Anders - 1 & 2 Corinthians

Holman New Testament Commentary

2000 Broadman & Holman Publishers

Nashville, Tennessee

All rights reserved

ISBN 080542071

Unless otherwise stated all Scripture citation is from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All Rights Reserved. The NIV and New International Version trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.

1,2 Corinthians / Pratt, Richard

p. cm. (Holman New Testament commentary)

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 080542071 (alk. paper)

1. Bible. N.T. 1,2 CorinthiansCommentaries. 2. Bible. N.T. 1,2

Corinthians

Commentaries. I. Title. II. Title: 1,2 Corinthians. III. Series

226.6'07dc21 9839365

CIP

1 2 3 4 5 6 02 01 00

D

Dedicated to

Ra McLaughlin
whose friendship and
help with this
commentary
has meant so much
to me.
Richard Pratt
July 2000

Today's church hungers for Bible teaching, and Bible teachers hunger for resources to guide them in teaching God's Word. The Holman New Testament Commentary provides the church with the food to feed the spiritually hungry in an easily digestible format. The result: new spiritual vitality that the church can readily use.

Bible teaching should result in new interest in the Scriptures, expanded Bible knowledge, discovery of specific scriptural principles, relevant applications, and exciting living. The unique format of the Holman New Testament Commentary includes sections to achieve these results for every New Testament book.

Opening quotations from some of the church's best writers lead to an introductory illustration and discussion that draw individuals and study groups into the Word of God. In a Nutshell summarizes the content and teaching of the chapter. Verse-by-verse commentary answers the church's questions rather than raising issues scholars usually admit they cannot adequately solve. Bible principles and specific contemporary applications encourage students to move from Bible to contemporary times. A specific modern illustration then ties application vividly to present life. A brief prayer aids the student to commit his or her daily life to the principles and applications found in the Bible chapter being studied. For those still hungry for more, Deeper Discoveries take the student into a more personal, deeper study of the words, phrases, and themes of God's Word. Finally, a teaching outline provides transitional statements and conclusions along with an outline to assist the teacher in group Bible studies.

It is the editors prayer that this new resource for local church Bible teaching will enrich the ministry of group, as well as individual, Bible study, and that it will lead God's people to truly be people of the Book, living out what God calls us to be.

Twelve volumes designed for Bible study and teaching to enrich the local church and God's people.

Introduction to

LETTER PROFILE

• The letter was probably written about A.D. 5456 from Ephesus during Paul's third missionary journey.
• Paul wrote to the church in the city of Corinth, the capital city of the Roman province of Achaia. Paul had planted this church during his second missionary journey only a few years earlier.
• The original audience in Corinth contained members from all levels of society, but consisted mostly of people who were neither rich, wise, nor of noble birth.
• The original audience had sat under the ministry of Paul, Apollos, and Peter.
• Subsequent to the ministries of Paul, Apollos, and Peter, the Corinthian church had begun to place improper value on worldly wisdom, including probably Greek philosophy.
• The letter is occasional, written both in response to reports Paul received about conditions in the Corinthian church, and in response to a letter Paul received from the Corinthian church.
• Paul wrote the letter to correct the problems he saw in the Corinthian church, although he also included praise for certain things the church was doing well.
• Literary form: epistle
• Doctrinal themes:
  • the nature of the church, and its implications,
  • the nature of believers union with Christ, and its implications,
  • God's wisdom,
  • proper worship,
  • the Lord's Supper,
  • spiritual gifts, and
  • resurrection of the dead.
• Practical themes:
  • the importance of unity in the church,
  • proper valuations and roles of church leaders,
  • the importance of church discipline,
  • lawsuits,
  • prostitution,
  • marriage and divorce in light of famines,
  • Christian freedom and responsibility,
  • interaction with the secular world,
  • proper roles and honor in worship,
  • love, and