Corinth lies on the isthmus connecting Greece with the Morea, or Peloponnese. It was built one and a half thousand years BC. In 44, under Julius Caesar, it was restored after ruin and became the flourishing first city of the Roman province of Achaia - the residence of the proconsuls. It was famous for sciences, arts and a cheerful life, which attracted many inhabitants to it. Its distinction was the so-called "Isthmian games" and the temple of Aphrodite. It can be said that at the time of the apostolic preaching, Corinth was the representative of Greek frivolity, frivolity and sensual pleasures.
The church in Corinth was founded by the holy Apostle Paul during his second evangelistic journey around the year 53, after he had gone preaching to Philippa, Thessalonica, Berea and Athens. Leaving Silas and Timothy in Macedonia to establish the faith of his disciples, Saint Paul went to Greece, and arrived in Corinth after a short stay in Athens, as the book of the Acts of the Apostles tells about this (18:1). In Corinth, the holy Apostle met the kind and hospitable people Akila and Priscilla, Jews originally from Pontus, who formerly lived in Rome, but moved to Corinth on the occasion of the expulsion of the imp. Claudius of all Jews from Rome. Akila was a "skin maker", that is, a tent maker. Since Saint Paul knew this craft, he settled with them in order to earn his livelihood by the labor of his hands. If Aquila and Priscilla had not yet been Christians, then it must be assumed that they were now converted by Saint Paul, baptized by him and became his helpers in the work of the gospel.
Every Saturday the Apostle preached in the Jewish synagogue, convincing Jews and Greek proselytes that there is no other salvation than in the Lord Jesus Christ. When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, St. Paul got the opportunity to strengthen and expand his preaching activity, and taught not only on Saturdays, but also on the other days of the week. Among the Jews, however, this sermon met with little success. They resisted the Apostle, slandering him and the Lord's way, which he preached. Then St. Paul left the synagogue with an intelligible action and word for the Jews. He shook off the dust of his clothes and said to them: "Your blood is on your heads; I am clean; henceforth I go to the Gentiles" (Acts 18:6). The meaning of these words: "The blame for your death is on you: I am clean of it. I showed you the way of salvation, but you do not want to accept it. Stay in your destruction."
St. Paul began to arrange further Christian meetings with a sermon about Christ not far from the synagogue, in the house of a certain Justus, who worships God. Pagans also gathered here, and the work of the gospel went more successfully: many believed and were baptized. Among those who believed was the head of the synagogue, Crispus, with all his household. But still, the success of the sermon, apparently, was not great, so that St. Paul wanted to completely withdraw from corrupted Corinth, in which he even began to experience attempts on his life (2 Thess. 3: 2). Therefore, the Lord Himself appeared to him in a vision at night to encourage and inspire him for further service in Corinth (Acts 18:9-10). Strengthened by this appearance, the holy Apostle remained in Corinth for a year and a half, and during this period of time his preaching brought forth abundant fruit in Corinth, so that the Corinthian church became famous and glorified by an abundance of spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 1:5-7).
When the Corinthian Church was established, Saint Paul was to go to other places to preach. His departure from Corinth was hastened by an unfortunate incident. Irritated by the preaching of the Apostle, the Jews seized him and brought him to trial before the proconsul Gallio with a complaint that he "teaches people to honor God not according to the law" (Acts 18:13). The essence of this accusation was that Paul became the founder of some new sect, beyond the religions allowed by the laws of the Roman Empire. Gallio was the brother of the famous Roman philosopher Seneca and the uncle of the poet Lucan, a highly educated and noble man. He refused to deal with a case concerning faith, and not civil relations, and drove the Jews out of the judgment seat. The Hellenes, who despised the Jews, having heard such a decision of Gallio, rushed at them right there in the same judicial chamber and, seizing the chief leader of the indignation of the head of the synagogue, Sosthenes, "beat him before the judgment seat; and Gallio was not at all worried about that" (Acts 18: 14- 17). It is possible that this Sosthenes later turned to Christ, and this is what the holy Apostle mentions about him, writing to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 1:1.
According to a special, no doubt, Providence of God, a certain Jew, by the name of Apollos, was the successor of Pavlov's work in Corinth. He was born and raised in Alexandria, from where he came first to Ephesus and then to Corinth. This, according to the Recorder, was a man eloquent and versed in the Scriptures (Acts 18:24). Having set sail from Corinth, Saint Paul arrived for a short time in Ephesus, where he left Aquila and Priscilla, and he himself went to Jerusalem and from there to Antioch, from where he then began his third Apostolic journey. After Saint Paul's departure from Ephesus, Apollos arrived there, already a Christian and burning in spirit, but knowing only John's baptism. He began to boldly teach in the synagogue. "Hearing him, Aquila and Priscilla received him and more accurately explained to him the way of the Lord" (Acts 18:26). When he needed to go to Achaia, whose capital was at that time Corinth, the Ephesian believers gave him letters of recommendation to the Christians there. Arriving in Corinth, Apollos greatly assisted those who believed, refuting the Jews publicly and "proving by the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ" (Acts 18:27-28). The significance of Apollos' preaching for the establishment of Christianity in Corinth was so great that the holy Apostle Paul calls him the waterer of the seeds of the faith of Christ planted by him: "I planted, Apollos watered, but God increased" (1 Corinthians 3:6). How long Apollos stayed in Corinth is unknown, but when writing the first epistle to the Corinthians, we again see him in Ephesus with the Apostle (1 Corinthians 16:12).
Apostle Paul. Detail of the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, 1405. Icon painter Theophanes the Greek
Reason for writing 1 Corinthians
During the stay of Apollos in Corinth, St. Paul, having carried out his plan to visit Jerusalem at Easter, began his third Apostolic journey from Antioch and "passed in order the country of Galatia and Phrygia" (Acts 18:22-23), arrived in Ephesus for approval here the Church of Christ (Acts 19:1). Here various unfavorable rumors began to reach him about the Corinthian Church he had left. He wanted to go to Corinth directly from Ephesus by sea (2 Corinthians 1:15-16), but not daring to leave Ephesus instead of himself, he sent his beloved disciple Timothy to Corinth, instructing him to go through Macedonia and then report to him about everything that was happening in the Corinthian church. Meanwhile, unfavorable rumors about the Corinthian church began to be repeated and multiplied. As if one of the Corinthian Christians allowed this kind of fornication, which is not allowed among the pagans (1 Corinthians 5:1). Then the household of one Christian Chloe came to Ephesus and confirmed this rumor to the Apostle, telling many other unkind things at the same time, upsetting the Apostle especially with stories about various religious disputes and competitions (1 Corinthians 1:11-12). It seemed that separate religious parties or sects arose in Corinth. Stephen, Fortunatus and Achaik, who arrived from Corinth and were sent from the Corinthian Church, calmed the spirit of the Apostle somewhat (1 Corinthians 16:17), but nevertheless confirmed the presence of many disorders. Confirming the rumors about fornication and strife, they also conveyed many other things again: about lawsuits in pagan courts, about riots at love feasts, about women not covering their heads in church, about some unbelief in the resurrection of the dead. The Apostle was also asked questions in a special epistle: about marriage and virginity, about eating things offered to idols, about the gift of tongues, etc. bewilderment. At the same time, he promises to come to them himself (1 Corinthians 4:19-21). An additional reason for writing the epistle, as can be seen from 1 Corinthians 16:1-4, was the arrangement for collecting financial assistance for Palestinian Christians.
Time and place of the message
As is clear from the epistle itself, it was written in Ephesus. "I don't want to see you now in passing," writes the Apostle, "I hope to stay with you for a while, if the Lord permits. But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost" (1 Corinthians 16:7-8). In the epistle, St. Paul writes that he sent St. Timothy to Corinth (1 Corinthians 16:10), and in Acts we find that he sent him from Ephesus just before he himself was about to leave it (Acts 19:21- 22). According to the calculation of years, this falls on the year 58 or 59 according to R.Chr.
After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
And so that we get rid of disorderly and crafty people, for faith is not in everyone.
The Lord, in a vision at night, said to Paul: do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will harm you, because I have many people in this city.
Therefore, purify the old leaven so that you may be a new dough, since you are without leaven, for our Passover, Christ, was slain for us.
Pavel, called an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and brother Sosthenes.
A certain Jew, named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, a man eloquent and versed in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.
And when he intended to go to Achaia, the brethren sent to the disciples there, disposing them to receive him; and when he arrived there, he greatly assisted those who believed by grace, for he greatly refuted the Jews in public, proving by the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
As for Brother Apollos, I begged him very much to go with the brethren to you; but he did not want to go now, but would come when it was convenient for him.
After visiting Caesarea, he came to Jerusalem, greeted the church, and departed for Antioch. And after spending some time there, he went out and went through the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, confirming all the disciples.
During the stay of Apollos in Corinth, Paul, passing through the upper countries, came to Ephesus, and finding there some disciples
And in this confidence, I intended to come to you earlier, so that you would receive grace a second time, and through you to pass to Macedonia, from Macedonia again to come to you; and you would take me to Judea.
There is a true rumor that fornication has appeared among you, and, moreover, such fornication, which is not heard even among the Gentiles, that someone instead of a wife has his father's wife.
But I wrote to you not to associate with one who, while calling himself a brother, remains a fornicator, or a covetous man, or an idolater, or a blasphemer, or a drunkard, or a predator; Don't even eat with this one. For why should I judge outsiders? Are you judging internally?
I am glad for the arrival of Stefan, Fortunatus and Achaik: they made up for your absence for me.
But I will soon come to you, if the Lord pleases, and I will test not the words of those who are puffed up, but power, for the Kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. What do you want? come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of meekness?
In the collection for the saints, do as I have ordained in the churches of Galatia. On the first day of the week, let each of you put away and save as much as his condition allows, so that he does not have to collect when I come. When I come, I will send those whom you choose with letters to bring your alms to Jerusalem. And if it is proper for me to go, they will go with me.
But if Timothy comes to you, see to it that he is safe with you; for he does the work of the Lord, as I do.
When this was done, Paul decided in the spirit, having passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying: Having been there, I must also see Rome. And, having sent to Macedonia two of those who served him, Timothy and Erast, he himself stayed for a while in Asia.
Averky Taushev, archbishop
INTRODUCTION TO CORINTH: ITS PEOPLE AND CUSTOMS
City of Corinth. Corinth, known to us from the New Testament, was built by Julius Caesar and inhabited on the model of a Roman colony. Due to its geographical, military and economic importance, it soon acquired the status of the capital city of Achaia (the Roman name for Greece). Moreover, along with Athens, it became a center of learning, from where the philosophical teachings of ancient Greece spread; the fact that Corinth is so famous is of prime importance in the study of 1 Corinthians.
Stoic and Epicurean currents in philosophy. The Stoic perception of God was that He was nothing more than the Spirit or Mind of the universe. Man was only a mortal being, whose soul after death was given over to fire or absorbed by the constituent elements of the universe. Therefore, the wise man was ordered to live according to reason; by doing so, he became, so the doctrine said, perfect and self-sufficient. This way of thinking did not admit the need for a Savior; and, like modern humanism, it could only lead to the reign of human pride and the shameless debauchery of self-satisfaction.
In turn, the Epicureans were the atheists of that time. They didn't believe in God; and believed that even if there was a god (or more than one), he was far away and did not show any interest in the miserable dust called humanity. Like the Stoics, the Epicureans believed that life ends at death; and that the main purpose in man's life was to receive the greatest pleasures (including those of the flesh and others). This teaching invariably led to the most obscene sensuality and crimes: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die!” (15:32).
It was once well said that Epicureanism and Stoicism embody the two ruling principles that moral man has ever dealt with—pleasure and pride.
Moral decay in idolatry. An insight into the essence of immoral worship of idols is given in the warning to Israel: “Let neither Israelites nor Israelites commit fornication for the sake of performing religious rites. Let them not bring into the holy house of the Lord your God money earned by a fornicator or a harlot; do not buy with evil money what was promised to God, for the Lord your God hates those who sell their bodies and commit sexual sin.” (Deut. 23:17-18, St. Petersburg).
According to Babylonian law, every woman during her life was obliged at least once to open her arms to a stranger as a sacrifice to Venus. The sons and daughters of the leading Armenian families were consecrated for long or short periods of time to the service of Anahitis for the entertainment of strangers. Women who accepted the largest number of men were in demand when entering into marriage. The Phoenicians were well known for promiscuity during religious festivals. The Babylonians erected sacred superstructures on their temples, which were used for cult prostitution. This practice found application among the Israelite people in their apostasy (2 Kings 23:7).
In New Testament times, the temple of Venus, located in the city of Corinth, had over a thousand select women who engaged in cult prostitution. This practice so corrupted the moral concepts of the Corinthians in the field of sexual relations that the very name of the inhabitants of this city became synonymous with sexual uncleanness. The philosophy of atheism has brought its extremely despicable fruits.
INTRODUCTION: THE FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH IN CORINTH
The seed of the gospel was planted in a society that was morally bankrupt. While at Troas, Paul heard a call from Macedonia (Acts 16:9-10). He responded to this call by founding churches at Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea. From there he went to Athens to argue with the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers on the Hill of Mars. After a relatively short stay in Athens, he went to Corinth, which was about forty-five miles from Athens. In the beginning, Paul made a living making tents, and every Sabbath day he spoke in the synagogue, persuading both the Jews and the Jews. He was soon joined by his assistants, Silas and Timothy, who apparently brought him offerings from the churches of Macedonia (Acts 18:1-5; 2 Cor. 11:8-9; Phil. 4:15), which enabled Paul to consecrate all the time to the word of God (Acts 18:5, St. Petersburg). Paul's sermons aroused a heated protest among the Jews, and they expelled him from the synagogue. However, he continued his work in the house of Justus B for a year and a half, and "many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized" (Acts 18:6-8). The success of the gospel preaching outraged the Jews, and they brought Paul to the Roman proconsul Gallio. But Gallio rejected their claims and drove them away from the judge (Acts 18:12-16).
Some time later (Acts 18:18) Paul left Corinth for Syria, but he left behind a thriving body of Christians who knew that idols made by human hands were nothing and that there really was only “one God the Father, from whom are all things, and we are for him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him” (1 Cor. 8:6).
INTRODUCTION: 1 CORINTHIANS
Author. Undoubtedly, this epistle was written by Paul. It bears his signature (1:1). It is replete with the personal notes of the apostle: he mentions those whom he baptized (1114-16). the fact that he planted the seed of the gospel in Corinth (3:6) indicates that he was their father in the good news (4:15) and that they were his work in the Lord (9:1-2). Stronger evidence of authorship could not have been expected to be provided.
Time and place of composition. Paul left Corinth in A.D. 54. Then he came to Jerusalem, where he spent some time (Acts 18:19-23). From there he went through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the churches (Acts 18:23). After that, he went to Ephesus to perform a three-year ministry (Acts 19:1-41; 20:1-3). It was from this city that Paul wrote 1 Corinthians (1 Cor. 16:8-9).
After Paul had spent more than two years in Ephesus (Acts 1918, 10), he decided to send Timothy ahead of him to Corinth to prepare a collection of money offerings that he hoped would take to the needy saints in Jerusalem (Acts 19:21-22) . By the time Paul wrote this epistle, Timothy was already on his way to Corinth (4:17; 16:10). This undeniably indicates that the date of the writing of the epistle was the end of Paul's sojourn in Ephesus, or about A.D. 57.
The pride of a purely human way of thinking showed itself in the division of the church and the claims of some people for leadership (1:10-17). This pride contrasted the wisdom of the world with the wisdom of God, considering the preaching of the cross to be folly (1:18-31); it has led some Christians to reject inspired revelation and its advocates and accept the way of thinking of worldly philosophers (2:1-4:6). Perhaps this element of pride also formed the basis of an irrepressible desire to have the gift of speaking in tongues (chapters 12-14).
The former practice of idolatry showed itself in undisguised sexual promiscuity. One of the men lived with his father's wife; however, instead of lamenting such immorality, Christians seem to have taken pride in it and willingly defended the man (5:1-5). The satisfaction of sexual desires outside of marriage was considered as natural as the satisfaction of hunger. The suspicion almost involuntarily creeps in that they were on the verge of making cult prostitution a dogma of the Lord's church (6:15-20), and this certainly had such a strong influence on Christian women that they appeared in public in attire more befitting harlots. than humble and submissive Christian women (11:3-16).
There were other problems that arose from idolatrous customs, among them the eating of meat sacrificed to idols. The Corinthians, along with friends, ate food offered to idols in the temple of idols. Some Christians continued (or resumed) this practice, believing that the knowledge of the worthlessness of idols no longer makes this act an act of serving idols (8:1-6). But Paul argued that the Lord's Supper is communion with the body of Christ, and that feasts sacrificed to idols were an offering to demons, regardless of knowledge of the worthlessness of idols (10:19-21). Others, it seems, saw in the Lord's Supper some semblance of idol feasts, and therefore made of it not a symbol, a memory of what it should be, but a feast of revelry (11:17-34).
Materialism also manifested itself in the Corinthian church, leading some to deny the bodily resurrection from the dead (15:12-20).
Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to address these discrepancies with the truth. But in addition, he answered a letter from the church in which he was asked about the duties of husband and wife, the marriage of believers to unbelievers, the marriage of virgins, and the remarriage of Christian widows (7:1-40).
Unfortunately for the Corinthian church, it is entangled in many problems; but we are fortunate to be able to read this epistle, because many of the same problems that arose in ancient Corinth still exist today.
INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS 5
1 CORINTHIANS 1-9
1 CORINTHIANS 2-27
1 CORINTHIANS 3-39
1 CORINTHIANS 4-55
1 CORINTHIANS 5-68
1 CORINTHIANS 6-77
1 CORINTHIANS 7-92
1 CORINTHIANS 8 - 120
1 CORINTHIANS 9 - 130
1 CORINTHIANS 10-148
1 CORINTHIANS 11-168
1 CORINTHIANS 12-194
1 CORINTHIANS 13-211
1 CORINTHIANS 14-222
1 CORINTHIANS 15-247
1 CORINTHIANS 16-277
1 Paul, called by the will of God an Apostle of Jesus Christ, and brother Sosthenes,
2 the church of God, which is in Corinth, sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, in every place, with them and with us:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God without ceasing for you, for the sake of the grace of God which was given to you in Christ Jesus,
5 because in him you have become rich in everything, in every word and in every knowledge,
6 for the testimony of Christ is established in you,
7 so that you do not lack any gift, looking forward to the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
8 Who will also confirm you to the end, [that you may be] blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 Faithful is God, by whom you are called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
10 I beseech you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak one thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in one spirit and in one mind.
11 For from the [household] Chloe it became known to me about you, my brethren, that there are disputes among you.
12 I understand what you say: "I am Pavlov"; "I am Apollos"; "I am Kifin"; "But I am Christ's."
13 Was Christ divided? did Paul crucify for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
14 I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15 lest anyone say that I baptized in my name.
16 I also baptized Stephen's house; And whether he baptized anyone else, I don’t know.
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in the wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ be nullified.
18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will put away the understanding of the prudent.
20 Where is the wise man? where is the scribe? where is the questioner of this world? Has not God turned the wisdom of this world into folly?
21 For when the world through [its] wisdom did not know God in the wisdom of God, it pleased God with the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.
22 For even the Jews demand miracles, and the Greeks seek wisdom;
23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews, but foolishness to the Greeks,
24 but for those called themselves, Jews and Greeks, Christ, God's power and God's wisdom;
25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weak things of God are stronger than men.
26 Look, brethren, who are you who are called: not many [of you] are wise according to the flesh, not many strong, not many noble;
27 But God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong;
28 And God chose the lowly things of the world, and the lowly and meaningless, to abolish the things that are significant,
29 so that no flesh can boast before God.
30 From him you also are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
31 that [it] be, as it is written: He who boasts, glory in the Lord.
1 And when I came to you, brethren, I came to declare to you the testimony of God, not in the excellency of word or wisdom,
2 for I determined that I should know nothing among you but Jesus Christ, and him crucified,
3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in great trembling.
4 And my word and my preaching was not in persuasive words of human wisdom, but in the demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 so that your faith [is established] not on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.
6 But wisdom we preach among the perfect, but wisdom is not of this world, nor of the rulers of this world,
7 but we proclaim the wisdom of God, secret, hidden, which God ordained before the ages for our glory,
8 which none of the rulers of this world has known; for if they had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
9 But, as it is written, Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, and it has not entered into the heart of man, which God has prepared for those who love Him.
10 But God revealed [it] to us by his Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.
11 For what man knows what is in a man, except the spirit of man that dwells in him? So no one knows God, except the Spirit of God.
12 But we did not receive the spirit of this world, but the Spirit from God, that we might know what God has given us,
13 that we proclaim, not from human wisdom with learned words, but learned from the Holy Spirit, considering spiritual things with spiritual things.
14 The natural man does not accept what is from the Spirit of God, because he considers it foolishness; and cannot understand, because it [should] be judged spiritually.
15 But a spiritual man judges everything, but no one can judge him.
16 For who has known the mind of the Lord to judge him? And we have the mind of Christ.
1 And I could not speak to you, brethren, as to spiritual ones, but as to carnal ones, as to babes in Christ.
2 I fed you with milk, and not with [solid] food, for you were not yet able, and even now you are not able,
3 because you are still carnal. For if envy, strife, and divisions are among you, are you not carnal? and do you not walk according to the manner of men?
4 For when one says, “I am Pavlov,” and the other, “I am Apollos,” are you not carnal?
5 Who is Paul? who is Apollos? They are only ministers through whom you believed, and moreover, as the Lord has given to each.
6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase;
7 Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is nothing, but [everything] is God who brings forth growth.
8 But he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his reward according to his labor.
9 For we are laborers together with God, [and] you are God's field, God's building.
10 I, according to the grace given to me from God, as a wise builder, have laid the foundation, and another is building on [it]; but each see how he builds.
11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Does anyone build on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
13 each case will be revealed; for the day will show, because it is revealed in the fire, and the fire will test the work of each, what it is.
14 Whoever's work that he built stands, he will receive a reward.
15 And whoever's work is burned will suffer loss; however, he himself will be saved, but so, as if from fire.
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you?
17 If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will punish him: for the temple of God is holy; and this [temple] is you.
18 No one deceives himself. If any of you thinks to be wise in this age, then be foolish in order to be wise.
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the sight of God, as it is written, It catches the wise in their deceit.
20 And again: The Lord knows the philosophies of the wise, that they are vain.
21 So no one boasts of men, for everything is yours:
22 Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or the present, or the future, all is yours;
23 But you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.
1 Therefore, everyone should understand us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
2 It is required of stewards that every one should be faithful.
3 It means very little to me how you judge me or [how] [judge] other people; I don't judge myself either.
4 For [although] I know nothing behind me, yet I am not justified by this; the Lord is my judge.
5 Therefore do not judge in any way before the time, until the Lord comes, who both illuminates the hidden in darkness and reveals the intentions of the heart, and then there will be praise from God to everyone.
6 This, brethren, I have added to myself and to Apollos for your sake, that you may learn from us not to be philosophic beyond what is written, and not to be arrogant one before another.
7 For who distinguishes you? What do you have that you wouldn't get? And if you have received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?
8 You are already fed up, you have already become rich, you have begun to reign without us. Oh, that you [really] would reign, so that we could reign with you!
9 For I think that we, the last messengers, God judged to be, as it were, sentenced to death, because we have become a disgrace to the world, to angels and men.
10 We are foolish for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are in glory, and we are in dishonor.
11 Even until now we endure hunger and thirst, and nakedness and beatings, and we wander,
12 and we labor, working with our own hands. They curse us, we bless; they persecute us, we endure;
13 they blaspheme us, we pray; we are like rubbish to the world, [like] dust, all [trodden down] until now.
14 I do not write this to your shame, but I admonish you as my beloved children.
15 For though you have thousands of teachers in Christ, yet there are not many fathers; I have begotten you in Christ Jesus by the gospel.
16 Therefore I beseech you: imitate me, as I imitate Christ.
17 For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my beloved and faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church.
18 As I do not come to you, some [of you] become proud;
19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will test, not the words of those who are puffed up, but the power,
20 For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.
21 What do you want? come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of meekness?
1 There is a sure rumor that fornication [appeared] among you, and, moreover, such fornication, which is not heard even among the Gentiles, that someone [instead of] [wife] has his father's wife.
2 And you were lifted up instead of weeping, so that he who did such a thing would be taken out of your midst.
3 But I, being absent in body, but being present [with you] in spirit, have already decided, as if I were with you: the one who did such a thing,
4 in your congregation, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, in common with my spirit, by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
5 hand over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
6 You have nothing to boast about. Don't you know that a little leaven leavens the whole dough?
7 Purge therefore the old leaven, that you may be a new dough, because you are without leaven, for our Passover, Christ, was slain for us.
8 Therefore let us not celebrate with old leaven, not with the leaven of vice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of purity and truth.
9 I wrote to you in a letter - do not associate with fornicators;
10 But not in general with the fornicators of this world, or covetous men, or predators, or idolaters, for otherwise you would have to go out of the world [this].
11 But I wrote to you not to associate with one who, while calling himself a brother, remains a fornicator, or a covetous man, or an idolater, or a blasphemer, or a drunkard, or a predator; Don't even eat with this one.
12 For why should I judge outsiders? Are you judging internally?
13 God judges those who are outside. So cast out the perverted one from among you.
1 How dare anyone among you, dealing with another, sue the ungodly, and not the saints?
2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? But if the world be judged by you, are you not worthy to judge unimportant things?
3 Do you not know that we will judge the angels, much less [the deeds] of this world?
4 But you, when you have worldly litigation, appoint [your judges] those who do not mean anything in the church.
5 To your shame I say, Is there not one wise man among you who can judge between his brothers?
6 But brother goes to law with brother, and moreover before unbelievers.
7 And it is already very humiliating for you that you have lawsuits among yourselves. Why would you rather not be offended? Why would you rather not endure hardship?
8 But you [yourselves] offend and take away, and moreover from the brothers.
9 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 malakias, nor sodomists,
10 neither thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor predators, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And such were some of you; but washed, but sanctified, but justified by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God.
12 Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is beneficial; everything is permissible to me, but nothing should possess me.
13 Food for the belly, and the belly 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 the Lord, 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 from Christ, that I may make [them] the members of a harlot? Let it not!
16 Or do you not know that he who copulates with a harlot becomes one body [with her]? for it is said, the two shall be one flesh.
17 But he who is united with the Lord is one spirit with the Lord.
18 Flee 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 bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
20 For you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God both in your bodies and in your souls, which are God's.
1 And about what you wrote to me, it is good for a man not to touch a woman.
2 But [in order to avoid] fornication, each one should have his own wife, and each one should have her own husband.
3 Husband show his wife due favor; like a wife to her husband.
4 The wife has no power over her own body, but the husband; likewise, the husband has no power over his own body, but the wife does.
5 Do not deviate from each other, except by agreement, for a time, for the exercise of fasting and prayer, and [then] be together again, so that Satan does not tempt you with your intemperance.
6 However, I said this as a permission, and not as a command.
7 For I desire that all men be like me; but each has his own gift from God, one this way, the other another.
8 But to the unmarried and to the widows I say, It is good for them to remain as I am.
9 But if they [cannot] abstain, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to be inflamed.
10 But to those who are married, it is not I who command, but the Lord: A woman must not divorce her husband,
11 But if she is divorced, she must remain celibate, or be reconciled to her husband, and the husband must not leave his wife.
12 But to the rest I say, and not the Lord, if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she is willing to live with him, he must not leave her;
13 And a wife who has an unbelieving husband, and he agrees to live with her, must not leave him.
14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
15 But if an unbeliever [wants] to divorce, let him divorce; brother or sister in such [cases] are not related; The Lord has called us to peace.
16 How do you know, wife, that you will not save your husband? Or you, husband, why do you know if you can save your wife?
17 Only do each one as God has ordained for him, and each one as the Lord has called. So I command all the churches.
18 If anyone is called by the circumcision, do not hide yourself; If anyone is called uncircumcised, do not be circumcised.
19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but [everything] is in keeping the commandments of God.
20 Everyone stay in the rank in which you are called.
21 Whether you are called a slave, do not be dismayed; but if you can become free, then use the best.
22 For the servant who is called in the Lord is the Lord's free man; likewise, he who is called free is the servant of Christ.
23 You are bought with a price; do not become slaves of men.
24 In whatever [calling] one is called, brethren, in that shall each one remain before God.
25 Concerning virginity, I have no command of the Lord, but I give advice, as one who has received mercy from the Lord to be faithful.
26 In present need, for the better, I acknowledge that it is good for a man to remain like this.
27 Are you connected to your wife? don't seek divorce. Did he leave without a wife? don't look for a wife.
28 However, even if you marry, you will not sin; and if a girl marries, she will not sin. But such will have afflictions according to the flesh; and I feel sorry for you.
29 I tell you, brethren, the time is short, so that those who have wives must be as those who have not;
30 and those who weep, as if they did not weep; and those who rejoice, as those who do not rejoice; and those who buy, as not acquiring;
31 and those who use this world as those who do not; for the image of this world passes away.
32 And I want you to be without worries. The unmarried cares about the Lord's things, how to please the Lord;
33 But a married man is concerned about the things of the world, how to please his wife. There is a difference between a married woman and a girl:
34 An unmarried woman takes care of the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord, that she may be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman takes care of the things of the world, how to please her husband.
35 I say this for your own benefit, not to put bands on you, but so that you will [serve] the Lord decently and unceasingly without distraction.
36 But if anyone considers it indecent for his maiden that she, being in adulthood, should remain so, let him do as he wants: he will not sin; let [those] marry.
37 But he who is unshakably firm in his heart and, not being constrained by need, but being powerful in his will, has resolved in his heart to keep his virgin, he does well.
38 Therefore he who marries his maiden does well; but the one who does not give out does better.
39 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.
40 But she is happier if she remains so, according to my advice; but I think I also have the Spirit of God.
1 Of the [foods] sacrificed to idols we know, because we all have knowledge; but knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.
2 Whoever thinks that he knows something, he still does not know anything as he should know.
3 But whoever loves God, to him has been given knowledge from Him.
4 Therefore, regarding the eating of food offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but One.
5 For although there are so-called gods, either in heaven or on earth, since there are many gods and many lords,
6 but we have one God the Father, from whom are all things, and we are for him, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
7 But not all [such] knowledge: some even to this day, with a conscience [recognizing] idols, eat [things offered to idols] as sacrifices to idols, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.
8 Food does not bring us closer to God: for if we eat, we gain nothing; if we don't eat, we don't lose anything.
9 Take heed, however, lest this freedom of yours be a stumbling block to the weak.
10 For if anyone sees that you, having knowledge, are sitting at a table in a temple, will not his conscience, as a weak one, incline him also to eat idolaters?
11 And because of your knowledge, the weak brother for whom Christ died will perish.
12 But by sinning thus against your brethren, and hurting their feeble conscience, you are sinning against Christ.
13 And therefore, if food offends my brother, I will never eat meat, lest my brother be offended.
1 Am I not an apostle? Am I free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my business in the Lord?
2 If for others I am not an apostle, then for you [an apostle]; for the seal of my apostolate is you in the Lord.
3 This is my defense against those who condemn me.
4 Or do we not have authority to eat and drink?
5 Or do we not have power to have a wife and sister as a companion, like the rest of the apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?
6 Or do I alone and Barnabas have no power not to work?
7 What warrior ever serves on his payroll? Who, having planted vineyards, does not eat its fruit? Who, while shepherding the flock, does not eat milk from the flock?
8 Is it only from human reason that I say this? Doesn't the law say the same?
9 For it is written in the Law of Moses: Do not stop the mouth of a threshing ox. Does God care about oxen?
10 Or, of course, is it said for us? So, for us it is written; for whoever plows must plow in hope, and whoever threshes [must thresh] in hope of getting what is expected.
11 If we have sown spiritual things in you, how great is it if we reap corporeal things from you?
12 If others have authority over you, do we not? However, we did not use this authority, but we endure everything, so as not to put any obstacle to the gospel of Christ.
13 Do you not know that those who serve in the priesthood are fed from the sanctuary? that those who serve the altar take a share of the altar?
14 So the Lord commanded those who preach the gospel to live from the gospel.
15 But I didn't use anything like that. And I didn't write it to be that way for me. For it is better for me to die than for anyone to destroy my praise.
16 For if I preach the gospel, then I have nothing to boast about, because this is my necessary [duty], and woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!
17 For if I do it voluntarily, then [I will] have a reward; and if involuntarily, then [I perform only] the service entrusted to me.
18 What is my reward for? Because, preaching the gospel, I proclaim the gospel of Christ free of charge, not using my power in the gospel.
19 For being free from all, I made myself a slave to all, that I might gain more:
20 I was like a Jew to the Jews, to win the Jews; to those under the law he was as under the law, in order to gain those under the law;
21 for those without the law, as without the law, being not without the law before God, but under the law to Christ, in order to gain those without the law;
22 He was like a weak man to the weak, to gain the weak. I have become everything to everyone in order to save at least some.
23 But this I do for the gospel, that I may be a partaker of it.
24 Do you not know that all who run in the race run, but one is rewarded? So run to get.
25 All ascetics abstain from everything: those in order to receive a crown of perishability, but we incorruptible.
26 And therefore I do not run as to the unfaithful, I do not fight so as to only beat the air;
27 but I subdue and bring my body into subjection, lest, having preached to others, I myself should not become unworthy.
1 I do not want to leave you, brethren, in ignorance, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
3 and all ate the same spiritual food;
4 and they all drank the same spiritual drink: for they drank from the spiritual stone that followed; the stone was Christ.
5 But not many of them were well pleased with God, for they were smitten in the wilderness.
6 And these were images for us, so that we would not lust after evil things, as they were lustful.
7 Do not also be idolaters, like some of them, of whom it is written: The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play.
8 Let us not commit fornication, as some of them committed fornication, and in one day twenty-three thousand of them perished.
9 Let us not tempt Christ, as some of them were tempted and perished by snakes.
10 Do not grumble, as some of them grumbled and were killed by the destroyer.
11 All this happened to them, [as] images; but it is described as an instruction to us who have reached the last centuries.
12 Therefore, whoever thinks he is standing, take heed lest he fall.
13 No other temptation has come upon you than that of men; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond your strength, but when tempted will give you relief, so that you can endure.
14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.
15 I speak [to you] as wise; judge for yourself what I say.
16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not the communion of the Blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not the communion of the Body of Christ?
17 One bread, and we many are one body; for we all partake of the same bread.
18 Look at Israel according to the flesh: are they not partakers of the altar who eat the sacrifices?
19 What do I say? Is it that an idol is something, or that something sacrificed to an idol means something?
20 [No], but that the pagans, when offering sacrifices, offer to demons, and not to God. But I don't want you to be in fellowship with demons.
21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot be participants in the table of the Lord and in the table of demons.
22 Shall we dare to irritate the Lord? Are we stronger than Him?
23 Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is beneficial; Everything is permissible for me, but not everything edifies.
24 No one seek his own, but each one [the benefit] of another.
25 Everything that is sold at the auction, eat without any research, for [peace of] conscience;
26 For the earth is the Lord, and what fills it.
27 If one of the unbelievers calls you and you want to go, then eat everything that is offered to you without any research, for [peace of] conscience.
28 But if anyone says to you, This is food offered to idols, then do not eat for the sake of the one who told you, and for the sake of your conscience. For the Lord's earth, and what fills it.
29 But I do not mean my own conscience, but another: for why should my freedom be judged by another's conscience?
30 If I accept [food] with thanksgiving, why should I be reproved for what I give thanks for?
31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.
32 Don't offend Jews or Greeks or the church of God,
33 just as I please everyone in everything, seeking not my own benefit, but [the benefit] of many, so that they may be saved.
1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
2 I praise you, brethren, that you remember all my things and keep the traditions just as I handed them down to you.
3 I also want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, the husband is the head of the wife, and God is the head of Christ.
4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered puts his head to shame.
5 And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered shames her head, for [it] is the same as if she were shaved.
6 For if a woman does not want to cover herself, let her also have her hair cut; but if a woman is ashamed to have her hair cut or shaved, let her cover herself.
7 Therefore a man must not cover his head, for he is the image and glory of God; and the wife is the glory of the husband.
8 For the husband is not from the wife, but the wife is from the husband;
9 and the husband was not made for the wife, but the wife for the husband.
10 Therefore, a woman must have on her head [the sign of] authority [over] [her], for the angels.
11 But neither a husband without a wife, nor a wife without a husband, in the Lord.
12 For as the wife is from the husband, so is the husband through the wife; yet it is from God.
13 Judge for yourselves, is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered?
14 Doesn't nature itself teach you that if a man grows his hair, it is a dishonor to him,
15 But if a woman grows her hair, is it an honor to her, since hair is given to her as a covering?
16 And if anyone wanted to argue, then we have no such custom, nor the church of God.
17 But in offering this, I do not praise [you], that you are going not for the best, but for the worst.
18 For, in the first place, I hear that when you gather together in church, there are divisions among you, which I partly believe.
19 For there must also be differences of opinion among you, so that the skilled ones may be revealed among you.
21 For everyone hastens to eat his own food before [others], [so] [that] one is hungry, and another is drunk.
22 Don't you have houses to eat and drink? Or do you neglect the church of God and humiliate the poor? What to tell you? to praise you for it? I won't praise.
23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread
24 And having given thanks, he broke it, and said, Take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.
25 Also the cup after supper, and said, This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this whenever you drink, in remembrance of Me.
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord.
28 Let a man examine himself, and thus let him eat from this bread and drink from this cup.
29 For whoever eats and drinks unworthily, he eats and drinks condemnation to himself, not considering the Body of the Lord.
30 That is why many of you are weak and sick, and many are dying.
31 For if we judged ourselves, we would not be judged.
32 And when we are judged, we are punished by the Lord, so as not to be condemned with the world.
33 Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to supper, wait for one another.
34 And if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not gather for judgment. I'll arrange the rest when I get back.
1 I do not want to leave you, brethren, in ignorance about spiritual [gifts].
2 You know that when you were Gentiles, you went to mute idols as you were led.
3 Therefore I tell you that no one who speaks by the Spirit of God will utter anathema against Jesus, and no one can call Jesus Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
4 The gifts are different, but the Spirit is the same;
5 and the ministries are different, but the Lord is one and the same;
6 and the actions are different, but God is one and the same, working everything in everyone.
7 But to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the benefit.
8 To one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge, by the same Spirit;
9 faith to another, by the same Spirit; to another gifts of healings, by the same Spirit;
10 miracles to another, prophecy to another, discernment of spirits to another, tongues to another, interpretation of tongues to another.
11 All these things are produced by one and the same Spirit, dividing to each one individually, as He pleases.
12 For as the body is one, but has many members, and all the members of the one body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ.
13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether Jew or Greek, slave or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
14 But the body is not of one member, but of many.
15 If the foot says: I do not belong to the body, because I am not the hand, then does it therefore not belong to the body?
16 And if the ear says: I do not belong to the body, because I am not the eye, then does it therefore not belong to the body?
17 If the whole body is eyes, where is hearing? If everything is hearing, then where is the sense of smell?
18 But God arranged the members, each one in the body, as He pleased.
19 And if all were one member, then where [would] the body be?
20 But now the members are many, but the body is one.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand: I do not need you; or also head to feet: I don't need you.
23 And those who seem to us less noble in body, we make more care of them;
24 And our ugly ones are more plausibly covered, but our decent ones have no need. But God measured the body, inspiring greater care for the less perfect,
25 so that there would be no division in the body, and all members equally care for each other.
26 Therefore, if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is glorified, all the members rejoice with it.
27 And you are the body of Christ, and individually members.
28 And God hath appointed some in the church, firstly, apostles, secondly, prophets, thirdly, teachers; further, [to others he gave] powers [miraculous], also gifts of healings, help, management, different languages.
29 Are all Apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all miracle workers?
30 Does everyone have gifts of healing? Does everyone speak in tongues? Are all interpreters?
31 Be zealous for great gifts, and I will show you the most excellent way.
1 If I speak with the tongues of men and angels, but have no love, then I am a tinkling gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have [the gift of] prophecy, and know all mysteries, and have all knowledge and all faith, so that [I can] move mountains, but do not have love, then I am nothing.
3 And if I give away all my possessions, and give my body to be burned, and have no love, it profits me nothing.
4 Love is long-suffering, merciful, love does not envy, love does not exalt itself, does not pride itself,
5 does not act disorderly, does not seek his own, is not irritated, does not think evil,
6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
7 covers all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never ceases, although prophecy will cease, and tongues will be silent, and knowledge will be abolished.
9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part;
10 When that which is perfect comes, then that which is in part will cease.
11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, thought like a child, reasoned like a child; and when he became a man, he left the childish.
12 Now we see as if through a [dull] glass, guessingly, then face to face; Now I know in part, but then I will know, just as I am known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope, love; but the love of them is greater.
1 Achieve love; be zealous for spiritual [gifts], especially for prophesying.
2 For whoever speaks in a tongue speaks not to men, but to God; because no one understands [him], he speaks secrets in the spirit;
3 but whoever prophesies speaks to people for edification, exhortation, and consolation.
4 He who speaks in a [unfamiliar] tongue edifies himself; and whoever prophesies edifies the church.
5 I wish you all spoke in tongues; but it is better that you prophesy; for he who prophesies is more excellent than he who speaks in tongues, unless he also speaks, so that the church may be edified.
6 Now, if I come to you, brethren, and speak in [unknown] tongues, what good will I do you, unless I speak to you either by revelation, or by knowledge, or by prophecy, or by doctrine?
7 And the soulless [things] that make a sound, a flute or a harp, if they do not produce separate tones, how to recognize what is played on a flute or a harp?
8 And if the trumpet makes an indefinite sound, who will prepare for battle?
9 So if you also use your tongue to utter incomprehensible words, how will they know what you are saying? You will speak to the wind.
10 How many, for example, different words in the world, and not one of them is without meaning.
11 But if I do not understand the meaning of words, then I am a stranger to the speaker, and a stranger to me who speaks.
12 So also you, being zealous for spiritual [gifts], strive to be enriched [by them] for the edification of the church.
13 Wherefore, thou that speakest in a tongue, pray for the gift of interpretation.
14 For when I pray in a tongue, although my spirit prays, my mind remains fruitless.
15 What to do? I will pray with the spirit, I will also pray with the mind; I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the mind.
16 For if you bless with the Spirit, how will he who stands in the place of the common man say, “Amen,” at your thanksgiving? Because he doesn't understand what you're saying.
17 You give thanks well, but another is not edified.
Corinth, the main city of the region of Achaia, in southern Greece, was inhabited in the era of the advent of Christianity by numerous colonists, mostly Roman freedmen. There were also quite a few Greeks and Jews. When Ap. Paul, during his second apostolic journey, arrived in Corinth, there were about 700 tons of inhabitants - about 200 tons of free citizens and about 500 tons of slaves. Such an increase in the population of Corinth was due to its favorable geographical position. It was located on the Isthmus of Corinth, which, connecting the Peloponnese with the Balkan Peninsula, separated two seas - the Aegean and the Ionian. He owned two harbors - Kenkhrei to the east and Lehei - to the west. Because of this, it quickly became the great station of world trade between Asia and the West. At the height of the city citadel of Corinth rose the magnificent temple of Venus. Corinth contained all the means and achievements of the then culture - art workshops, rhetoric halls, schools of philosophers. As one ancient historian put it, in Corinth one could not even take a step down the street without meeting a sage.
But hand in hand with the development of culture, the corruption of morals intensified in Corinth. This is evidenced by the fact that at that time the immoral life was often called Corinthian(κορινθιάξειν), and the Corinthian feasts, the Corinthian drunkards, became a proverb.
And so, under such social conditions of Corinth, i.e., with external well-being, which the population of Corinth enjoyed, on the one hand, and with a complete decline in morals, on the other, Ap. Pavel (in 52).
At this time, the apostle was about 50 years old. He came to Corinth alone and began to practice here the trade that he had previously earned his livelihood - sewing carpets or coverings for tents. Soon he found a Jewish family here who were engaged in the same trade. These were the spouses - Akila and Priscilla, who had recently come to Corinth, being, like the Jews, expelled from Rome by the edict of Claudius. Working with them, Paul soon converted them to Christ, and they both became his zealous co-workers in deed the spread of Christianity.
As usual, Ap. Paul began preaching the gospel to the Corinthian Jews in Corinth. In the Jewish synagogue—he knew this—proselytes from different classes of Corinthian society were to be among his listeners, so that the sermon in the synagogue served, so to speak, as a bridge for the preacher of the Gospel to pass into pagan society. Understanding this well, he also understood the whole difficulty of speaking to such demanding listeners as the Corinthians were at that time, and he trembled for the success of his work (), especially in view of the failure that he had just experienced in Athens.
The apostle preached in the synagogue for several weeks. This time was enough for him to understand that the Jews - in their whole - will not turn to Christ, and St. therefore, with several believers from Jews and proselytes, he transferred his activity to the house of one converted to a Jew. Here he preached mainly to pagans and at the same time did not resort to any external means to please his listeners - neither to the art of eloquence, nor to the tricks of dialectics, showing before them only the strength of his conviction. Such a sermon found adherents, and arose in Corinth, formed partly from the Jews, and mainly from the Gentiles. However, the majority of the Corinthians who believed were poor people, slaves and uneducated.
About two years () continued his preaching work in Corinth Ap. Paul, living partly by his own labor, and partly by benefits that were sent to him by the Churches of Macedonia founded by him (). In Corinth at that time lived the proconsul of Achaia - Gallio, the brother of the philosopher Seneca, an enlightened and kind man. So he showed himself even when the Corinthian Jews began to complain to him about Paul. Gallio found that their dispute with Paul was about religion, and admitted that he could not enter into this matter. Paul left Corinth around Pentecost 54 to go to Jerusalem and then to Antioch. However, he did not intend to stay long in Antioch. The goal of his aspirations at that time was the glorious city of Asia Minor - Ephesus, where his colleagues Akila and Priscilla had gone before him, in order to somewhat prepare the ground for the activity of the great apostle of the pagans.
External circumstances of the origin of the first epistle to the Corinthians
As to the authenticity of our message, no serious objections have been raised in biblical scholarship. On the contrary, the evidence given in favor of the authenticity of the message is very convincing. This includes the instructions of the author of the epistle himself (), and then the very tone of speech in which he speaks of himself as the founder of the Corinthian Church (). In addition, we have in the epistle such a lively and plausible picture of the life of the primordial Christian Church, which only St. Apostle himself could paint. Paul, who stood very close to this Church. Finally, the epistle contains many reproaches addressed to the Church of Corinth, and this Church would hardly have recognized the need to accept and preserve such an epistle without full conviction of its authenticity. – To these internal proofs of the authenticity of the epistle are added external ones, namely the evidence of church tradition. Already at the end of the 1st c. Clement of Rome quotes from this epistle in his epistle to the Corinthians (ch. xlvii). St. Ignatius in his epistle to the Ephesians (ch. XVIII-I) repeats the words of Ap. Paul contained in the 2nd ch. 1st last to the Corinthians. We find such repetitions in Justin the Martyr, in a letter to Diognet, in St. Irenaeus and other writers of the first centuries of Christianity.
The message was written, undoubtedly, in Ephesus () and it was at the end of the three-year () stay of Ap. Paul in this city. This last consideration is confirmed primarily by the fact that at the time of sending the message, Apollos () was with the apostle. This learned Alexandrian Jew was converted by Aquila and Priscilla in Ephesus shortly before Ap. Paul (), and then went to Achaia and preached there, continuing the work of Paul. If now he is with the apostle in Ephesus, then, obviously, from the day of the arrival of Ap. Paul in Ephesus, it's been a long time. Then, from the book. Acts we learn that Ap. Paul, after two years and three months of his stay in Ephesus, decided to go west, going first, however, to Jerusalem, in order to testify before the church there about the love that the churches founded by Paul in Macedonia and Achaia have for her. In order to arrange the Greek churches for the collection of donations for the poor Christians of Jerusalem, which were supposed to testify to this love, Ap. sends his employees to Achaia and Macedonia - Timothy and Erast (), and this fact coincides with the one mentioned in 1 epistle. to the Corinthians (): it falls at a time not long before the departure of the apostle from Ephesus. Finally, it is to this time - and not to a later one - that the origin of the epistle must be attributed, also because in the epistle of Ap. freely manages himself and makes plans for future travels, while soon after the collection of the above-mentioned alms and after its transfer to the primates of the Jerusalem Church, the apostle was taken into bonds. - That. it can be assumed that the first epistle to the Corinthians was written about the spring of the year 57, not long before Easter, which is alluded to in ch. (vv. 7 and 8).
Reason for writing a message
After removing Ap. Paul in Ephesus, there were divisions in the Corinthian Church. When the Alexandrian teacher Apollos arrived in Corinth, his preaching led to the formation of a special party among the Corinthian Christians - namely, the party of Apollos. This party was made up mainly of Jews, whom Apollos managed to attract to the Christian Church by his interpretation of the B. Testament, in which he looked for the most striking evidence that Jesus was really the Messiah (). This party was joined by many of the educated pagans who did not like the simple preaching of Ap. Paul, and who received from Apollos not so much with their hearts as with their minds.
In addition to Apollosova, a party of Petrovs or Kifins appeared in Corinth. There is no evidence to suggest that Peter himself was and preached in Corinth. Most likely, this party was founded under the influence of the stories of Christians who came from Palestine about the great personality of Ap. Peter. Peter, in the minds of these newcomers, was the prince of the apostles, and therefore if there was any disagreement between him and Paul, then Paul, in the opinion of this party, should have yielded the primacy to Peter.
It is further understood that the Corinthians converted by Paul stood up for their teacher and also formed a special batch of Pauline adherents who wanted to believe only what Paul taught and had a negative attitude towards the authorities of Apollos and Peter. Finally, there appeared among the Corinthian Christians those who rejected all apostolic authority and held only one head—Christ. It was as if they did not want to recognize any mediator between themselves and Christ, they wanted to depend only on Him alone. – In this way, four parties were formed in the Corinthian Church - Apollos, Petrovs, Pavlovs and Christs.
But this is not enough. In the life of the Corinthian Christians, other undesirable phenomena began to appear. When the first strong impressions made on the Corinthians by the preaching of St. Paul, who urged them to completely renew their sinful lives, Corinthian Christians began to relate rather easily to the strict requirements of evangelical morality. Misunderstanding the teaching of the apostle about the freedom of a Christian (), the Corinthians began to consider such things as permissible for themselves that were not allowed even among the pagans. The more well-meaning of the Corinthian Christians now wondered what to do with these unworthy fellow believers, and so they turned to Paul with a letter in which they described all their difficulties, except for the above. They asked him about the advantage of a celibate life over marriage, about the permissibility of eating meat sacrificed to idols (), about the comparative importance of spiritual gifts (). Finally, people appeared in Corinth who denied the truth of the general resurrection, about which, no doubt, the Apostle Paul was also informed in the above-mentioned epistle.
Message plan. – Separation by content
Such were the circumstances of the life of the Corinthian Church that prompted the apostle Paul to write the first epistle to the Corinthians. Naturally, the variety of needs of the Corinthian Church had to be reflected in the nature of the epistle. It might have been expected that the apostle would begin to answer first one, then another of the questions put to him, without caring about the general plan of the epistle. Meanwhile, it is impossible not to notice that the first epistle to the Corinthians, with all the variety of issues discussed in it, is whole a work written according to a known plan.
Since, first of all, the apostle needed to restore his authority, which had fallen significantly in Corinth, so that all his admonitions would be accepted by those for whom they were intended, he devotes the first chapters of his epistle to the question of the parties in Corinth. Here, first of all, he speaks about the properties and essence of the Gospel, then about the position and tasks of the minister of the Gospel, and, finally, defines the normal relationship between believers and their teachers. Thus, he destroys the evil of partisanship at its very root. Then he turns to questions concerning the moral life of the Christian community, and here in the first place he puts in the first place a question that in some respects concerned the organization of the community, namely, he discusses the behavior of one Christian who allowed himself an extreme violation of Christian moral discipline, and gives instructions on how to deal with such members of the Christian community. communities. He then decides four purely ethical questions. Two of them - whether one can sue one's lawsuits before pagan judges and how to look at the vice of intemperance - the apostle decides quickly, based on the very spirit of the gospel. The other two, the question of the relative importance of marriage and celibacy, and the permissibility of eating meat sacrificed to idols, were much more difficult to resolve, because the question of Christian freedom was mixed in here, and the apostle devotes a lot of time and labor to the solution of these two questions. These questions are followed by questions concerning religious life and worship meetings. The first still has contact with the question of Christian freedom - this is precisely the question of the behavior of women in liturgical meetings. The second is about the behavior of Christians at love feasts, and the third, and the most difficult, is about the use of spiritual gifts, mainly the gift of tongues and the gift of prophecy.
Thus, in his message, St. goes from outside to inside. At the end of the message of Ap. talks about the issue that was of the greatest importance for the whole life of a Christian - namely, the resurrection of the dead, which some of the Corinthians doubted. The entire content of the message can therefore be presented in the following form: 1) the question of Churches- or church society ().
Ch. I, art. 1-9 is an introduction to the message, and the XVIth chapter contains a conclusion - an assignment, various news and greetings.
1) Introduction: address (Ï1–3); thanks be to God (4–9).
2) Parties in the Corinthian Church (Rs 10–17).
3) The essence of the gospel (Ï18-IIÏ4).
4) The true nature of the ministry of the Christian teacher of the faith (IIÏ5-IV:5).
5) Arrogance as the cause of church troubles (IV:6-21).
6) Church discipline (V).
7) Processes (VÏ1–11).
8) Intemperance (VÏ12-20).
9) Marriage and celibacy (VII).
10) Eating meat sacrificed to idols and participating in pagan sacrificial meals (VIII-X).
11) Attire of women during worship (XÏ1 - 16).
12) Riots at the love feasts (XÏ17-34).
13) About spiritual gifts (XII-XIV).
14) About the resurrection of the dead (XV).
15) Conclusion of the Epistle (XVI).
The Character of 1 Corinthians
1 Corinthians, as well as 2, is a model of what is called an "epistle." What is contained in it cannot be imagined embodied in the form of a discourse or a treatise: only the form of the epistle, understood in the sense of writing, was suitable for those outpourings with which Ap. Paul in the Corinthian Church he founded. Here we have before us all the characteristic features of the letter: exhortations, praises and censures addressed to the recipients of the message - in a word, it is clear that Ap. writes as he would speak to the Corinthians in a personal meeting with them. Finally, we find here quite a few allusions and half-hints, such as are usually made in the letters of friends and which remain almost incomprehensible to other readers of these letters.
But the 1st epistle differs significantly from the 2nd in that it contains Ap. speaks of the needs of church life, of various individual points of church discipline, while in the 2nd he expands most of all on his personal relations with the Corinthians and pours out his feelings before them. At the same time, however, Ap. in the 1st epistle he also points to the significance of the external facts of church life for the inner life of individuals, and in the second he makes personal experiences dependent on great facts that are of the highest importance for all Christianity. We can say that in both the 1st and 2nd epistle we see the same Paul in all the greatness of his apostolic spirit and piety.
Epistles to the Corinthians stand especially among other epistles of St. Paul. Here the preacher of the one saving grace and Christian freedom appears in the role of a church administrator, establishing order in church life. The bearer and preacher of personal Christianity stands before us as a defender of the general church world outlook. His speech in these messages is also varied. It recalls now the dialectical boldness and seriousness of the epistles to the Galatians and Romans, then the simplicity and some vagueness of the speech of the pastoral epistles.
About the text of the message
1st last to Corinth. preserved in 3 most important editions - Alexandrian (ancient manuscript), Greek-Latin or Western (in the translation of "Itala" and in the Western Fathers) and in Syrian or Byzantine (in the Syrian translation of "Peschito" and in the Holy Fathers Syrian Church, for example, Chrysostom and Theodoret). The so-called "Textus receptus", from which the Slavic and Russian translations of the epistle are made, adheres in various places to one, then another, then the third of the most ancient texts. In general, it should be noted that the text of the message is the least controversial: there are much fewer options in this message than in others.
The most famous are the following manuscripts of the first epistle to the Corinthians:
1) Sinai and Vatican (from the 4th century).
2) Alexandrian and Codex Ephraim (from the 5th century).
3) Claromontonian and Coislikian (from the 6th century).
4) Moscow (from the 9th century).
Introduction.
An ancient Greek legend tells of Sisyphus, who was the king of the city of Corinth. For impudent disrespect for the gods, he was sentenced by them to eternal useless labor - to roll a huge stone uphill. But every time, as soon as Sisyphus reached the top of the mountain with his stone, he rolled down to its foot, and Sisyphus had to start all over again. The writer and philosopher of the 20th century Albert Camus sees in this legend of the Corinthian king the prototype of the aimless and absurd existence of modern man.
But if Camus had not only read the two epistles of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians, but also accepted them with his heart, then perhaps he would have looked at things differently, because they contain a guiding thread for lost humanity ... They were proud and selfish, the Corinthians who lived in the times of the Apostle Paul, - like their legendary king, who depended on capricious Zeus; and this was clearly felt in their way of thinking and living. But in the first century of our era, the city of Corinth was visited by a merciful and loving God in the person of His messenger Paul.
The Apostle Paul came to Corinth on his second missionary journey (Acts 18:1-18), most likely in the spring of A.D. 51 (judging by the fact that Proconsul Gallio took up his duties in Achaia later, and precisely in July 51). In Corinth, Paul met Aquila and Priscilla, who left Rome in 49, obeying the decree of Caesar Claudius, forbidding Jews to live in the capital of the empire. Aquila and Priscilla made tents, and the apostle also fed on this.
Since nothing is said about the conversion of this married couple, it seems that they were already Christians when Paul met them. They were close spiritually, belonged to the same people, were engaged in the same craft. No wonder the apostle took a liking to them.
According to his custom, Paul also visited the synagogue in Corinth, taking part in the service; He tried to convince the Jews who gathered there that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. And having lost the opportunity to testify in the synagogue, the apostle began to hold meetings in the nearby house of the pagan Justus, who, listening to Paul, believed in Christ (Acts 18:7). Justus was one of the many people in Corinth who came to the Lord.
Speaking humanly, Paul probably had reason to doubt the number of true believers in Corinth. The fact is that this ancient city has long been famous for the cult of pleasing the flesh that reigned there. Even Homer in the Iliad wrote about the wealth of Corinth. And the ancient Greek philosopher Plato in his famous "Republic" calls prostitutes "Corinthian girls". The name Corinth has been played up more than once in Greek literature when it was about immorality and debauchery.
So the playwright Aristophanes even invented a new word - "Korinfiazomai" - to denote an extramarital affair. According to the ancient writer Strabo, the main source of both wealth and depravity of Corinth was the temple of the goddess of love Aphrodite with its thousands of prostitutes. There was even a saying "Not every man can go to Corinth".
Almost a hundred years after 146 BC no one visited this city, which, having rebelled against Rome, was then subjected to terrible destruction. Actually, only a few columns in the temple of Apollo survived. And the inhabitants were killed or sold into slavery. But the excellent location of the city was the reason that the place was empty for long: in 46 BC, Emperor Julius Caesar restored Corinth as a Roman colony. And in 27 BC it became the capital of the province of Achaia. The proconsul Gallio, who ruled in Corinth, allowed the Apostle Paul to preach the Gospel freely. It was to this new Corinth, which, however, retained its old vices, that the Apostle Paul came in 51.
Paul's correspondence with the Corinthians.
1. Arriving at Corinth on his first missionary journey, Paul stayed there for a year and a half, and in the autumn of 52 set sail for Ephesus, from where he set off for Jerusalem. Priscilla and Aquila accompanied Paul to Ephesus, where they remained; there they met a gifted Jew from Alexandria named Apollos, who was given spiritual instruction and then sent to Corinth to serve (Acts 18:18-28).
2. While Apollos was in Corinth (Acts 19:1), Paul, on his third missionary journey, returned to Ephesus; it was in the autumn of A.D. 53, and he stayed in Ephesus about two and a half years (Acts 19). Apparently, at the very beginning of his ministry there, the apostle wrote to the Corinthians that letter, which he mentions in 1 Cor. 5:9; this letter was misunderstood by them (5:10-11), and later it was lost altogether.
3. Paul learned about the problems that arose in the Corinthian church from "Chloe's household" (1 Cor. 1:11). And later, an official, so to speak, delegation consisting of Stephen, Fortunatus and Achaic (1 Cor. 16:17), having arrived to Paul, told him on what specific issues there was a division between the Corinthians. The first epistle of the apostle dealt with these matters and was probably written in A.D. 54 or 55.
4. But, apparently, it did not solve the problems that were tearing the church apart. Paul may have learned this from Timothy (4:17; 16:10). And then he decided to visit the Corinthians again - the apostle mentions this visit to them in 2 Cor. 2:1 as "disappointing" (compare 2 Corinthians 13:1, which refers to Paul's third visit to Corinth, the last leg of his third missionary journey) - due to the ugly act of one of the members of the Corinthian church (2 Corinthians 2:5).
5. Returning after his second visit to the Corinthians to Ephesus, Paul wrote them a letter, later delivered to them by Titus; he wrote it with deep pain in his heart (2 Cor. 2:4), apparently because he was forced to say harsh things in it, which in turn saddened the Corinthians (2 Cor. 7:8-9).
6. After a rebellion raised by the silversmiths who fed at the temple of Artemis of Ephesus, Paul was forced to leave Ephesus; he went to Troas to meet Titus. However, not finding him, upset, he went to Macedonia, apparently worried for the safety of Titus (2 Cor. 2:12-13; 7:5). Finally meeting with him, the apostle learned from him good news about the general state of the Corinthian church, but at the same time bad news about the emergence of a group opposed to Paul in the church.
7. While in Macedonia, Paul wrote 2 Corinthians before visiting their city for the third time in the winter of 56-57 (Acts 20:1-4).
Purpose of writing.
If the Epistle to the Ephesians deals with the problems of the universal Church, then 1 Corinthians is clearly dictated by the apostle's concern for the position of the local church. When any of us think that there is no more trouble than he has in the church, he should turn to this letter of Paul (and the accompanying 2 Corinthians) to see things in comparison, and at the same time in their true light. The First Epistle to the Corinthians allows us to take a look at the inner life of one of the local churches of the first century and see that this church was far from the true holiness.
That was precisely the reason Paul wrote this epistle - to get the sanctification received by the Corinthians to take on a practical character. For the worldly spirit seems to have had a greater effect on this church than the Spirit of God, in spite of the wonderful and obvious gifts the Corinthians received from the Spirit. Paul sought to change this situation. In the letter he sent to the Corinthian church, three main lines are clearly visible:
1. In the first six chapters, the apostle seeks to settle the divisions within the church that he had learned about (1:11), and to bring about unity among the Corinthians both in perspective and in practice.
2. Starting from chapter 7, Paul proceeds to analyze the specific issues that occupied the Corinthians (in the Greek text they are each time introduced by the phrase peri de - "and now as to"); these are questions of marital relations (7:1,25), freedom and responsibility (8:1), spiritual gifts and internal church order (12:1), collection of donations for the needs of the saints in Jerusalem (16:1), and, finally, the prospects Apollos visiting Corinth (16:12).
3. In chapter 15 the apostle reaffirms and substantiates the doctrine of the resurrection from the dead, which some have refuted. Perhaps this is what Paul saw as the root cause of many of the troubles of the Corinthian church, and therefore what he says in chapter 15 corresponds to the climax of the whole letter.
Behind everything that this letter is devoted to, the question arises of both the very existence of the Corinthian church, and the power of witness to the power of God and His gospel.
Book plan:
I. Introduction (1:1-9) A. Greeting and introduction of the author and his readers (1:1-3) B. Praise to God for the fruits of His mercy (1:4-9)
II. Divisions in the Church (1:10 - 4:21)
A. The Sad Reality of Divisions (1:10-17)
B. Reasons for divisions (1:18 - 4:5)
1. Misunderstanding the essence of the gospel (1:18 - 3:4)
2. Misunderstanding the meaning and purpose of ministry (3:5 - 4:5)
C. Overcoming Divisions (4:6-21)
III. Chaos in the church (chapters 5-6)
A. Failure to instruct and reason with the sinner (chapter 5)
B. Failure to resolve disputes among believers (6:1-11)
C. Lack of proper cleanliness in intimate relationships (6:12-20).
IV. Internal Church Difficulties (chapters 7-15)
A. Advice on Marriage (Chapter 7)
1. Marriage and celibacy (7:1-9)
2. Marriage and divorce (7:10-24)
3. Marriage and service to God (7:25-38)
4. Remarriages and widowhood (7:39-40)
B. On Christian Liberty (Chapters 8-14)
1. Christian freedom and pagan worship of idols (8:1 - 11:1)
a. The Principle of Brotherly Love (Chapter 8)
b. On the Reasonable Attitude to Privileges (9:1 - 10:13)
in. On the attitude towards pagan practice (10:14 - 11:1)
2. Christian freedom and worship of God (11:12 - 14:40)
a. On the status and rules for women in the church (11:2-16)
b. On Participation in the Lord's Supper (11:17-34)
in. On Spiritual Gifts (Chapters 12-14)
C. Doctrine of the Resurrection (chapter 15).
1. Inevitable bodily resurrection (15:1-34)
a. Evidence based on facts recorded in history (15:1-11)
b. Logical Proofs (15:12-19)
in. Theological Evidence (15:20-28)
d. Practical evidence (15:29-34)
2. Answers to some questions (15:35-58)
a. Answers to questions about the resurrection of the dead (15:35-49)
b. Answers to questions about the rapture of the living (15:50-58)
d. Advice concerning the collection of offerings for the poor (16:1-4)
e. Paul writes to the Corinthians about possible future visits (16:5-12)
V. Conclusion (16:13-24)
B. Salutations, Curses, and Blessings (16:19-24)