A Teacher's Commentary on First and Second Corinthians

By Dan R. Owen

A Teacher’s Commentary on First and Second Corinthians is especially designed as a practical tool for those who preach from the Corinthian letters or teach Bible studies from them. The reflective questions at the end of each chapter as well as the appendices at the end of the book are designed to help the teacher in personal understanding, instruction, and in practical matters of the church.

The material on First Corinthians will help ministers with many practical church matters and encourage them to work for unity in the church during times of conflict.

The material on Second Corinthians will help ministers navigate relationships with people in their churches over time and at the same time remain faithful to Christ in ministry.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 7, 2021
• ISBN: 9781638145462

Book preview

1

First Corinthians Text and Commentary

First Corinthians 1:1–3

Paul, a called apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes the brother, to the assembly of God which is at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, to the called saints, along with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

As stated in Galatians 1:1, Paul’s apostleship was not by man or through man, but he was chosen directly by Jesus Christ and accepted as an equal by the Jerusalem apostles (Galatians 2:8–10). This letter is to God’s congregation or assembly at Corinth. There were other ekklesiai or assemblies at Corinth that did not belong to God as there were in all other locations. The assembly of people to which Paul wrote, like the one in Thessalonica, was in God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thessalonians 1:1–2). The assembly of God at Corinth was made up of those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, the called saints or invited saints. They were invited by the gospel into the fellowship of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:9; 2 Thessalonians 2:14). This letter was addressed to this special group of people along with all who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is a group of baptized believers (Acts 18:8; 22:16). They call upon" or trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and his redemptive work. The letter is not just from Paul but from God the Father and Jesus Christ as well. As stated later in the letter, the things Paul wrote were the Lord’s commands (1 Corinthians 14:37).

First Corinthians 1:4–7

I thank my God always for you, for the grace of God which was given to you in Christ Jesus, because you were made rich in every way in him, in all word and in all knowledge, just as the mystery of Christ was established among you, so that you might not be lacking in any spiritual gift as you eagerly await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul’s love and concern for the Corinthians is evident in this thanksgiving as well as in other statements. He opened his heart to this group of people in spite of their difficulties (2 Corinthians 6:11–13; 7:2ff). The phrase, the grace of God which was given to you, likely has reference to the spiritual gifts that had been given by God to this group of Christians. Paul uses the same phrase to describe his own gift of apostleship as well as other spiritual gifts (Romans 12:3, 6; 2 Corinthians 8:1; Galatians 2:9; Ephesians 3:2, 7, 8; 4:7). Paul mentions here the gifts of utterance and knowledge, perhaps meaning prophecy and knowledge, gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8–10 and 1 Corinthians 13:8–9. They had been enriched by God so that they would not lack any spiritual gift needed to carry on the ministries of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 12:4–7, 11, 18). Paul mentions here the Parousia or second coming of Christ as he does in many other places. This was a core element in the expectation of every Christian (1 Corinthians 15:19ff; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).

First Corinthians 1:8–9

Who will also establish you unto the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful by whom you were invited into the fellowship of his son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Paul wants them to know that God has given them everything they need in order to serve him faithfully until the end. God is trustworthy or faithful. He upholds his part of the covenant between himself and those in Christ. Paul mentions here the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, most likely a reference to the Parousia of Christ and the judgment to follow (see 1 Corinthians 15:20ff). All who have heard, understood, and obeyed the gospel have been called or invited by God into the fellowship of Christ. John later said that the reason we share the gospel with the lost is that they might have fellowship with us and our fellowship is with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3). The invitation to fellowship comes to all through the gospel of Christ (2 Thessalonians 2:14).

First Corinthians 1:10

And I urge you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, and you be knit together in the same mind and in the same understanding.

This is one of three passages in the book where Paul uses the petition word parakalo. This word indicates that what is said is central to what Paul wants to ask them in his letter. This is what he really desires from them. The other two formal petition passages are 1 Corinthians 4:16 and 1 Corinthians 16:15, both of which are connected with the request for unity in this passage. Paul wants the divided Corinthian church to be united, to be on the same page, and to act in unity. Notice that he wants them to speak the same things. This is only possible if people are knit together in the same mind and the same understanding. This sameness of mind was impossible unless the Corinthians could all accept the same objective standard of authority. This is why Paul begins the discussion of human wisdom versus divine wisdom. He explains that only the divine revelation given to the apostles provides divine wisdom and unifies God’s people (1 Corinthians 2:6–13).

First Corinthians 1:11–13

For it was shown to me about you, my brothers, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are factions among you. I say this, that each of you says, I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, I am of Cephas, and I am of Christ! Is Christ split into parts? Paul wasn’t crucified for you was he? And you were not baptized into the name of Paul, were you?

The source of Paul’s understanding of the present condition in the Corinthian church was a letter from the family of Chloe. Evidently, Paul trusted the source enough to address the issues raised. Of course, what he heard was carefully compared with what Paul already knew based on his eighteen months of personal experience with the Corinthian disciples. The people were divided into factions, claiming allegiance to one leader or another. We learn from 1 Corinthians 4:6 that they were really following local people deemed to be leaders of some kind, and Paul was using his name and the name of Apollos to spare their feelings while getting his point across. As stated in 1 Corinthians 4:6, they were arrogant or puffed up on behalf of one person against another. They were, as stated in his second letter, measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves with themselves, (2 Corinthians 10:12).

Paul reminds them here that Christ is not divided, but he did his redemptive work to create the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 2:14–18; 4:4). It was no human leader who died for them but Christ. They were not baptized in the name of any human being but in the name of Jesus Christ. Paul converted people to Christ, not to Paul. He later wrote, We do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake (2 Corinthians 4:5).

First Corinthians 1:14–17

I thank God that I baptized no one except Crispus and Gaius. So that no one might say you were baptized into my name! And I also baptized the household of Stephanus. And as for the rest I don’t know if I baptized any other. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in wisdom of words, so that the cross of Christ might not be made useless.

The reason Paul is glad he did not personally baptize many of them is because he did not want them claiming to be his disciples. He was their father in the gospel (1 Corinthians 4:15), but they were disciples of Christ. He mentions Crispus who was likely the ruler of the synagogue mentioned in Acts 18:8. He also mentions Gaius and the household of Stephanus. The latter were the first of his converts in Achaia according to 1 Corinthians 16:15. Paul did not keep track of those whom he personally baptized. His role was to preach the gospel of Christ. His mission was to tell the message of Jesus. It was the responsibility of the hearers to be baptized. It did not matter who baptized them if they were baptized as a legitimate response to the gospel of Christ. What counted was that each person obeyed from the heart that symbolic representation of the teaching which was delivered (Romans 6:17). It is God who causes the spiritual growth and transformation, not the preacher (1 Corinthians 3:5–6).

The Choice Between Trusting Human Wisdom or Divine Wisdom

First Corinthians 1:18–20

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved, it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise ones, and will nullify the understanding of the intelligent ones. Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Hasn’t God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

Much as he does in 2 Corinthians 2:15, Paul divides humanity into two parts: those who are being saved and those who are perishing. The different groups tend to view the content of the gospel in different ways. One group sees the message of Christ dying on the cross as complete foolishness, while the other group sees the same message as the power of God (Romans 1:16). Those who are perishing do not respect divinely revealed wisdom (1 Corinthians 2:6). God’s revealed wisdom is not like the wisdom of man. It is comprised of things no eye has seen, things no ear has heard, things which never entered the mind of man (1 Corinthians 2:9). Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14 where God is disparaging those who live by rules taught by man. Such wisdom will be proven useless by the Almighty. The people viewed as wise, intelligent, and capable debaters by the world are often ignorant of the things revealed by God. The wisdom of the world does not hold the secrets of eternal salvation. Worldly wisdom cannot lead man to be reconciled with God! It is very likely that an exaggerated respect for worldly wisdom in some Achaian believers was helping to cause the divisions in Corinth.

First Corinthians 1:21

For since in the wisdom of God, the world, through its wisdom, did not know God, God was pleased, through the foolishness of what was preached, to save them that believe!

Paul clearly taught that some things could be known about God from his creation (Romans 1:19–20). The creation certainly proclaims that there is a God and that he is everlastingly powerful and divine. But beyond that, human reasoning and human research cannot lead man to a relationship with God. We cannot know God through human wisdom. We cannot know his character, what he loves, and what he hates apart from divine revelation. Paul is sarcastically referring to the foolishness of what was preached because that was the way many in southern Greece viewed the gospel. Paul did not preach based on public opinion but based on the revelation of God. Those who consider the redemptive work of Christ to be foolishness are those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18). Later, he calls them natural people as opposed to spiritual and carnal as opposed to mature (1 Corinthians 2:6, 14, 15; 3:1).

First Corinthians 1:22–24

And even though the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks are seeking wisdom, we are preaching Christ crucified, to the Jews an occasion of stumbling, and to the gentiles, foolishness, but to those who are invited, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God!

Those from different cultures asked for different things as proof for the gospel. The Jewish culture asked for signs, and Paul gave them signs (1 Corinthians 2:4–5; 2 Corinthians 12:12). The pagan culture wanted the gospel presented to them in the language of the Greek philosophers who argued their cases on Mars Hill in Athens. The idea of God incarnate being crucified for man was a deal breaker for the Jews because their idea of a Messianic King did not allow for his humiliation and his sacrificial death. Paul did not present the gospel to the Corinthians with excellency of speech or of wisdom, so many people with a Greek mindset rejected him (1 Corinthians 2:1–2). The verb kaleo, means call, or, in its noun form, kletos, it means called or invited. It carries the idea of someone who hears an invitation and accepts it. This is the word group used for the invitation extended for the great banquet in Luke 14 and the parallel passage in Matthew. When people hear the invitation of God in the gospel and accept that invitation to come into a relationship with God, they then are classified as the called or invited of God (1 Corinthians 1:2, 9; 2 Thessalonians 2:14). For these people, Christ and his redemptive work represent the power and wisdom of God working on their behalf.

First Corinthians 1:25

Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

If there is any sense in which anyone could use the word foolishness with reference to God, God’s most foolish point is wiser than man’s wisest point. There is as much distance between God and man as the heavens are higher than the earth (Isaiah 55:8–9). The very weakest point in the Almighty is stronger than all mankind combined. Nothing is impossible with God (Matthew 19:26; Luke 1:37).

First Corinthians 1:26–29

Look at your calling, brothers, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many powerful, not many noble born are called! But God chose the foolish things of the world, so that he might put the wise to shame, and God chose the weak things of the world, so that he might put the strong to shame, and God chose the lowborn of the world and the things that are despised, even the things that are not, so that he might nullify the things that are, so that no flesh may boast before God.

Our calling or vocation is Christianity. Fewer of those who consider themselves wise according to the flesh are Christians because they are trusting in human wisdom for their answers. Fewer of the powerful are Christians because they trust in their own power instead God’s power. The gospel is God’s power to save, not man’s power (Romans 1:16). The highborn trust in their noble family heritage and don’t feel the need for God as much as the lowborn. Jesus was born in a stable and laid in a manger. He did not live his life among the mighty but among the masses. He died for all people, not a few. Because the power and wisdom of God are revealed in Christ, it shames the wise, the powerful, and the noble born because they are all powerless to save man from sin and death. No person, high or low, can reconcile himself/herself to God. In the great judgment, John sees the great and the small standing before the throne (Revelation 20:11–13). All are sinners, separated from God. The ground is level at the foot of the cross!

First Corinthians 1:30–31

It is from him that you are in Christ Jesus, who was made for us wisdom from God, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption, so that just as it is written, He who boasts, let him boast in the Lord!

When Paul says it is from him or of him that we are in Christ, he means that it is not from ourselves or from our own efforts or power or position. It is as a result of the redemptive work of God that we stand justified and reconciled in Christ (Romans 5:6–11; Ephesians 2:6–10). Christ became our wisdom when God revealed his plan to reconcile man through his redemptive death (1 Corinthians 2:6–11). Christ became righteousness for us because only in the gospel of Christ is the righteousness of God revealed, a righteousness that comes to us apart from works of law, a righteousness that is given to us as a free gift (Romans 1:17; 3:21; 5:17). Christ became sanctification for us because he shows us how to live a sanctified life and helps us to follow his footsteps. Christ became redemption for us because he paid the price to purchase us out of slavery to sin and death (Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20; 1 Peter 1:18; Revelation 5:9–10). As a result, no person can boast in his/her own power, position, or efforts. We can only boast in the goodness and grace of God (see also 2 Corinthians 10:17–18).

Reflections on Chapter 1

Find passages in chapter one where the word called or invited is used and talk about their meaning.

Discuss the importance of Paul’s petition in 1 Corinthians 1:10 for the Corinthian church and for churches today.

Why did Paul say he was glad he only baptized a very few of the Corinthians personally?

Does 1 Corinthians 1:17 diminish the importance of baptism? Why or why not?

What exactly was a stumbling block to the Jews and considered foolishness to the Greeks according to Paul?

What social/educational strata made up most of the Christian population in Corinth according to 1 Corinthians 1:26ff? Why do you think this was true?

What effect does individual boasting and pride have on unity in the church? See 1 Corinthians 1:29, 31.

2

First Corinthians 2:1

And I brothers, when I came to you, did not come with excellency of speech or wisdom proclaiming to you the mystery of God. For I decided not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but with demonstration of Spirit and power, so that your faith might not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God!

The wisdom and speech Paul mentions in this passage are the worldly wisdom and rhetoric of Athens, the worldly wisdom discussed in 1 Corinthians 1:18–25. Paul did not approach the Corinthians with the argumentation of Mars Hill philosophers or the style of the pagan debaters (1 Corinthians 1:26). He brought them a message about things that had actually happened: the death and resurrection of Christ. He explained to them the meaning and implications of those events. He told them a story of events, past, present, and future. He explained what God had accomplished for them through the redemptive events and how they could take advantage of Gods saving work. As he stated earlier, We preach Christ crucified (1 Corinthians 1:22–23). Paul did not claim human erudition or prowess as he brought this message. He was with the Corinthians in weakness and trembling. As he states in his second letter, he and others like him carried the gospel treasure in clay jars (2 Corinthians 4:7). He was just a weak man, but the message he carried in the fragile jar of humanity was the pearl of great price! He did not want the Corinthians placing their faith in human wisdom or expertise but in the power of God! For this reason, Paul preached the simple message and confirmed it with the signs of an apostle (2 Corinthians 12:12). The signs of an apostle confirmed the message as Gods word (Mark 16:20; Hebrews 2:4).

First Corinthians 2:6–8

We speak wisdom among the mature, yet a wisdom not of this age nor of the rulers of this age who are being nullified. But we speak Gods wisdom in a mystery, which was hidden, which God foreordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew. For if they had had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

Christ is the wisdom of God for us (1 Corinthians 1:30). It is the spiritually mature who accept this divinely revealed wisdom. Paul later calls the mature Christians the spiritual people in 1 Corinthians 2:15 and 1 Corinthians 3:1. These are contrasted with the natural and carnal people who do not respect the things revealed by God to the apostles (1 Corinthians 2:14; 3:1–2). The revelation of God’s redemptive plan in Christ was a mystery because it was hidden from mankind for long ages. Paul describes this mystery as that Which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as now it has been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit (Ephesians 3:5). This recently revealed mystery of Christ was foreordained by God before the ages. It is part of God’s eternal purpose, which he purposed in Christ (Ephesians 1:10–11; 3:9–10). The powerful people of Paul’s day did not understand the plan of God in Christ. Perhaps this was necessary because if they had known it, they would not have crucified Christ. But it was necessary that the Christ should suffer (Luke 24:46). His death was part of the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God (Acts 2:22). It was only after the fact of his death that it was time to reveal the meaning of his death in the preaching of the gospel.

First Corinthians 2:9–11

But just as it is written, Things no eye has seen, and no ear has heard, and have never arisen in the mind of man, things God prepared for those who love him. But to us God revealed them through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man that is in him. In the same way no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.

Man’s reason does not lead to God’s redemptive plan. Empirical research and verification through the five senses will not lead one to figure out God’s redemptive purpose. The only way one could come to know the eternal plan of God is through divine revelation. Paul said he did not receive it from man nor was he taught it, but it came to him by revelation from Jesus Christ (Galatians 1:12; Ephesians 3:3). In verse 9, Paul is not talking about the afterlife per se, but is talking about God’s eternal plan to save mankind. The only one who knows what is in God’s mind is God himself. We never know exactly what is in another person’s mind unless that person discloses it. The same is true with God. Only God can reveal the deep and secret things of his mind to mankind (Daniel 2:20–21). The Spirit of God searches the deep things of God and reveals them to his apostles and prophets (Ephesians 3:5). We could not know what God loves and what he hates and the reasons why he has done what he has done without divine revelation. We could not know what God has ordained to do in the future without divine revelation. The Christian faith rests on the acts of God and the divine revelations of God.

First Corinthians 2:12

But we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, so that we might know the things freely given to us by God. Which things also we speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in (words) taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual (people).

Paul believed that both the demons and the Spirit of God were trying to speak to people in the world. The seducing spirits with their demonic doctrines were always spreading their lies (1 Timothy 4:1ff). The god of this world was always trying to blind the minds of the unbelievers (2 Corinthians 4:4). The prince of this world and his ministers are trying to build fortresses around the minds of men and women to block out the knowledge of God and his Son (2 Corinthians 10:3–5). The word of God seeks to tear down those walls made out of the reasoning and arguments of unbelievers. Paul claims to be a recipient of the Holy Spirit and the divine revelations given by him. The teaching of Paul to the Corinthians is the Lord’s command (1 Corinthians 14:37). He spoke words to them and others which had not been taught by human wisdom but by direct revelation from the Spirit (Galatians 1:12). The last part of 1 Corinthians 2:13 is a