so 
 numerous as to give to their adopted home the second 
 name of Gallogrsecia ; and afterwards should be mentioned 
 the Romans, who came in after the conquest by Manlius, 
 189 B. C. ; finally Jewish colonies. It was the Celtic 
 blood which gave its distinctive character to the Galatian 
 character. Roman writers describe Gauls as noted for 
 
INTRO D UC TION. 
 
 343 
 
 their fickleness, and as superstitious, given over to ritual 
 observances ; and greedy of wealth. The Christian 
 Galatians agreed in a remarkable way Avith the Celtic or 
 Gallic type of character. They were mainly Gentiles ; 
 they received the Gospel with eagerness ; they were fickle 
 and ready to receive a different Gospel ; they were ritual- 
 istic, seeking to become perfect by ritual observances; 
 they were easily overcome by temptations of the flesh ; 
 easily angered and very excitable ; avaricious. 
 
 The controversy which gave occasion for the writing of 
 this Epistle was a very serious one and could not but 
 divide the infant Church. It came to a climax most con- 
 spicuously in Galatia. Was tJie JcivisJi laiv to be binding 
 upon Christians ? Christianity had sprung out of Judaism. 
 The greatest and most obvious article in the Christian 
 creed — the Messiahship of Jesus — could easily be ac- 
 cepted by a nation entirely engrossed with the idea of 
 the Messiah, and yet with all the prejudices in favor of 
 the Jewish Law retained. It was only to the deep and 
 serious thought of a master mind, the fundamental antag- 
 onism of the Jewish view of religion and the Christian 
 was apparent. The Apostle Paul saw it clearly ; others 
 were too near-sighted. The main body of the church at 
 Jerusalem held tenaciously to the Jewish practices. They 
 were Pharisaic in their passion for proselytes. Emissaries 
 from this church had found their way to Galatia. They 
 attempted, and only too successfully, to do mission work 
 on the fields already occupied by Paul. They were proud, 
 looked down upon Paul, called his authority in question, 
 and posed as having a superior commission themselves. 
 Personal faith in Jesus was to them unimportant. They 
 knew nothing of such faith. Acknowledging Jesu^ as the 
 Messiah was sufficient from their point of view^ They 
 still looked for salvation, as before, from the literal per- 
 
344 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 formance of the Mosaic Law, and they attempted to 
 force this view upon the Galatians. To them the rite 
 of circumcision was especially important. The Gentile 
 convert should not escape it. Afterwards they laid upon 
 him heavy burdens of ritualistic ceremonies. He must be 
 righteous, but to be righteous he must scrupulously per- 
 form the precepts of the Mosaic Law. To this he should 
 bend all his energies, the Messiahship of Jesus was not 
 by far as important, it was only secondary. The key to 
 life and conduct was yet to be found in the fulfilment of 
 the Mosaic Law. 
 
 Paul could not look on this without alarm. To him the 
 Messiahship of Jesus, Jesus as the Christ and Son of God, 
 formed the very essence and centre of his spiritual life. 
 Faith in Christ, the Messiah, in the complete sense, was 
 to him the great motive power which he recognized. 
 The Christian was by faith itself placed in a state of 
 righteousness, without any works of the Law. Faith in 
 Christ was everything ; the Law, henceforth, nothing. By 
 his relation to Christ the believer obtained everything. 
 Sin stood between man and the fayor of God, but Christ 
 had died to remove the curse, entailed by sin. Tiie 
 Christian was not released from the obligations of moral- 
 ity as contained in the Law, but morality was absorbed 
 in the new life of faith. A believer in Christ Avas in holy 
 communion with Him and could not lead an unholy life, 
 but the holy life was now a consequence, natural, easy, 
 spontaneous, necessary. " Be ye holy " remained, but in 
 its new meaning and fulness read : " Be ye holy, because 
 ye are bought with a price ; because ye are Christ's, and 
 your life is hid with Christ in Qod." The atonement of 
 Christ, substantiated by his real and victorious resurrec- 
 tion, accepted in a living faith by the penitent believer, 
 is transferred to the believer's account, and by the faith 
 
INTRODUCTION. 345 
 
 alone, for Christ's sake, he is declared righteous and a 
 child of God. The new life is a life of grateful, self-for- 
 getful, devoted love. The reign of the Law had ended 
 in a miserable failure ; the reign of Love, based upon 
 Justice and Righteousness from God's point of view, and 
 grace alone from our point of view, had succeeded and 
 superseded it forever. 
 
 The Epistle treats of timely subjects for our day and 
 land. So much fickleness of mind and purpose ; one day 
 only fever heat, enthusiasm, victory ; the next chills, 
 despair, defeat. Modern revivalism has made many 
 Galatians. Deep, sincere, lasting spirituality must be 
 more than a sporadic heat and glow in the feelings. On 
 the other hand, it is fully as much something else than 
 the observance of certain ritualistic forms and ceremonies. 
 Spirituality means communion, love, kinship, with the 
 Father of Spirits, God. Forgiveness of sin for Christ's 
 sake. Justification by Faith alone, and Sanctification by 
 the Means of Grace lead to it, give it life, perpetuate it. 
 Jesus, the Christ and the Son of God, the Atonement, 
 Justification by Faith alone, independent of the works of 
 the Law, the new liberty and life of holy Love, are to- 
 day the cardinal doctrine just the same as in the Apos- 
 tolic Age. 
 
 Let us, then, proceed to the Epistle itself. 
 
 The Bibliography of this Epistle is wonderfully rich. 
 The busy Bible reader and student will appreciate Weid- 
 ner, Ellicott (Sanday), Beet and Perowne. The larger 
 works are too well known in Lutheran circles to need 
 any mention here. We have followed and freely used 
 especially Luther, Starke, Perowne, Weidner, and Ellicott, 
 consulting, of course, the many others at the same time. 
 
 " It is my deliberate judgment that, for the purpose 
 for which the Epistle was written, and for its chief prac- 
 
346 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 tical worth now, Luther has caught and reproduced the 
 inmost thought of St. Paul more richly than has any- 
 other writer, ancient or modern " (Beet). 
 
 If this little work, compiled and performed with much 
 anxiety and a due sense of personal insignificance and 
 unworthiness, in strong contrast to the greatness and 
 overwhelming importance of the truths contained in this 
 Epistle, will prove of any service to the busy, hardwork- 
 ing, rest-needing Christians and co-laborers in the vine- 
 yard of to-day, my gratitude to 'God, the Giver of every 
 good gift, will be sincere and lasting. Hold fast to the 
 Truth, confess and proclaim it boldly and fearlessly ; do 
 not yield the ground to false teachers, be they ever so 
 popular and exalted ; such seems to be the message to 
 us. If Asia Minor, especially Galatia, was the nursery 
 of heresy for the first four centuries, what is our own 
 great country to-day ? 
 
 C. S. 
 
 Bethany College, 
 
 Easter Monday, 1897. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 1-5, Paul, an apostle (not from men, iieillier through man, but through 
 Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead), and all 
 the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia : Grace to 
 you and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave 
 himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil world, 
 according to the will of our God and Father : to whom be the glory for 
 ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 An apostle. Paul, the humblest of men, mentions his 
 high calling and office without hesitation. He insists on 
 his equality with the other Apostles, the Twelve. There 
 are times when such action becomes a duty and a neces- 
 sity. Not of men, neither by men. The office of Apos- 
 tle was something specifically unique. Man was neither 
 the source, nor the channel. It is different with the 
 ministry of to-day. That must always be received 
 through the channel of man. Paul shows immediately 
 that he was in need of the commendation of no one. 
 But through Jesus Christ and Qod the Father. Paul 
 realizes fully the dignity of his high calling. He had 
 secured his call from Christ Himself on his way to 
 Damascus (x\cts 9 : 1-18 ; 22 : 5-16 ; 26 : 12-23). Also 
 from the Father. Both are combined here, bearing tes- 
 timony to the equality of Christ with the Father. Every 
 true minister of the Gospel must be called not by man 
 alone {rite vocatus), but also by God. The inner call is 
 absolutely necessary. " Do not enter the ministry, if 
 you can help it." Who raised him from the dead. Paul 
 is never afraid of carrying an argument to its climax. 
 
 347 
 
348 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [1-2-4. 
 
 Here he leajDs forward at once to the greatest result and 
 the greatest proof. Christ died in our place. The 
 Father called Him back to life, thereby putting the seal 
 of completion and perfection upon His work and mission. 
 Paul was called by the risen Lord and by the Father, 
 who raised Him from the dead. Better authorities could 
 not exist. The resurrection is the most reliable bulwark 
 of our Faith. The great doctrines should be proclaimed 
 at all times. All the brethren which are with me. His 
 travelling companions. We are unable to say exactly 
 who they were, as we do not know fully from what place 
 Paul was writing. In any case probably Timothy, and 
 perhaps Titus, and others. The churches of Qalatia. 
 Intentionally abrupt and bare. They are not addressed 
 as '' saints " or " faithful brethren." Not a word of 
 praise for this fickle-minded church. The letter was evi- 
 dently intended not only for one, but for all the churches 
 of Galatia. Grace and peace. Grace for justification 
 and sanctification, peace as the result of justification 
 (Rom. 5 : 1), and as a sign of progressive sanctification. 
 God, the Father. The fountainhead of all grace, of every 
 good gift (James i : 17). The love of God the P^ithcr is 
 the starting-point of our salvation. And from our Lord 
 Jesus Christ. To us, sinners, all grace comes directly 
 through and in Christ. Without Christ God is terrible ; 
 in Christ and for Christ's sake He is our loving Father. 
 Christ is our Lord and Master. He has bought us with 
 His blood, we are His. He is full of grace (John i : 14), 
 and He is also our peace (Eph. 2 : 14). Who gave him= 
 self. Surrendered Himself of His own free will as a 
 sacrifice, forced by nothing but His love and faithfulness. 
 Gold and silver were not sufficient. He gave Himself ^■?, 
 a ransom (i Peter i : 18). For our sins. Sin is real ; our 
 sins are real. The atoning Saviour suffered on account 
 
I 4, 5.] SALVATION IN CHRIST. 349 
 
 of sin and in order to take away the guilt and punish- 
 ment of sin and reconcile us with God. Christ suffered 
 not only for us, but also in our stead. Deliver us. This 
 refers not only or in the first place to justification, but to 
 sanctification. Nothing sanctifies in so high a degree 
 and so perfectly as the full acceptance of the atonement 
 in Christ in a living faith. Deliver is the important 
 word, the keynote of the Epistle. Paul says : Christ 
 gave Him;-.clf for our sins, to deliver us: the false teachers 
 said : Keep the La:\% and you w-ill be delivered. This 
 present evil world. The present world is placed in con- 
 trast to the coming world, which will be full of righteous- 
 ness. The Jews divided History into two great periods, 
 the pre-Messianic and the post-Messianic. The crisis 
 between tlie two should be attended with much trouble. 
 That time was now. The world is evil, and never more 
 so than when feigning piety, wisdom, and interest in sal- 
 vation. The release is moral and spiritual. The Chris- 
 tian is to remain in this world willingly, and work for the 
 Master and his fellowmen. The atonement frees from 
 guilt, but also gives a new set of motives in man. He is 
 in the w'orld, but not of the world. The Christian is the 
 only truly independent person. According to the will. 
 The plan of redemption is no haphazard happening. It 
 is the will of God. Its realization by Christ and in man 
 is according to the will of God and pleasing in His sight. 
 Of God our Father. The love of God the Father is the 
 beginning of our salvation (John 3 : 16). In the redemp- 
 tion and in the Redeemer God becomes our loving and 
 dear Father (Is. 64 : 8). Glory. This is the essential 
 attribute of God. It does not belong to man. Rever- 
 ence is an important part of true piety and worship. 
 Forever and ever. " The ages of ages." Man has no 
 adequate expression for eternity. Our similes are all 
 
350 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [1.6,7. 
 
 only exponents of our inner consciousness of God and 
 our kinship with Him. We cannot define the greater by 
 the smaller. During all existence, God shall receive 
 glory and praise from those saved " by the blood of the 
 Lamb." Amen. This is the climax of faith. . Paul was 
 at the end already in the beginning. In that he was re- 
 lated to God, to whom everything is present at one time. 
 
 6-10. I marvel that ye are so quickly removing from him that called 
 you ill the grace of Christ unto a different gospel; which is not another 
 gospel ; only there are some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel 
 of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven should preach unto 
 you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anath- 
 ema. As we have said l^efore, so say I now again, If any man preacheth 
 unto you any gospel other than that which ye received, let him be anathema. 
 For am I now persuading men, or God ? or am I seeking to please men ? 
 if I were still pleasing men, I should not be a servant of Christ. 
 
 Marvel. Paul was surprised, astonished, and grieved 
 at their sudden defection. He had preached, they had 
 received salvation by grace. They imagined they were 
 hearing a different version only. Impossible. A second 
 Gospel was simj^ly absurd. Removed. The Greek word 
 stands for " deserter," " turn-coat," " apostate," either in 
 war, politics, or religion. Him that called you. God, the 
 Father, so generally ascribed by Paul. Into the grace of 
 Christ. Rather by the grace of Christ, into the grace of 
 Christ. It is only grace that brings us into the possession 
 of grace. Unto another gospel — which is not another. 
 Salvation is one. No alternative exists to us. A new 
 way to salvation is simply no way at all. The Judaists 
 had no Gospel. But there be some that trouble you. 
 These false teachers were disturbers, agitators, men who 
 with restless factiousness and' bigotry were causing 
 schisms in the Church. The result was unrest, uncer- 
 tainty, trouble. Pervert, They said improve. Any 
 " improvement " in this connection must mean perver- 
 
1. 8-IO.] EXCLUSIVENESS OF THE GOSPEL. 351 
 
 sion. Justification by faith is not improved by a return 
 to righteousness by works. Calvary made Sinah impos- 
 sible and needless as a mountain of salvation. Paul calls 
 things by their right names. The gospel of Christ. Pro- 
 ceeds from and relates to.Christ : subject and object alike. 
 Though. Greek : even though, marking an extreme and 
 improbable supposition, leading to an unavoidable and 
 strong conclusion. We. Paul and his close associates, 
 and probably the Twelve Apostles. An angel. Mark 
 the strength of Paul's conviction. Not even an angel 
 could change wrong into right. Another gospel. The 
 Christian must feel that he is right. That precluded the 
 possibility of the opposite being right. If justification 
 by faith is right, self-righteousness by the works of the 
 Law cannot be right. Evasion should be avoided. There 
 is only one true Gospel. Anathema, Accursed, deprived 
 of all part in Christ and God. The meaning " excom- 
 municated," in the sense of ecclesiastical censure, is not 
 found until much later. Repentance and confession 
 could change the situation ; nothing else. The word 
 gives no uncertain sound, gives no encouragement to any 
 weaklings of that day or any other time. So say I now 
 again. Notice the added strength by the repetition. 
 Paul did not speak in haste. No man can change the 
 Gospel, which is from Christ and the Father. An attempt 
 to change it is sacrilege. Paul had probably warned them 
 on the occasion of his second visit, A. D. 54. Am I seek- 
 ing to please men. Paul had laid himself op'en to the 
 charge of man-pleasing by the largeness of his character. 
 Quarrelling about trifles did not interest him. Through 
 his great sympathy he could easily place himself in the 
 position of other and truly understand them. On ques- 
 tions of principle he always took his stand firmly. If he 
 were seeking popularity, why this impolitic vehemence 
 
352 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [1.11,12. 
 
 of speaking ? Why these plain, terrible utterances against 
 the false doctrines ? A servant of Christ should not 
 court unpopularity. There is no piety in being shunned 
 by society. On questions of principle and true doctrine, 
 however, he dares never be equivocal. He must use 
 plain speech, easily understood by every one. 
 
 11-14. For I make known to you, brethren, as touching the gospel 
 which was preached by me, that it is not after man. For neither did I 
 receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through reve- 
 lation of Jesus Christ. For ye have heard of my manner of life in time 
 past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the 
 church of God, and made havock of it: and I have advanced in the Jews' 
 religion beyond many of mine own age among my countrymen, being more 
 exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 
 
 For I make known to you. This is the beginning of 
 the apologetic portion of the Epistle (1:11-2:21), the 
 personal defence of Paul against his opponents. The 
 doctrine taught by Paul comes from a divine source. He 
 did not learn it in his youth (vers. 13, 14), he did not learn 
 it at his conversion, for he went straight into the desert 
 to wrestle with God in solitude (vers. 15-17) ; he did not 
 learn it at his first visit in Jerusalem, for then he saw onl}- 
 Peter and James, and them very briefly (vers. 18-24); 
 he did not learn it at a later visit, for then he dealt with 
 the Apostles on equal terms ; nay, he was even forced to 
 rebuke Peter for seeming hypocrisy (2: 11-14); the Law 
 is no more; our life comes directly from Christ. After 
 man. The Gospel is not of human origin ; it is not ac- 
 cording to the standard of man. It surpasses man's own 
 powers of intellectual discovery. Revelation of Jesus 
 Christ. At Damascus, probably also afterwards, and 
 gradually ; but Paul was a completely equipped Apostle 
 shortly after his conversion already. The Gospel is n.ot a 
 system of human thought. It is throughout a revelation. 
 Itg contents and all human experience together verify 
 
I. 15.] THE CALL TO TIJE MINISTRY. 353 
 
 the divine origin. My manner of life in time past. Paul 
 had been something else before his conversion. He was 
 not ashamed to own up to it. He had been a zealous 
 Jew, a defender of the old ideas, a persecutor, more 
 energetic and fanatical than the most of his people. He 
 had studied and practised the Commandments and ritu- 
 alistic ceremonies of the Fathers with zeal and success. 
 No living Jew could tell him anything new. He seems 
 to have belonged to those, whose pride it was to call 
 themselves " zealots of the Law, zealots of God." 
 
 15-24. But when it was the good pleasure of God, who separated me, 
 even from my mother's womb, and called me through his grace, to reveal 
 his Son in me, that I might preach him among the Gentiles; immedi- 
 ately I conferred not with flesh and blood : neither went I up to Jerusa- 
 lem to them which were apostles before me : but I went away into Arabia; 
 and again I returned to Damascus. Then after three years I went up to 
 Jerusalem to visit Cephas, and tarried with him fifteen days. But other 
 of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. Now touch- 
 ing the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not. 
 Then I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. And I was still un- 
 known by face unto the churches of Judaea which were in Christ : but 
 they only heard say, He that once persecuted us, now preacheth the faith of 
 which he once made havock ; and they glorified God in me. 
 
 Called me through his grace. Paul lays all possible 
 stress upon God's call and God's will in his own case. 
 God had predestinated him for this office before his 
 birth. He was not an Apostle by his own effort, nor 
 from any worth of his own. It depended on God's own 
 will and grace. The ;«<?2'/;/^ cause, the divine good pleas- 
 lu'e ; the inediatmg cause, the grace of God ; the instru- 
 ment^ the heaven-sent voice, all were of God. To reveal 
 his Son in me. First of all, in Paul's mind and con- 
 sciousness. He must first himself experience an intense 
 conviction, before he could preach Christ to others. Can- 
 didates for the ministry, and for church work and instruc- 
 tion in general, should read these words with much 
 23 
 
354 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [i. 16-21. 
 
 thought and self-examination. The ministry is unlike 
 every other profession, or calling, in this one thing : The 
 minister must speak from his own personal experience. If 
 not, he is a hireling. It may also mean : througJi Paul. 
 Preach him among the heathen. That was to be Paul's 
 special mission. God often selects His servants for 
 special work, sometimes very difficult, as in this case, and 
 connected with an untold amount of self-sacrifice. I con= 
 ferred not with flesh and blood. He did not allow the 
 knowledge of his own frailties to overcome him, nor the 
 difficulties to be overcome to frighten him. Courage is 
 a necessary quality in a follower of Christ, a courage that 
 knows both itself and Christ. Neither went I up to 
 Jerusalem. To consult with those who were already 
 Apostles or to receive any commission from even them. 
 He was called by Christ Himself alone. Into Arabia. 
 Older commentators say : to preach the Gospel ; newer 
 commentators believe: it was rather for solitary medita- 
 tion and coimmmion tvith God. If we suppose that the 
 Apostle visited the Sinaitic peninsula, his journey to 
 Arabia becomes full of meaning. Damascus. It is un- 
 certain how much of the three years was spent in Arabia 
 and how much in Damascus. It seems that the sojourn 
 in Arabia was short. After three years. From his con- 
 version. To see Peter. Form his acquaintance, not to 
 be instructed by him. Fifteen days. Only a small 
 part of this time was probably spent in the company of 
 Peter. (See Acts 9 : 28, 29.) James, the Lord's brother. 
 Here called an Apostle, but not one of the Twelve. 
 Others have seen a reference here to the cousin of the 
 Lord, the son of Clopas, the Apostle James. Before 
 God, I lie not, A solemn declaration as to the truth of 
 these statements, regarding the relation of the Apostle 
 to the elder disciples. Afterwards . . . Syria and 
 
I. 23, 24.] PAUVS INDEPENDENCE. 355 
 
 Cilicia. First conveyed secretly to the seaport Caesarea 
 Stratonis ; thence by ship to Tarsus ; here he was found 
 by Barnabas and taken to Antioch, remaining for one 
 year. Was unknown by face. Continued unknown. To 
 the Christian communities of Judea he was not known 
 even by sight. They did not manifest any opposition to 
 his teaching ; they rejoiced in his conversion and subse- 
 quent work for Christ. The persecutor had been changed 
 into an Apostle. No wonder that they glorified God ! 
 Qod in me. An eminent Christian is a great testimonial 
 to the efficacy of the Gospel. He is like a " city set on 
 the hill." Our admiration should not, however, be allowed 
 to rest in him. It is to be made the occasion for giving 
 praise to God, whose grace, spirit and power make a be- 
 liever eminent and useful. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 i-io. Then after the space of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusa- 
 lem with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me. And I went up by revela- 
 tion ; and I laid before them the gospel which I preacli among the Gen- 
 tiles, but privately before them who were of repute, lest by any means I 
 should be running, or had run, in vain. But not even Titus who was with 
 me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised; and that because of 
 the false brethren privately brought in, who came in privately to spy out 
 our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into 
 bondage : to whom we gave place in the way of subjection, no, not for an 
 hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. But from 
 those who were reputed to be somewhat (whatsoever they were, it maketh 
 no matter to me: God accepteth not man's person) — they, I say, who were 
 of repute imparted nothing to me : but contrariwise, when they saw that I 
 had l^een intrusted with the gospel of the uncircumcision, even as Peter 
 with the gospel of the circumcision (for he that wrought for Peter unto the 
 apostleship of the circumcision wrought for me also unto the Gentiles); 
 and when they perceived the grace that was given unto me, James and 
 Cephas and John, they who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and 
 Barnabas the right hands of fellowship, that we should go unto the Gen- 
 tiles, and they unto the circumcision ; only they would that we should re- 
 member the poor; which very thing I was also zealous to do. 
 
 Fourteen years after. About 50 or 51 A. D., the year 
 of the Apo-stolic Council in Jerusalem. His third visit, 
 the second one during the famine of 44 A. D., being one 
 simply of benevolence (Acts 1 1 : 30), is omitted. Paul 
 seems to have visited the Holy City also in 54 A. D. 
 (Acts 18 : 21, 22) and 58 A. D. (Acts 21 : 17). Took 
 Titus with me also. Others were also with him (Acts 
 15:2), but Titus is especially mentioned, being by birth 
 a Gentile, and therefore giving rise to the dispute which 
 followed. By revelation. The Church at Antioch sent 
 
II. 2. 3-] REVELATIONS. 357 
 
 him (Acts 15:2), but the revelation either prompted or 
 confirmed the decision of the Church. Revelations to 
 Paul came in dreams, nocturnal visions, in a state of trance, 
 and probably in other ways. The particular mode at 
 this time is not mentioned. God has often spoken to 
 his servants in dreams and visions, and yet our confidence 
 in anything but the revealed word of God must always 
 be very guarded. We are not Apostles, but their fol- 
 lowers only. A revelation is its own proof to him who 
 receives it. Communicated unto them. Paul's work- 
 was not done in secret. His doctrine was open and 
 plain, and at Jerusalem he probably told the Church what 
 his sermons to the Gentiles had proclaimed and con- 
 tained, the same as they contained at the writing of this 
 Epistle, as is seen from the use of the present tense in 
 " preach." Privately to them that were of reputation. 
 Paul was not satisfied with informing the Church at large 
 of his work and creed, but met the leading men in private 
 conferences, discussing the situation more in detail and 
 probably also preparing the matter for an orderly i)resen- 
 tation in public. Lest by any means I should run or 
 had run. The Apostle was not proud or vain. His own 
 conviction of the truth as it is in Christ was clear and 
 undoubted. His Gospel of a free grace for Christ's sake 
 alone was dear and right to him, but he wanted, and in a 
 measure may also have needed, the confirmation afforded 
 by the sanction, by the other Apostles, of his own views 
 and doctrines. If the other Apostles had insisted on cir- 
 cumcision as necessary to salvation in Christ, l^uil's 
 preaching had been wrong. But neither Titus . . . was 
 compelled to be circumcised. Titus was a Gentile. A 
 principle was at stake. To yield now would be wrong 
 and lead to defeat. Some attempted to force the Apostle, 
 but it was useless. At another time Paul allowed that 
 
358 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. ["•4-7. 
 
 Timothy, who on his mother's side was a Jew, should be 
 circumcised, in order to smooth the way for the preach- 
 ing of the Gospel in the new regions. " Paul might have 
 suffered Titus to be circumcised ; but because he saw 
 they would compel him thereto, he would not, for if 
 they had prevailed therein, by and by they would have 
 gathered that it would have been necessary to justifica- 
 tion, and so through this sufferance would have triumphed 
 against Paul " (Luther). The leading Apostles did not 
 insist on the circumcision of Titus. False brethren. 
 Plain language again. Seeming interest in the cause of 
 Christ, and much zeal for one's own views, may not free 
 a man after all from the epithets used by Paul. They 
 professed to be Christians, but were only narrow-minded 
 Jews. Spy out our liberty. The Christian has liberty, 
 but not license. The truth alone can make us free, free 
 from the bondage of legalistic views and the slavery of 
 sin. Bring us into bondage. Those who are set free 
 should beware of a new bondage. Whenever man be- 
 comes more pious than God, and the devil begins to 
 preach reform, the true believer belongs to the other 
 side of the question. True Christian independence, based 
 upon a full and clear conception of the truth, is a rare 
 gift from heaven. That the truth of the gospel might 
 continue with you. How impulsive, how strict is the 
 Apostle in regard to the truth ! One marvels again and 
 again. Any sacrifice is justifiable, in order that we may 
 have the truth of the Gospel continued among us. What 
 a rebuke to the false tolerance of our day ! Who seemed to 
 be somewhat. The influence, judgment, and position of all 
 Christians are not alike. There are and should always 
 be leaders, but they should never be idolized or followed 
 blindly. These Apostles were recognized as leaders, not 
 only by the Council, but also by the Galatians and their 
 
II. 6-10.] PAUVS CREDENTIALS. 359 
 
 new teachers. .This latter brings new force into the ar- 
 gument. God accepteth no man's person. Paul's 
 "Declaration of Independence." Exterior advantages of 
 birth, nationality, or position count as nothing with God, 
 nor does he confine his grace and spirit to any special set 
 of men. Added nothing. Paul's Gospel conception was 
 complete. He had a better education than any other 
 Apostle ; he had received Christ as fully as the rest ; 
 when he met " the leaders," he received no new informa- 
 tion. A Christian must sometimes show this same self- 
 consciousness in our day. Gospel of uncircumcision ; i. e. 
 gospel for the uncircumcised. The older Apostles did 
 not fail to perceive that the teaching of Paul was funda- 
 mentally the same as theirs, and so gladly gave him full 
 recognition, especially as it was clear to every man that 
 God had as signally blessed the missionary labors of Paul 
 among the Gentiles as those of Peter among the Jews. 
 The same savor and spirit worked in and through both, 
 showing that their Apostleship was of the same kind. 
 Gave . . . the right hand of fellowship. James, Peter 
 and John cheerfully recognized Paul and Barnabas, as 
 serving the same cause and preaching the same doctrine. 
 These three Apostles were in repute, as being the pillars 
 of the Church. Their act of fellowship with Paul ought 
 practically to settle the question in Galatia, whether he, 
 Paul, were a true Apostle or not. We should go to the 
 heathen . . . they to the circumcision. Division of 
 labor is always beneficial. The example set by this first 
 synod merits to be followed in our day. Christian 
 churches should occupy the wide and open field, and not 
 proselyte among each other. The poor. Paul had 
 already brought relief to the poor in Judea, about 44 
 A. D., and did so again on his fifth and last journey. 
 The others gratefully recognized this benevolence and 
 
360 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [11. xi. 
 
 wished for its continuance, to which Paul willingly as- 
 sented. True religion is always philanthropic. The 
 miser is the opposite of a Christian. Free grace means 
 unlimited giving for His sake, whose grace we have re- 
 ceived. Every true pastor must bring this truth often 
 and with power to the Church, entrusted to his care. 
 Giving to the same cause strengthens the bond of union 
 among the followers of Christ. 
 
 1 1-21. Rut when Cephas came to Antioch, I resisted him to the face, be- 
 cause he stood condemned. For before that certain came from James, he 
 did eat witli the Gentiles : but when they came, he drew back and separated 
 himself, fearing them that were of the circumcision. And the rest of the 
 Jews dissembled likewise with him ; insomuch that even Barnabas was car- 
 ried away with their dissimulation. But when I saw that they walked not 
 uprightly according to the truth of the Gospel, I said unto Cephas before 
 them all. If thou, being a Jew, livest as do the Gentiles, and not as do 
 the Jews, how compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews .^ 
 We being Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, yet knowing 
 that a man is not justified by the works of the law, save through faith in 
 Jesus Christ, even we believed on Christ Jesus, that we might be justi- 
 fied by faith, in Christ, and not by the works of the law: because by the 
 works of the law shall no flesh be justified. But if, while we sought to be 
 justified in Christ, vv'e ourselves also were found sinners, is Christ a minis- 
 ter of sin ? God forbid. For if I build up again those things which I de- 
 stroyed, I prove myself a transgressor. For I through the law died unto 
 the law, that I might live unto God. I have been crucified with Christ ; yet 
 I live ; and yet no longer I, but Christ liveth in me ; and that life which I 
 now live in the flesh, I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, 
 who loved me, and gave himself up for me. I do not make void the 
 grace of God ; for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died 
 for nought. 
 
 Withstood him to his face. The argument here 
 reaches its climax. Paul reproves Peter, the greatest of 
 Apostles among the Jews. How could he then have 
 received his Gospel from Peter or any other man ? No, 
 he had received it from Christ Himself, and therefore it 
 was most assuredly true and reliable. He was to be 
 blamed. Let us make no man our idol. Peter himself, 
 
II. 12-14.] PETER INCONSISTENT. 361 
 
 even as an Apostle, was once found to be double-faced 
 and hypocritical. Such are the best of men. Christ 
 alone should be our ideal. Peter was generously impul- 
 sive and timidly sensitive to the opinions of others. A 
 strong, but dangerous combination. He did eat with the 
 Gentiles. At first Peter showed himself a true New 
 Testament Christian. He recognized the converted 
 Gentiles as his brethren and equals in Christ. He sat 
 down with them to their tables, and ate as they did, en- 
 tirely unconcerned as to the demands of the ceremonial 
 laws of the Jews. In this he did rightly. The Lord 
 Himself had instructed him in a vision concerninsf this 
 question. Oh, how rent asunder the Church has become 
 more than once by fruitless and foolish discussions about 
 matters of dress, eating, and drinking, entirely unimpor- 
 tant in themselves, from a New Testament point of view! 
 Withdrew and separated himself. Peter had not enough 
 of manhood on this question. When some Jewish Chris- 
 tians arrived, he feared them, and changed his mode of 
 life, separating from the Gentile believers. The others did 
 as Peter, showing the responsibility and influence of ex- 
 ample, until even Barnabas dissimulated. The Church 
 has often been made to suffer, because weak-minded, 
 well-meaning Christians have not dared to say and act in 
 accordance with their knowledge and conviction of what 
 was right. They walked not uprightly. Hypocrisy is 
 the bane of true religion. We dare not have " one 
 theology of the head and one of the heart." Clear-sighted 
 Paul looked through it all at a glance. What a blessing 
 it is to the followers of Christ to enjoy the benefits of such 
 cool discernment, such unerring judgment. According 
 to the truth of the gospel. The word of God must be 
 allowed to settle our differences. Tradition, usage, per- 
 sonal opinions must give way before the revealed will of 
 
362 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [11. 14. 
 
 the Lord. The strength of the Church depends on her 
 faithfuhiess to the truth of the Gospel. PubHc opinion, 
 even in the Christian countries, maybe turned into very 
 erratic ways ; leading men in the Church may become 
 subjugated by the spasmodic heresies of a generation; 
 but, amidst it all, the true believer stands on " the Rock 
 of Ages " unmoved, undaunted, full of assurance and 
 hope, because " the word of God abideth forever." Said 
 unto Peter before them all. Paul did not say of Peter, 
 but to Peter. He did not refuse to do his duty, because 
 Peter was an exalted man. Fearlessly, truthfully, honor- 
 ably he calls him to task for his mistake and sin. The 
 decree of the Council at Jerusalem had virtually ex- 
 empted Gentile converts from the observance of the 
 Jewish ceremonial law. Peter had lived up to this declar- 
 ation for a time, and then allowed his timidity to make 
 a hypocrite of him. That was wrong and ought to be so 
 considered. K thou, a Jew^, Uvest after the manner of 
 Gentiles. Paul was a logician. His argument is conclu- 
 sive. Peter, a Jew, had in this matter lived as a Gentile, 
 what right had he then to require a Gentile to live as a 
 Jew? By his own example he had already shown, that 
 in fact he did not consider the Ceremonial Law as binding, 
 yet he turns around and by another example gives cre- 
 dence to the view that it is. The Ceremonial Law had out- 
 lived its usefulness. This is now the Nczv Testament. 
 " The Gospel teaches clearly that righteousness from the 
 works of the law, and the necessity for the observance of 
 the Ceremonial Law are inconsistent with redemption by 
 the death of Christ." Mark the power of the Gospel in 
 the hearts of men I Paul was made strong to proclaim 
 the truth fearlessly, and without any wavering. Peter 
 received the correction humbly and patiently. Truth 
 and peace live well together in the family of Christ. 
 
II. i6.] JUSTIFICA TION BY FAITH. 363 
 
 Jews by nature ; i. e. by birth, nationality, inherited 
 rights. The rights of a Jew belonged to all Jews alike. 
 Of the Gentiles. Of Gentile parentage and therefore 
 "sinners," as being outsiders, without the covenant, the 
 word and the promises. Is not justified. Here the great 
 word of the Epistle to the Romans is introduced. To 
 justify is to pronounce just or righteous, free from guilt, 
 and therefore from punishment, in the sight of God, It is 
 an act outside of man, before the judgment seat of God, 
 not in man. Man cannot be justified by the works of the 
 law. Jews and Gentiles are sinners alike before God and 
 have the same need of salvation by grace. The full real- 
 ization of our helpless condition is a necessary condition 
 for salvation, yea, is in itself an important step towards 
 the blessed Saviour. By the faith of Jesus Christ. What 
 is then this powerful agency, Faith ? Is it the source of 
 our Salvation ? Is it the cause of our Justification? Is 
 it the means by which grace is wrought or conferred upon 
 us ? No. Faith is only the means whereby the grace of 
 God, based upon Christ's atonement, is received or ac- 
 cepted. It is the hand which extends upward to embrace 
 Christ and put on Christ to Justification. What a won- 
 derfully simple, and yet miraculous thing faith is ! It 
 begins in our hearts in the longing for Christ and His 
 salvation, in the prayer and anguish of our souls, that 
 Christ may be ours. Its continual effort is to accept 
 Christ, to trust in Him alone, to hold fast to His promises, 
 to embrace Him and His redemption without wavering. 
 This faith is sometimes full of assurance and joy, but at 
 other times subject to much trouble, anxiety, darkness, 
 and struggling. Its necessary condition is always, how- 
 ever, that it cannot and will not let go of its hold upon 
 Christ. Even we. We also. Although Jews, with all 
 of our privileges, national and religious pride, we have 
 
364 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [11. 17, 18. 
 
 believed in Christ, in order that we may be justified by 
 faith. Paul and Peter were Jews, but their obedience to 
 the law, their works of the law, were not sufficient for 
 Justification. Faith in Christ was necessary. Justifica- 
 tion by faith means, that when I believe in Christ, God, 
 of His grace, for Christ's sake alone, forgives all of my 
 sins, imputes to me the righteousness of Christ, and 
 adopts me as one of His own, dear, and beloved children. 
 Nothing can be greater, more full of consolation and 
 happiness, more conclusive and far-reaching in our doc- 
 trinal system, than this blessed article about Justification 
 by Faith. It is the very heart of all truly religious life 
 and experience, the material principle of all real Protes- 
 tantism, and the very costliest and most precious jewel of 
 the Church of the Reformation. Every Gospel sermon 
 in Protestant pulpits should be a testimony to excel- 
 lency of this article of Justification by Faith. The world 
 needs nothing else so much to-day as vigorous, sanctified 
 preaching upon just this important theme. Ourselves 
 also are found sinners. What terrible logic ! Paul 
 means : we are justified by faith and now the children of 
 God, but you and yours come to us, attempting to force 
 upon us the duty of obedience to the Ceremonial Law, as 
 if that were greater than Christ, as if we, who believe 
 in Christ, were yet in our sins. That would make Christ 
 the minister of sinners, instead of saved souls. The 
 Gospel then could only show us our sins, but not save us 
 from our sins. To be saved, we must turn to the law 
 again. God forbid such blasphemy ! For if I build again. 
 Paul continues the argument. He had torn down the 
 authority of the Mosaic Law, as far as it claimed to make 
 men righteous before God. Christ, not we, had fulfilled 
 the law. Faith in Christ made His obedience to the law 
 ours. If I now, by word or example, would begin to 
 
II. rg, 20.] DELIVERANCE FROM THE LAW. 365 
 
 teach that faith in Christ is not sufficient for salvation, 
 but that the works of the law are also necessary, I would 
 be a transgressor. Through the law am dead to the law. 
 Paul's way to freedom from the Law lay through the Law. 
 The law when spiritually interpreted bears testimony to 
 its own insufficiency. It never was able to lead its votaries 
 to that perfection which it demands. Paul's experiences 
 with Gamaliel prepared him for Christ. The negative 
 side was given by his own meditation ; the positive side, 
 faith in Christ, was produced by Christ Himself through 
 the vision on the road to Damascus. " The word law in 
 both cases has the same meaning and is the Mosaic Law. 
 The meaning is this : I, thro2igh the laiv, owing to sin, 
 was brought under its curse, but having been crucified 
 with Christ (2 : 20; 3:13),/ died to the law, being free 
 from its claims, and from its curse (3 : 1 3)." That I might 
 live unto God. Now I live reconciled with God, by the 
 grace of my Saviour, justified by faith, as His own dear 
 child. Living unto Christ and living unto God, here 
 would mean the same thing. The one leads to the other. 
 I am crucified. In Christ, the Apostle was himself cruci- 
 fied for his own sins. Christ as our substitute is the 
 greatest of realities. When Christ died for our sins, we 
 died with Him. Our sins brought Christ to Calvary ; 
 Christ on Calvary brings us into Paradise. Not that 
 alone. The power of the cross, experienced in our hearts, 
 when we believe in Christ, by faith appropriating all that 
 He is and has our own, makes it possible for us to mor- 
 tify the promptings of sin within us and by and by reduce 
 them to a state of inactivity not unlike death. Neverthe= 
 less I live. To be crucified with Christ, to die with Christ, 
 that is, to accept fully and sincerely of Chri.st's salvation, 
 is to live the immortal life here already, is to live in a 
 truer and nobler sense than ever before. The Christian 
 
366 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [11. 20. 
 
 does not give up his personality. He lives. Yet not I, 
 but Christ Hveth in me. Not the old, natural man, not 
 that 1 who was enslaved by the fear and tyranny of the 
 law and the promptings of sin, but the new, liberated /, 
 the new man, vivified by the spirit of God. Christ lives 
 in him by faith. He, Christ, is the righteousness of the 
 believer. Through Christ accepted in a living Faith, 
 Paul stood before God as sinless and righteous as Christ 
 Himself, after having completed the work of the Atone- 
 ment, when the Father found in Him no imputed sin any 
 more, but only righteousness and holiness, Christ by 
 His word and spirit is also the new, inner life, the moving 
 cause and power of the new activity displayed by the be- 
 liever. " For Christ's sake " means everything to the true 
 follower of the Master. In the flesh. Outwardly, the 
 Christian lives as other people do. He is in the body as 
 they ; it is his inner life which is " hid with Christ in God." 
 By the faith of the Son of God. Faith is the very atmos- 
 phere in which he lives. By faith, he also has Christ 
 living in his own heart. Christ is constantly the object 
 of faith ; all source of life and strength. Yea, faith in 
 Christ makes life and resurrection certain even in the hour 
 of death. Christ is the Son of God, and is therefore suf- 
 ficiently powerful to keep all His promises to the believer. 
 Who loved me. Ah, Paul is no cold-blooded man of war! 
 He is rather a man of love. God loved the whole world 
 in Christ, but to the Apostle it comes in a higher, nearer, 
 more touching light : Christ loved inc. Oh, that the 
 thousands of weary, thirsty souls, who are dying because 
 of unsupplied love, might with Paul be able to say : He 
 loved VIC ! To say, to know, to feel that, is a great part 
 of heaven already here below. Gave himself for me. 
 Wonder at the holy, loving perseverance of the Apostle. 
 Time and again he returns to the meritorious works of 
 
II. 21.] DELIVERANCE FROM THE LA W. 367 
 
 Christ. Christ did it all, paid it all, gave Himself. Christ 
 gave Himself for Paul. Oh, how personal it had become 
 to the man of Tarsus. Christ loved Jiiiii, gave Himself 
 for ///;;/, lived in Jiim. Blessed salvation indeed. Would 
 Paul then return to Moses, would the beloved of Christ 
 seek bondage anew? Assuredly not. Frustrate the 
 grace of God. Frustrate means to render ineffectual. 
 The Judaizing party by clinging to the Law made the 
 grace of God in Christ of no value or use. Every one 
 who refuses to accept of Christ, or who seeks after sub- 
 stitutes for Christ, renders the grace of God ineffectual. 
 Several modern tendencies receive their condemnation 
 here. The grace of God means salvation through Christ, 
 and through nothing else. A denial of the efificacy of 
 the merits of Christ, or confidence in the merits of our 
 own works, or laxity in sanctification as a result of a life 
 in faith, or a persistent clinging to our own unworthiness 
 instead of accepting Christ, all frustrate the grace of 
 God. If righteousness come by law. Another climax. 
 What man needs and seeks after is righteousness. On 
 that point all agree. Only the just have a right to see 
 God. The Law has failed in bringing about in man such 
 a righteousness. Our works are entirely insufificient for 
 justification. So the Christian turns to Christ in faith, 
 and according to God's inscrutable wisdom and love 
 receives an imputed righteousness, is justified by faith 
 without any works of his own, becomes a child of God, 
 receives and lives in a new life in continued and ever 
 growing sanctification. Then Christ is dead in vain. If 
 the Law really could make us righteous before God, then 
 why should Christ be made to suffer and die ? A return 
 to the bondage of the Law meant to say, that there was 
 no real necessity for the sufferings and death of Christ, 
 they had no object and could be of no real benefit to 
 mankind. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 1-5. O foolish Galatians, who did bewitch you, before whose eyes Jesus 
 Christ was openly set forth crucified ? This only would I learn from you, 
 Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith ? 
 Are ye so foolish ? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the 
 flesh ? Did ye suffer so many things in vain ? if it be indeed in vain. He 
 therefore that supplieth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles amongyou, 
 doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith ? 
 
 Foolish Galatians. They were guilty of insufficient 
 application of the mind or intellect, a defect in the liead 
 more than in the Jieart. Foolish refers to the absence or 
 undisciplined condition of the reasoning faculty The 
 Galatians were intellectually shallow and frivolous. They 
 had little of mental stability. Only a little reflection 
 would have saved them from their inconsistencies, it 
 seems. It is a sad thought, that many members of the 
 Church of Christ not infrequently show marked traits of 
 the same character. Acting on impulse, instead of rea- 
 soning, brings bad results. Mark again the plainness, not 
 to say vehemence, of Paul's language, based not upon 
 anger or lacking tact, but upon the importance of the 
 subject under discussion. Bewitched you. Hypnotized 
 we would probably say in our, day. Paul makes use of 
 the popular superstition of an "evil eye." The meta- 
 phor is a strong and striking one in its connection. Christ 
 had evidently and plainly been set before their eyes, 
 posted up in large bold characters, as it were, and now 
 some one had hypnotized them, so that they could not 
 see Him any more. The allusion is of course to the 
 368 
 
III. 1-3.] CHRIST CRUCIFIED. 369 
 
 Judaizing teachers. The figure of speech is an accusation, 
 explanation, and excuse all in one. Not obey the truth. 
 Originally a gloss. The words are in place as an ex- 
 planation, calling attention to the terrible character 
 of the work of their hypnotizers. Obeying the truth 
 is one of the greatest of compliments, a true sign 
 of a Christian character ; the opposite condition of 
 mind is guilty and degraded without measure. Evi= 
 dently set forth. The English phrase is too weak. 
 Christ crucified had been preached so vividly, and they 
 had listened so sincerely and with so much conviction, as 
 if they had seen a painting of it, or seen the very act it- 
 self. Now they saw nothing of it at all any more. They 
 were hypnotized, so to speak. Crucified. The word is 
 plain and direct. Paul preached Christ and Him cruci- 
 fied.. This truth must ever be brought out as promi- 
 nently as possible. Among you. The words are wanting 
 in four of the most ancient MSS., and in a majority of the 
 oldest versions. If they are retained, they should be 
 taken with " evidently set forth," not with " crucified." 
 In any case they would refer to the plainness of the 
 preaching of Christ as crucified for us, and the willing 
 and easy acceptance on part of the Galatians. This only. 
 Paul is leading them on to a narrow passage. He is 
 getting them into the corner. Just one question : Your 
 present conduct and your past, how can they be recon- 
 ciled ? Received ye the Spirit. The usual gifts in and 
 for sanctification, or a new and holy life, and probably 
 especially the spiritual gifts of a miraculous character, 
 such as the gift of prophecy, the gift of tongues, the in- 
 terpretation of tongues, the discerning of spirits, gifts 
 of healing, etc. (Comp. Acts 2 : 4, 17, 18, 33; 8 : 17 ; 
 10 : 44-46; I Cor. 12 and 14.) By the works of the law. 
 The question is : Did you receive the gifts of the Spirit 
 24 
 
370 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [111.3,4. 
 
 by your works of the Law ? Could your partial and im- 
 perfect keeping of the Commandments of the Law give 
 you peace, and joy, and assurance, and hope, and the 
 powers of miraculous import, such as you have seen and 
 experienced ? Paul is trying to arouse their memory and 
 conscience. By the hearing of faith. We should prob- 
 ably have said by the preaching of faith, but note the 
 splendid turn in the phrase used. He had preached, 
 they had heard, that is, gladly and willingly received this 
 message concerning faith in Christ. By hearing that 
 preaching they had been justified, born again, had received 
 peace and joy, and many of the special gifts of the 
 Spirit. Faith alone had done this for them. Foolish. 
 (See note on ver. i.) Having begun in the Spirit. 
 They had surely begun in the Spirit, had a spiritual con- 
 ception and experience in their religion. Their faith, 
 joy, and miraculous gifts were all the fruits of the Spirit, 
 not of the works of the Law. Made perfect by the flesh. 
 Finish or complete your experiences in the flesh. Flesh 
 here refers to the Law, or to compliance with outward 
 observances as opposed to the spiritual j^rinciple of faith. 
 It is indeed foolish to descend from the higher, a spiritual 
 conception and experience, to a lower, the bondage of 
 the law, and its failure to accomplish the necessary re- 
 sults for salvation. The change from the liberty and 
 spirituality enjoyed by a believer of Christ to any pre- 
 vious condition, is always a terrible descent. Progress 
 and exaltation in spiritual experiences come from Christ 
 alone. Suffered so many things. The Galatians were 
 certainly subjected to many persecutions, in general with 
 the other early Christian churches. This probably refers 
 to the enmity of the Jews at the first conversion of the 
 Galatians, and then becomes doubly significant in the 
 connection. They were now listening with patience to 
 
in. 6, 7-] ABRAHAM'S FAITH. 371 
 
 their former persecutors, or their allies. Some 'would 
 render, " Have ye experienced so many things? " i. e. 
 (i) so many spiritual blessings, or (2) such trials and such 
 mercies, both taken together. If it be yet in vain. All 
 these experiences would certainly be in vain, unless they 
 returned from their follies and heresies. Paul here 
 gently and lovingly suggests that appearances might 
 possibly be against them, and that he will not give up 
 all hope of their yet remembering the first joyous con- 
 viction, and that the memory of that experience would 
 be beneficial to them even now. 
 
 6-9. Even as Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for 
 righteousness. Know therefore that they which be of faith, the same are 
 sons of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify 
 the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand unto Abraham, say- 
 ing. In thee shall all the nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith 
 are blessed with the faithful Abraham. 
 
 Abraham believed God. (See Gen. 15: 16; James 
 2:23; Rom. 4:3.) They must admit that they them- 
 selves had received the gifts of the Spirit and of a new 
 life, not by the law, but by faith. Then comes the case 
 of Abraham, the great " Father of his country," to the 
 Jews and Judaizers. What about him? Only this, that 
 he believed God, before the institution of circumcision. 
 His faith was accounted to him for righteousness. This 
 was done before he and his were under the Law. Ac- 
 counted ... for righteousness. Abraham's faith in 
 God's promises of a Messiah was reckoned in his accounts 
 in the heavenly ledger as righteousness. God keeps an 
 account with man, as it were. Abraham's faith was 
 posted on the right side of the ledger, and it was posted 
 as righteousness. They which are of faith . . . are the 
 children of Abraham. The Judaizers were saying that 
 circumcision is necessary in order to become a child of 
 Abraham ; is necessary to righteousness and sonship with 
 
372 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. ["i- 8, 9. 
 
 God. Abraham Avas justified by faith and not by cir- 
 cumcision, or any other commandment of the Law. His 
 righteousness and sonship with God were prior to the 
 Law and depended on faith. Those having faith in God's 
 promises now were therefore the true children of Abra- 
 ham. That which made Abraham himself righteous 
 before God, i. e. faith, had the same blessed result now. 
 The scripture. TJic inspired ivord of God, here per- 
 sonified. Foreseeing. The spirit of God in the word of 
 God saw beforehand. The Jews said : " What saw the 
 scripture?" It seems to have been quite a common 
 formula among them. God would justify the heathen 
 through faith. It was God's purpose to save the Gentiles 
 by faith. In the case of Abraham could be seen the 
 entire dispensation of salvation. He believed and was 
 saved, and in this believing Abraham should all nations 
 be blessed. What was Abraham, when he believed, but 
 the same as a believing Gentile to-day? Preached before 
 the gospel. This may mean : " a Gospel before Gospel 
 times " (Bengel), or it may mean a Gospel antecedent to 
 the Law and to circumcision. The promise to Abraham 
 was surely an anticipation of the Gospel, not only as an- 
 nouncing the Messiah, but also as containing and embody- 
 ing the great doctrine of justification by faith, in which 
 consists the very essence of the Gospel. In thee. That 
 is, in Christ, who came from Abraham, the true seed of 
 Abraham, and therefore also in Abraham, if they be- 
 lieved, as he did, and by faith became his spiritual de- 
 scendants. What applied to him applied potentially and 
 prophetically to them also. The blessing (justification) 
 comes to man only from the atoning death and imputed 
 merit of Christ. These were apprehended by faith in the 
 case of Abraham. They are so apprehended by each of 
 his spiritual descendants. Be blessed. Be saved, be 
 
III. 10, II.] NO^ MIDDLE STATE. 373 
 
 participators in Christ, become members of the kingdom 
 of the Messiah, have equal privileges with Abraham. 
 With faithful Abraham. The spiritual descendants are 
 blessed in Abraham and ivitJi him. He is the first, the 
 head, of a great company, comprising them all. Faithful 
 here means full of faith. 
 
 10-14. For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse : 
 for it is written, Cursed is every one which continueth not in all things that 
 are written in the book of the law, to do them. Now that no man is justi- 
 fied by the law in the sight of God, is evident : for. The righteous shall live 
 l)y faith ; and the law is not of faith ; but, lie that doeth them shall live in 
 them. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a 
 curse for us ; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree; 
 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ 
 Jesus ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 
 
 As many as are of the works of the law. Corresponds 
 to " they which are of faith " in vers. 7 and 9. It com- 
 prehends all who trust in the works of the Law for Salva- 
 tion, who seek to become righteous by their obedience to 
 the Law, and who hope to reach heaven by the merits of 
 their own works. Under the curse. Strictly, arc under 
 a curse. The curse and blessing are opposed. Curse 
 means condemnation, the opposite of blessing, which is 
 justification. There is no middle state. For it is written. 
 Paul quotes from their own Jewish, accepted authorities. 
 This gives terrible force to the argument. The words 
 (Deut. 27 : 26) are the conclusion of the curse uttered on 
 Mt. Ebal. It applied first of all to the Jews, but also to 
 every one seeking to be justified by his obedience to the 
 Law and not in God's own appointed way, by faith. 
 The Law demands a perfect obedience (" in all things ") 
 and a continual obedience ("continueth not "). No man 
 is Justified by the law. A law which pronounces a curse 
 upon all who fail to render a perfect obedience to its 
 commands, cannot possibly justify man, who is ever un- 
 
374 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [111.11,12. 
 
 able to produce this complete obedience. The way to 
 justification by the Law is closed, never to be opened 
 again. In the sight of God. The Law may produce 
 an outward righteousness which is commendable, as for 
 instance in the case of Paul himself before his conversion, 
 but when man stands accused as a prisoner before the 
 bar of God, something more is required. The perfect 
 purity and obedience of our hearts is then necessary, if 
 we are to be acquitted by the law and by God, the 
 eternal Judge. The just shall live by faith. Quoted 
 from Hab. 2 : 4. also found in Rom. 1:17; Hebr. 10 : 38. 
 One of the most important doctrinal passages in the 
 entire New Testament. God pointed to another way to 
 justification already by the prophet in the old Covenant, 
 therefore it must surely be impossible to be justified by 
 the works of the law. It is faith (not law) that gives 
 righteousness, and therefore life. A man is not just 
 before the exercise of faith, but he becomes justified by 
 the exercise of it ; and from another point of view, the 
 state of righteousness so received is also a state of life. 
 The Christian, the just, lives by faith and in faith, re- 
 ceives his righteousness through faith, also his strength 
 and hope by faith. How is it possible, then, that he 
 should live by the works of the Law ? The law is not of 
 faith. The very nature of the law is such that it cares 
 nothing for faith, it demands works. It gives nothing, 
 but requires everything. The contrast between the Law 
 and the Gospel should always be clearly defined by the 
 Christian teacher. Doeth them . . . shall live. If man 
 could yield perfect obedience to the Law, then he would 
 be just and could live by the Law, instead of by faith. 
 But can he yield such an obedience ? No, a thousand 
 times no. And so man remains under the curse of the 
 Law, until saved by faith. Christ has redeemed us. 
 
III. 13, 14.] THE CURSE OE THE LA IV. 375 
 
 Ransomed us. Christ set us free by purchase from the 
 state in which we were held. We are bought with a 
 price. (See Cor. 6 : 20 ; 7:23; Matt. 20 : 28 ; i Tim. 2:6; 
 I Pet. 1:18, 19.) Us. The Jews in a special and direct 
 sense ; the Gentiles also, in general. From the curse of 
 the Law. He became the curse, which we were, in our 
 stead, that in Him we might cease to be a curse. The 
 curse of the Law demanded, meant death. To rescue 
 us, Christ submitted to an accursed death. He, though 
 sinless, bore, nay, became the curse, that on us might 
 come the blessing. For us. " On our behalf," " for our 
 sakes," not " in our stead." Paul, like the rest of the 
 Apostles, regarded the sufferings of Christ as undergone 
 in our stead. The idea is distinctly presented in this 
 very passage, but it must be gathered from the context, 
 not from the preposition. The great doctrine of our 
 Blessed Lord's vicarious sufferings and death does not 
 rest upon the narrow foundation of the exact force of a 
 particle. It is the doctrine of the entire form of Wor- 
 ship of the Old Testament, especially in the numerous 
 types and prophecies, and it is the doctrine of the Lord 
 Himself and His Apostles in the N. T. (See Is. 53 : 5, 6; 
 Matt. 20 : 28 ; Tit. 2 : 14.) As it is written. Paul ap- 
 peals again and again to the revealed Word of God. A 
 good example to follow. Cursed is every one that 
 hangeth on a tree. (From Deut. 21 : 23.) By dying on 
 the cross Christ received in the fullest possible measure 
 the curse of the Law. The blessing of Abraham. The 
 blessing promised to Abraham and to be fulfilled in his 
 seed, that is, in Christ. Justification by faith (ver. 9). 
 In Christ the Gentiles had become the equals of the 
 Jews. Receive the promise of the spirit. Rather, the 
 fulfilment of that promise. Same phrase occurs in Acts 
 I : 4 ; 2 : 33. It is through faith in Christ Jesus that the 
 
376 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [111.15,16. 
 
 Gentiles partake in the blessing and receive the gift of 
 the Holy Ghost with all attendant privileges. 
 
 15-18. Brethren, I speak after the manner of men : Though it be but a 
 man's covenant, yet when it hath been confirmed, no one maketh it void, 
 or added thereto. Now to Abraham were the promises spoken, and to his 
 seed. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many ; but as of one. And to thy 
 seed, which is Christ. Now this I say ; A covenant confirmed beforehand 
 by God, the law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not 
 disannul, so as to make the promise of none effect. For if the inheritance 
 is of the law, it is no more of promise: but God hath granted it to Abraham 
 by promise. 
 
 I speak after the manner of men. A familiar expres- 
 sion with Paul (Rom. 3:5; i Cor. 3:3; 9 : 28). It 
 means : " according to an ordinary human standard," 
 " as men commonly judge, or speak, or act." Though it 
 be but a man's covenant. When the parties to a con- 
 tract have signed and sealed it, or when a man has made 
 his last Will and dies, then the matter contained in said 
 Contract or Will stands as decided. No one can annul 
 it, or change it, if properly made. When the Deed is 
 properly made, signed and recorded, it decides the owner- 
 ship of the property. If the Will is properly made, 
 signed, and probated, it remains valid, whatever may be 
 the wishes of those interested. To Abraham and his 
 seed were the promises made. The promise was fre- 
 quently repeated. (See Gen. 12:3; 13:15; 17:8; 18:18; 
 22 : 18.) It was a temporal and spiritual promise. The 
 latter predominates. With Paul the spiritual application 
 is the one used. He saith not. " He " must be sup- 
 plied. It refers cither to God or the promise. And to 
 seeds, as of many; but as of one. The seed of Abraham 
 is Christ. The singular used both in the Hebrew and in 
 LXX. gives Paul occasion to speak of this prophetic al- 
 lusion to Christ. Not by the millions of posterity given 
 to Abraham, but in Christ alone would the blessing 
 
III. 17, 18.] HEIRSFflP IN' CHRIST. 377 
 
 promised be fulfilled. The promise was restricted to 
 one line, that of Isaac, and in its culmination to one per- 
 son, Christ. And this I say. This is my meaning. Paul 
 here returns to the argument of ver. 15. Confirmed 
 before of God, Confirmed by God before the giving of 
 the Law by so many repetitions of the promise, also by 
 an oath (Hebr. 6 : 17), and by external signs (Gen. 15 : 17), 
 among which circumcision was the most important. In 
 Christ. Probably a gloss. If retained, they should be 
 rendered : unto Christ, i. e. with a view to Christ, to find 
 its fulfilment in Christ. Four hundred and thirty years 
 after. On the chronological questions involved, see 
 Ellicott in loco and Alford's and Lightfoot's notes. A 
 long time, that is the question of the argument. The 
 Law was given hundreds of years later than the promise. 
 The inheritance. In the first place the temporal inherit- 
 ance of the land of Canaan, but here especially the spirit- 
 ual blessings of the Messianic kingdom. Eyen the se- 
 curing of the earthly Canaan was a matter of faith (Heb. 
 II : 8-16). Gave it. The inheritance was not on ac- 
 count of any law, or any works of the Law. God gave it 
 freely, out of His grace alone. In the original, a strong 
 word is used. It means to give freely, that is, without 
 any contract or consideration received or requested from 
 the second party. God gave the promise to Abraham 
 untrammelled by any engagement on His side by the 
 non-fulfilment of which it might be made void. It was 
 a gift of grace, received in its promise by Abraham's 
 faith. 
 
 19-24. What then is the law.' It was added because of transgressions, 
 till the seed should come to whom the promise hath been made ; and it 
 was ordained through angels by the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator 
 is not a mediator of one ; but God is one. Is the law then against the 
 promises of God ? God forbid : for if there had been a law given which 
 could make alive, verily righteousness would have been of the law. How- 
 
378 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [111.19,20. 
 
 beit the scripture hath shut up all things under sin, that the promise by 
 faith in Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. 
 
 But before faith came, we were kept in ward under the law, shut up unto 
 the faith which should afterwards be revealed. So that the law hath been 
 our tutor to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
 
 Wherefore then serveth the law ? Literally, ivhat 
 tJioi is tJic Laiv ? If it did not affect tlie promise, what 
 did it do? Notice here the inferiority of the law in four 
 particulars. It is restricted and conditioned, " added be- 
 cause of transgressions ; " temporary and provisional, 
 " till the seed should come ; " it was given by God medi- 
 ately, " through angels ; " it was received from God 
 mediately, " by the hand of a mediator," i. e. Moses. 
 It was added. It did not belong to God's original plan ; 
 but came as a sort of marginal addition. It was paren- 
 thetical in its nature. Because of transgressions. The 
 purpose of the Law was not to check or restrain sin ; 
 nor to increase the evil in the world. Both explanations 
 have been made and accepted by some. The object of 
 the Law was to show up sin in all of its hideousness as 
 an offence against God, a rebellion against His authority. 
 As such, sin was not known until that authority was ex- 
 pressed in the form of command or prohibition, that is, 
 of law. The Law should make sin known as sin. The 
 seed. Christ, as in ver. 16. To whom the promise was 
 made. Made to Him in whom it is fulfilled. Same 
 phraseology as in ver. 14. Ordained by angels. (See 
 Deut. 33 : 2.) The angels were present as witnesses at 
 the giving of the Law (Acts 7 : 38, 53 ; Hebr. 2 : 2). 
 Mediator. Here, Moses. A mediator is not a mediator 
 of one, but God is one. The various interpretations of 
 this brief verse are said to exceed four hundred. The 
 following seems to be quite generally accepted now ; a 
 mediator implies two parties, between whom the media- 
 tion is carried on. The Law is a contract between two 
 
HI. 21, 22.] PEDAGOGIC USE OF THE LAW. 379 
 
 parties, God on the one hand, the Jewish people on the 
 other. But in the giving of the promise there is no me- 
 diator. It depends on God alone, and He gives the 
 promise directly. There are not two contracting parties. 
 Promises. Plural as in vcr. 16. The promise was scx'cral 
 times repeated. For if . . . Life had been forfeited by 
 sin ; life must be recovered by righteousness. The 
 promise assured life to the believer through imputed right- 
 eousness ; the Laiv offered life as a reward for a perfect 
 obedience. Both promised life on well defined condi- 
 tions. Man could not render perfect obedience, and so 
 the Law could not give Life. The promise succeeded. 
 By God's grace man could believe, and so obtain life. Hath 
 concluded. We are all caught in the very act of sin, as it 
 were. We are hemmed in, there is no wa)- out. The Law 
 gives us no hope. All. All mankind. The promise by 
 faith in Jesus Christ. The consciousness of sin is a nec- 
 essary step towards justification. Faith is used in a two- 
 fold sense, subjectively, referring to the subjective state of 
 the Christian, and objectively, as the Gospel which is to be 
 believed. The law was given not to condemn, but to 
 show that by it was no escape, from it no escape, except 
 by faith in the promise, in the person promising, and the 
 person promised. Before faith came. Before Christ came 
 and was preached. We were kept. The law was a kind 
 of prison-house, in which we were kept, shut up. Unto 
 the faith. Objectively. It means the full Gospel reve- 
 lation of Salvation by faith in Christ. The law was our 
 schoolmaster. Pedagogue. Usually a slave, whose 
 great responsibility made him very strict. The pedagogic 
 value of the Law is shown as well in its warnings and 
 threatenings as in the awakening of the conscience and 
 bringing a knowledge and conviction of sin. To bring us 
 unto Christ. The work of the Law is necessary. Only 
 
380 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [in. 25-29. 
 
 the sick come to the physician. Only sinners come to 
 Christ. Justified by faitli. Coming to Christ in faith 
 we are justified. For Christ's sake alone God forgives us 
 all our sins, imputes to us the righteousness of Christ, and 
 adopts us as His children. 
 
 25-29. But now that faith is come, we are no longer under a tutor. For 
 ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus. For as many of you 
 as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ. There can be neither Jew 
 nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and 
 female : for ye all are one min in Christ Jesus. And if ye are Christ's, 
 then are ye Abraham's seed, heirs according to promise. 
 
 Children of God, Sons and daughters of God. What 
 a blessed change. We ai-e not any longer under the lash 
 of the whip of the pedagogue. We are free, grown up, 
 not under the old pupilage any longer, but have all the 
 privileges of adult children. Baptized into Christ . . , 
 have put on Christ. Baptism is a means of grace of the 
 very highest order. It is a sacrament. In it and by it 
 we put on Christ. We come into the very closest union 
 with Him, and therefore also with one another. We 
 should thank God very humbly and sincerely for His 
 grace and salvation, offered and given to us in and at our 
 Baptism. Neither Jew, nor Greek. All Christians are 
 alike before God. The Gospel is the great equalizer of 
 men, by lifting them all up to the noble condition of 
 being the sons and daughters of God. Abraham's seed 
 and heirs. Heirs indeed, but heirs by promise, not by 
 law. Here comes the conclusion of the whole argument. 
 The followers of the Messiah, the believers in Christ, are 
 the true seed of Abraham. The kingdom of Christ, which 
 they possess, is the promised inheritance. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 1-7. But I say that so long as the heir is a child, he differeth nothing 
 from a bondservant, though he is lord of all ; but is under guardians and 
 stewards until the term appointed of the father. So we also, when we 
 were children, were held in bondage under the rudiments of the world : but 
 when the fulness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, 
 born under the law, that he might redeem them which were under the law, 
 that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, 
 God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father. 
 So that thou art no longer a bondservant, but a son ; and if a son, then 
 an heir through God. 
 
 A child differeth nothing from a servant. A further 
 description of the difference between nonage and freedom. 
 Lord of all. The child-heir is and should not be con- 
 sidered as being a servant, and yet during his minority he 
 really often has less rights than a good and faithful ser- 
 vant. Under tutors and governors. Guardians of the 
 persons and stewards of the property. Until the time 
 appointed of the father. The heir during his minority 
 represents the state of the world before the Gospel. The 
 minority of the human race is fixed by the heavenly 
 Father, even as civil laws fix the time in the usual 
 cases. We. First of all the Jews, but the Gentiles are 
 also included. All who are now Christians had before 
 been subject to the Law, the Law of Moses in the case of 
 the Jews, and the law^ of Conscience in general in regard 
 to everybody else. Elements of the world. The rudi- 
 ments of religious teaching. Both Jews and Gentiles 
 alike were held in bondage by rudimentary principles of 
 religious knowledge. Gentile and even Jewish religion 
 
 381 
 
382 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [iv. 4-7. 
 
 was much bound up with the senses, was of this world, 
 and the most important element in them was that of 
 ritual. The fulness of time. The fulness of time had 
 come in a double sense. The time appointed by God, the 
 Father, had come (cf. 4:2); the world had also arrived 
 at its maturity, and the Law had worked out its ediica 
 tional purpose. Sent forth his Son. This implies tlutt 
 our Lord existed before His incarnation, that lie " w.is 
 with God" (John i: i). ^flade of a woman. Better: 
 born of a zvoman. This is intended to bring out the true 
 humanity of Christ. Our Saviour was truly the Son of Gcd 
 and as truly also the Son of Man. Made under the law. 
 Better: born under the laiv. Christ, born of a woman, 
 became the Head and representative of the human race, 
 that in Him we might become the sons of God. l^orn 
 under the Law, our Saviour in His holy life fulfilled its 
 commandments, and in His death satisfied its conditions, 
 by bearing its penalty and redeeming us from its curse. 
 To redeem them that were under the law. Paul here 
 states why Christ took upon Himself our human nature. 
 He did redeem or ransom at the price of His own death 
 both Jew and Gentile, from the curse and bondage of the 
 Law. Adoption of sons. Redemption means adoption. 
 Forgiveness and Justification is followed byoursonship 
 with God. The Spirit of Christ. The Holy Ghost pro- 
 ceeds not only from the Father, but also from the Se,n. 
 Abba Father. Used also in Mark 14: 36 and Rom. S: 
 15. A reduplication of loving entreaty. The use of a 
 Jewish and Gentile word reminds- and assures us that in 
 Him %vc both, Jews and Gentiles, have access as children 
 to the Father. Thou. The singular individualizes and 
 strengthens the application. No more a servant. After 
 the coming of Christ and j^our acceptance of Him by 
 faith. If a son, then an heir. The Roman law treated 
 
IV. 8-10.] BEGGARLY ELEMENTS. 383 
 
 all the sons as heirs. The children of God are all heirs, 
 and will all be treated fairly. Of God through Christ. 
 
 Better: tltrougJi God. Our salvation and all consequent 
 
 privileges are all wrought out for us through God in 
 
 Christ. 
 
 S-ii. Ilowbeit at that time, not knowing God, ye were in bondage to 
 them which by nature are no gods: but now that ye have come to know 
 God, or rather to be known of God, how turn ye back again to the weak, 
 and beggarly rudiments, whereunto ye desire to be in bondage over again ? 
 Ye observe days, and months, and seasons, and years. I am afraid of you, 
 lest by any means I have bestowed labour upon you in vain. 
 
 Them which by nature are no gods. The gods of the 
 heathen were no gods. The Gentile converts had seen 
 idolaters. Paul reminds them of their previous condition. 
 Known God. By the preaching of the Gospel which they 
 had accepted and believed, they liad obtained true knowl- 
 edge of God. Or rather are known of God. God knows 
 man, before man knows God — a humbling but useful 
 thought. We must know God and also be known of Him, 
 in order to be saved. Again. In the original a double 
 phrase : over again from the very beginning. These 
 Galatians had been slaves to one form of rudiments, the 
 heathen, now they were about to ensnare themselves 
 again in another set of rudiments, the Jewish, and com- 
 mence anew from the very beginning. Weak and beg= 
 garly elements. Weak, powerless to give life ; beggarly, 
 because they were not accompanied by the outpouring of 
 the Spirit. The system of the Law is always barren and 
 dry. The Gospel is rich, juicy, and fruitful. Ye observe. 
 They observed very probably the sabbath day, and days 
 of fasting, the day of the New Moon, Passover, Pentecost, 
 and the Feast of Tabernacles, and in all likelihood also 
 other days of ancient festivity. The observing of these 
 days was not condemning, only the making of that observ- 
 ance a legal enactment, by which the conscience of the 
 
384 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [iv. 11-13. 
 
 believer should be placed under bondage. All such 
 matters are in themselves " rudiments " only, but if prop- 
 erly adjusted and observed in the fear of God, and with 
 a due sense of the spirituality of true religion, very 
 helpful to the Church at large ; but never in the pliar- 
 isaical and legal sense. Labour in vain. A sad thought, 
 a softening, sorrow-bringing thought. Sometimes a ser- 
 vant of Christ must share with Paul the anxiety of such 
 experiences, the darkness occasioned by similar fears. 
 Unless souls are saved, our ministry is in vain. We can 
 hardly view it from any other point of view. 
 
 12-16. I beseech you, brethren, be as lam, for I am as ye are. Ye did 
 me no wrong : but ye know that because of an infirmity of the flesh I 
 preached the gospel unto you the first time ; and that which was a tempta- 
 tion to you in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but ye received me 
 as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. Where then is that gratulation 
 of yourselves ? for I bear you witness, that, if possible, ye would have 
 plucked out your eyes and given them to me. So then am I become your 
 enemy, because I tell you the truth ? 
 
 Be as I am. Use your Christian freedom as I do. 
 For I am as ye are. Better: I became as you. Paul had 
 laid no stress on his pure Jewish descent. He claimed 
 no privileges, although he had been circumcised on the 
 eighth day. He became a Gentile among Gentiles. Ye 
 have not injured me at all. These Galatians had at first 
 received Paul ver)^ kindly. He was not complaining of 
 their conduct in past times. That was deserving of 
 praise, not of reproach. Tlirough infirmity of the flesh. 
 Probably the same as " the thorn in the flesh " (2 Cor. 
 12 : 7). It was very likely some bodily ailment, but if it 
 was the headache, or of the nature of epilepsy, or some 
 complaint of the eyes, cannot be determined. Paul seems 
 to have been accidentally detained in Galatia by illness, 
 so that his " infirmity " was the cause of his preaching 
 there. At the first. On my first visit. (See Acts. 16: 
 
IV. 15-18.] PENALTY OF PLAIN SPEECH. 385 
 
 6.) My temptation which was in my flesh. Better : 
 your tcDiptation. Paul's sickness was a trial of their faith. 
 Christian churches should always bear that in mind. The 
 weak, over-worked, over-burdened servants of the Lord 
 ought to be remembered with special kindness. Despised, 
 nor rejected. Very strong expressions. Probably some- 
 thing repulsive in the character of Paul's disease. Even as 
 Christ Jesus. They received him with open hearts and 
 arms and homes, as an Angel of God, yea, as Christ Him- 
 self. What joy and enthusiasm in those days ! The 
 blessedness ye spake of. They were happy then, spoke 
 openly of their blessedness, and Paul was at that time a 
 great Apostle, in their opinion. Plucked out your own 
 eyes. This means : There was no sacrifice you were not 
 ready to make to show your zeal and affection towards 
 me. Your enemy. Probably the name given to Paul by 
 the Judaizers. Because I tell you the truth. The 
 reference is probably to Paul's second visit in Galatia, 
 (See Acts 18 : 23.) His plain speaking had given offence. 
 
 17-20. They zealously seek you in no good way ; nay, they desire to shut 
 you out, that ye may seek them. But it is good to be zealously sought in 
 a good matter at all times, and not only when I am present with you. My 
 little children, of whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you, 
 yea, I could wish to be present with you now, and to change my voice ; for 
 I am perplexed about you. 
 
 They zealously affect you. They curry favor with you, 
 but they " have an axe to grind," they seek to win you 
 over to their own party, they wish to make a sect of you. 
 They would exclude you. They desire to separate you 
 from me, and probably from the rest of the Gentile 
 churches, and to make a sect all by itself and for them- 
 selves. All the other Gentile churches had accepted the 
 freer teachings of Paul ; the Judaizers wished to make an 
 isolated centre of Judaism in Galatia. That ye might 
 25 
 
286 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [iv. iS-20. 
 
 affect them. Their motives are entirely egotistical. 
 They affect zeal for you, that you may become truly 
 zealous in their favor. Sometimes it becomes necessary 
 to show up the true character of the proselytizers. It is 
 good to be zealously affected. It is good to see a true 
 and honest zeal exhibited between teachers and the 
 taught. Love between pastor and people is a joy on 
 earth and in heaven. In a good thing. For the spread 
 of the Gospel and the continued development of Christ's 
 kingdom. My little children. Expression of great ten- 
 derness, used only by St. Paul. His heart melted for 
 them. They had received the Gospel from him, they 
 were his spiritual children. Of whom I travail in birth 
 again. Oh, what a struggle many a time before a soul is 
 won finally for Christ ! Paul compares this struggle to the 
 process of birth. The Galatians had relapsed. The 
 struggle had all to be gone through again. Until Christ 
 be formed in you. The indwelling of Christ in the be- 
 liever's soul is the principle of his new life. To restore 
 this after the relapse is a task of deep anxiety to the 
 Apostle. The Christian should continue to grow in 
 grace, until he at last reaches '' the stature of the fulness 
 of Christ" (Eph. 4: 13). Change my voice. He could 
 almost wish to change his voice either into tones of less 
 severity, or to accommodate his speech to their require- 
 ments, which he could do, were he present with them. 
 I stand in doubt of you. The Apostle was perplexed. 
 He did not know how to deal Avith them, so as to bring 
 them back to Christ from Mose-s. 
 
 21-31. Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the 
 law ? Forit is written, that Abraham had two sons, one by the handmaid, 
 and one by the freewoman. Howbeit the son by the handmaid is born 
 after the flesh ; but the son by the freewoman is born through promise. 
 "Which things contain an allegory: for these women are two covenants; 
 one from mount Sinai, bearing children unto bondage, which is Hagar. 
 
IV. 21-25.] BOXDAGE OF THE JEWS. 387 
 
 Now this Hagar is mount Siiiai in Arabia, and answereth to the Jerusalem 
 that now is ; for she is in bondage with her children. But the Jerusalem 
 that is above is free, which is our mother. For it is written, Rejoice, thou 
 barren that bearest not ; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not; for 
 more are the children of the desolate than of her which hath the husband. 
 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. But as then 
 he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the 
 Spirit, even so it is now. Howbeit what saith the scripture ? Cast out the 
 handmaid and her son : for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with 
 the son of the freewonian. Wlierefore, brethren, we are not children of 
 a handmaid, but of the freewoman. 
 
 Ye that desire to be under the law. A direct appeal 
 to those wlio were joining the Judaizing party. The one 
 by a bondmaid, Hagar was an Egyptian slave in the 
 house of Abraham (Gen. 16: i). But. Both were the 
 children of Abraham, but one was born naturally and the 
 other according to God's promise. Are an allegory. 
 The allegorical sense does not exclude the literal sense, 
 but is added to it. These are the two covenants. These, 
 Hagar and Sarah, stand for the two covenants. Which 
 gendereth to bondage. Better : bringing fortJi children 
 unto bondage. The moment they are born, they are in 
 bondage. The progeny of Hagar is a nation of bond- 
 men, just as the Jews were under the old covenant. For 
 this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia. The meaning seems 
 to be : By the word Hagar is meant Mount Sinai in 
 Arabia. The word Hagar in Arabic means " a rock," 
 and some authorities claim that Mount Sinai is so called 
 by the Arabs. That would give a special reason for using 
 Hagar's name allegorically in this connection. Answer- 
 eth to Jerusalem which now is. The Jewish people 
 still under the bondage of the law. Hagar — Sinai — the 
 Jerusalem which now is — bondage — these are the several 
 steps, and the result: Children of Abraham, but in bond- 
 age nevertheless. Such were the unbelieving Jews of 
 that day. Jerusalem which is above. A spiritual con- 
 
388 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [iv. 26-30. 
 
 ception. The true Church of Christ. The heavenly 
 Jerusalem, of which every believer is a member and citi- 
 zen. The mother of us all. Better : zvhich is our mother. 
 The Church, the heavenly Jerusalem, in its completion 
 and perfection, is the metropolis of Christianity, just as 
 the earthly Jerusalem formed the centre of Judaism. 
 Thou barren, (Quoted from Is. 54: i.) The "barren" 
 is Sarah, in this application, and she was a type of the 
 Gospel dispensation. The Church of Christ was small 
 and persecuted in its beginning, but now has '* many more 
 children " than the Jewish Church ever could claim. " She 
 which hath the husband " isHagar, who took the place of 
 Sarah for the time being in her relations to the husband. 
 She represents the Jewish people, nationally, and on 
 religious questions, and for a time enjoyed the special 
 favor of her God, a relation frequently spoken of as that 
 between husband and wife. Many more children. The 
 new dispensation, Christianity, with its insignificant 
 beginnings, is gaining ground very rapidly, while Judaism, 
 with its material possessions and privileges, is losing its 
 hold, and is " a lost cause." Persecuted. Ishmael 
 troubled Isaac. The Ishmaelites, the Arabs, have con- 
 tinually troubled the Israelites. The self-righteous, phari- 
 saical Judaizers hated Paul and those who believed in 
 Christ and lived spiritually by faith. The same rule 
 holds good to this very day. Cast out. Only the chil- 
 dren of promise, those who live by faith and are free in 
 Christ, are heirs, i. e. the true children of God. Those 
 who are of the Law will eventually be cast out. Only the 
 heirs will remain in the house forever. Christianity is an 
 exclusive religion. It acknowledges no competitor. It is 
 destined to occupy the whole field alone. Those who 
 are of faith will be victors. The Law and the Gospel can- 
 not co-exist ; the Law must disappear before the Gospel. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 1-6. With freedom did Christ set us free : stand fast therefore, and be 
 not entangled again in a yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, 
 that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. Yea, I tes- 
 tify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to 
 do the whole law. Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified 
 by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. For we through the Spirit by 
 faith wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither 
 circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision ; but faith working 
 through love. 
 
 Stand fast. Here begins the hortatory part of this 
 Epistle. The beHever is constantly exhorted to remain 
 steadfast. A good beginning is certainly to be com- 
 mended : a good ending still more so. In the liberty. 
 Luther says: " Let us learn to count this our freedom 
 most noble, exalted and precious, which no emperor, no 
 prophet nor patriarch, no angel from heaven, but Christ, 
 God's Son, hath obtained forus ; not that He might relieve 
 us from a bodily and temporal subjection, but from a 
 spiritual and eternal imprisonment of the crudest tyrants, 
 namely, the law, sin, death, and the devil." Christ suf- 
 fered and died that we might receive forgiveness, be jus- 
 tified, and live in a new and happy existence. This is a 
 spiritual life, and will ever grow into a higher degree of 
 true and holy spirituality. The yoke of bondage. They 
 who had escaped from the thraldom of the Gentiles, 
 should they now allow themselves to be bound by Judaism? 
 The "yoke of bondage" refers to Judaizing restraints 
 and restrictions. I Paul say unto you. Note the severity 
 and authority of his language. He feels the necessity of 
 
 389 
 
390 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [v. 3-5. 
 
 forcing the discussion to a climax. Christianity and Ju- 
 daism could not co-exist. If we accept the one, we must 
 give up the other. On that question no one could remain 
 on the fence. Circumcision means the righteousness of 
 the Law. Faith means the righteousness of Christ. 
 There can be no compromise between the two. They 
 are diametrically opposed. If ye be circumcised. If ye 
 submit to circumcision. That act implied that a man 
 sought salvation by the Law, of which circumcision is the 
 seal. To such a man Christ and His righteousness can 
 be of no advantage. Circumcision, in itself ethically 
 colorless, under the circumstances meant the setting 
 aside of the merits of Christ. Shall profit you nothing. 
 They would have no use of Christ. They could not seek 
 justification through circumcision (the Law) and by faith 
 through Christ at the same time. I testify again. Cir- 
 cumcision placed a man under the system of the Law, 
 just as baptism placed him under the Christian system. 
 In baptism the believer commits himself fully to Christ, 
 in circumcision to Moses. The follower of Moses must 
 after that " fulfil perfectly and live ; fail and die." 
 Debtor. Under an obligation. Christ is become of no 
 effect unto you. Ye were cut off from Christ. You do 
 not belong to Him any more. You are Christians no 
 longer. Are justified. Better : seek to be justified. Ye 
 are fallen from grace. Probably, " ye are cast forth (like 
 Hagar and her son)," banished from grace. The believer 
 is justified by an act of free grace. Seeking to be justi- 
 fied in any other way, he loses, his grace. Grace is here 
 a divine act or relation. Through the Spirit. Through 
 the workings of the Spirit. The Spirit produces faith in 
 our hearts and thereby gives us the righteousness of 
 Christ. It is God's gift, by free grace, through faith, com- 
 municated by the Spirit. The hope of righteousness. Re- 
 
V. 6.] FAITH AND LOVE. 391 
 
 fcrsprobably either to the full assurance of justifying faith 
 or the complete deliverance from sin, or both. Luther 
 adds : " Either sense may well stand ; but the first, touch- 
 ing the inward desire and affection of hoping, brings more 
 plentiful consolation, for my righteousness is not yet per- 
 fect, it cannot yet be felt : yet I do not despair ; for faith 
 showeth unto me Christ ; in whom I trust, and when I 
 have laid hold of him by faith, I wrestle against the fiery 
 darts of the devil, but I take a good heart through hope 
 against the feeling of sin, assuring myself that I have a 
 perfect righteousness prepared for me in heaven. So 
 both these sayings are true ; that I am made righteous 
 already by that righteousness which is begun in me ; and 
 also I am raised up in the same hope against sin, and wait 
 for the full consummation of perfect righteousness in 
 heaven. These things arc not rightly understood^ but ivJien 
 they be put in practice." But it is better to understand it 
 of that object of hope which belongs to and arises out of 
 our justification. By the -faith which appropriates the 
 righteousness of Christ we become sons of God and heirs 
 of His everlasting kingdom. The inheritance is " that 
 blessed hope and manifestation of the glory of our great 
 God and Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ " (Titus 2 : 13). 
 In Jesus Christ. To those who live in close communion 
 with Christ, by faith. Also, in order to be in that close 
 communion. Availeth anything. Neither the one or 
 the other. God looks to the heart. Jew and Gentile 
 alike must become new creatures (6 : 15). Faith which 
 worketh by love. Better: zvorking by love. Faith in 
 Christ is the great motive power, the source of all strength 
 for action. The law of the action of a Christian is love. 
 Neither works, nor even love, nor any other Christian 
 graces, co-operate, aid, or assist in the act of justification, 
 which is of free grace, for Christ's sake alone, when we 
 
392 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [v. 5-10. 
 
 believe. The faith, however, of the Christian produces 
 love, as its most excellent fruit, comprising every other 
 Christian grace. The believer loves God, loves Christ, 
 and his new life becomes a life of faith, in love. Faith 
 does not do away with good works. These are all con- 
 tained in and commanded by this one wonderful word, 
 love. In these words " faith working through love " we 
 have the whole of Christianity. In these words Paul and 
 James grasp the hands of one another in full and mutual 
 understanding. 
 
 7-12. Ye were running well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey 
 the truth ? This persuasion came not of him that calleth you. A little 
 leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 1 have confidence to you-ward in the 
 Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded : but he that troubleth you 
 shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. But I, brethren, if I still preach 
 circumcision, why am I still persecuted ? then hath the stumblingblock of 
 the cross been done away. I would that they which unsettle you would 
 even cut themselves off. 
 
 Ye did run well. They had made a good begin- 
 ning. They started well, but -suddenly changed course. 
 The metaphor is taken from the stadium (i Cor. 9 : 24, 27). 
 Who did hinder you ? Who threw obstacles in your 
 way, hindered you by breaking up the road ? There may 
 be an allusion in this to some prominent leader among 
 the Judaizers. The truth ; i. e, the doctrine which the 
 Apostle had preached to them. This persuasion. God 
 called the Galatians. Their tendencies towards Judaism 
 came not from the Father. A little leaven . . . Error 
 once admitted is a poison which will spread and vitiate 
 the whole sytem of doctrine, or the whole spiritual life 
 of the individual or of the Church. The expression is 
 used both of persons and of principles. It may refer to 
 a fezu seceders or to a little bad doctrine. Either may 
 soon ruin the whole Church. I have confidence in you 
 through the Lord. Better : WitJi regard to you. This 
 
V. n, 12.] THE OFFENCE OF THE CROSS. 393 
 
 refers to the main body of the Church. That ye will be 
 none otherwise minded. That you will adopt no new 
 principles, contrary to my preaching. Shall bear his 
 judgement. Better : Sentence. The Apostle seems to 
 have some individual in mind. Name entirely unknown. 
 God will pass sentence upon him. Disaffected Church 
 members usually have a leader. The troubles imposed 
 upon God's people will be severely punished by God in 
 this life already, very frequently, but surely in the 
 world to come. It is no little thing to attempt the dis- 
 ruption of the Church of Christ, be it only locally or in 
 general. If 1 yet preach circumcision. '' If I still Judaize, 
 why do the Judaizers still persecute me ? " No, with the 
 Apostle it was one of the two, either circumcision or the 
 cross of Christ, one of the two alternatives, not both. 
 Paul could easily have avoided persecution by getting on 
 the fence. If he was there, as some insinuated, why was 
 he persecuted ? The offence of the cross. The offence 
 of the cross did consist, and will always consist, in this, 
 that it cuts at the root of human merit and self-right- 
 eousness in the matter of justification, whether in the 
 form of legal observance, or holy dispositions, or good 
 works. Christ as a teacher, Christ as an example, is no 
 stumbling-block, but Christ as our substitute, as our re- 
 deemer, our justifier, will always remain a stumbling- 
 block to Jew and Greek alike. Cut off. Let them go 
 farther than to circumcision. Let them make themselves 
 eunuchs as the priests of Cybele. By " glorying in the 
 flesh," they were descending, coming back too in a very 
 marked way to their former heathenism. Others say : 
 The Apostle wishes, they would openly secede, and be 
 done with it, known in their true character by all men. 
 
 13-15. For ye, brethren, were called for freedom ; only use not your free- 
 dom ; for an occasion to the flesh, but through love be servants one to an- 
 
394 EPISTLE TO THE GALAT/ANS. [v. 13-15. 
 
 other. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt 
 love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take 
 heed that ye be not consumed one of another. 
 
 Called unto liberty. The Christian is called to free- 
 dom, not to legal bondage. An occasion to the flesh. 
 
 Justification by faith alone does not mean : Live as you 
 please, only believe, and all is well. No, freedom dare 
 not be made a pretext for self-indulgence. The Christian 
 believer must crucify the flesh. By the flesh is meant 
 not only sensual indulgences, but selfishness in general 
 and all forms of sin. By love serve one another. To 
 serve God, and man for His sake, is alone perfect free- 
 dom. Much stress should be laid on serve one another. 
 Act as the slaves of your fellowmen. This is true Chris- 
 tian liberty. Love is a strict and successful master. Love 
 thy neighbour. Neighbor originally seems to have meant 
 Israelite. Christ widened this conception so as to in- 
 clude all men. Love is the fulfilment of the law. Bite 
 and devour. Terrible expressions, indicating to what 
 extremes religious or Church strifes may be carried. 
 The figures of speech bring us to the beasts of the forest. 
 Their biting, etc., consisted of abuse, slander, invective 
 or innuendo, followed up probably by fraud and violence. 
 The unavoidable result is : mutual destruction. 
 
 16-26. But I say, Walk by the Spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lust of 
 the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against 
 the flesh ; for these are contrary the one to the other ; that ye may not do 
 the things that ye would. But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under 
 the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, forni- 
 cation, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jeal- 
 ousies, wraths, factions, divisions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness, rev- 
 ellings, and such like : of the which I forewarn you, even as I did forewarn 
 you, that they which practise such things shall not inherit the kingdom of 
 God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kind- 
 ness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, temperance ; against such there is 
 no law. And they that are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with 
 the passions and the lusts thereof. 
 
V. 16-19] THE WORKS OF THE FLESH. 395 
 
 If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk. Let us not be 
 vainglorious, provoking one another, envying one another. 
 
 Walk in the Spirit. By the rule of the Spirit, as He 
 directs. The Spirit is the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of God ; 
 ye shall not fulfil. The strongest negation possible. 
 " Ye shall in no wise fulfil." Blessed assurance ! For the 
 flesh . . . The Apostle here brings out very distinctly 
 the antithesis between the flesh and the Spirit, which is a 
 cardinal idea in the psychology of St. Paul. The body 
 becomes the seat of evil ; from it arise the carnal impulses 
 which are the origin of sin. The body in this sense is 
 the same as " the flesh." The flesh in the body as ani- 
 mated by an evil principle. The flesh is opposed to the 
 good principle, the Spirit of God, or the organ in which 
 the good principle resides, the Spirit in man. So that ye 
 cannot do the things that ye would. The opposition 
 between the flesh and the Spirit will go on, until the be- 
 liever is released from the body in death. Until then no 
 complete perfection is attainable. The flesh and the 
 Spirit are pulling in different ways, and this prevents the 
 will from acting freely. The Spirit is, however, in the 
 ascendancy with the believer. Any yielding even the 
 smallest, by omission or commission, brings sorrow and 
 repentance, and therefore also forgiveness. The Christian 
 condemns and repents of every imperfection in his own 
 character. Led of the Spirit. The Spirit decides the 
 entire tendency of the life of a Christian and becomes the 
 ruling power of that life. The Spirit, not the Law, urges 
 him on to do good works and to a faithful following of 
 the Lord. The works of the flesh. Four groups. Sen- 
 suality. Unlawful dealings in things spiritual. Viola- 
 tions of brotherly love. Excesses. Adultery, omitted 
 in the best MSS. Fornication. All improper relations 
 between the sexes. Uncleanness. Impurity generally, 
 
396 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [v. 20-22. 
 
 with special reference to the unnatural vices of the 
 heathen. Lasciviousness. Flagrant breaches of public 
 decency. Idolatry. Not systematic idolatry, but the 
 taking part in the idol feasts, eating of things offered to 
 the idols, occasional compliance with idolatrous customs. 
 Witchcraft, Sorcery, or Magic, especially prevalent in 
 Asia Minor (Acts 19: 19). Variance. Strife ox contention. 
 Emulations. Better : emulation, i. e. jealousy. Wrath. 
 Better : wraths, i. e. explosions, outbreaks of wrath. 
 Strife. Spirit of factious partisanship. Seditions, here- 
 sies. Better: divisions, parties, flurders. Omitted in 
 the two oldest MSS. Drunkenness. One of the promi- 
 nent sins of the flesh. Revellings. The disturbances of 
 the peace and quiet of others by noisy violence. The 
 chari-varis of our day surely belong here. Such like. 
 The list is not complete. Told you in time past. This 
 was no new doctrine to the Galatians. They had heard 
 it before. The kingdom of God. The Messianic king- 
 dom. Those who commit any of the above sins, or any 
 other sin, and remain in impenitence, are thereby shut 
 out of the Kingdom of God, i. e. from salvation. The 
 fruit of the Spirit. May be arranged in three groups of 
 three each. They are the result of the work and influence 
 of the Holy Ghost in the heart of the Christian. Love. 
 First, not distinct, but embracing them all. Joy. This 
 follows. Love is a joy-producing characteristic. " Joy 
 in the Holy Ghost (Rom. 14: 17), making itself known in 
 a general cheerfulness of demeanor, thereby being a use- 
 ful witness to the ef^cacy of the religion, which produced 
 it." A sun whose rays warm and gladden all within the 
 reach of its rays. God is very anxious to have His peo- 
 ple joyful and rejoicing (Ps. 33 : i ; Phil. 4:4). Peace. 
 In the heart and conscience, with God and towards 
 men. The calmness, tranquillity, satisfaction so precious, 
 
V. 22-25-] THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT. 397 
 
 SO great, so highly priced. Longsuffering. Patience 
 under injuries and provocation. Beware of your temper, 
 beware of the " wraths " of the natural man. Gentleness. 
 Better: kindliness. A kind, cautious, merciful disposi- 
 tion. Goodness. Beneficence, self-sacrifice, kindness in 
 action. Faith. Faithfulness, trustworthiness, the oppo- 
 site of unreliability, treachery, and smartness, in the bad 
 sense of that word. Also a frank, unsuspicious, trustful 
 temper in dealings with others. Meekness. Submission 
 to the will of God, mildness towards men. Beware 
 of arrogance, of vanity, of a hard heart. Temperance. 
 The Christian should exercise self-control in all re- 
 spects, not only, of course, in regard to continence in 
 the sense of virginity, with some of the Fathers, or with 
 many moderns, to abstinence from fermented drinks. 
 This word calls not for abstinence, but for temperance, 
 i. e. self-control. Beware of the Pharisee, even when 
 dressed in garb most modern. There is no law. Either 
 against such works, or against the persons who are doing 
 them. The Law condemns them not. These good 
 works spring from the new life of faith in the crucified 
 Saviour, whose Spirit is ever with the believer to continue 
 that sanctification, which will never be completed here 
 below. They that are Christ's. Probably: They that 
 are of Christ Jesns. His true followers, bought with His 
 blood, living in daily communion with Him by faith. 
 Have crucified. In their conversion and baptism, to be 
 followed up in their daily growth in sanctification. Cru- 
 cifixion implies a slow, gradual, and painful death. Affec= 
 tions and lusts. Passions, appetites, desires. If we 
 live ... let us also walk ... If we live in that new 
 life, of which God through His Holy Spirit is the Author, 
 let it be manifested by our intelligent and willing 
 obedience to His guidance in everything. The life of the 
 
398 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [v. 26. 
 
 Spirit in us needs human co-operation and diligent effort 
 on the part of the Christian, in order that the blessed 
 work of bringing out the image of the Saviour in the 
 believer may not be discontinued or become ineffect- 
 ive. Let us not. Better : Let its 7iot become. Christians 
 should not seek vain glory. Their glory should be, that 
 they are known of God. When believers begin to com- 
 pete for earthly glory of any kind, the result is provoca- 
 tions, envyings. The admonition fits the fickleness, 
 vanity, and quarrelsome disposition of the Galatians as a 
 people. There are certainly many " Galatians " in that 
 sense even among us. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 1-5. Brethren, even if a man be overtaken in any trespass, ye which are 
 spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of meel<ness ; looking to thyself, lest 
 thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law 
 of Christ. For if a man thinketh himself to be something, when he is 
 nothing, he deceiveth himself. But let each man prove his own work, and 
 then shall he have his glorying in regard of himself alone, and not of his 
 neighbour. For each man shall bear his own burden. 
 
 If a man be overtaken. Surprised, caught, detected, 
 caught red-handed, even then deal gently with the 
 offender. Ye which are spiritual. Animated by the 
 Spirit of God. Restore. Means repair, as e. g. broken 
 nets. Correct, with a single eye to the amendment of 
 the offender. In the spirit of meekness. An important 
 injunction. Much intended reformatory work is spoiled 
 by the pride and overbearing action of the pretended re- 
 former. Talking gently and in meekness to the offender 
 will open his eyes to his sin easier and more quickly than 
 by any other procedure. Considering thyself. The pos- 
 sibility of a similar temptation and a similar fall may well 
 temper their judgment with distrust and charity. One 
 another's burdens. Brotherhood is a mutual relation- 
 ship. The burdens we are to bear are our brother's 
 errors and weaknesses, his sorrows and sufferings. Fulfil 
 the law of Christ. The law of Christ is love. His love 
 made Him forget Himself for others, made Him die for 
 others. We are Christians : we should copy Christ. By 
 exercising love towards our fellow-men, we are copying 
 Christ, killing selfishness, and fulfilling His new and 
 
 399 
 
400 EPISTLE TO THE GALA TIANS. [vi. 3-6. 
 
 greater law. Think himself to be something ... is 
 nothing. Pride and vanity are very common failings. 
 They depend, usually, upon the failure of undertaking 
 frequent and severe self-examinations. Many Christians 
 seem to know others better than themselves. That pro- 
 duces continued over-estimation of self. If we examine 
 ourselves carefully, comparing what we are and do with 
 God's ideals, we will soon feel subdued and humble. 
 Prove. As in assaying metals, test, examine. Rejoicing 
 in himself . . . not in another. Better : he sJiall have 
 his ground of boasting tvitJi reference to Jiiinself alone, and 
 not ivith reference to his neighbor. True humility does not 
 imply a wrong estimation of ourselves or our work. 
 Simulated humility is one of the worst forms of pride. 
 Paul said : " By the grace of God, I am what I am." 
 Others have a right, and sometimes a duty, to follow him 
 even in this. Bear his own burden. The Christian has 
 certain responsibilities, which he cannot throw off. No 
 one can escape from his own moral responsibility. Every 
 soldier must carry his own equipment. 
 
 6-10. But let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him 
 that teacheth in all good things. Be not deceived ; God is not mocked : 
 for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth 
 unto his own flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption ; but he that soweth 
 unto the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not be 
 weary in well-doing : for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. So 
 then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good toward all 
 men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith. 
 
 Him that is taught . . . communicate in all good 
 things. Be liberal to your pastors and teachers. That 
 is one way of carrying the burdens for others. Teaching 
 the catechumens and others was hard, arduous work, as 
 the Church had little literature, and nearly all the instruc- 
 tion must be oral. Those who received spiritual gifts 
 should give liberally in return of their temporal " good 
 
VI. 6-9-] SOWING AND REAPING. 401 
 
 things." A congregation that starves the pastor and 
 school-teachers will itself undergo the same experience 
 spiritually after a while. This reciprocity may not be 
 intended by either parts, but it seemingly has a way of 
 establishing itself in spite of everything. (See i Thess. 
 2 : 6, 9 ; 2 Cor. 11 : 7-9 ; Phil. 4 : 10-17 ; i Tim. 5:17, 
 18 ; I Cor. 9:11.) Be not deceived, God is not mocked. 
 Much harm is done to the cause of God by stingy, miserly 
 church members. It is all very well to make great pro- 
 fessions to which you do not act up. These may deceive 
 others, but do not let them deceive yourselves. God will 
 not allow you to thus mock him. Let the Church of to- 
 day heed the warning of the Apostle. Whatsoever a 
 man soweth, that shall he also reap, A proverb from 
 classical writers, used by Paul. True in the material as 
 well in the moral and spiritual world. As the seed, so the 
 harvest. To hoard earthly " good things " is one way of 
 sowing to the flesh, and silver and gold are corruptible 
 things. To give liberally to the servants and institutions 
 of Christ and His kingdom is to lay up treasure in 
 heaven, " where neither moth nor dust doth corrupt." 
 Soweth to his flesh. The seed sown is our actions. 
 Sowing in the flesh means a life of selfishness, and self- 
 indulgence. Corruption. That is the harvest. His 
 savings, his actions, his own carnal self-will turn to decay. 
 And afterwards comes eternity. A dark picture, indeed. 
 Soweth to the Spirit. A life in communion with Christ ; 
 a life in love, self-negation, self-sacrifice, a life in which 
 the temporal is made to serve the spiritual. Life ever- 
 lasting. The grand, glorious, final result of a life in 
 Christ. Happy, divine, unspoken consummation. In due 
 season. The man of faith must be patient and perse- 
 vering. The harvest may be late in coming. The prom- 
 ise reads : in due season. God alone knows that day. It 
 26 
 
402 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [vi. 10-12. 
 
 will come, if we keep on undaunted by any troubles or 
 obstacles. We have never done enough, much less too 
 much. Never weary. Have opportunity. God gives 
 to individuals, churches, synods, nations, special work to 
 perform. That is their opportunity. Let it be con- 
 scientiously improved. Ask of God : " What is my work, 
 our work, our opportunity? " Let the Lord answer, and 
 then follow His voice. After a while " the night cometh," 
 and our opportunity is no more. This is a word in season 
 to the Church of this new world. Unto all men. The 
 love of the Christian must be as universal as the salva- 
 tion in Christ. Household of faith. The love of the 
 Christian must also be special. He is a member of the 
 Church, the household of faith, and every interest of the 
 Church must be especially dear to his heart. 
 
 11-16. See with how large letters I have written unto you with mine own 
 hand. As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they compel 
 you to be circumcised ; only that they may not be persecuted for the cross 
 of Christ. For not even they who receive circumcision do themselves keep 
 the law ; but they desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in 
 your flesh. But far be it from me to glory, save in the cross of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, through which the world hath been crucified unto me, and I 
 unto the world. For neither is circumcision any thing, nor uncircumcision, 
 but a new creature. And as many as shall walk by this rule, peace be upon 
 them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. 
 
 Ye see. Calls the attention to the handwriting of the 
 concluding verses. Some think that the Apostle at this 
 point takes the pen from the secretary and concludes the 
 Epistle in his own handwriting. How large a letter. 
 Better: in Jiow large letters, expressing the emphasis and 
 authority with which the Apostle is writing. I have 
 written with mine own hand. The usual custom of 
 Paul to write some part, usually the conclusion, in his 
 own well-known hand. To make a fair show in the 
 flesh. Now follows Paul's own summary of the Epistle. 
 
VI. 1 3-1 5-] GLORYING IN THE CROSS. 403 
 
 To obtain a great name for external things in religion. 
 The main aim of the Judaizers was to be popular with 
 their own people and to add to their vain glory by seem- 
 ing to win over others to the Mosaic Law. Persecution 
 for the cross of Christ. To proclaim the sufficiency for 
 salvation of Christ crucified always brings the " offence 
 of the cross." This is to suffer persecution for the cross 
 of Christ. Neither they themselves . . . keep the law. 
 Neither those who were circumcised and who were for 
 circumcising others kept the Law. No one can keep the 
 Law. Glory in your flesh. Glory in your submission 
 to them and their views, and to the Old Testament ordi- 
 nance. Reminds one of the boasting of many modern 
 revivalists. God forbid that I should glory. In nothing 
 external would St. Paul glory. The cross of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ ; i. e. " the death and passion which Christ 
 underwent for me." "In the atoning death, as the means 
 of my reconcilement with God." " Not in my suffering 
 for Christ, but in His sufferings for me." The Apostle 
 is proud of the Cross of Christ as the ground of his 
 salvation and of his hope for eternal life and a blessed 
 immortality. All this would be but the raving of a 
 maniac, unless Jesus truly were the Son of God, the 
 Saviour of mankind. The world is crucified unto me and 
 I unto the world. The Apostle had by a serious con- 
 templation of Christ crucified lost his interest in the world 
 of sense, the sphere of outward and sensible things, and 
 its many temptations to sin, and its human and inade- 
 quate methods of escaping from them — mere external 
 rites (circumcision) and works. In Christ Jesus ... a 
 new creature. Note the wonderful spirituality of the 
 Apostle. Jew or Gentile counted as nothing. They 
 must be born of the Spirit and live a new life to be found 
 in Christ. Faith, nothing external, was the great condi- 
 
404 EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS. [vi. 16-1S. 
 
 tion. Walk according to this rule. Justification by 
 faith in the Atoning Blood, and the new birth (a new 
 creature), by the Holy Ghost, was this " rule." Peace 
 be on them and mercy. Probably a prayer. Peace of 
 heart and conscience, because of the reconciliation effected 
 by the death of Christ ; mercy, because of the Atoning 
 Blood. Oh, how well they needed both ! The Israel of 
 God. Equivalent to Yea, tipon the Israel of God. Not 
 only the converts from the Judaism, who now lived by 
 faith, but " the spiritual Israel," i. e. all who had a faith 
 like Abraham's (3 : 7-9, 14, 29 ; Rom. 4 : ii, 12). 
 
 17. From henceforth let no man trouble me : for I bear branded on 
 my body the marks of Jesus. 
 
 Let no man trouble me. Conclusion. Trouble him 
 not any more : he is Christ's accredited servant and 
 Apostle. The Apostle again asserts his rightful author- 
 ity. He has spoken. He desires no further controversy. 
 The marks. The Apostle points to the scars received 
 in faithful service. The branding-irons of Christ had im- 
 printed them on him. These scars and marks were his 
 credentials. He would produce no others. His assail- 
 ants should now leave him in peace. Grace . . . with 
 your Spirit. The letter commenced with rebuke and 
 closes with a benediction. Grace, grace in Christ and for 
 Christ's sake, was the great central thought of the Epistle, 
 of Paul's doctrine and preaching. This grace he now 
 wished to remain with their Spirit, to keep, protect, and 
 develop them in the continued communion and service 
 of the Master. Be it so even with us. Unto the Gala- 
 tians. The original subscription was simply : to the 
 Galatians. The present subscription appeared first in 
 MSS., dating from about the beginning of the ninth 
 century. 
 
Date Due 
 
 Wr 7 ':m 
 
 
 
 '^iW^K%p)iWHMNi 
 
-/ -^-f. 
 
 i^i--'%^ 
 
t 1 . '^ 
 
 
 
 ■ U 
 
 hi 
 
 ^ 1 
 
 
 t. I ■'^