Weaver1has's Blog

We now come to the last chapter of 1 Corinthians namely chapter 16.  When this letter was originally written there were no chapter and verses added to it.  Let us remember that this was a letter St Paul wrote and it involved real people who loved Jesus Christ and wanted to serve him. We sometimes might think that there wasn’t much social movement in the ancient world.  With the Roman peace at the time of St Paul people could move around freely and this is one of the main reasons why the Church grew so fast.  The churches at this time also at times knew how to move on the international scale.  Let’s begin by looking at the whole chapter;

Instructions and Greetings

1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. 2 On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come. 3 When I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; 4 and if it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.

5 But I will come to you after I go through Macedonia, for I am going through Macedonia; 6 and perhaps I will stay with you, or even spend the winter, so that you may send me on my way wherever I may go. 7 For I do not wish to see you now just in passing; for I hope to remain with you for some time, if the Lord permits. 8 But I will remain in Ephesus until Pentecost; 9 for a wide door for effective service has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

10 Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid, for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I also am. 11 So let no one despise him. But send him on his way in peace, so that he may come to me; for I expect him with the brethren.

12 But concerning Apollos our brother, I encouraged him greatly to come to you with the brethren; and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has opportunity.

13 Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done in love.

15 Now I urge you, brethren (you know the household of Stephanas, that they were the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for ministry to the saints), 16 that you also be in subjection to such men and to everyone who helps in the work and labours. 17 I rejoice over the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have supplied what was lacking on your part. 18 For they have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore, acknowledge such men.

19 The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. 20 All the brethren greet you. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

21 The greeting is in my own hand—Paul. 22 If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be accursed. Maranatha. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. 24 My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen. 1 Corinthians 16 NASB

You can see straight away that there was a collection for the Church in Jerusalem.  The Church is one big family and wherever there is a need, the needs were met.  Paul wanted to spend time at Corinth and eventually stayed there for a while.  This chapter is buzzing with life with itinerant preachers and teachers passing through and building the church.  At the same time however, there were the trouble makes inside the Church trying to take advantage.   Verse 22 is a hard verse.  If anyone does not love the Lord let him be accursed.   I don’t believe he is talking about outsiders but those who wiggles there way into the Church pretending to be part of the church and bringing false teachings with them.  There are a lot of names in this chapter;

• Timothy
• Apollos
• household of Stephanas
• Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus
• Aquila and Prisca

• We know about Timothy because two letters were sent to him and he was an important ambassador for the Gospel.  Paul really trusted him.
• Apollos was a top theologian and some think that he wrote the book of Hebrews because of its Alexandrian style not Paul.  The first four verses of Hebrews are one sentence.  I don’t believe that Paul could have written this way.
• “Stephanas has been supposed by some to have been the repentant “jailer of Philippi” (comp. Acts 16:33). The First Epistle to the Corinthians was written from Ephesus some six years after the jailer’s conversion, and he was with the apostle there at that time.” From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanas
•   “  I was glad when Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus arrived, because they have supplied what was lacking from you Teignmouth Shore, writing in Ellicott’s Commentary for Modern Readers, suggests that Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus had come from Corinth to Ephesus, probably with the letter from the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 7:1) to which Paul was sending a response.[6] Paul urged the church in Corinth to “be in subjection to such men and to everyone who helps in the work and labours” and to “acknowledge such men”.” From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanas
• Priscilla (/prɪˈsɪlə/; Greek: Πρίσκιλλα, Priskilla or sometimes misspelled as Priscila) and Aquila (/ˈækwɪlə/; Greek: Ἀκύλας, Akylas) were a first century Christian missionary married couple described in the New Testament. Aquila is traditionally listed among the Seventy Disciples. They lived, worked, and travelled with the Apostle Paul, who described them as his “fellow workers in Christ Jesus” (Romans 16:3).[1]  Priscilla and Aquila are described in the New Testament as providing a presence that strengthened the early Christian churches. Paul was generous in his recognition and acknowledgment of his indebtedness to them (Romans 16:3–4). Together, they are credited with instructing Apollos, a major evangelist of the first century, and “[explaining] to him the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26).  It is thought by some to be possible, in light of her apparent prominence, that Priscilla held the office of presbyter.[2] She also is thought by some to be the anonymous author of the Epistle to the Hebrews.[3] from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priscilla_and_Aquila

So, we have some very powerful members in the Church.  I found it interesting that some think that Priscilla wrote the Book of Hebrews.  I would ask the question; Was she trained in Alexandrian grammar?  She would need this in her job description.  If the answer is ‘no’, then she is certainly not a contender.  That brings us to the end of our study on 1 Corinthians! Wow what a city! Life in the first century then wasn’t necessarily that slow.  I am so glad that this book is in the Bible because it helps us now in the 21^st century.  They were ordinary people just like us today and they also had fast food shops like we have.  They were into beauty and staying clean like we are.  They were a literate society like we are.  They had children and family problems and quarrels like we have today.   We really need to listen to what God is trying to teach us in this letter of St Paul.

This was just a quick study but perhaps I want to later look at the book even deeper but I have to say those who followed this study will have a greater understanding of what life was like for Christians at the time of Paul.  Not long after these times great persecutions came into the ancient world. The destruction of the temple in AD 70; the burning of Christians and feeding them to the lions under Nero and other emperors of the time.  The Jewish and Christian religions made it through to the modern era which is an amazing feat. 

35 But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?” 36 You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies; 37 and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own. 39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.

Verse 35 -42

Paul now starts to put correction on the Corinthians thinking.  Paul is going to follow through the logic, so the opening statement is also his intention.

•          How are the dead raised?

•          What kind of body do they come?

According to the.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges

Paul is covering ground that the Pharisees and Sadducees would have covered. The two sides; one side disagreeing with a real resurrection of the body and the other side agreeing about the resurrection of the body. So, he goes into smaller detail explaining that there are different types of body; fauna, animal, celestial bodies such as the moon and stars.

Paul starts by the simple fact that unless a seed (body) dies there cannot be another body.  Ver36 this argument is seen in nature.

42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; 43 it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So also it is written, “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.

So, in the previous section Paul answered the first of his intentions that there are various types of bodies.  He is now intending to explain the second question from verse 35.

What kind of body do they come?

Paul gives the contrasts of the resurrected to the natural man.

Buried                        resurrected

perishable                   imperishable

Dishonour                   Glory

weakness                   power

natural body          spiritual body

Paul tells the Corinthians what type of body will be when we are resurrected.   We should take encouragement from this.

Paul doesn’t stop here but he goes into detail how God would accomplish this. Jesus Christ: Being fully God and fully man was in the perfect position to make this happen.

So, let us dig a little deeper by looking at verse 45

45 So also it is written, “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

This is very important, and it is sometimes overlooked. My first point is that when Adam was created, he was perfect and there is no reason why he would not have lived forever but unfortunately, He sinned and the whole human race died.  Not literally but the separation and broken relationship from God.  God did not give up on the human race but sent his Son and through the son we are brought back into this divine fellowship by faith and grace.

So let us work out how this resurrection works and why it works;

46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47 The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.

Paul is following God’s creation. For there to be life death came first.  From this life would spring up.  Adam is like the original natural seed that falls into the ground.  This needs to take place so that there can be a resurrection for eternal fellowship with God.  This is our destiny and it was our destiny from before the foundation of the world.

The Mystery of Resurrection

50 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. 55 O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; 57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:35-58

Death is cruel and in the natural world because of the fall there is a sting in death.  The sting of death is that we are separated from our relatives; we can be separated from God. But it does not have to be that way and in Jesus Christ through the cross and his resurrection this situation by faith can be reversed.  As it says in these verses the perishable will become imperishable and the mortal will become immortal.  Verse 37 tells us that the victory over death is through Jesus Christ. 

Isaiah 25:8 says.

“8 He will swallow up death for all time,

And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces,

And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth.

For the LORD has spoken. “(NASB)

This idea of a resurrection is especially alive in Ezekiel.

“12 Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 Then you will know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. 14 I will put My Spirit within you, and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken and done it,” declares the LORD.’” Ezekiel 37:12-14 NASB

So then, the idea of resurrection my friends from the time of the great prophets into the New Testament spoke of the defeat of death.  At the last trumpet call we will all be changed.  This work was achieved through Jesus Christ.  In the last verse “58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. “1 Corinthians 15:58 NASB

All we are asked to do is stay steadfast and continue to work and live for the Lord. 1 Corinthians is very interesting at many different levels.  These early believers would have known some of the eyewitnesses.  These eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Christ had started to die and perhaps they started to lose hope.  Perhaps some of them started to doubt in the resurrection.  Paul came at the right time to dispel these doubts. St Paul reminded the Corinthians of these basic Bible truths that culminated in Jesus Christ and in the Lord, the Corinthians and us in the 21st century will have a taste the resurrection too.  This is the great promise. The hope of the resurrection started in the Old Testament and was fulfilled in the new.  This really excites me about the future.  We can look forward to eternity; death is certainly not the end!

1 corinthians 15 29-34

Whole books have been written on verse 29.  The reason being is that is Paul talking about baptism on behalf of the dead.   I will go into these arguments in more detail, but I think this is a problem that is grammatically easy to resolve. The little word Otherwise is seriously important, and my argument is that Paul switches back to those who don’t believe in the resurrection.  Let us follow the logic

Verses 12 – 20 is about those who don’t believe in the resurrection.

Verses 21 – 28 is about those who believe in the resurrection.

Verse 29 switches topic again to those who don’t believe in the resurrection.

That word otherwise is my paraphrase interpretation rather than translation.

From the point of view of those who don’t believe in the resurrection is there any real point to be baptized on behalf of a dead person.  Then verse 30 He switches back to the 1^st person plural pronoun we. Let us be clear from this vantage point the argument continues for the resurrection.  This section is pure ethics.  The Apostles ‘we’ are in danger of dying on a daily basis. This was not a problem for Paul because he has the hope of the resurrection.

²⁹ Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? ³⁰ Why are we also in danger every hour? ³¹ I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. ³² If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE. ³³  Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” ³⁴  Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame. 1 Corinthians 15:29-34 NASB

Verse 29

Did Paul allow people to be baptized on behalf of the dead? My answer is no he didn’t.  Having said that though whole books have been written on this verse.    I will first give my view on this first.  Paul is writing in the third person plural.  No where in the verse or before or after the verse did Paul ever say that he agreed with baptism of the dead.   I have to admit though I think that there were Pagan traditions that obviously did believe and do this sort of thing somehow.  Halfway through this section Paul does mention human motives.  So, he is questioning things.  So, to get the meaning could I read … What are the human motives of those who are baptized on behalf of the dead?  What is the motives behind us as Apostles putting our lives in danger?  From Paul’s point of view Paul in Jesus Christ ‘dies daily’ for his beliefs and this is an affirmation.  In verse 32 Paul goes into uncertainties about people’s motives for what they do.  I don’t actually think he fought with wild beasts although it was a Roman thing to see at the gladiator’s ring.  There probably were gladiators that were just down the road from where he stayed because Corinth was a popular Roman resort where lots of soldiers would have retired to.  He goes on to quote, “Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die!” Even more uncertainties going on.  Then Paul lets rip and gives the readers a good telling off! (in love) It seems to be the case that some of these believers may have got mixed up with the wrong crowd and were doubting the resurrection of the dead; People mythologizing and who did not know what they were talking about.  I think we see a battle of spiritual ideas going on here.  Christianity being at the forefront of a battle with Paganism. 

Note; My last blog has been updated about three times until we reached the end of verse 28.

My reflections on 1 Corinthians 15 verses 1-28

Paul begins his teachings with reminding them of what Christ did for us and that he did indeed rise from the dead with a real physical body. We also need to remember that Judaism and Christianity did not completely split at this time.  In fact, the life and work of Christ was about the perfection of Judaism and not all groups agreed with this.  One can see the fractures taking place over time.  Paul defends the resurrection of the physical body and our union with God at the end of times.

What we have learned so far is that there were some in Corinth that did not share Pauls optimism of a resurrection.  The possible places this could have come from could have been from those with a background in the mystery religions in Corinth at that time; and or Sadducee groups from within Judaism; and or from those who held gnostic tendencies of matter being evil therefore a salvific birth of the flesh or matter would be seen as completely abhorrent.  These three types of teachings were completely against the teachings of the Apostles and it also goes against the Judaic idea that when God created and gave the world life that it was ‘good’ and not ‘bad’. 

The Apostolic teaching is that Christ indeed did rise from the dead according to God’s plan and one day we will also rise from the dead.  The day will come when Jesus as the King will hand over everything to the Father including the greatest enemy ‘death’.  Then Christ will subject himself to the Father and the Church in Christ will be brought into the Trinitarian Divine Life and everything will be Perfect.

I want to finish by quoting one of my favourite Church Fathers from his Against Heresies Chapter 3.  The Apostolic Tradition is so reach with Apostolic Teaching;

https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/irenaeus_on_recapitulation_in_christ.htm

3.18.1
As it has been clearly demonstrated that the Word, who existed in the beginning with God, by whom all things were made, who was also always present with mankind, was in these last days, according to the time appointed by the Father, united to His own workmanship, inasmuch as He became a man liable to suffering, [it follows] that every objection is set aside of those who say, “If our Lord was born at that time, Christ had therefore no previous existence.” For I have shown that the Son of God did not then begin to exist, being with the Father from the beginning; but when He became incarnate, and was made man, He commenced afresh the long line of human beings, and furnished us, in a brief, comprehensive manner, with salvation; so that what we had lost in Adam—namely, to be according to the image and likeness of God—that we might recover in Christ Jesus.

5.21.1
He has therefore, in His work of recapitulation, summed up all things, both waging war against our enemy, and crushing him who had at the beginning led us away captives in Adam, and trampled upon his head, as thou canst perceive in Genesis that God said to the serpent, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; He shall be on the watch for (observabit) thy head, and thou on the watch for His heel.” For from that time, He who should be born of a woman, [namely] from the Virgin, after the likeness of Adam, was preached as keeping watch for the head of the serpent. This is the seed of which the apostle says in the Epistle to the Galatians, “that the law of works was established until the seed should come to whom the promise was made.” This fact is exhibited in a still clearer light in the same Epistle, where he thus speaks: “But when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman.” For indeed the enemy would not have been fairly vanquished, unless it had been a man [born] of a woman who conquered him. For it was by means of a woman that he got the advantage over man at first, setting himself up as man’s opponent. And therefore does the Lord profess Himself to be the Son of man, comprising in Himself that original man out of whom the woman was fashioned (ex quo ea quae secundum mulierem est plasmatio facta est), in order that, as our species went down to death through a vanquished man, so we may ascend to life again through a victorious one; and as through a man death received the palm [of victory] against us, so again by a man we may receive the palm against death.

From time to time I will add to this page new verses until I get to the end of verse 28.

1 Corinthians 15 and the first section had a lot of ifs.  In this next section I only see our future life in Christ with a resurrected body.  This is a very important subject for all times and Paul does not hold back but shows us that in Christ we are going to have a real resurrected body.  After we die, if we stay in spirit form, how will someone know us?  On the other hand, if we have a real body then we can be recognised immediately. It is through our speech, the way we look, the gestures we show that people know who we are.  This is the inheritance we have in Christ.  In Christ we will be made perfect even as he is perfect.

²⁰ But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. ²¹ For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. ²² For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. ²³ But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming, ²⁴ then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. ²⁵ For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. ²⁶ The last enemy that will be abolished is death. ²⁷ For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him. ²⁸ When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. 1 Corinthians 15:20-28 NASB

²⁰ Νυνὶ δὲ Χριστὸς ἐγήγερται ἐκ νεκρῶν, ἀπαρχὴ τῶν κεκοιμημένων.

²⁰ But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.

This is very straight forward.  There are no ‘ifs’ here but certainty.  The phrase’ has been raised from the dead’ this is in the perfect tense.  The perfect tense an action that has happened in the past but has continual effect for all time.  Here Jesus is ‘the first fruits’.  He is the first man to be raised from the dead. The first fruits are the first agricultural offering to God, but I think it can also be used of the first person in a family to be born (especially in Jewish thought).  The equivalent to first fruit is Bikkurim meaning ‘promise to come’ (https://get.tithe.ly/blog/first-fruit)

With reference to the firstborn person, the Hebrew word is bekor.  A Jewish use of the term I find helpful to give us a deeper understanding of it being used for Christ;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firstborn_(Judaism)

Where it says first fruits(plural) I don’t know if I agree with the NASB here.  First fruit is in the feminine singular.  I would translate the verse as and now Christ has been raised from the dead who is the first fruit from those who are asleep.  Before being conclusive I think one needs to read and compare other translations and commentaries on this text.  This is my interpretation for what it is trying to say.  It may be that the translators wanted to somehow follow the Hebrew Bekkorim (plural)

There are other reasons why I would translate it as this.  If one reads all the verses up to verse 28 one can see that Christ is the subject not the church or the dead believers.

When we look at the section of ‘those who have fallen asleep’ this is a verbal noun or participle in Greek, and it is in the perfect! I find this encouraging because the sleep is in Christ the first fruit from the dead.  When we die, we will also sleep in Christ and we will rise with Christ.  This is our hope.  All the mystery religions found it Corinth could not give this promise;  

In relation to the mystery religions I found Terri D. Moore’s paper from Dallas theological seminary College very interesting; http://tdarbymoore.com/

Her dissertation on the mystery religions I think may have a lot more bearing on how we understand parts of 1 Corinthians.

I will continue to publish on this page until I hit verse 28 so if you are a subscriber you might not see this new add ons so please every few day have a look. It takes time to write this blog especially as I need to check my facts and make correct judgements. As I see the Bible as sacred scripture I feel it important to comment in a reverential way and give God the glory.

Added 04.01.2021

Verse 21

²¹ ἐπειδὴ γὰρ δι’ ἀνθρώπου θάνατος, καὶ δι’ ἀνθρώπου ἀνάστασις νεκρῶν·

. ²¹ For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.

Here is a woody translation for you without verbs; ‘For since by a man death and by a man resurrection from the dead.’

The verb in the English translation was added to get the sense of the meaning!  Translators do these types of things to make it easier for us to understand the actual text.

For ‘by a man’ or ‘though a man’.  This man, human being is not mentioned yet but we know who he is talking about; Adam from the garden. It is through this man that death came into the world, but we also know that it was by a man, a human being namely Christ that there would be a resurrection from the dead. This is a very important verse because it compares Adam and Christ. They were both the same in that they were human beings, but they had different functions namely;

• Through Adam came death
• Through Christ came eternal life in a physical body

One man brought death to the human race and the other man eternal life.  I know who I want to follow! We don’t have any serious verbs in the comparison here, but we certainly get the meaning

Feel free to visit my other blog https://hasan-godtalk.blogspot.com/

09.01.2021

²² ὥσπερ γὰρ ἐν τῷ Ἀδὰμ πάντες ἀποθνῄσκουσιν, οὕτως καὶ ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ πάντες ζῳοποιηθήσονται.

²² For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.

In this verse we now have the actual names of those who are responsible for life and death.  Adam and Christ are mentioned. Hosper gar is best translated as ‘For as’; The word ‘for’ is important because it points to what preceded it.  The important point we learned is that both Adam and Christ were fully human.

A theological digression

At the creation as Bavinck would say humanity did not lose their humanity until after the fall but sin changed their humanity somehow.  When we think of death it can mean for some non-being but as Bavinck says spiritual death is never none-being but rather a state.  He says on page 93, Reformed Ethics, Herman Bavinck. The state of natural humanity is generally called death.  This death means a life that is lived in opposition to God. In this natural state we stand corrupted and we need Jesus Christ by his Holy Spirit to bring new life into us.

To put it bluntly;

Jesus Christ died on the cross so that we may have eternal life, in the future, a new physical eternal life!  Looking at the verse again we have two verbs to die and to live.  The first verb in regard to Adam is in the present and now, but the second verb that relates to Christ, and us, is in the future!  Paul makes sure that we understand our future hope…

10.01.2021

The resurrection and the events around it will follow a particular order;

• Christ the First Fruit verse 23
• Those who belong to Christ at his second coming verse 23
• ‘The end’ When Christ hands over the Church (Kingdom) to the Father verse 24
• This includes ‘death’ verse 26
• When all things have been subjected to the Father
• Then the Son will also subject himself to the Father.
• Then there is ‘completion’ verse 28 all in all

From my reading of this text we are brought into to be sharers of this divine trinitarian life of God

So let us recap what we have learned. 

Verse 20; Christ has been raised from the dead intro

Verse 21; through an ordinary person death came into the world so to through an ordinary person life would enter the world once again.

Verse 22; Namely through Adam’s disobedience death came into the world but through the work of Christ all could be brought to life

Verse 23; The order of the resurrection and allied activities start; Christ the first fruit; His Church at his second coming

Verses 24- 26; At the end Christ will reign until all enemies including death are subjected to Christ.

Verses 27 -28; At the end when Christ is in complete control of everything good and bad, he will subject himself to the Father.  In Christ we are brought into the Divine Life of the Trinity in the ‘all in all’ perfection. 

Let us now look at some background stuff.  Psalm 8 is not any ordinary Psalm; For Christians it is a Messianic Psalm and it is about the Son of Man; one of the titles of Jesus Christ the anointed one.  This Psalm is seen as a reference to the Kingship of Christ in relationship to YHWH (Tetragrammaton).

http://tdarbymoore.com/

From verses 12 to 19 St Paul is laying into these people who want to deny a physical resurrection.  The tone of those verses is fairly negative, and a lot of the verbs tend to be in the aorist. An action that happened in the past and has no future consequences.  If he does use actives, he is relating it to the present troubled situation.  We will go through this section in small bits so that we can build a masterpiece of understanding.  I will begin each section by the verse from the NASB.  The software I am using is olive tree.  The Greek text is from the SBL new testament within olive tree.  I’m not interested in variants because that would be another level of spade work and I think this is enough to get the main gist of what Paul is saying about the troublemakers.  Maybe on a later date, when I decide to turn this into a commentary I will probably take more of an interest in the variants.  The thing is that there are never enough hours in the day to do everything on their own.

¹² Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 1 Corinthians 15:12 NASB

Commentary

Basically, Paul is telling them in the present and active tenses that the Apostles and Paul himself came and were preaching that Christ was raised from the dead. Then Paul says that some of the Corinthians were saying that Christ wasn’t raised from the dead.

This is a very serious situation because it is at the heart of the Christian hope and teaching.  There were different types of people in Corinth.  From the Greek side there were the Gnostics who basically taught that the material body was evil and salvation was when the body could break out of its prison, then there was a particular Judaic group and sympathizers of the Sadducee type, who also denied the resurrection.

We don’t really know who these groups were so this is a calculated guess.

Notes

12 Εἰ δὲ Χριστὸς κηρύσσεται ὅτι ἐκ νεκρῶν ἐγήγερται, πῶς λέγουσιν ἐν ὑμῖν τινες ὅτι ἀνάστασις νεκρῶν οὐκ ἔστιν; 1 Corinthians 15:12 SBL NT

This verse is in question form (notice the ‘;’) You can see the Greek question mark.

If Christ is preached that he is raised for the dead

This comes with an ‘if’

How is it that ‘some of you’ say that he has not been raised from the dead.

So, we have ‘How’

‘They say’ is in the present active third person plural

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¹³ But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 1 Corinthians 15:13 NASB

Commentary

So, he takes their position to pieces by saying that if the dead are not raised neither has Christ been raised.   So, I think Paul is saying that if resurrection is not a possibility then according to their point of view Christ has not been raised.  

Notes

¹³ εἰ δὲ ἀνάστασις νεκρῶν οὐκ ἔστιν, οὐδὲ Χριστὸς ἐγήγερται·

1 Corinthians 15:13 SBL NT

Up to the comma I think Paul is saying generally / universally if there isn’t any resurrection then the logical conclusion after the comma is that Christ hasn’t been raised from the dead.  This makes the materialists position completely untenable.

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¹⁴ and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 1 Corinthians 15:14

Commentary

Paul is not holding back; this little word which is translated ‘vain’ in the NASB is used twice.  If Christ hasn’t been raised then basically the preaching is worthless and their faith is also ‘worthless, empty, in vain’

Notes

¹⁴ εἰ δὲ Χριστὸς οὐκ ἐγήγερται, κενὸν ἄρα τὸ κήρυγμα ἡμῶν, κενὴ καὶ ἡ πίστις ὑμῶν, 1 Corinthians 15:14

κενὸν and κενὴ = meaning ‘empty’ ‘vain’

If Christ hasn’t been raised from the dead, then the Corinthians faith is also empty.  St Paul is milking this argument to the very last drop.  There is no escape for the materialists who deny the resurrection. Empty or vain is used twice in one sentence this has consequences in the interpretation.

Verse 15

¹⁵ Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 1 Corinthians 15:15

Commentary

^{(In the Greek text image above I have shown the tenses of the verb and also some of the word order with the numbers. Where you see 1, 2, 3. Just follow the word order.)}

No perfect tenses are used in this verse.  It is in the here and now and it is a conversation that shows Paul explaining to the Corinthians that if the resurrection didn’t happen then the apostles would be found out to be false witnesses.

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Verses 16-19

¹⁶ For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; ¹⁷ and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. ¹⁸ Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. ¹⁹ If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. 1 Corinthians 15:16-19

Commentary

He continues in the same way.  The word mataios = worthless found in verse 17 was interesting.  Obviously, it carries the same idea of vanity and worthlessness as we found in verse 14 but this word here has been used in Acts 14:15 of idolatrous ‘vain things.  He goes even as far as to say that those who believed and died in the faith would have done so for nothing. Out of all of this in verse 15 I like ‘εἴπερ ἄρα’= if then (indeed or in fact). If the dead are not raised.  This section finishes off with lots of ‘if’ words! Verses 15, 16 and 19 start the sentences with ‘if’ words.  This is good news for us as believers because if there are if then there has to be a lot of ‘then’ words. This section has been very disquieting on the Corinthians. Paul in the next section is going to start to build the believers faith and give them hope. Paul had to go this way because of the troublemakers in the Corinthian assembly of believers. I hope and pray that you will follow me into the next section that hasn’t been commented on just yet.

Feel free to visit my other theological blog; https://hasan-godtalk.blogspot.com/

 

18 12 2020

Introduction to 1 Corinthians 15^12-19

Verses 12 – 19

There is a logical argument here.  The reason that Paul said this must have been that in the congregation there were people who didn’t believe in the resurrection.  Who could they be? Calvin suggested that it could have been the Sadducees.

I thought that Wayne. A. Meeks would have something to say in this section from a sociological perspective. I didn’t find any verses for this section that we are looking at. So, I looked at what Meeks said about the resurrection and I have to say I was disappointed.  He mentions something about the ‘death resurrection paradox’ and then he mentions Ephesians and Colossians as deutero-Pauline letters. 

The First Urban Chrsitians pages 182 – 183

Obviously, there were some groups that rejected the resurrection; Has he got nothing to say about these groups who did not believe in the resurrection?  There was evidence that there were Jewish communities throughout the whole known Roman world; for example, sometimes Jews were kicked out of cities because of their different values.  There were Saducees in Israel at the time of Christ because they were one of the opposing groups.  Did they as a group of Saducees not travel outside of Israel?

Yes, there were Jewish groups that were hostile to Paul in Corinth;

“

CORINTH, Greek city. The earliest evidence of Jews in Corinth is contained in Agrippa I’s letter to Caligula (Philo, De Legatione ad Caium, 281). The apostle Paul spent one and a half years in Corinth, preaching in the synagogue on Sabbaths (cf. the two Epistles to the Corinthians), and through his influence Crispus and his family were baptized. The Jews were embittered by Paul’s activities; they brought him before Gallio, procurator of Achea, who, refusing to judge in a religious matter, said they would have to resolve their differences themselves (Acts 18:2ff.). Corinthian Jewry apparently belonged to the lower classes. Aquila and Priscilla, with whom Paul dwelt, were weavers, and he worked with them for his bread. These Jews went to Corinth from Rome when Claudius expelled the Jews from the city. There were no direct links between the Jews of Corinth and Ereẓ Israel, but Corinthian products were known in the Holy Land. Josephus (Wars, 5:201) mentions the Corinthian copper that coated one of the Temple gates, the Gate of Nicanor (whose special copper is also noted in talmudic sources, Tosef., Yoma 2:4; Yoma 38a), and he similarly mentions the Corinthian candelabra in Agrippa II’s house (Life, 68). Vespasian, after his victory in Galilee, sent 6,000 captive youths to Nero to dig at the Isthmus of Corinth (Wars, 3: 540). Conceivably, some of them might have escaped and found haven in the nearby settlements including Corinth.”

From

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/corinth

If Meeks is looking at Corinth from a sociological perspective, he should have made more of the disagreeing groups. Death and resurrection were not a paradox.  The fact is that the Apostles including Paul believed in this message and they died for the message of the Gospel.   Yes, the Christian message vied with Pagans and Jews.  Actually, Christianity was at the time still in a sense a Jewish religion if it wasn’t seen as this Paul would not have been allowed to go into synagogues to preach!  We need to remember that there have also always been various schools of thought in Judaism.  Some hold to the First five books such as the Sadducees whereas the Pharisees had a wider view.  Both these groups would have definitely been represented in Corinth.  In various Wikipediaes even today we have Rabbinic Judaism and Karaite Judaism two forms of Judaism although there are a lot more.  By no way am I an expert but if there is someone with knowledge of the links between the saducees and the Karaites of today please point me in the right direction.

What I am saying is that Meeks could have argued that in Corinth there was a highly likelihood that there were two groups of Judaism.  Those that believed in a bodily resurrection and those that didn’t.

I found this article interesting for my above reflection.

https://jewsforjesus.org/publications/issues/issues-v06-n09/resurrection-rabbinic-judaism-hebrew-scripture-and-the-new-testament

Having looked at the evidence I am firmly in agreement with John Calvin that the Saducee type of groups were causing problems for the Corinthian church and St Paul.  St Paul gave a direct refutation to those who did not believe in a physical resurrection!

Next time we will start working our way through the text in 1 Corinthians 15. This was meant to be some background information to help us analyse the text in a way that respects the text and do exegesis rather than eisegesis.

Meanings

1. Exegesis is reading out of the text the original meaning for the writer and the original readers. This is a scientific endeavour in search of the truth
2. Eisegesis is reading into the text our own imagnery assumptions. This is not scientific but can be dangerous. If we go down this road then it is safer to stick to the Noddy books series!

I posted this on the wrong blog but you might find this interesting anyway;

So, on page 82 we have seen a change of condition and now we found ourselves separated from God. 

Bavinck raises the question of whether or not this condition is permanent and whether or not we as humans have the power to change our human condition in relation to God.  This is a very important question because if it is permanent then we would be separated from God for all eternity. 

In this situation according to Bavincks interpretation of Pelagius the heretic we are of our own accord able to change our condition. For Pelagius ‘sin only has power because of habit’.  So, all you have to do is break the habit of sin.  Bavinck then proves from the Scriptures that this is completely impossible.

As Bavinck says, “The will has lost its real, material freedom”.  This is the traditional and right view for me as well.  I know for example that Martin Luther in a huge disagreement with Erasmus wrote the Bondage of the Will that the will is a prisoner and cannot break out of this prison of sin which humanity through Adam’s sin put itself in.

Bavinck then gives us an undisputed walk through the New Testament showing the condition after the Fall.  So, let us learn from Bavinck.  Before I start, I will make a table with the phrase and then the verses. 

Even before we look at Bavinck here a little deeper, I think there are dangers of interpreting terms out of context.  First of all, in the New Testament writings ‘flesh’ has different contexts.  For example, when John uses flesh it can be used in a positive manner; ‘Christ came in the flesh’.  The use of flesh here was to counter gnostic tendencies of saying that Christ wasn’t really a physical man in the flesh but only seemed to be this.

A text out of context is a pretext so Bavinck does not fall into this trap but as a reader you may not have been aware of this.  Before interpreting any word it is good to look at the context and ask the question ‘What did this text mean to its original audience that it was intended for?’ After this we can start asking other questions.

Sayings

The Old Self

In Romans 6 verse 6 Christ had to die so that we could be set free from sin.  We are referred to as ‘slaves.’ A slave is not a free person.

6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; Romans 6:6 NASB

Flesh

We are naturally born as flesh and God wasn’t happy with the situation.

From the New Testament Jesus explains, that there are two births.  Flesh and Spirit.

3 Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless, his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” Genesis 6:3; NASB

6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. John 3:6; NASB

Flesh is used a lot by Paul

Here Paul is referring to the condition of sinful man after the Fall. 

5 For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. Romans 7:5; NASB

The Body of sin

Paul is using a figure of speech here.  The New life in Christ has reversed our condition to what it ought to have been. It has to be a figure of speech because this circumcision does not need a blade e.g. ‘made without hands’ They didn’t have lasers in those days such as found in the James Bond film Gold Finger.

11 and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; Colossians 2:11; NASB

And

Obviously, people are not zombies it has to be a certain type of death.  The death Paul is talking about is the broken relationship with God.

10  If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. Romans 8:10; NASB

The natural person

This is the person living for himself and not for God.

14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 1 Corinthians 2:14; NASB

By nature, ‘children of wrath’

The converted person is a changed person towards the light and a closer relationship with God. 

3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. Ephesians 2:3 NASB

And contrasted to

In contrast to the ‘spiritual person’

15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. 1 Corinthians 2:15; NASB

These verses clearly show that our condition was a fallen condition after we were created perfect.

Herman Bavinck was no dualist and he was very careful to prove it.  In the last paragraph of page 82 he says;

“However, there is this one difference—namely, that the “old self” and the “new self” each flow forth from the activity of the flesh and the activity of the Spirit, respectively. In other words, they are the phenomena, the manifestations, of human nature itself, in the one case the fallen nature and in the other the new nature in Christ. “

Herman Bavinck Reformed Ethics page 82.

Or in my words being in the condition of the Fall and the Condition of regeneration in Christ. Dualism in Christianity is a dangerous concept and it would allow gnostic ideas to seep into Christian teaching and separate us from the pure Gospel.   Bavinck on page 83 is right to not accept this;

“Ammon, Baur, Hausrath, and Pfleiderer® all argue that Paul was a dualist because he held that sin has its origin and seat in sensuality, in matter”.  Page 83 Bavinck

Bavinck rebuffs this by giving a list of reasons why this is not the case;

•             The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit

•             Paul teaches about the resurrection of the body

•             Paul is not an ascetic as he sees marriage as sacred and all for is good food.

•             Jesus was in the flesh but without sin

From Page 83; Bavinck; Reformed Ethics

And then he goes on.  Bavincks interpretation goes on over the next few pages and he has very important things to remind us. 

Reflection about what we have learned up to now.

Paul has a lot to teach us about what condition the human race finds itself.  Only God in Christ by the Holy Spirit can break this cycle as we are slaves to the sinful nature. 

I haven’t even gone below the surface, but Herman Bavinck the Master theologian has a lot to teach us about our human condition.  We will continue to plough through this material because through it we can get closer to Christ and live the life God wants us to live.  In todays world there are many dangers for the Christian but there were great men of God such as Herman Bavinck who were willing to stand up against false teachers who were also found in the universities.  We also need to remember that Scripture was given to the Church and there are outside forces that would like to have rid of it.  On Twitter I have seen for example that there are forces that are trying to outlaw the reading of the Bible in your own home (Scotland).  As believers we need to stand up and be counted for the protection of our liberties.  Let us not forget people like William Tyndale who was murdered by the state to allow us to have our translation in English.  Yes, Bavinck is seriously important for not only the Reformed tradition but also for all the other denominations.  They might not realize it now but one day they will. 

What these scholars did that Bavinck spoke out against was to get rid of the idea of the fall. 

What does this mean in real terms?

•             People are free and they don’t have to be accountable to a higher Force

•             They make their decisions based upon secular and atheistic principles

•             The family is less important than individual rights.

•             The state works towards dismantling religious rights.

•             Crimes become relative and are based on ethics of relativity.

•             Human DNA becomes relative and they can do as they please.

I could go on and on, but I won’t.  Bavinck reminds us that;

•             We are accountable to God

•             Decisions made are based on Scripture and the fear of God

•             The family as an institution is important for the welfare of the individual and the welfare of the state.

•             Religious Rights need to be protected.

•             Crime is against God’s law (10 commandments) there is a place for reformation of the criminal, but justice has to be fair

•             Human DNA is not a tennis ball but is sacred because God created us, and we should accept people as they are and protect life.

Let us love God and our neighbour for this will hold us in good stead.