1 Corinthians Everyday Bible Commentary

Divisions, immorality, marital strife, spiritual gifts, money, wisdom, folly, and holiness—these may have been Corinthian problems first, but we need Paul’s wisdom just as much today. But it can be confusing to read 1 Corinthians on our own. What we need is a guide—someone who can explain what’s going on in the world outside the letter and bring to life Paul’s words of exhortation. This is what the best preachers do, but you don’t have to wait until Sunday’s sermon. Encounter the beautiful depth of 1 Corinthians through an enlightening verse-by-verse commentary from Robert R. Hughes that’s both straightforward and insightful. You’ll gain: Important historical and cultural background Insights from the original languages Help with the difficult passages And more! You don’t have to go to seminary to encounter God in exciting, new ways through His Word. Discover how much more enjoyable your personal study will be with understandable, quality Bible commentary for everyday life.

Paul's first letter to the Corinthians was addressed originally to a fledgling mission church in Corinth. Paul's absence from the church had allowed serious problems to arise within the Corinthian community, but the problems that he addresses in this letter do not always seem based in explicitly theological ideas. The brilliance of Paul, though, is that he frames the issues in theological terms and reflects on them in the light of the gospel. Hays identifies and discusses the major theological themes of the letter, as well as issues such as community formation and the rethinking of inherited sociocultural norms and practices, and he offers Paul as a model for ministry.

Expository Bible-study guide to 1 Corinthians. The scope of 1 Corinthians is breathtaking. Paul tackles a huge variety of subjects, and as he does so, he gives us a precious insight into what a local church is (or at least can be). As Andrew Wilson walks through this compelling, challenging epistle, you'll see how grace looks in every Christian and how it can shape every church—even a church as flawed as the Corinthian one. This expository guide is less academic than a traditional commentary and includes lots of application. It can be read from cover to cover, used in personal devotions, used to lead small group studies, or used for sermon preparation.

This verse-by-verse commentary on First Corinthians offers a thorough but very understandable commentary on the entirety of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. Since the First Corinthians letter touches on a number of different subjects, this volume also offers some special studies to more fully explore what the Bible says on additional topics like civil government, the role of women in the church, spiritual gifts, etc. If you want to have a better understanding of First Corinthians, this commentary will help you! Here is a small sample of the text: Introduction to First Corinthians 13: Some consider 1 Cor. 13 the “love chapter of the Bible” or a “parenthetical description of love,” but this chapter is actually an integral part of Paul’s discussion about spiritual gifts. Since the Corinthians were rude, jealous, and boastful, it was necessary for them “to go beyond their present pursuit. To the apostle, the development of the character of the person was superior to the exercise of the gift. His contrasts (chap. 13) are clear: gifts without love vs. gifts with love, and the permanence of love vs. the temporal nature of gifts” (Gromacki, p. 159). Stated another way, verses 1-3 affirm that spiritual gifts were worthless without love, verses 4-7 affirm that love was superior to the gifts, and verses 8-13 assert that spiritual gifts were temporal but love abides. Although 1 Cor. 13 may seem familiar to many, this chapter is often one of the most misunderstood parts of the New Testament. The Corinthians’ elevation of spiritual gifts over love is seen in places such as 12:13-25; 14:27-33, 40. It is also found by contrasting the qualities in 1 Cor. 13 with other sections of this epistle. For instance, love “suffers long” (13:4), but tongue speakers at Corinth were impatient (14:27-28). Love does not “envy” (13:4), but the Corinthians envied the gifts of others (chapter 12). Love “is not puffed up” (13:4), but tongue speakers were proud (compare 13:1). Love causes people to act in a kind and orderly way, but some of the Corinthians’ behavior was disorderly (14:23, 40). Love is not “unseemly,” but the Corinthians were at risk of unseemly behavior in their families (1 Cor. 7:36) as well as their Sunday assemblies (1 Cor. 11:2-16, 17-34). Agape love “does not seek its own” (13:5), but these Christians were seeking their own (see 1 Cor. 8 and the discussion about idol meat). Love keeps people from “rejoicing in evil” (13:6), but the Corinthians rejoiced in evil (1 Cor. 5:2, 6). There were various things that “provoked” these brethren (13:5) and it seems they were “keeping a record of evil” (1 Cor. 13:5). It was time for the members of this congregation to show some spiritual maturity and demonstrate the type of love that “bears all things, believes all things, hopes in all things, and endures all things” (1 Cor. 13:7).

The Cornerstone Biblical Commentary series (18 volumes) provides students, pastors, and laypeople with up-to-date, accessible evangelical scholarship on the Old and New Testaments. Presenting the message for each passage, as well as an overview of other issues relevant to the text, each volume equips pastors and Christian leaders with exegetical and theological knowledge so they can better understand and apply God's Word. This volume includes the entire NLT text of 1st and 2nd Corinthians. Ideal for the NLT reader who wants to do more in-depth study. William R. Baker, Ph.D., University of Aberdeen, is professor of New Testament at Cincinnati Bible Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio. He is the general editor of Stone-Campbell Journal and the author and editor of several books and articles, including Evangelicalism and the Stone-Campbell Movement and Sticks and Stones: The Biblical Ethics of Talk. He has also written a commentary on 2 Corinthians for the College Press NIV Commentary Series. Ralph P. Martin, Ph.D., University of London, is in his fifth decade as a teacher, scholar, and mentor. He is Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Fuller Theological Seminary, at the Graduate School of Theology of Azusa Pacific University, and at Logos Evangelical Seminary in Pasadena, California. He is the author of numerous studies and commentaries on the New Testament, including Worship in the Early Church, the Philippians in The Tyndale New Testament Commentary series, and James in the Word Biblical Commentary, for which he also serves as New Testament editor. He also co-edited the Dictionary of Paul and His Letters and the Dictionary of the Later New Testament and Its Developments. Ordained to the Baptist ministry in 1949, Dr. Martin has pastored churches in Dunstable, Southport, and Gloucester, England. Carl N. Toney, Ph.D., Loyola University Chicago, is adjunct assistant professor of New Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He edited and contributed to the revised edition of 2 Corinthians in the Word Biblical Commentary series and is the author of Paul's Inclusive Ethic: Resolving Community Conflicts and Promoting Mission in Romans 14-15. A licensed minister in the American Baptist Convention, Dr. Toney is also a member of the Society of Biblical Literature.

“For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ." -1 Corinthians 3:11 The New American Commentary series is an exceptionally acclaimed resource for ministers and Bible students who want to understand and expound the Scriptures. Each volume includes: • Commentary based on the New International Version. • NIV text printed in the body of the commentary. • Sound scholarly methodology reflecting capable research in the original languages. • Interpretation emphasizing the theological unity of each book and Scripture as a whole. • Readable and applicable exposition. Mark Taylor's commentary on 1 Corinthians looks at Paul's missionary journey to Corinth where he planted a church and nurtured the new believers for approximately eighteen months. Taylor pays careful attention to the nuances of the English translation (NIV), the Greek text, and the units of meaning that are vital to interpreting this letter. He presents with clarity the range of scholarly opinion regarding the issues in 1 Corinthians and then makes a case for his own views.

With a scholar's mind and a pastor's heart, Tom Wright walks you through 1 Corinthians in this guide designed especially with everyday readers in mind. Perfect for group use or daily personal reflection, this study uses the popular inductive method combined with Wright's thoughtful insights to bring contemporary application of Scripture to life. This guide by Tom Wright can be used on its own or alongside his New Testament for Everyone commentary on 1 Corinthians. It is designed to help you understand Scripture in fresh ways under the guidance of one of the world's leading New Testament scholars. Thoughtful questions, prayer suggestions, and useful background and cultural information all guide you or a group more deeply into God's Word. Discover how you can participate more fully in God's kingdom.

With keen sensitivity, Marion L. Soards helps readers span the gap between one of the earliest Christian communities with its concerns over Wisdom, in-groups and out-groups, manifestations of the Holy Spirit, Christian behavior, and the resurrection of Christ and the Christian of today. He presents Paul's apocalyptic-eschatological outlook as perhaps a key to unlocking some of the more knotty passages in 1 Corinthians and helps readers realize the nature of that radical theological world view. - from publisher's description.