King James Version
1 Corinthians 1
31 verses with commentary
Greeting
Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God</strong> (Παῦλος <em>kletos</em> ἀπόστολος, "Paul, a called apostle")—Paul opens by asserting his divine appointment, not human authorization. The term <em>kletos</em> (κλητός, "called") is foundational to this letter, appearing repeatedly to contrast God's sovereign calling with human factional loyalties. <em>Apostolos<...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **Paul, called to be an apostle.**—Better, *a called Apostle of Jesus Christ.* His apostolic authority, which was questioned by some in Corinth, is thus set out at the commencement of the Epistle.
**And Sosthenes our brother.**—*Sosthenes the brother,* probably the Sosthenes (see Note on 1Corinthians 1:16) the chief ruler of the synagogue mentioned in Acts 18:17, one of the brethren well known...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**19-21. Thou wilt say then--**as a plea for boasting.
The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in.
Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>To them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints</strong> (<em>hegiasmenos</em> ἡγιασμένοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, <em>kletois hagiois</em> κλητοῖς ἁγίοις)—Despite their carnality and divisions, the Corinthians are positionally <em>sanctified</em> (set apart) by union with Christ. The term <em>hagiois</em> ("saints," holy ones) is not a title for moral heroes but the normal desig...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Church of God.**—St. Chrysostom remarks how these opening words are a protest against the party-spirit prevailing at Corinth: “The Church of God—not of this or that man.”
**Them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus.**—This is not another class of persons, but a description of those who compose “the Church”—who are further described as “called to be saints”—*i.e., “*holy.” The term “saints” is...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**19-21. Thou wilt say then--**as a plea for boasting.
The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in.
Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Grace be unto you, and peace</strong> (<em>charis hymin kai eirene</em>, χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη)—Paul's standard greeting merges Greek (<em>charis</em>, grace) and Hebrew (<em>shalom</em>, peace) cultural forms into a distinctly Christian benediction. <em>Charis</em> (χάρις) is God's unmerited favor—the foundation of all Christian life and the antidote to the pride and factionalism plaguing...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **Grace be unto you, and peace.**—This is the usual style of apostolic greeting (Galatians 1:3; Ephesians 1:2), and with these words the address and greeting which open the Epistle conclude.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**19-21. Thou wilt say then--**as a plea for boasting.
The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in.
I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ</strong>—Paul's thanksgiving is strategic: before confronting their carnality, he affirms God's grace at work in them. The passive voice <em>given</em> (<em>didomi</em>, δίδωμι) emphasizes divine initiative—grace is gift, not achievement. Paul thanks God <em>for the grace</em>, not for the Corinth...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **I thank my God.**—Expressions of thankfulness (1Corinthians 1:4-9), serving also to secure at the very outset the attention of those to whom the Apostle is writing. He thus shows that he is not blind to, or forgetful of, their good qualities, although this Epistle is specially written to rebuke their present sins; and also that he is not about to utter words of hopeless condemnation, but of ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22-23. Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them that fell, severity--**in rejecting the chosen seed.
**but toward thee, goodness--**"God's goodness" is the true reading, that is, His sovereign goodness in admitting thee to a covenant standing who before wert a "stranger to the covenants of promise" (Ep 2:12-20).
**if thou continue in his goodness--**in believing dependence ...
Read full commentary →That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge</strong> (<em>en panti eploutisthete</em>, ἐν παντὶ ἐπλουτίσθητε)—The verb <em>ploutizo</em> (πλουτίζω, "to make rich") is in the passive voice, emphasizing that God enriched them; they did not enrich themselves. <strong>In all utterance</strong> (<em>panti logo</em>, παντὶ λόγῳ) and <strong>in all knowledge...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **Ye are enriched.**—Literally, *ye were enriched.* “Utterance” is the power of outward expression of that “knowledge” which dwells within.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22-23. Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them that fell, severity--**in rejecting the chosen seed.
**but toward thee, goodness--**"God's goodness" is the true reading, that is, His sovereign goodness in admitting thee to a covenant standing who before wert a "stranger to the covenants of promise" (Ep 2:12-20).
**if thou continue in his goodness--**in believing dependence ...
Read full commentary →Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you</strong> (<em>kathos to martyrion tou Christou ebebaiothe</em>, καθὼς τὸ μαρτύριον τοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐβεβαιώθη)—The verb <em>bebaioo</em> (βεβαιόω, "to confirm, establish, make firm") is legal/commercial language for guaranteeing a contract or validating testimony. The <strong>testimony of Christ</strong> (<em>martyrion tou Christou</em>) is t...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **Even as the testimony** **of Christ.**—The testimony which St. Paul bore to Christ, and from Christ, was confirmed among them by this full bestowal of spiritual gifts.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**24. For if thou wert cut--**"wert cut off"
**from the olive tree, which is wild by nature, and wast grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree; how much more shall these, &c.--**This is just the converse of Ro 11:21: "As the excision of the merely engrafted Gentiles through unbelief is a thing much more to be expected than was the excision of the natural Israel, before it happened; ...
Read full commentary →So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: coming: Gr. revelation
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>So that ye come behind in no gift</strong> (<em>hoste hymas me hystereis thai en medeni charismati</em>, ὥστε ὑμᾶς μὴ ὑστερεῖσθαι ἐν μηδενὶ χαρίσματι)—The term <em>charisma</em> (χάρισμα, "grace-gift") is derived from <em>charis</em> (grace), emphasizing that spiritual gifts are undeserved endowments, not earned rewards. The Corinthians lacked nothing in gifts—yet they were spiritually imm...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **So that ye** **come.**—Not exactly as in the English, “so that ye come behind” (or, *are wanting*) “in no gift,” but “the result being that ye come behind *others* in no gift.” You have as fully as any others those spiritual gifts which sustain you and enable you to wait for the revelation (*i.e.,* the second visible appearance, which the early Church expected would soon occur) of our Lord J...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**25. For I would not ... that ye should be ignorant of this mystery--**The word "mystery," so often used by our apostle, does not mean (as with us) something incomprehensible, but "something before kept secret, either wholly or for the most part, and now only fully disclosed" (compare Ro 16:25; 1Co 2:7-10; Ep 1:9, 10; 3:3-6, 9, 10).
**lest ye should be wise in your own conceits--**as if ye alon...
Read full commentary →Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ</strong> (<em>hos kai bebaiosei hymas</em>, ὃς καὶ βεβαιώσει ὑμᾶς)—The verb <em>bebaioo</em> (βεβαιόω, "confirm") reappears from verse 6, now in the future tense: Christ who confirmed the gospel in them will also confirm them unto the end. This is a promise of perseverance, rooted in Chris...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Who.**—The use of the words “day of our Lord Jesus Christ,” instead of “His day,” has been regarded by some as a sufficient evidence that “who” does not refer to Christ. This by itself would scarcely be so, for there are examples elsewhere of St. Paul using our Lord’s name where the possessive pronoun would have seemed more natural (Ephesians 4:12; Colossians 2:11). The general sense of the ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**26-27. And so all Israel shall be saved--**To understand this great statement, as some still do, merely of such a gradual inbringing of individual Jews, that there shall at length remain none in unbelief, is to do manifest violence both to it and to the whole context. It can only mean the ultimate ingathering of Israel as a nation, in contrast with the present "remnant." (So Tholuck, Meyer, De W...
Read full commentary →God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord</strong> (<em>pistos ho theos</em>, πιστὸς ὁ θεός)—Paul grounds assurance in God's character: <em>pistos</em> (πιστός, "faithful, reliable, trustworthy") is the adjective form of <em>pistis</em> (faith). God's faithfulness guarantees our perseverance, answering the implied question: Can we endure t...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **God is faithful.**—The One who called them “unto the communion of His Son” is faithful, and therefore He will complete His work; no trials and sufferings need make them doubt that all will at last be well. The same confidence is expressed in Philippians 1:6, and 1Thessalonians 5:24.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**26-27. And so all Israel shall be saved--**To understand this great statement, as some still do, merely of such a gradual inbringing of individual Jews, that there shall at length remain none in unbelief, is to do manifest violence both to it and to the whole context. It can only mean the ultimate ingathering of Israel as a nation, in contrast with the present "remnant." (So Tholuck, Meyer, De W...
Read full commentary →Divisions in the Church
Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. divisions: Gr. schisms
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing</strong> (<em>parakaleo de hymas</em>, παρακαλῶ δὲ ὑμᾶς)—The verb <em>parakaleo</em> (παρακαλέω, "to exhort, urge, beseech") is not harsh command but pastoral appeal. Paul invokes <strong>the name of our Lord Jesus Christ</strong> as the authority and motivation for unity—not his apostolic o...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **Now I beseech you, brethren.**—With these words the Apostle introduces the topic which is indeed one of the chief reasons of his writing this Epistle (see *Introduction*)*,* viz., the PARTY-SPIRIT existing in the Corinthian Church. The treatment of this subject occupies to 1Corinthians 4:20. It is important to remember that the factions rebuked by St. Paul were not sects who separated thems...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**28-29. As concerning the Gospel they are enemies for your sakes--**that is, they are regarded and treated as enemies (in a state of exclusion through unbelief, from the family of God) for the benefit of you Gentiles; in the sense of Ro 11:11, 15.
**but as touching, the election--**of Abraham and his seed.
**they are beloved--**even in their state of exclusion for the fathers' sakes.
For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you</strong> (<em>emenythe gar moi</em>, ἐμηνύθη γάρ μοι)—The verb <em>menyomai</em> (μηνύω, "to inform, report") indicates Paul received credible intelligence, not vague rumors. <strong>The house of Chloe</strong> (ἡ Χλόης) likely refers to a household that incl...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **The house of Chloe.**—Who Chloe was we cannot tell. Her name was evidently well known to the Corinthians, and some slaves of her household, probably travelling between Ephesus and Corinth, on their owner’s business, had brought to St. Paul the account of the distracted state of the church in their city.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**28-29. As concerning the Gospel they are enemies for your sakes--**that is, they are regarded and treated as enemies (in a state of exclusion through unbelief, from the family of God) for the benefit of you Gentiles; in the sense of Ro 11:11, 15.
**but as touching, the election--**of Abraham and his seed.
**they are beloved--**even in their state of exclusion for the fathers' sakes.
Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ</strong>—Paul identifies four factions centered on human personalities. The <strong>Paul party</strong> likely boasted of their founder's apostolic authority. The <strong>Apollos party</strong> (Acts 18:24-28) probably preferred his eloquence and philosophical sophistication—Apollo...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **Now this** **I** **say.**—Better, *What I mean is, that,* &c. The following words, “every one of you saith,” show how party-spirit pervaded the whole Christian community. It may be well to mention here briefly what we may consider to have been the distinctive characteristics of the factions which called themselves respectively the party of Paul, of Cephas, of Apollos, and of Christ.
1. ST. ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**30-31. For as ye in times past have not believed--**or, "obeyed"
**God--**that is, yielded not to God "the obedience of faith," while strangers to Christ.
**yet now have obtained mercy through--**by occasion of
**their unbelief--**(See on Ro 11:11; Ro 11:15; Ro 11:28).
Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Is Christ divided?</strong> (<em>memeristai ho Christos</em>, μεμέρισται ὁ Χριστός)—Paul's rhetorical question is devastating: the factions treat Christ as if He were parceled out, each group possessing a different piece. The verb <em>merizo</em> (μερίζω, "to divide, partition") implies tearing Christ into fragments—an absurdity that exposes the insanity of their divisions. Christ is one, ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **Is Christ divided?**—Better, *Christ is divided.* Christ, in the communion of the Church, is rent, torn in fragments by you. The mention of the sacred name as a party-cry makes the Apostle burst into that impassioned exclamation. Then there is a momentary pause, and the Apostle goes back from his sudden denunciation of the “Christ” party, to those whom he had originally selected for typical...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**30-31. For as ye in times past have not believed--**or, "obeyed"
**God--**that is, yielded not to God "the obedience of faith," while strangers to Christ.
**yet now have obtained mercy through--**by occasion of
**their unbelief--**(See on Ro 11:11; Ro 11:15; Ro 11:28).
I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius</strong>—Paul expresses relief that he personally baptized only a few Corinthians, precisely to avoid the factional misuse of baptism. <strong>Crispus</strong> was the synagogue ruler who believed (Acts 18:8), a prominent early convert. <strong>Gaius</strong> is likely the same man who hosted Paul and the church (Rom 16:23), a ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **I thank God.**—“I am thankful to God that it was not so.” For if he had baptised a great many, some might have said he had created originally a party in his own name. Crispus (see Acts 18:8), a “ruler of the synagogue,” Gaius (or Caius, his Roman name), “mine host, and of the whole Church” (Romans 16:23): the evident importance and position of these two, and that they were the first convert...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**32. For God hath concluded them all in unbelief--**"hath shut them all up to unbelief"
**that he might have mercy upon all--**that is, those "all" of whom he had been discoursing; the Gentiles first, and after them the Jews [Fritzsche, Tholuck, Olshausen, De Wette, Philippi, Stuart, Hodge]. Certainly it is not "all mankind individually" [Meyer, Alford]; for the apostle is not here dealing with...
Read full commentary →Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name</strong> (<em>hina me tis eipe hoti eis to emon onoma ebaptisa</em>, ἵνα μή τις εἴπῃ ὅτι εἰς τὸ ἐμὸν ὄνομα ἐβάπτισα)—Paul's concern is not that people <em>would</em> say this (he knows they wouldn't accuse him directly) but that the factionalism could create this impression. Baptism <strong>in the name of</strong> (<em>eis to onoma</...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**33. Oh, the depth, &c.--**The apostle now yields himself up to the admiring contemplation of the grandeur of that divine plan which he had sketched out.
**of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God--**Many able expositors render this, "of the riches and wisdom and knowledge," &c. [Erasmus, Grotius, Bengel, Meyer, De Wette, Tholuck, Olshausen, Fritzsche, Philippi, Alford, Rev...
Read full commentary →And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other</strong> (<em>ebaptisa de kai ton Stephana oikon</em>, ἐβάπτισα δὲ καὶ τὸν Στεφανᾶ οἶκον)—Paul suddenly recalls one more household he baptized: <strong>Stephanas</strong> and his household. This appears to be an afterthought, almost comedic in tone, as if Paul is racking his memory: "Oh yes, an...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **Stephanas.**—The mention of Stephanas and his household was, from the words preceding, evidently a subsequent correction by the Apostle. He had forgotten them, and was reminded of it possibly by Sosthenes, who was writing from his dictation, and would naturally have known the fact, for Stephanas was the “firstfruits of Achaia” (1Corinthians 16:15), and Sosthenes had been chief ruler of the ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**34-35. For who hath known the mind of the Lord?--**See Job 15:8; Jr 23:18.
**or who hath been his counsellor--**See Is 40:13, 14.
For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. words: or, speech
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel</strong> (<em>ou gar apesteilen me Christos baptizein alla euangelizesthai</em>, οὐ γὰρ ἀπέστειλέν με Χριστὸς βαπτίζειν ἀλλὰ εὐαγγελίζεσθαι)—Paul clarifies his primary mission: gospel proclamation, not administering ordinances. This does not diminish baptism—Jesus commanded it (Matt 28:19)—but establishes a hierarchy of priorities...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **Not to** **baptize.**—Preaching was eminently the work of the Apostles. The deacons used to baptise (Acts 10:48). The mention of “the preaching of the glad tidings” affords an opportunity for the Apostle stating in vindication of himself why that, and not philosophy, was the subject of his preaching, *“*lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.” Such, and not inability or igno...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**34-35. For who hath known the mind of the Lord?--**See Job 15:8; Jr 23:18.
**or who hath been his counsellor--**See Is 40:13, 14.
The Wisdom of God
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God</strong> (<em>ho logos gar ho tou staurou tois men apollymenois mōria estin, tois de sōzomenois hēmin dynamis theou estin</em>, ὁ λόγος γὰρ ὁ τοῦ σταυροῦ τοῖς μὲν ἀπολλυμένοις μωρία ἐστίν, τοῖς δὲ σῳζομένοις ἡμῖν δύναμις θεοῦ ἐστιν)—Paul contrasts two responses to the cross...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18) **For the preaching.**—In the original the contrast comes out more strongly between this and the previous statement, the same phrase being repeated, thus, “For the *word* of the cross,” in contrast to “the wisdom of more *words*” above. This is the word of real power.
**Them that perish.**—Better, *those that are perishing,* and *us who are being saved,* the former referring to those who have...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**36. For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom--**"to Him"
**be glory for ever. Amen--**Thus worthily--with a brevity only equalled by its sublimity--does the apostle here sum up this whole matter. "Of Him are all things," as their eternal Source: "THROUGH Him are all things," inasmuch as He brings all to pass which in His eternal counsels He purposed: "To Him are all thi...
Read full commentary →For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent</strong> (<em>gegrapta gar, Apolō tēn sophian tōn sophōn kai tēn synesin tōn synetōn athetēsō</em>, γέγραπται γάρ, Ἀπολῶ τὴν σοφίαν τῶν σοφῶν καὶ τὴν σύνεσιν τῶν συνετῶν ἀθετήσω)—Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14 (LXX) to show that God's subversion of human wisdom is not a New Testam...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(19) **For it** **is written.**—This is a further explanation of why the word of the gospel, and not the word of merely human wisdom, is “the power of God.” The quotation which follows consists of two passages in Isaiah, and is taken from the LXX., one word being altered. We have here “bring to nothing,” instead of “I will conceal.” “Words which originally applied to those who assumed to be the gu...
Read full commentary →Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world?</strong> (<em>pou sophos, pou grammateus, pou syzētētēs tou aiōnos toutou</em>, ποῦ σοφός, ποῦ γραμματεύς, ποῦ συζητητὴς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου)—Paul issues a triumphant taunt, echoing Isaiah 33:18. <strong>The wise</strong> (<em>sophos</em>, σοφός) represents Greek philosophers. <strong>The scribe</strong> (<em>gramma...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) To the second quotation, which was originally a song of triumph over the enemies of Israel, the Apostle gives a general application.
**The wise.**—The general reference in this word is to those who would exalt human knowledge, while “the scribe” indicates the Jew, and the “disputer” the Greek, who discussed philosophy (Acts 6:9; Acts 9:29).
**Of this world.**—These words qualify all three men...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 12 Ro 12:1-21. Duties of Believers, General and Particular.
The doctrinal teaching of this Epistle is now followed up by a series of exhortations to practical duty. And first, the all-comprehensive duty.
**1. I beseech you therefore--**in view of all that has been advanced in the foregoing part of this Epistle.
**by the mercies of God--**those mercies, whose free and unmerited nature...
Read full commentary →For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God</strong> (<em>epeide gar en te sophia tou theou ouk egno ho kosmos dia tēs sophias ton theon</em>, ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ σοφίᾳ τοῦ θεοῦ οὐκ ἔγνω ὁ κόσμος διὰ τῆς σοφίας τὸν θεόν)—Paul explains why God chose the cross: human wisdom failed. <strong>In the wisdom of God</strong> means according to God's wise design—He created a w...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(21) **For.**—This is an explanation and evidence of Low God made the wisdom of the world to be only “folly.”
**After that** (better, *inasmuch as*) is not here a note of time, but of causal relation.
**In the wisdom of God.**—These words can scarcely be taken as an expression of a kind of approval of God’s wisdom in so arranging the method of revelation, but rather as referring to God’s wisdom ev...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. And be ye not conformed to this world--**Compare Ep 2:2; Ga 1:4, Greek.
**but be ye transformed--**or, "transfigured" (as in Mt 17:2; and 2Co 3:18, Greek).
**by the renewing of your mind--**not by a mere outward disconformity to the ungodly world, many of whose actions in themselves may be virtuous and praiseworthy; but by such an inward spiritual transformation as makes the whole life ne...
Read full commentary →For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom</strong> (<em>epeidē Ioudaioi sēmeion aitousin kai Hellēnes sophian zētousin</em>, ἐπειδὴ Ἰουδαῖοι σημεῖον αἰτοῦσιν καὶ Ἕλληνες σοφίαν ζητοῦσιν)—Paul identifies two human demands that the cross refuses to satisfy. <strong>Jews require a sign</strong> (<em>sēmeion aitousin</em>, σημεῖον αἰτοῦσιν)—miraculous, supernatural validati...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(22) **For.**—This is a further unfolding of the fact of the simplicity of the preaching of the Cross. It pandered neither to Jewish-minded persons (not in the Greek “*the* Jews,” *“the* Gentiles,” but simply “Jews,” “Gentiles”) who desired visible portents to support the teaching, nor to those of Greek taste who desired an actual and clear philosophic proof of it. (See Matthew 12:38; Mark 8:11; L...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. For I say--**authoritatively
**through the grace given unto me--**as an apostle of Jesus Christ; thus exemplifying his own precept by modestly falling back on that office which both warranted and required such plainness towards all classes.
**to every man that is among you, not to think, &c.--**It is impossible to convey in good English the emphatic play, so to speak, which each word ...
Read full commentary →But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock , and unto the Greeks foolishness;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness</strong> (<em>hēmeis de kēryssomen Christon estaurōmenon, Ioudaiois men skandalon, ethnesin de mōrian</em>, ἡμεῖς δὲ κηρύσσομεν Χριστὸν ἐσταυρωμένον, Ἰουδαίοις μὲν σκάνδαλον, ἔθνεσιν δὲ μωρίαν)—Despite Jewish and Greek objections, Paul refuses to alter the message. <strong>Christ crucified</stro...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23) **But we preach.**—The gospel of Christ crucified made its way by those very qualities which they regarded as “weakness and folly,” vindicating itself as “the power of God,” more mighty than any “sign” a Jew might ask for; and “the wisdom of God” surpassing any merely intellectual “wisdom” which a Greek might desire.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4-5. For as we have many members, &c.--**The same diversity and yet unity obtains in the body of Christ, whereof all believers are the several members, as in the natural body.
But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God</strong> (<em>autois de tois klētois, Ioudaiois te kai Hellēsin, Christon theou dynamin kai theou sophian</em>, αὐτοῖς δὲ τοῖς κλητοῖς, Ἰουδαίοις τε καὶ Ἕλλησιν, Χριστὸν θεοῦ δύναμιν καὶ θεοῦ σοφίαν)—Paul returns to the language of calling (<em>klētois</em>, κλητοῖς, "called ones")—the same...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **Them which are called.**—St. Paul always speaks of all Christians as “the called,” not using that word in the narrower sense to which some modern religious sects have restricted it.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4-5. For as we have many members, &c.--**The same diversity and yet unity obtains in the body of Christ, whereof all believers are the several members, as in the natural body.
Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men</strong> (<em>hoti to mōron tou theou sophōteron tōn anthrōpōn estin, kai to asthenes tou theou ischyroteron tōn anthrōpōn</em>, ὅτι τὸ μωρὸν τοῦ θεοῦ σοφώτερον τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐστιν, καὶ τὸ ἀσθενὲς τοῦ θεοῦ ἰσχυρότερον τῶν ἀνθρώπων)—Paul employs irony: even if we grant (hypothetically) that God has...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(25) **Because.**—This introduces the reason why Christ, as being crucified, is the power and wisdom of God, viz., because God’s folly (as they call it) is wiser, not “than the wisdom of men,” as some understand this passage, but than men themselves—embracing in that word all that men can know or hope ever to know; and the weakness of God (as they regard it) is stronger than men.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6-8. Having then gifts differing according to the grace given to us--**Here, let it be observed, all the gifts of believers alike are viewed as communications of mere grace.
**whether--**we have the gift of
**prophecy--**that is, of inspired teaching (as in Ac 15:32). Anyone speaking with divine authority--whether with reference to the past, the present, or the future--was termed a prophet (...
Read full commentary →For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called</strong> (<em>blepete gar tēn klēsin hymōn, adelphoi, hoti ou polloi sophoi kata sarka, ou polloi dynatoi, ou polloi eugeneis</em>, βλέπετε γὰρ τὴν κλῆσιν ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι οὐ πολλοὶ σοφοὶ κατὰ σάρκα, οὐ πολλοὶ δυνατοί, οὐ πολλοὶ εὐγενεῖς)—Paul invites the Corinthians...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(26) **For ye see your calling.**—Better, imperative (as in 1Corinthians 8:9; 1Corinthians 10:18; 1Corinthians 16:10), *For see your calling.* The Apostle directs them to look at the facts regarding their own calling to Christianity, as an illustration of the truth of what he has just written, viz., that though there were, perhaps, a few of high birth and education who were called, and responded t...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6-8. Having then gifts differing according to the grace given to us--**Here, let it be observed, all the gifts of believers alike are viewed as communications of mere grace.
**whether--**we have the gift of
**prophecy--**that is, of inspired teaching (as in Ac 15:32). Anyone speaking with divine authority--whether with reference to the past, the present, or the future--was termed a prophet (...
Read full commentary →But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty</strong> (<em>alla ta mōra tou kosmou exelexato ho theos hina kataischyne tous sophous, kai ta asthene tou kosmou exelexato ho theos hina kataischyne ta ischyra</em>, ἀλλὰ τὰ μωρὰ τοῦ κόσμου ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεὸς ἵνα καταισχύνῃ τοὺς σ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(27) **Foolish things.**—The neuter is used probably for the purpose of generalising, and it expresses the qualities of the men whom God has chosen—“the wise” is masculine in the Greek, showing that it is still of “persons” the Apostle is speaking.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6-8. Having then gifts differing according to the grace given to us--**Here, let it be observed, all the gifts of believers alike are viewed as communications of mere grace.
**whether--**we have the gift of
**prophecy--**that is, of inspired teaching (as in Ac 15:32). Anyone speaking with divine authority--whether with reference to the past, the present, or the future--was termed a prophet (...
Read full commentary →And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are</strong> (<em>kai ta agene tou kosmou kai ta exouthenēmena exelexato ho theos, ta me onta, hina ta onta katargēse</em>, καὶ τὰ ἀγενῆ τοῦ κόσμου καὶ τὰ ἐξουθενημένα ἐξελέξατο ὁ θεός, τὰ μὴ ὄντα, ἵνα τὰ ὄντα καταργήσῃ)—Paul intensifies the paradox. G...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(28) **And things which are not.**—This climax loses somewhat of its force by the insertion of the word “and,” which is not in some of the best MSS., and “yea,” which is not in any MS. Omitting the word “and,” the sentence is not an addition to the things already mentioned, but a general and emphatic summary of all the things which have been already contrasted with their opposites. After the words...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. Let love be without dissimulation--**"Let your love be unfeigned" (as in 2Co 6:6; 1Pe 2:22; and see 1Jo 3:18).
**Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good--**What a lofty tone of moral principle and feeling is here inculcated! It is not, Abstain from the one, and do the other; nor, Turn away from the one, and draw to the other; but, Abhor the one, and cling, with deepest sympat...
Read full commentary →That no flesh should glory in his presence .
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>That no flesh should glory in his presence</strong> (<em>hopōs me kauchēsetai pasa sarx enōpion tou theou</em>, ὅπως μὴ καυχήσεται πᾶσα σὰρξ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ)—This is the climax of Paul's argument: God's entire salvation strategy is designed to eliminate human boasting. <strong>No flesh</strong> (<em>pasa sarx</em>, πᾶσα σάρξ, "all flesh") means no human being—no exceptions. The verb <em>k...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. Be, &c.--**better, "In brotherly love be affectionate one to another; in [giving, or showing] honor, outdoing each other." The word rendered "prefer" means rather "to go before," "take the lead," that is, "show an example." How opposite is this to the reigning morality of the heathen world! and though Christianity has so changed the spirit of society, that a certain beautiful disinterest...
Read full commentary →But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption</strong> (<em>ex autou de hymeis este en Christō Iēsou, hos egenēthē sophia hēmin apo theou, dikaiosyne te kai hagiasmos kai apolytrōsis</em>, ἐξ αὐτοῦ δὲ ὑμεῖς ἐστε ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ὃς ἐγενήθη σοφία ἡμῖν ἀπὸ θεοῦ, δικαιοσύνη τε καὶ ἁγιασμὸς καὶ ἀπολύτρωσις)—<strong>O...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(30) **But.**—So far from boasting in His presence, we all owe all to Him. He is the author of the spiritual life of us who are in union with Christ, “who *was* (not “is”) made wisdom unto us *from* God.” The past tense here refers us back to the fact of the Incarnation; in it Christ became to us God’s revelation of Himself, thus giving us a wisdom from the source of all wisdom, which surpasses ut...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. not slothful in business--**The word rendered "business" means "zeal," "diligence," "purpose"; denoting the energy of action.
**serving the Lord--**that is, the Lord Jesus (see Ep 6:5-8). Another reading--"serving the time," or "the occasion"--which differs in form but very slightly from the received reading, has been adopted by good critics [Luther, Olshausen, Fritzsche, Meyer]. But as ma...
Read full commentary →That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord</strong> (<em>hina, kathōs gegraptai, Ho kauchōmenos en kyriō kauchasthō</em>, ἵνα, καθὼς γέγραπται, Ὁ καυχώμενος ἐν κυρίῳ καυχάσθω)—Paul concludes with a quotation from Jeremiah 9:23-24 (paraphrased): God alone deserves glory. <strong>He that glorieth</strong> (<em>ho kauchōmenos</em>, ὁ καυχώμενος, present midd...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(31) **That.**—So that it might be as the prophet wrote, “He that boasteth, let him boast in the Lord.” This is not a literal quotation, but only an adaptation and paraphrase from the LXX. of Jeremiah 9:23-24. Our only true boasting before God is that we are in Christ, that all we have we owe entirely to Him; we can only glory in, not ourselves or what we have or are, but in the fact that He is ou...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12. Rejoicing, &c.--**Here it is more lively to retain the order and the verbs of the original: "In hope, rejoicing; in tribulation, enduring; in prayer, persevering." Each of these exercises helps the other. If our "hope" of glory is so assured that it is a rejoicing hope, we shall find the spirit of "endurance in tribulation" natural and easy; but since it is "prayer" which strengthens the...
Read full commentary →