Interpretation of the first letter to the Corinthians of St. Paul the Apostle. Bible online You are bought with a price
We are the temple of the Holy Spirit. He lives in us! You must glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which belong to God. We are redeemed people. We are acquired people. We are a special people, a royal priesthood. We were bought with a price (1 Corinthians 6:20) - the blood of Jesus. We belong to God. He paid for us with His Calvary sacrifice. We do not belong to ourselves. We belong to God. What a wonderful privilege it is to belong to God and to be His sons and daughters.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).
Acts 2:17-18 says that in these last days God will pour out His Spirit on His male and female servants. In the original Greek it is the same word, without masculine and feminine gender. He will pour out His Spirit on those who have laid aside their own will to follow His will.
Jesus, although the Son, was the servant of the Father. He only did what the Father told Him to do. He didn't even speak for Himself.
You and I are born again children of God. We choose to serve. God won't force you. We serve Him of our own free will.
Jesus laid down His life to serve the Father. He tells us to lay down our lives to serve Him, to become those who lay down our will for the will of another, like a slave or servant. It is on such that God will pour out His Spirit. They will prophesy and signs and wonders will occur.
We have a great future, both individually and for the Church as a whole, if we follow God and do in our lives what He says to do, rather than following our natural desires. We will find that the more we do what He says, the better our lives will become.
If you don't follow God, you will never be free. What counts is not what we want to do. What matters is what God wants us to do. We may plan to do many good things in our lives, but in the eyes of God it means nothing. Until we begin to walk in the Spirit and follow the Spirit of God, we will never know His perfect will for our lives.
I'm ready to move forward!
The word from God that I mentioned earlier motivated me to leave the small and unimportant things in my life to pursue the things of God. It caused me to turn my attention to the Word of God. The other part of that word spoke of a spiritual army. The Holy Spirit exhorted that if we want to be part of this army, then we must resolve in our hearts not to be lazy, not to back away, not to retreat, not to sit still, but to rise up, step forward and be on fire!
I wanted to be part of God's movement. I wanted to be in the Lord's army. I made changes in my life and began to move forward. I chose to run the race God set for me and win!
Chapter 9
From glory to glory
Comments on Chapter 6
INTRODUCTION TO THE FIRST CORINTHIANS
THE GREATNESS OF CORINTH
Just one glance at the map shows that Corinth was destined for an important place. Southern Greece is almost an island. In the west, the Gulf of Corinth juts deep into the land, and in the east it borders the Sardonic Gulf. And so, on this narrow isthmus, between two bays, stands the city of Corinth. This position of the city inevitably led to Corinth becoming one of the greatest trade and commercial centers of the ancient world. All communication routes from Athens and northern Greece to Sparta and the Peloponnesian Peninsula passed through Corinth.
Not only communication routes between southern and northern Greece passed through Corinth, but most of the trade routes from the western to the eastern Mediterranean. The southernmost point of Greece was known as Cape Malea (now Cape Matapan). It was a dangerous cape, and “to go around Cape Malea” sounded in those days the same way as “to go around Cape Horn” sounded later. The Greeks had two sayings that clearly showed their opinion on this: “Let him who sails around Malea forget his home,” and “Let him who sails around Malea first make his will.”
As a result, the sailors chose one of two paths. They sailed up the Sardonic Gulf and, if their ships were small enough, dragged them across the isthmus and then lowered them into the Gulf of Corinth. The isthmus was called Diolkos - a place through which one is dragged. If the ship was too large, then the cargo was unloaded and carried by porters across the isthmus to another ship standing on the other side of the isthmus. These seven kilometers across the isthmus, where the Corinth Canal now passes, shortened the journey by 325 km, and eliminated the dangers of traveling around Cape Malea.
It is clear what a major commercial center Corinth was. Communication between southern and northern Greece passed through it. Communication between the eastern and western Mediterranean, even more intense, was most often carried out through the isthmus. There were three other cities around Corinth: Leheule - on the west coast, Cenchrea - on the east coast, and Scoenus - a short distance from Corinth. Farrar writes: "Luxury goods soon appeared in the markets visited by all the peoples of the civilized world - Arabian balsam, Phoenician dates, ivory from Libya, Babylonian carpets, goat's down from Cilicia, wool from Laconia, slaves from Phrygia."
Corinth, as Farrar puts it, was the vanity fair of the ancient world. People called it the Greek Bridge, it was also called the Hot Spot of Greece. Someone once said that if a person stood for long enough in Piccadilly Circus in London, he could eventually see every person in the country. Corinth was the Piccadilly of the Mediterranean. In addition to this, the Isthmian Games were also held there, which were second in popularity only to the Olympic Games. Corinth was a rich, populous city, one of the largest trading centers of the ancient world.
THE DECISION OF CORINTH
Corinth gained worldwide fame due to its commercial prosperity, but it also became the personification of immoral life. The very word “Corinthian,” that is, to live like a Corinthian, entered the Greek language and meant leading a drunken and depraved life. This word was included in English language, and during the regency, Corinthians were the name given to young people who led a riotous and reckless lifestyle. The Greek writer Aelian says that if a Corinthian ever appeared on stage in a Greek drama, he was sure to be drunk. The very name Corinth was synonymous with revelry. The city was a source of evil known throughout the civilized world. The Acropolis hill rose above the isthmus, and on it stood big temple goddess Aphrodite. At the temple lived a thousand priestesses of the goddess Aphrodite, priestesses of love, sacred prostitutes who came down from the Acropolis in the evenings and offered themselves to everyone for money on the streets of Corinth, until the Greeks had a new saying: “Not every man can afford to go to Corinth.” In addition to these gross sins, even more subtle vices flourished in Corinth, which were brought with them by merchants and sailors from all over the then known world. And therefore Corinth became not only synonymous with wealth and luxury, drunkenness and intemperance, but also synonymous with abomination and debauchery.
HISTORY OF CORINTH
The history of Corinth is divided into two periods. Corinth is an ancient city. Thucydides, the ancient Greek historian, claims that the first triremes, fighting greek ships, were built in Corinth. According to legend, the ship of the Argonauts was built in Corinth Argo. But in 235 BC, tragedy befell Corinth. Rome was busy conquering the world. When the Romans tried to conquer Greece, Corinth led the resistance. But the Greeks could not withstand the disciplined and well-organized Roman army, and in the same year, General Lucius Mummius captured Corinth and turned it into a pile of ruins.
But a place with such a geographical position could not remain empty forever. Almost exactly one hundred years after the destruction of Corinth, in 35 BC, Julius Caesar restored it from ruins, and Corinth became a Roman colony. Moreover, it became the capital, the center of the Roman province of Achaia, which included almost all of Greece.
During the time of the Apostle Paul, the population of Corinth was very diverse.
1) Veterans of the Roman army lived in it, who were settled here by Julius Caesar. After serving his term, the soldier received Roman citizenship, after which he was sent to some new city and given a plot of land to settle there. Such Roman colonies were established all over the world, and the main backbone of the population in them were veterans of the regular Roman army, who received Roman citizenship for their faithful service.
2) As soon as Corinth was reborn, merchants returned to the city, since its excellent geographical position gave it significant advantages.
3) Among the population of Corinth there were many Jews. The newly built city offered excellent commercial prospects, and they were eager to take advantage of them.
4) Small groups of Phoenicians, Phrygians and peoples from the east also lived there, with strange and historical manners. Farrar puts it this way: "It was a mixed and heterogeneous population, consisting of Greek adventurers and Roman townspeople, with a corrupting admixture of Phoenicians. There lived a mass of Jews, retired soldiers, philosophers, merchants, sailors, freedmen, slaves, artisans, merchants, brokers." . He characterizes Corinth as a colony without aristocracy, traditions, or established citizens.
And so, knowing that the past of Corinth and its very name were synonymous with wealth and luxury, drunkenness, debauchery and vice, let us read 1 Cor. 6,9-10:
“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?
Do not be deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor wicked people, nor homosexuals,
Neither thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”
In this hotbed of vice, in the most seemingly unsuitable city for this in all of Greece, Paul performed one of his greatest deeds, and in it one of the greatest victories of Christianity was won.
PAUL IN CORINTH
Apart from Ephesus, Paul remained in Corinth longer than in any other city. At the risk of his life, he left Macedonia and moved to Athens. Here he did not achieve much, and therefore went further to Corinth, where he remained for eighteen months. It will become clearer to us how little we know about his work when we learn that all the events about these eighteen months are summarized in 17 verses (Acts 18,1-17).
Upon his arrival in Corinth, Paul settled with Aquila and Priscilla. He preached with great success in the synagogue. After the arrival of Timothy and Silas from Macedonia, Paul redoubled his efforts, but the Jews were so hostile and implacable that he had to leave the synagogue. He moved to Just, who lived next door to the synagogue. The most famous of those converted by him to the faith of Christ was Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue; and among the people, Paul’s preaching also had great success.
In 52, a new governor, the Roman Gallio, known for his charm and nobility, arrived in Corinth. The Jews tried to take advantage of his ignorance and kindness and brought Paul to his trial, accusing him of “teaching people to honor God not according to the law.” But Gallio, in accordance with the impartiality of Roman justice, refused to examine their accusation and did not take any measures. Therefore, Paul was able to complete his work here and then went to Syria.
CORRESPONDENCE WITH CORINTH
While in Ephesus, Paul learned in 55 that not all was well in Corinth, and therefore wrote to the church community there. It is likely that the Corinthian correspondence of Paul that we have is incomplete and that its layout is broken. It must be remembered that it was not until the year 90 or so that Paul's letters and epistles were first collected. It seems that they were available in various church communities only on pieces of papyrus and were therefore difficult to collect. When the letters to the Corinthians were collected, they apparently were not all found, they were not collected completely, and they were not arranged in the original sequence. Let's try to imagine how this all happened.
1) There was a letter written before 1 Corinthians. IN 1 Cor. 5:9 Paul writes: “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with fornicators.” Obviously, this is a reference to a previously written letter. Some scholars believe that this letter was lost without a trace. Others believe that it is contained in 2 Cor. 6.14-7.1. Indeed, this passage echoes the above theme. In the context of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, this passage is somehow not readable. If we move directly from 2 Cor. 6.13 ko 2 Cor. 7.2, we will see that the meaning and connection are perfectly preserved. Scholars call this passage the "Previous Message." Initially, the messages were not divided into chapters and verses. The division into chapters was not undertaken before the thirteenth century, and the division into verses not earlier than the sixteenth. Therefore, organizing the collected letters presented great difficulties.
2) Various sources told Paul that all was not well in Corinth. a) Such information came from Chloe’s household ( 1 Cor. 1.11). They reported quarrels tearing apart the church community. b) This news reached Paul and with the arrival of Stephen, Fortunatus and Achaic in Ephesus ( 1 Cor. 16,17). Which personal contacts complemented the current state of affairs. c) This information came with a letter in which the Corinthian community asked Paul to give instructions on various issues. 1 Cor. 7.1 begins with the words "What have you written to me about..." In response to all these messages, Paul wrote the First Epistle to the Corinthians and sent it to the Corinthian church with Timothy ( 1 Cor. 4,17).
3) This letter caused, however, a further deterioration in relations between the members of the church, and although we have no written information about this, we can conclude that Paul personally visited Corinth. In 2 Cor. 12:14 we read: "And so in third time I'm ready to come to you." In 2 Cor. 13,1,2 he writes to them again that he will come to them the third time. Well, if there was a third visit, then there should have been a second. We only know about one thing, stated in Acts 18.1-17. We have no information about Paul's second visit to Corinth, but it was only two or three days' sailing from Ephesus by ship.
4) This visit did not lead to anything good. Things only escalated and eventually Paul wrote a stern letter. We learn about him from some passages in Second Corinthians. IN 2 Cor. 2:4 Paul writes: “Out of great sorrow and troubled heart I wrote to you with many tears...” In 2 Cor. 7:8 he writes: “Therefore, if I saddened you with the message, I do not regret it, although I did regret it; for I see that that message saddened you, however, for a while.” This letter, as a result of mental suffering, was so severe that he was saddened to send it.
Scientists call this message A stern message. Do we have it? Obviously, this is not 1 Corinthians because it is not heartbreaking or harrowing. It is also obvious that at the time of writing this message the situation was not hopeless. If we now reread the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, we will encounter a strange circumstance. From chapters 1-9, complete reconciliation is visible, but from chapter 10 a sharp change occurs. Chapters 10-13 contain the most heartbreaking things Paul ever wrote. They clearly show that he was deeply hurt, that he was insulted as never before or since. His appearance, his speech, his apostleship, his honor are attacked and criticized.
Most scholars believe that chapters 10-13 are the Strict Epistle, and that it was misplaced in the compilation of Paul's epistles. If we want to have an accurate understanding of Paul's correspondence with the Corinthian church, we need to read chapters 10-13 of 2 first, and chapters 1-9 after them. We know that Paul sent the Stern Letter to Corinth with Titus ( 2 Cor. 2, 13; 7,13).
5) Paul was concerned about everything connected with this letter. He couldn't wait for Titus to return with an answer and went to meet him (2 Cor. 2.13; 7.5.13). He met him somewhere in Macedonia and learned that everything had turned out well and, perhaps, in Philippi, he wrote the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, chapters 1-9, a letter of reconciliation.
Stalker said that Paul's letters lift the veil of obscurity from early Christian communities, telling us what was happening within them. This statement best characterizes the letters to the Corinthians. Here we see what the words “caring for all the churches” meant to Paul. We see here both a broken heart and joy. We see Paul, the shepherd of his flock, taking their concerns and sorrows to heart.
CORRESPONDENCE WITH CORINTH
Before proceeding to a detailed analysis of the messages, we will compile a chronology of correspondence with the Corinthian community.
1) The previous message which, May be, amounts to 2 Cor. 6,4-7,1.
2) The arrival of the household of Chloe, Stephen, Fortunatus and Achaic and Paul’s receipt of the message to the Corinthian church.
3) In response to all this, the First Epistle to the Corinthians was written and sent with Timothy to Corinth.
4) The situation worsens even more, and Paul personally visits Corinth. This visit turns out to be unsuccessful. It weighed heavily on his heart.
5) As a result of this, Paul writes a Stern Epistle, which is likely. composes chapters 10-13 of 2 Corinthians , and it was sent with Titus.
6) Unable to bear waiting for an answer, Paul sets out on the road to meet Titus. He meets him in Macedonia, learns that everything has been formed and, perhaps, in Philippi writes chapters 1-9 of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians: A message of reconciliation.
In the first four chapters of First Corinthians the issue of discrepancies in God's Church in Corinth. Instead of being united in Christ, it was split into sects and parties identifying themselves with various Christian leaders and teachers. It was Paul's teaching that caused this schism, due to the fact that the Corinthians thought too much about human wisdom and knowledge and too little about the pure mercy of God. In reality, despite all their supposed wisdom, they were still in an immature state. They thought they were wise, but in reality they were no better than children.
THE STUPIDITY OF LEGAL PROCEEDINGS (1 Cor. 6:1-8)
Now Paul deals with a problem that applies to the Greeks. The Jews usually did not go to public court to sue; the issue was decided by the village elders or the synagogue elders; in their understanding, justice was more a matter requiring family resolution than judicial. In fact, Jewish law generally prohibited Jews from bringing litigation to a non-Jewish court; such an act was considered blasphemy and a violation of the sacred law of God. Among the Hellenes, the situation was completely different: they were specifically committed to legal proceedings. Courts were also one of their main entertainments.
By studying the details of Athenian legislation, we see what a large role the courts played in the life of every Athenian citizen, and the situation in Corinth was not much different from Athens. In Athens, they first tried to resolve the dispute in a private arbitration court - arbitration. In this case, each party chose one arbitrator, and the third was chosen by agreement of both parties. He was supposed to be an impartial judge. If arbitration could not resolve the dispute, the case went to a court called forty. The court of forty referred the case to public arbitration, and all Athenians over the age of sixty acted as public arbiters; any of them chosen as an arbitrator was obliged to speak, whether he liked it or not, under pain of punishment - deprivation of the right to vote. If the case could not be resolved in this instance, it was referred to the jury, consisting of two hundred and one people and considered disputes and claims for an amount equivalent to 50 pounds sterling or less. The court of four hundred and one people heard disputes and claims in excess of 50 pounds sterling. Of course, there were other jury trials with the number of jurors from one thousand to six thousand Athenian citizens aged thirty years. They received payment for their service. The citizens of Athens who had the right to serve as jurors assembled in the morning, and lots decided who would sit in court when the case was heard.
Apparently, in Greek cities, every citizen was a lawyer to one degree or another and spent most of his time sitting in court as a listener or deciding a dispute. The Greeks were known for their passion for going to court. It is therefore natural that some Greeks introduced litigation into the church, which clearly shocked Paul. His Jewish background and upbringing made him violently opposed to such practices, and his Christian principles strengthened him in this opinion. “How,” he asked, “does anyone among you, when dealing with another, dare to sue the wicked?”
What struck Paul even more about all this was that in the future the Messiah would judge the nations, and the saints would take part in the judgment. IN Wisdom of Solomon 3:8 says: "They will judge the nations and rule over the nations." IN Book of Enoch 108:12 says: "I will exalt those who loved My Name, clothed with bright light, and I will set everyone on his throne of honor." Therefore Paul asks: “If you are ever going to judge the world, even if angels, the highest creatures, are subject to your judgment, how can you, in the name of all this, submit your affairs to the judgment of men, and that of the Gentiles?
If you must do it,” he says, “do it within the church, and leave the judgment to people of whom you have a low opinion, because no one who is destined to judge the world will take up the task of solving petty everyday squabbles.”
And suddenly Paul comes to a great and extremely important principle. In general, going to court, and especially going to court with a brother in Christ, means falling far below the standards established by Christianity. Long before this, Plato said that a pious man would rather suffer unjustly than act unjustly. If a Christian has even a shadow of Christ in his heart, he will be more likely to bear the insult, the loss, and the harm done to him than to try to turn it all against another. Moreover, if this other is his brother in Christ. Revenge is not a Christian thing at all. A Christian's business dealings are not determined by the desire for reward. He does not resort to judicial rules to achieve justice, but is guided by a spirit of love, which reminds him to live in peace with his brothers in Christ, and will not allow him to stoop so low as to go to court to litigate.
AND SO WERE SOME OF YOU (1 Cor. 6:9-11)
Paul gives a terrible list of sins, which is a dark commentary on the debauched and depraved civilization in which the Corinthian church grew up. Some sins are unpleasant to talk about at all, but we need to look at them in order to see in what environment the early Christian church arose and developed, and to be convinced that human nature has not changed much since then.
Among them fornicators and adulterers. We have already seen that sexual immorality was the norm of pagan life, and the virtues of chastity and virginity were almost unknown to them. A particularly obscene word fornicators, meaning prostituted men. In the corrupt atmosphere of Corinth, it was obviously difficult to be a Christian.
Were among them idolaters. The largest building in Corinth was the temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love, in which idolatry and immorality flourished, walking hand in hand. Idolatry is a sad example of what happens when we try to simplify religion. After all, the idol was not originally a god, but only a symbol of God. Its function was to facilitate the worship of the god by creating a material object in which he was embodied. But very soon people began to worship not the god behind the idol, but the idol itself. This is one of the constant dangers that people begin to worship the symbol rather than the reality behind it.
There were malakia. Word malakos means a soft, pampered, effeminate person who has lost his masculinity and lives for the pleasure of secret vices. We can say that he was mired in luxury and lost all ability to resist the vice of pleasure. Odysseus and his sailors, having arrived on the island of Circe, went ashore where lotus flowers grew. A person who ate such a lotus flower forgot his home and his loved ones, and wanted to live forever where “there was eternal noon.” He no longer had those healthy joys that a person gets from “climbing waves that pile on top of each other.” Malakia - a sensualist striving for a life where it is always noon.
There were the thieves, scourge of the ancient world. It was very easy to rob houses, because they were poorly protected. Thieves and robbers most often attacked bathhouses and gyms, where they stole the clothes of those swimming or exercising. Slaves who had special valuable qualities were also often stolen. The legislation shows us how complex this problem was. Three types of theft were punishable by death: 1) Theft with a value of over 50 drachmas; 2) thefts from baths and gyms, valued at 10 drachmas; 3) night thefts. Christians lived among this thieving population.
There were drunkards. Paul uses the word mephos, meaning rampant drunkenness. After all, in ancient Hellas even small children drank wine. The Greeks called breakfast akratisma and consisted of bread soaked in wine. The widespread consumption of wine was also caused by poor water supply. But the Greeks were a sober people, because their drink consisted of three parts wine and two parts water. But in rich and luxurious Corinth, unbridled wine drinking became the norm.
There were predators and robbers. Both of these words are interesting: to convey the concept predators Paul uses the word pleonectes, which means, according to the Hellenic definition, “a spirit constantly striving to subjugate more and more, seizing even what it has no right to.” This is aggressive acquisition. This is not the spirit of miserliness, for the predator strives to acquire in order to spend so as to live in even greater luxury and pleasure. The predator doesn't care at all at whom he took away just to gain. Word robbers - haprax, means grab. It is interesting to note that this word is used in relation to a special type of wolf, as well as grappling hooks, with which they grabbed the sides of ships during battle. This is the spirit of an invader using brutal cruelty. The most unnatural sin is mentioned at the end. Sin sodomy penetrated Greece like a cancerous tumor, and captured Rome from Greece. It is difficult for us to imagine how widespread this sin was in ancient world. Even this great person how Socrates was a homosexual. It is known that Plato’s dialogue (Symposium), one of the world’s greatest works about love, is dedicated not to natural, but to unnatural love. Fourteen of the first fifteen Roman emperors indulged in this vice. When Paul wrote this epistle, the emperor Nero was ruling in Rome, who took a boy named Sporus and castrated him, then he married him with all the wedding ceremony, brought him in a wedding procession to his palace and lived with him as his wife. In his rampant depravity, Nero married another man named Pythagoras, and called him her husband. When Emperor Nero was eliminated and Otto ascended the throne, the first thing he did was take Sporus into his own possession. Later, the name of Emperor Hadrian was associated with a young man from Bithynia named Antinous. He lived with him inseparably. After his death, Emperor Hadrian gave him divine honors, decorated the world with his statues, and named a star after him. So he perpetuated this sin. In this vice, the world during the time of the early Christian church lost all sense of shame. Undoubtedly, this vice was one of the most important reasons for the degeneration and final decline of this civilization.
Giving this terrible list of natural and unnatural vices, Paul triumphantly exclaims: “and such were some of you.” Christianity can be judged by its strength. Christianity could turn the scum of humanity into people. It could make children of God people who had previously lost all sense of shame. In Corinth, as throughout the world, there were people who were living witnesses to the power of Christ. The power of the Lord is as strong as ever. No one can change himself; only Christ can change him. There is a striking difference between the pagan and Christian literature of that time. Seneca, a contemporary of Paul, cries out that people long for “a hand that has fallen to lift them up.” “People,” he writes, “are highly aware of their weakness and inability to cope with their most pressing problems.” “People love their vices,” he says in despair, “and at the same time hate them.” He called himself homo non golerabilis, that is, an unbearable person. And into this world, conscious of its inevitable decline, which nothing could stop, entered the radiant power of the Christian religion, which had the victorious ability to renew everything.
BOUGHT AT A HIGH PRICE (1 Cor. 6:12-20)
Paul begins to address a number of issues, and ends with the battle cry: “Glorify God in your body.”
The Hellenes have always had a somewhat condescending attitude towards the body. They had a saying: "The body is the grave." Epictetus said: “My poor soul is bound by my body.” The soul, the spirit of a person, was considered important; The Greeks considered the body an unimportant element. From this, one of two views was established: For some, it was expressed as severe asceticism, which did everything to suppress and humiliate all physical desires and instincts. Others - and this second point of view dominated in Corinth - reduced everything to the fact that if the body does not represent any value or importance, you can do whatever you want with it, you can satisfy all its desires. This picture was further complicated by the theory of Christian freedom preached by the Apostle Paul. After all, if a Christian is the freest of all people, then can’t he do whatever he pleases, especially with his body, which has no value?
Therefore, the Corinthians reasoned, as it seemed to them, very cleverly and reasonably: let the body live as it pleases. But what is it intended for? The stomach is for digesting food, and food is for the stomach. Food and stomach are naturally and inevitably destined for each other. In the same way, the body is intended to satisfy instincts, that is, to perform sexual intercourse, and sexual intercourse is intended for the body. So let the desires do as they are destined to do as they see fit.
Paul's answer is clear: the stomach and food are transitory things. The day will come when both the belly and food will disappear into oblivion. But the human body, man, personality, as a whole, will not go into oblivion. Man was created for unity with Christ in this world and for an even closer unity in the other world. What happens if a person commits the sin of fornication? He will give his body to a harlot, for the Scripture says: “The two will become one flesh.” (Gen. 2.24). This means that the body that actually belongs to Christ has been given to someone else.
Let us note that Paul does not write a systematic work, but preaches, pleads with a burning heart, using every suitable argument. He says that of all sins, fornication is the most terrible sin, afflicting and humiliating the human body. In essence, drinking can do the same thing. But Paul is not writing a test on logic, but to save the souls and bodies of the Corinthians. Therefore, he argues that all other sins are external to the body, and with this sin a person sins against his own body, designed for union with Christ.
Then Paul cries: it is because the Spirit of God lives in us that we have become the temple of God, and therefore our very body is sacred. This is all the more so because Christ died not to save some part of a person, but his whole, body and soul. Christ died to give man a redeemed soul and a purified body. Therefore, a man's body does not belong to himself, and he cannot do with it what he pleases; it belongs to Christ, and therefore man should use his body not to satisfy his own lust, but to the glory of Christ. There are two important thoughts in this:
1) Paul insists that while a Christian is free to do everything, he will not allow himself to be enslaved by anything. The essence of the Christian faith is not so much that it frees a person from sin, but that it gives him freedom Not sin. It's so easy to let habits take over, but our Christian faith gives us the strength to overcome them. When a person is truly converted, he ceases to be a slave of the body and becomes its master. A person often says: “I will do what I want,” meaning that he will indulge in his habits or passions that have taken possession of him. Only when a person receives the power of Christ can he say: “I will do what I want,” and not “I will satisfy the desires that possess me.”
2) Paul states that we are not our own. There is no man in this world who created himself.
A Christian does not think about his rights, but about his duty. He can never do what he wants because he does not belong to himself; he will always do what Christ wants, because Christ bought him at the cost of His life.
Corinthians 7-15 deal with a number of issues that the Corinthian church wrote to Paul about, seeking his advice. Paul begins this section with the phrase: “What you wrote to me about is...” In modern language it would sound like this: “referring to your letter...” We will look at each problem individually when we come to it. Chapter 7 discusses questions about marriage. Here is a short list of questions that interested the Corinthian church, to which Paul answered.
Verses 1 and 2: Advice to those who thought that Christians should not marry at all. Verses 3-7: Advice to those who insist that even those who are married should abstain from each other. Verses 8 and 9: Advice to the unmarried and to widows. Verses 10 and 11: Advice to those who believe that married people should divorce. Verses 12-17: advice to those who think that if one of the spouses is a Christian and the other a pagan, then this marriage should be dissolved. Verses 18-24: Advice of Knowledge Christian life, no matter what state a Christian is in. Verses 25 and 36-38: Advice regarding virgins. Verses 26-35: A plea that nothing should hinder Christians from concentrating in their service to Christ, for time is short, and He will soon come again. Verses 38-40: advice to those wishing to get married again.
This chapter should be studied thoroughly for two reasons:
1) Paul wrote to Corinth, which was the most immoral city in the world at that time. Living in such an environment, it was better to adhere to stricter rather than looser rules.
2) In each answer, the dominant belief is that the Second Coming of Christ must occur in the near future. Although this expectation was not realized, Paul was convinced that the advice he was giving was only temporary. If he had known that he was giving advice for a long time, it would undoubtedly sound different. Let's look at the chapter in detail.
Commentary (introduction) to the entire book of 1 Corinthians
Comments on Chapter 6
A fragment of church history, the like of which does not exist. Weisecker
Introduction
I. SPECIAL POSITION IN THE CANON
1 Corinthians is a "book of problems" in the sense that Paul addresses the problems ("As for...") facing the community in the wicked city of Corinth. In this capacity, the book is especially needed for today's churches, torn apart by problems. Separation, hero worship of leaders, immorality, disputes over the law, marriage problems, questionable practices and regulations regarding spiritual gifts are all addressed here. However, it would be wrong to think that the entire book is devoted to problems! This same Epistle contains the most beautiful work about love not only in the Bible, but in all world literature (chapter 13); wonderful teaching about the resurrection - both Christ's and ours (chapter 15); teachings on the sacrament (chapter 11); commandment to take part in material donations. Without this Message we would be much poorer. It is a treasure trove of practical Christian teaching.
All scholars agree that the First Epistle to the Corinthians that we have named came from the pen of Paul. Some (mainly liberal) researchers believe that there are some “alien insertions” in the letter, but these subjective assumptions are not supported by manuscript evidence. 1 Corinthians 5:9 appears to refer to a previous (non-canonical) letter from Paul that was misunderstood by the Corinthians.
External evidence in favor of 1 Corinthians is very early. Clement of Rome (c. 95 AD) speaks of the book as “the epistle of the blessed Apostle Paul.” The book was also quoted by such early church authors as Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Athenagoras, Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian. It is included in the list of the Muratori canon and follows the Epistle to the Galatians in Marcion's heretical canon, the Apostolikon.
Internal evidence also very strong. Besides the fact that the author himself calls himself Paul in 1.1 and 16.21, his arguments in 1.12-17; 3,4.6.22 also prove Pauline authorship. The coincidences with Acts and other letters of Paul and the strong spirit of sincere apostolic concern rule out forgery and make the case for the authenticity of his authorship more than sufficient.
III. WRITING TIME
Paul tells us that he is writing from Ephesus (16:8-9, cf. v. 19). Since he labored there for three years, it is most likely that 1 Corinthians was written in the latter half of this long ministry, sometime in 55 or 56 AD. e. Some scholars date the Epistle even earlier.
IV. PURPOSE OF WRITING AND TOPIC
Ancient Corinth was (and is) located in southern Greece, west of Athens. During the time of Paul, its location was advantageous: trade routes passed through the city. It became a major center of international trade, with a lot of transport coming into it. Since the religion of the people was perverted, the city soon turned into a center of the worst forms of immorality, so that the very name “Corinth” became the personification of everything unclean and sensual. It had a reputation for being so debauched that it even coined a new verb "korinthiazomai", meaning "lead a vicious lifestyle".
The Apostle Paul first visited Corinth during his second missionary journey (Acts 18). At first he, with Priscilla and Aquila, who, like him, made tents, worked among the Jews. But when the majority of Jews rejected his preaching, he turned to the Corinthian pagans. Souls were saved by the preaching of the Gospel, and a new church was formed.
About three years later, while Paul was preaching in Ephesus, he received a letter from Corinth reporting serious problems facing the community. The letter also asked various questions about the Christian life. In response to this letter, he wrote First Epistle to the Corinthians.
The theme of the Epistle is how to correct the worldly and carnal church, which takes lightly those attitudes, mistakes and actions that so worried the Apostle Paul. As Moffatt aptly puts it, “the church was in the world, as it should be, but the world was in the church, which it should not be.”
Because this situation is still not uncommon in some communities, the significance of 1 Corinthians remains enduring.
Plan
I. INTRODUCTION (1.1-9)
A. Greeting (1,1-3)
B. Thanksgiving (1.4-9)
II. TROUBLES IN THE CHURCH (1.10 - 6.20)
A. Divisions among believers (1.10 - 4.21)
B. Immorality among believers (Chapter 5)
B. Litigation between believers (6:1-11)
D. Moral laxity among believers (6:12-20)
III. THE APOSTLE'S ANSWER TO QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CHURCH (Ch. 7 - 14)
A. About marriage and celibacy (Chapter 7)
B. About food sacrificed to idols (8.1 - 11.1)
B. About the veil for women (11.2-16)
D. About the Lord's Supper (11:17-34)
D. About the gifts of the Spirit and their use in the Church (Ch. 12 - 14)
IV. PAUL'S ANSWER TO THOSE DENYING THE RESURRECTION (Ch. 15)
A. Certainty of the resurrection (15:1-34)
B. Refutation of the arguments against the resurrection (15:35-57)
B. Final call in light of the resurrection (15.58)
V. FINAL INSTRUCTIONS (Ch. 16)
A. About fees (16.1-4)
B. About my personal plans (16.5-9)
B. Final instructions and greetings (16:10-24)
B. Litigation between believers (6:1-11)
The first eleven verses of chapter 6 talk about litigation between believers. Word reached Paul that some Christians were planning to sue their fellow believers by appealing to the judges of this world. Therefore, he gives instructions that have lasting value for the Church. Notice the repetition of the words “know ye not” (vv. 2, 3, 9, 15, 16, 19).
6,1 The opening question expresses shock and amazement that one of the believers could entertain the idea of bringing his brother to trial from the wicked, that is, from unbelieving judges or officials. Paul believes that those who know true righteousness would be inconsistent if they appeared before people who were not righteous. Imagine Christians seeking justice from those who have nothing to give!
6,2 Another glaring manifestation of inconsistency is that people who once will judge the world unable to judge unimportant matters among themselves. Scripture teaches that believers will reign with Christ over the earth when He returns in power and glory, and the works to be judged are committed to Him. If Christians will judge the world Can't they really settle their petty quarrels that are arising among them now?
6,3 Paul reminds the Corinthians that they will judge angels. It is striking how the apostle introduces such an important statement into the text. Without any fanfare or praise, he speaks of the amazing fact that Christians will one day judge angels. We know from the Epistle of Jude (verse 6), and the 2nd Epistle of Peter (2:4.9) that the angels will be judged. We also know that Christ will judge them (John 5:22). It may be said of us that in the day to come we will judge the angels because we are in union with Christ. If we are competent enough to judge angels, then we should be able to understand everyday everyday problems facing us.
6,4 And you, when you have everyday disputes, appoint as your judges those who mean nothing in the church. In many translations this sentence sounds affirmative, but it is better understood as a question. Paul asks whether Christians bring their conflicts to the judgment of worldly people. The local church should not hold unbelieving judges in high esteem or give them places of honor. They are, of course, respected for the work they do in the world, but matters concerning the church are beyond their competence. Thus Paul asks the Corinthians: “When disputes arise between you that require an impartial court from a third party, do you leave the Church, do you submit yourself to be judged by people for whom the Church does not recognize spiritual insight?”
6,5 Paul says this to make them be ashamed. Is it really true that in a community that boasted of its wisdom and the abundance of spiritual gifts among its members, there is no one reasonable who would settle quarrels between your brothers?
6,6 Apparently, not a single reasonable person was found, since Brother Christian was going sue with his brother in Christ, bringing internal matters before the judgment of the unbelieving world. Truly a sad situation!
6,7 Expression “and that’s already quite humiliating for you” shows that in this case they were completely wrong. They should not even entertain the idea of suing each other. But perhaps one of the Christians here could object: “Paul, you don’t understand, brother so-and-so deceived me in a business deal.” Pavel answers: "Why would you rather not remain offended? Why would you rather not endure hardships?" Such an attitude would be truly Christian. It is much better to endure evil than to create it.
6,8 But this was not the position of the Corinthians. Instead of patiently accepting evil and deception, they themselves offended others and even our own brothers in Christ.
6,9 Have they forgotten that will the unrighteous not inherit the kingdom of God? If they forgot, he will remind them of the list of sinners who will not be included in Kingdom of God. He does not mean here that Christians who commit these sins are lost; rather, he is saying that people who commit such sins are not Christians. (Some believe that there is a difference between entering the Kingdom and inheriting the Kingdom. They admit that a believer may not overcome the major sin in his life and still be saved. He will "enter" the Kingdom, but will receive a small inheritance (reward) in it, or will not receive it at all. However, in this passage we are talking about the unrighteous, that is, the unregenerate.)
In this list fornicators differ from adulterers because fornication is the illegal cohabitation of unmarried people, while adultery means such a relationship on the part of a married person. As in the two previous lists in Chapter 5, again mentioned idolaters. Under Malakia this refers to sexual deviants who allow their bodies to be used, whereas homosexuals- these are those who themselves practice homosexuality, using others.
6,10 Paul adds to this list thieves, covetous people, drunkards, slanderers And predators. The thieves- these are those who take what does not belong to them. Please note that the sin of extortion is always listed among the most terrible vices. Although people may excuse him and not take him seriously, God strongly condemns him. Likhoimets is a person who passionately desires to own property, which often leads him to use illegal means to get what he wants. Drunkards Named mainly are those who abuse alcohol. Slanderers- these are people who speak evil of others. Predators- these are those who profit from the poverty or need of others, receiving exorbitant profits.
6,11 Paul does not mean that the Corinthian believers committed all these sins, but he reminds them that these were common to them before they believed: some of you were like that. But They washed, sanctified And justified. They washed from their sin and uncleanness by the precious Blood of Christ and were constantly washed from all filthiness by the Word of God. Separated from the world for God, they sanctified by the action of the Spirit of God. They you have been justified by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God; that is, they are declared righteous before God on the basis of what the Lord Jesus did for them on the cross. What is Paul proving here? This simple thought was well expressed by Gaudet: “Having crossed this immeasurable abyss through grace, the Christian should not turn back and go back.”
D. Moral laxity among believers (6:12-20)
6,12 In the closing verses of this chapter the apostle lays down some principles for judging what is true and what is false. The first principle is that what is legal may not be useful. When Paul says: "Everything is permissible for me" it does not mean absolutely everything. Thus, it would not be permissible for him to commit the sins mentioned above. He talks here only about morally neutral things. For example, in Paul's time the question of whether a Christian should eat pork was very relevant. In essence, it had no moral significance. It didn't matter to God whether a person ate pork. Paul is simply saying here that certain things may be lawful but not beneficial. This may be something I am allowed to do, but if anyone else were to catch me doing this, they would be embarrassed by my actions. In this case, this is not a suitable activity for me at all.
The second principle is that what is lawful can be subjugated. Paul states: "...nothing should possess me." Today this directly applies, for example, to alcohol, tobacco or drugs. They, like many other things, subjugate a person, and a Christian should not allow himself to fall into slavery.
6,13 The third principle states that the value of what is completely lawful for a believer may be transitory. Paul says: "Food is for the belly, and the belly is for food; but God will destroy both." It means that womb The human stomach (or stomach) is designed in such a way that it can receive and digest food. Moreover, God amazingly created food such that the human stomach can accept it. However, we should not live for food, because its value is transitory. It should not be given an inappropriate place in the life of a believer. Don't live as if the most important thing in life is to indulge your appetite.
That the body is wonderfully designed by God to receive and assimilate food is beyond doubt; But the body is not for fornication, A for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
God never intended the human body to be used for base or unclean purposes. On the contrary, He intended to use it for the glory of the Lord and in His blessed service.
There is an amazing phrase in this verse that cannot be ignored. Not only body for the Lord; even more surprising is the thought that Lord for the body. This means that God is interested in the well-being and proper use of our bodies.
God wants our bodies to be presented to Him as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable (Rom. 12:1). As Erdman said, “Without the Lord the body would never have achieved its true dignity and immortality.” (Erdman, First Corinthians, p. 63.)
6,14 The meaning of the fact that the Lord is for the body is explained in more detail in this verse. God Not only resurrected from the dead Gentlemen, He He will also resurrect us by His power. His interest in our body does not end with death. He's going resurrect the body of every believer, likening it to the glorious body of the Lord Jesus. In eternity we will not be disembodied spirits. No, our spirit and soul will be reunited with our glorified body to enjoy the glory of heaven forever.
6,15 Wanting to emphasize more strongly the need to maintain personal purity in one's life and to guard the body from uncleanness, the apostle reminds us that body our are members of Christ. Every believer is a member of the Body of Christ. Is it possible then take away the members of Christ to make them the members of a harlot? To ask this question is to answer it, and Paul responds with indignation "It won't happen!"
6,16 During sexual intercourse, two bodies become one. This is what was said at the dawn of creation: "The two shall become one flesh"(Gen. 2:24). Since this is so, then the believer copulating with a harlot, makes the members of Christ the members of a harlot. Two become one body.
6,17 Just as two are united into one in a physical act, so is the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ connects with Him, and the union of the believer with Christ becomes such that one can already say about them "one spirit" This is the most perfect fusion of the two ever possible.
This is the closest union. Therefore Paul argues here that united with the Lord must never allow any union that conflicts with this spiritual matrimony.
A. T. Pierson writes:
"A sheep can leave the flock, and a branch can be cut off from the vine; one of its members can be separated from the body, a child can be separated from its father, and even a wife from her husband; but when two spirits are fused into one, what can separate them? No external connection or a union, even a marriage, is not such a complete expression of the perfect merging of two lives into one.”(A. T. Pierson, Knowing the Scriptures, p. 147.)
6,18 This is why the apostle advises the Corinthians run fornication. They must not allow him, joke with him, study him, even talk about him. They need to run away from him! A wonderful illustration of this can be found in the Bible, in the story of Joseph, when Potiphar's wife tempted him to sin (Gen. 39). Sometimes it's safer to just run away rather than stay close to the temptation and try to resist it!
Paul then adds: “Every sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the fornicator sins against his own body.” Most sins do not directly affect the body, but fornication- a unique sin in the sense that it affects the body direct impact: a person reaps the fruits of his sin in his own body. Statement that any sin committed by a person outside his body causes difficulty.
We believe that the apostle's words here are relative. Most sins do not affect the human body, while gluttony and drunkenness, for example, do destroy it. But even gluttony or drunkenness does not have such a direct, extensive and destructive effect on the body as fornication. Sex outside of marriage will inevitably and uncontrollably produce destructive effects in the perpetrator.
6,19 Once again, Paul reminds the Corinthians that their calling is holy and majestic. Have they forgotten that their bodies are Temple of the Holy Spirit? The Scriptures contain an important truth: every believer has the indwelling Spirit of God.
How can we even think of the body that inhabits Saint Spirit, use in sinful purposes? Not only our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, but we too not yours. We do not have the right to dispose of our body as we please. Ultimately it does not belong to us, but to the Lord.
6,20 We are the Lord's both by creation and by redemption. Here special attention is paid to the latter. The Lord's dominion over us goes back to Calvary. We bought at a price.
We see the amount that the Lord Jesus valued us at on the cross. He considered us so valuable that He was willing to pay for us with His own precious Blood. How He must have loved us in order to bear our sins on the cross with His body!
With this in mind, I can no longer consider my body to be my own. If I want to dispose of it according to my will, I behave like a thief taking what does not belong to me. No, I have to glorify God in his body, for it belongs to Him.
Bates exclaims:
"Head! Think of Him whose forehead was crowned with thorns. Hands! Work for Him whose hands were nailed to the cross. Legs! Hasten to fulfill the commands of Him whose feet were pierced. My body! Be the temple of Him whose body was tormented by unspeakable torment ".(Edward Herbert Bates, Spiritual Thoughts from the Scriptures of Truth, London: Pickering and Indlis, n.d., p. 137.)
We must glorify God and in souls ours, for both the material and the immaterial in man belong to God. (In a number of translations there is no mention of “spirit” (“soul”).)
. What did you write to me about?
Having corrected the disorder of divisions, fornication, covetousness, he now makes rules about marriage and virginity. For the Corinthians in a letter to him asked: Should he abstain from his wife or not?
. It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
It would be good, excellent, he says, if every man, and not just a priest (as some poorly understand this), would not touch his wife at all and remain a virgin. But it is safer and closer to our weakness to marry. Therefore he adds the following.
. But, to avoid fornication, each one have his own wife, and each one have his own husband.
Talks about both sides. For it may happen that the husband loves chastity, but the wife does not, or vice versa. In words "to avoid fornication" encourages abstinence. For if marriage is permitted in order to avoid fornication, then those united in marriage should no longer copulate with each other without any moderation, but chastely.
. The husband show his wife due favor; likewise is a wife to her husband.
As a duty, he says, honor love for each other; and since it is a duty, you are necessarily obliged to provide it to each other.
. The wife has no power over her body, but the husband does; Likewise, the husband has no power over his body, but the wife does.
Now it proves that loving each other is indeed a necessary duty. For, he says, spouses have no power over their bodies, but the wife is a slave and at the same time the mistress of her husband: a slave, since she has no power over her body to sell it to whomever she wants, but the husband owns it; and the mistress because the husband’s body is her body, and he does not have the power to give it to harlots. Likewise, the husband is the slave and at the same time the master of his wife.
. Do not deviate from each other, except by consent, for a while.
That is, a wife should not abstain against the will of her husband, and equally, a husband should not abstain against the wishes of his wife. For to abstain to one against the will of another means to deprive oneself, just as it is said about money; but to abstain voluntarily is a completely different matter, when, for example, both (husband and wife) decide by consent known time for mutual abstinence.
. For exercise in fasting and prayer.
He explains what his expression means: “for a while,” that is, when the time comes to remain in prayer, that is, to pray especially earnestly. For he did not simply say: for prayer, but: "for exercise in prayer". In fact, if the apostle had found in marital cohabitation an obstacle to ordinary daily prayer, then, as in another place, he would have said: "pray without ceasing"()? So, in order for yours to be more ardent, refrain, he says, from each other, because copulation, although it does not defile, does interfere with pious pursuits.
A Then be together again, so that Satan does not tempt you with your intemperance.
“I,” the apostle reasons, “say that you should unite again; but I do not lay this down as a law, but I prescribe it for the purpose of “lest Satan tempt you”, that is, inciting fornication. Since it is not the devil himself who is the culprit of fornication, but primarily our intemperance, the apostle added: "by your intemperance", for this is the reason why the devil tempts us.
. However, I said this as permission, and not as a command.
So that you may deprive yourself of each other for the time being, I said this, says the apostle, "as permission"(κατά συγγνώμην), that is, out of condescension for your weakness, "not as a command" immutable.
. For I wish that all people were like me.
Wherever the apostle prescribes some difficult feat, he usually sets himself as an example. Therefore, here he says: I wish everyone to abstain always.
. But everyone has his own gift from God, one this way, the other another.
Staying in virginity, he says, is a gift from God; however, this feat also requires our strength. How does he call it a gift? To console the Corinthians, to whom he spoke "by your intemperance"(v.5), dealt a sensitive blow. Meanwhile, note that he considers marriage itself a gift; for he said: “Everyone has his own gift from God, one is the same”, that is, the gift to remain in virginity, “otherwise”, that is, the gift to live in marriage.
. To the unmarried and widows I say: it is good for them to remain as I do. But if not can abstain, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to become inflamed.
Do you see the wisdom of Paul, how he shows the superiority of virginity, and at the same time does not force one who is unable to abstain to abstain from marriage, lest he otherwise suffer a more grievous fall? If, he says, you experience great violence and inflammation (for the power of lust is strong), then free yourself from those labors and sweats, so that, having taken on them, you do not fall into greater evil.
. But to those who marry, I do not command, but the Lord.
Since the Lord in clear words gave the law not to divorce, except on the grounds of adultery (), the apostle says: "not I, but the Lord". What was said before was not literally legitimized by the Lord. However, Pavlov’s words are the words of the Lord, and not human ones, for below he says this about himself: “I think I also have the Spirit of God” ().
. A wife must not divorce her husband; if she does, she must remain celibate or be reconciled with her husband; and the husband must not leave his wife. his.
Divorces, he says, happen for the love of abstinence, or for cowardice, or for other reasons; but it would be better if there were no division at all. If it does follow, then the wife must remain with her husband, if not for intercourse, then so as not to bring anyone else. If she cannot abstain, then let her reconcile with her husband.
. To the rest I say, not the Lord: if a brother has an unbelieving wife, and she agrees to live with him, then he should not leave her; and a wife who has an unbelieving husband, and he agrees to live with her, should not leave him.
What are you saying? If the husband is an unbeliever, then let him remain with his wife; and if he is a fornicator, then he should not stay with her? But is unbelief worse than fornication? Definitely worse; but God punishes more for sins against others than against Himself. For it is said: “Leave your gift there before the altar and go first and be reconciled to your brother.”(). And He forgave the ten thousand talents that were owed to Him: but for the one who owed a hundred denarii, He did not leave the offense without vengeance (). So it is in the present case: He ignores unbelief, which offends God Himself, but punishes the sin of adultery as a sin against a wife. Some, however, explain this: a person, they say, remains in unbelief out of ignorance, which, perhaps, will end, as the apostle himself () says: “Why do you know, wife, won’t you save your husband?”- and fornication is committed as a result of obvious corruption. Moreover, the fornicator had already separated himself before, for, having taken his members from his wife, he made them members of a harlot; Meanwhile, the unbeliever has not committed any sin against carnal unity, or better to say, through this unity he may perhaps be united by faith. Not to mention the fact that the order of life will be distorted and the Gospel will be reproached if the faithful half is separated from the unfaithful. Meanwhile, the apostle’s commandment in question applies only to the case if a husband and wife were united in marriage, when both were still in unbelief, but after one or the other side turned to faith. For, if previously only one husband was an unbeliever, or only one wife, then the believing half was not allowed to marry an unbeliever at all: this is clear from the words of the apostle, for he did not say: if anyone wants to take an unbeliever, but: "if any brother has". Again, it does not simply prescribe that the believing half should live with the non-believing half, but only if the latter wishes it; for this means: “I agree,” that is, if he wishes.
. For an unbelieving husband is sanctified by a believing wife, and an unbelieving wife is sanctified by a believing husband.
That is, the abundance of purity of the believing half overcomes the impurity of the unbelieving half. This is what the apostle’s words mean, and not that a pagan is made a saint. For the apostle did not say: he is holy, but: “he is sanctified,” that is, he is overcome by the holiness of the faithful half. And he says this so that a believing wife will not be afraid of becoming unclean if she has cohabitation with such a husband. But the question is: he who has sex with a harlot, becoming one body with her, becomes unclean (cf.); Obviously, the one who copulates with a pagan becomes one body with her. If the first is unclean, then how is the last not made unclean? As for fornication, this is exactly what happens. When fornicators have fellowship with each other, their mixing has uncleanness, and therefore they are both unclean. But this is different when the believing half cohabits with the non-believing half. An unbelieving husband is unclean because of his unbelief. But the wife has fellowship with him not in unbelief, but in the bed. There is no impurity in this communication. For it is a legal marriage. That is why the believing half does not become unclean.
. Otherwise your children would be unclean.
If the unfaithful half were not overcome by the purity of the right half, then their children would be unclean, or only half pure.
And now they are holy.
That is, they are not unclean. By the excessive expression “holy,” the apostle banishes the fear of such suspicion.
. If an unbeliever wants get a divorce, let him get a divorce.
For example, if he commands you to either participate in his disbelief or renounce the rights of marriage, then get a divorce. For it is better to loose the bonds of marriage than to violate piety.
. Brother or sister in these cases not connected; The Lord has called us to peace.
If your husband quarrels with you because you do not take part in his unbelief, then divorce him. For you are not enslaved to him in this case, that is, you are not forced to follow him in such matters. It is better to separate with him than to quarrel; because God doesn’t want this either: “The Lord has called us to peace”. So, if your husband quarrels with you, then he himself has given the reason for divorce.
. Why do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband?
Referring again to the admonition that "shouldn't leave" husband's wife proposes real question. For if, he says, he does not quarrel with you, then stay with him and admonish him: maybe you will do something. Success is doubtful, on the one hand, so that they do not think that he is making his wife an indispensable duty. - to completely convince her husband, and on the other hand, in order to support her hope for her husband’s conversion and prevent despair.
. Or do you, husband, why do you know if you won’t save your wife? Only (εί μ ) each do as God has determined for him, and each as the Lord has called.
Some read it this way: “or you, husband, why do you know whether you will save your wife or not”(ή μ )? Then they started another sentence like this: “Everyone do as God has determined for him”, that is, how do you know whether you will save her or not? This is completely unknown. But if it is unknown, then you should not dissolve the marriage, because if you do not save her, you will not harm yourself, and if you save, then you will benefit both yourself and others. But Saint John did not read it that way, but like this: “Everyone do as God has determined for him, and everyone as the Lord has called”. And this reading is incomparably better. The Apostle seemed to say this: there should be no divorce under the pretext of unbelief, but each act as God has favored him. You are called, having a wife from among the unbelievers. Keep her with you, and do not cast her out for unbelief.
. This is what I command in all churches.
He said this so that the Corinthians would obey him all the more readily when he commanded others along with them to do the same.
. If anyone is called to be circumcised, do not hide (μη έπισπάσθω ).
Probably many, ashamed of circumcision, used some kind of medicine to restore the circumcised penis to its original form, growing skin on it.
. If anyone is called uncircumcised, do not be circumcised.
On the other hand, some, finding something important in circumcision, were circumcised after converting to faith. Therefore, he says that this does not contribute to faith at all.
. Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but All in keeping God's commandments.
Everywhere, he says, along with faith, the fulfillment of virtue is required, and everything else is either little or not required at all.
. Everyone remain in the rank in which they are called. Whether you are called to be a slave, do not be embarrassed; but if you can become free, then use the best.
"In the rank in which he was called", that is, in what kind of life, and in what rank and state you believed, remain in that; for by calling we mean bringing to faith. Did you accept the faith as a slave? do not worry or be embarrassed; for slavery does not harm you at all, so that if you could become free, “then use the best”, sacrifice yourself for the benefit of others.
. For the servant who is called in the Lord is the freeman of the Lord; likewise, he who is called free is a servant of Christ.
One who is freed from slavery is called free. So, he says: you who believed in a state of slavery, you are free of the Lord; for Christ has freed you both from sin and from this external slavery, although you are a slave. He who does not submit to passions, having a noble soul, is not a slave, although he seems to be one. On the other hand, others are freely called to faith; such is the servant of Christ. So, if the name of slavery outrages the slave, then let him understand that he has become free in Christ, and this freedom is much more important than human freedom. Again, if the name of freedom puffs up a free man, then let him understand that he is a slave of Christ and humble himself, imagining that he is subordinate to such a Master and must please Him. Do you see the wisdom with which the apostle gives instructions to slaves and free?
. You're bought dear price; do not become slaves of men. In which rank whoever is called, brethren, let each one remain before God.
This speaks not only to slaves, but also to freemen, exhorting all Christians not to do anything to please people and not to obey them if their commands are unlawful. This is what it means: bought from God to be slaves of men. He is not trying to persuade slaves to fall away from their masters - no; this can be seen from his subsequent words: “in what rank who is called” etc., that is, if someone is called and is in a state of slavery, let him remain in that state. “Before God” he added so that through obedience to lawless rulers he would not fall away from God. He takes care of both, that is, so that, on the one hand, under the pretext of obeying God, the slaves do not fall away from their masters, and on the other, by showing their masters excessive obedience, they do not fall away from God.
. Regarding virginity, I do not have a command from the Lord, but I give advice, as one who has received the grace from the Lord to be To him faithful.
Above, he occupied us with a conversation about chastity, and now he turns to a more important subject, namely, virginity, and says that the Lord did not lay down a law or give a command regarding virginity, but only said: “whoever can accommodate, let him accommodate” (). Therefore, I do not dare to prescribe anything regarding this subject; this is an important matter, but at the same time dangerous; however, I give my opinion, that is, advice, since I myself, by the grace of God, have been honored to be faithful, that is, close to Him and one to whom one can entrust secrets.
. Out of real need, I recognize for the best that it is good for a person to remain like this.
In my opinion, he says, it is best for a person to abstain from marriage because of the inconveniences and troubles associated with it, and not because the marriage is unclean.
. Are you connected to your wife? don't look for a divorce. Are you left without a wife? don't look for a wife. However, even if you get married, you will not sin.
In words “Are you united with your wife?” showed that marriage, as a bond, brings with it troubles. “Divorce” does not mean abstinence by consent, but divorce without sufficient cause; for if the spouses abstain by consent, then this is not a divorce. Having said “do not look for a wife,” so that they would not think that celibacy is commanded, he adds: “However, even if you get married, you will not sin”. Look, how inconspicuously he encourages virginity, calling marriage a bond, and virginity permission and freedom.
. And if the girl gets married, she will not sin.
By virgin here he means not one who is dedicated to God (for if she gets married, she will undoubtedly sin, since through this, in addition to her Bridegroom, Christ, she will introduce an adulterer to herself), but also a celibate girl. So, if she marries, she will not sin; because marriage does not contain anything unclean.
. But such will have tribulations according to the flesh; and I feel sorry for you.
Sorrows refers to the worries and sorrows associated with marriage. “And I,” he continues, “feel sorry for you,” like children, and I wish you to be free and carefree. Marriage is a bond; and those who are under his yoke have no power over themselves, as stated above.
. I tell you, brothers: the time is already short.
To his words "they will have tribulations according to the flesh" someone did not add: “but at the same time there is pleasure,” suppresses all hope of pleasure, making it seem like time is tight. For everything is hastening towards destruction, and the Kingdom of Christ has drawn near, and at last we must appear to Christ. So, if there is any pleasure in married life, then it is fragile and short-lived.
. So those who have wives must be as if they had not; and those who weep as if they were not weeping; and those who rejoice, as if they did not rejoice; and those who buy, as if they did not acquire; and those who use this world, as if they do not use it.
If those who have wives should be like those who do not have them, then what is the use of getting married and putting burdens on themselves? What does it mean: “as those who have not”? This means: not clinging to marriage and wife and not exhausting all care for them. In the same way, no one should be too concerned about anything else: neither the sad circumstances that were hinted at with the word “weeping,” nor the joyful ones that were meant by the word “rejoice,” nor the contracts that were expressed with the word “buy.” And why, he says, list this and that? Simply, those who use this world should not abuse it, that is, cling to it with all zeal and passion; for excessive use and beyond the bounds of what is proper is abuse.
. For the image of this world is passing away.
That is, it passes and is destroyed. Why get attached to something that is being destroyed? The title of the image showed that the things of the real world only flicker before the eyes, are extremely light and have nothing solid and significant in themselves.
. And I want you to be worry-free.
How could we be without worries? If only they had remained celibate. Therefore he adds the following.
. An unmarried man cares about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord; But a married man worries about worldly things, how to please his wife.
How is it, Paul, wanting us to be carefree and for this purpose instilling in us celibacy, you again say: “The unmarried man cares for the things of the Lord”? For behold, here too there are worries. But not such, he says, as are associated with marriage: concerns about the Lord are saving and delightful, but concerns about the world are harmful and painful. In fact, isn’t it a burden and sorrow to try to please a wife, and especially one who loves jewelry and demands gold and pearls and other empty things? This predisposes pitiful husbands to injustice and harmful disposal of things.
. There is a difference between a married woman and a girl.
That is, they differ from each other, and do not have the same concern, but are divided in their cares: one cares about such objects, and the other about others. Since their concerns are different, then they must choose those that are better and easier.
. An unmarried woman cares about the Lord, how to please the Lord, in order to be holy in both body and spirit; but a married woman worries about worldly things, how to please her husband.
It is not enough to be holy in body, but one must also be holy in spirit, for in this, that is, in the purity of the soul, true virginity consists. In experience, many, although pure and blameless in body, are unclean in soul. Moreover, pay attention to the fact that she is not a virgin who cares about the world. Therefore, when you see a woman who pretends to be a virgin, and yet cares about worldly things, then know that she is no different from a married woman. Paul laid down for both of them certain signs by which they can be recognized - not marriage and abstinence, but, on the one hand, great and restless activity, and on the other, calm minding their own affairs. Therefore, she is not a virgin who burdens herself with many vain activities. But the married woman continues to worry about how to please her husband, and therefore takes special care of her beauty, or, in order to be considered a good housewife, she shows herself to be wasteful and thrifty.
. I say this for your own benefit, not in order to impose bonds on you.
I talked, he says, about virginity, knowing that this state is useful for you, since it is free from sadness and worries, and brings more benefits to the soul; I did not talk about this in order to force you to remain in virginity against your will (for he called coercion “bonds”).
. But so that you decorously and continuously served No entertainment for the Lord.
In order, he says, for you to live decently and in cleanliness; for what could be more decent and purer than virginity? And also so that you, being free from the troubles of marriage, serve the Lord without entertainment and stand before Him always, casting all your worries on Him ().
. If anyone considers it indecent for his maiden to remain like this when she is of mature age, let him do as he wants: he will not sin.
If anyone, he says, being truly weak at heart, considers it dishonorable to leave his daughter a virgin, especially if she has passed adulthood, then let him say, so be it. How? “Let him do as he wants”, that is, if he wants to give her away in marriage, let him give it away, for he will not sin. However, it is better to guard the virgin, as he says further.
. Let such get married. But whoever is unshakably firm in his heart and, not being constrained by need, but being powerful in his own will, decides in his heart to keep his virgin, he does well. Therefore, he who gives his maiden in marriage does well; and the one who does not issue does better.
Notice how at first he is surprised at the one who respects his virginity: he calls him firm and steadfast and does his job with reason; for he says: "unshakably firm in heart". This means that whoever gives his maiden in marriage is not firm. In words “not being constrained by need” shows that the father has the power to give his daughter a husband, and no one can force him not to give her in marriage. So, it is an honor for him if he leaves his daughter unmarried; That’s why the apostle praises him: for “he does well,” he says. But the one who gives his daughter in marriage also "does well"; for it is not a sin to give in marriage; and everything that is not is good. But it is much better not to get married; for this is perfection in good.
. A wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; if her husband dies, she is free to marry whomever she wants, only in the Lord. But she will be happier if she remains like this, according to my advice; but I think that I also have the Spirit of God.
Here he teaches about second marriage, and although he allows it, he considers the one who does not enter into a second marriage to be most blessed; for just as virginity is higher than the first marriage, so the first marriage is higher than the second. "The wife is bound by the law", that is, by the warning of the law she is kept from adultery, from being an adulteress through union with another during her husband’s life, but if her husband dies, she becomes free from the bonds and law of her first marriage and receives permission. "Only in the Lord", that is, only with chastity, with honesty can she enter into a second marriage, for the purpose of producing and raising children, and not out of lust. "According to my advice" adds that you should not consider this a necessity, but only advice, Divine advice. “I think,” he says, “ and I have the Spirit of God". There is more humility in these words; for he did not say: I have, but: “I think” that “I have,” that is, I believe, I guess.
When slavery was legal in the United States, a man stood on one of the streets, watching the brisk slave trade. He stood watching as one by one the slaves were led onto the platform. Their hands and feet were tied as if they were animals. Slaves were paraded before excited crowds and sold at auction.
Some buyers inspected the "purchase", squeezing the women without any respect and checking the muscles of the men. The gentleman looked at the group of slaves waiting their turn. His gaze settled on the girl standing at the very end. Her eyes were full of fear, she looked very scared. After hesitating for a moment, the man nodded to himself and disappeared somewhere. When he returned, the presenter was just about to begin bidding for the young girl. As soon as the presenter announced the initial amount, the gentleman shouted out his own, which was twice the price of the most expensive transaction carried out that day. There was silence for a moment, then came the blow of the gavel, and the announcer shouted, “Sold to that gentleman.” The gentleman hurried to the platform, pushing his way through the crowd. He stood at the edge, and the girl was led to her new owner. The man was handed the end of the rope tying the girl, and he took it without a word. The girl's gaze was fixed on the ground. Suddenly she raised her head and spat in his face. The man silently pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his face. He smiled softly at the girl and told her: “Follow me.” She reluctantly followed. After passing through the crowd, the man headed to the place where all transactions were officially formalized. When freeing slaves, certain documents called "manumission papers" were required. The gentleman paid the money for the purchase and signed all the necessary papers. After all the formalities were completed, he turned to the girl and handed her these documents. Startled, she fixed her gaze on him. There was a question in her eyes: “What does this all mean?” The gentleman answered her questioning glance. He said: “Take these documents. I bought you to free you. As long as the documents are in your possession, no one will be able to turn you into a slave.” The girl looked into his face. What's happened? There was silence. She asked, searching for words: “Did you buy me to set me free? Did you buy me to set me free? Did you buy me to set me free?” She repeated this question again and again, and the meaning of the event became more and more clear to her. "You bought me to set me free?" Is it really possible that a stranger just gave her freedom and she will never have to be dependent on other people again? Gradually realizing the importance of the documents she held in her hand, the girl knelt down and began to cry, sitting at the feet of the gentleman. She said through tears of joy and gratitude: “You bought me to set me free. I will serve you all my life!" You and I were bound and enslaved by sin. But the Lord Jesus shed His Blood on Calvary and paid the price for us to become free. The Bible calls it redemption.
“In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7).
This is what Paul meant when he wrote: “For you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your soul, which are God’s” (1 Cor. 6:20).
The blood of Jesus was freely shed. This was not a random event. The Lord decided to die in our place and shed His precious Blood in our place. Jesus said to Himself: “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:23). Why did Christ redeem us? In order “that the body of sin might be done away with, so that we should no longer be slaves to sin” (Rom. 6:6). This is the only way we can be “dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:11). We can rejoice every day not only in what we are redeemed from, but also in what we are redeemed for. We are free from the bondage of sin and from Satan. We have been redeemed to new freedom and new life in Christ (see 2 Cor. 3:17,13). When you have been redeemed by His Blood, you can say: “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” ( Gal.2:19,20).
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1 Corinthians, chapter 6
1 How dare anyone among you, when dealing with another, sue the wicked and not the saints?2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is to be judged by you, are you really unworthy to judge unimportant matters?
3 Do you not know that we will judge angels, much less the deeds of this life?
4 But when you have worldly disputes, you appoint as your judges those who are of no importance in the church.
5 To your shame I say: Is there really not one wise man among you who can judge between his brothers?
6 But brother and brother go to court, and that too before unbelievers.
7 And this is already very humiliating for you, that you have litigation among yourself. Why would you rather not remain offended? Why would you rather not endure hardship?
8 But you yourselves wrong and take away, and from your brothers.
9 Or don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor wicked people, nor homosexuals,
10 Neither thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable; everything is permissible to me, but nothing should possess me.
13 Food is for the belly, and the belly is for food; but God will destroy both. The body is not for fornication, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
14 God raised up the Lord, and He will also raise us up by His power.
15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I, then, take away the members of Christ to make them members of a harlot? It won't happen!
16 Or don’t you know that whoever has sex with a harlot becomes one body with her? for it is said: the two will become one flesh.
17 But he who is united to the Lord is one spirit with the Lord.
18 Flee from fornication; Every sin that a person commits is outside the body, but the fornicator sins against his own body.
19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells in you, which you have from God, and you are not your own?
20 For you are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God both in your bodies and in your souls, which are God's.