TEXT. 11 For what man knoweth the things of man, save the spirit of a man, which is in him? even so, the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things, that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in the words, which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of PARAPHRASE. * 11 cover. For, as no man knoweth what is in the mind of another man, but only the spirit of the man himself that is in him: so, much less doth any man know, or can discover, the thoughts and counsels of 12 God, but only the Spirit of God. But we have received, not the spirit of the world†, but the Spirit, which is of God, that we might know what things are in the purpose of God, out of his free bounty 13 to bestow upon us. Which things we not only know, but declare also; not in the language and learning, taught by human eloquence and philosophy, but in the language and expressions, which the Holy Ghost teacheth, in the revelations contained in the holy scriptures, comparing one 14 part of the revelation with another. But a NOTES. 12 We, the true apostles, or rather I; for though he speaks in the plural number, to avoid ostentation, as it might be interpreted; yet he is here justifying himself, and showing the corinthians, that none of them had reason to forsake and slight him, to follow and cry up their false apostle. And that he speaks of himself, is plain from the next verse, where he saith," We speak "not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth," the same which he says of himself, ch. i. ver. 17, "I was sent to preach, not with wisdom of words." And chap. ii. ver. 1," I came to you, not with excellency of speech, or of "wisdom." + As he puts princes of the world, ver. 6, 8, for the rulers of the jews, so here he puts "Spirit of the world" for the notions of the jews: that worldly spirit, wherewith they interpreted the Old Testament, and the prophecies of the Messiah and his kingdom; which spirit, in contradistinction to the Spirit of God, which the Roman converts had received, he calls the spirit of bondage, Rom. iii. 15. 13 It is plain" the spiritual things," he here speaks of, are the unsearchable counsels of God, revealed by the Spirit of God, which therefore he calls "spiritual things." TEXT. God: for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them; because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he, that is spiritual, judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. 16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? but we have the mind of Christ. PARAPHRASE. man *, who hath no other help but his own natural faculties, how much soever improved by human arts and sciences, cannot receive the truths of the gospel, which are made known by another principle only, viz. the Spirit of God revealing them; and therefore seem foolish and absurd to such a man: nor can he, by the bare use of his natural faculties, and the principles of human reason, ever come to the knowledge of them; because it is, by the studying of divine revelation alone, that we can attain the 15 knowledge of them. But he that lays his foundation in divine revelation †, can judge what is, and what is not, the doctrine of the gospel, and of salvation; he can judge who is, and who is not, a good minister and preacher of the word of God: but others, who are bare animal men*, that go not beyond the discoveries made by the natural faculties of human understanding, without the help and study of revelation, cannot judge of such an one, whether 16 he preacheth right and well, or not. For who, by the bare use of his natural parts, can come to know the mind of the Lord, in the design of the gospel, so as to be able to instruct him† [the spiritual man] in NOTES. 14, 15. * Yuxinès, the animal man," and wevμalinds, "the spiritual man," are opposed by St. Paul, in ver. 14, 15, the one signifying a man, that has no higher principles to build on, than those of natural reason; the other, a man, that founds his faith and religion on divine revelation. This is what appears to be meant by natural, or rather animal man, and spiritual, as they stand op posed, in these two verses. 16 Azo, him, refers here to spiritual man, in the former verse, and not to Lord, in this. For St. Paul is showing here, not that a natural man, and a mere philosopher, cannot instruct Christ; this no-body, pretending to be a christian, could own: but that a man, by his bare natural parts, not knowing PARAPHRASE. it? But I who, renouncing all human learning and knowledge in the case, take all, that I preach, from divine revelation alone, I am sure, that therein I have the mind of Christ; and therefore, there is no reason why any of you should prefer other teachers to me; glory in them who oppose and villify me; and count it an honour to go for their scholars, and be of their party. NOTE. the mind of the Lord, could not instruct, could not judge, could not correct a preacher of the gospel, who built upon revelation, as he did, and therefore it was sure he had the mind of Christ. SECT. II. N°. 5. CHAP. III. 1-IV. 20. CONTENTS. THE next matter of boasting, which the faction made use of, to give the pre-eminence and preference to their leader, above St. Paul, seems to have been this, that their new teacher had led them farther, and given them a deeper insight into the mysteries of the gospel, than St. Paul had done. To take away their glorying on this account, St. Paul tells them, that they were carnal, and not capable of those more advanced truths, or any thing, beyond the first principles of christianity, which he had taught them; and, though another had come and watered what he had planted, yet neither planter, nor waterer, could assume to himself any glory from thence, because it was God alone, that gave the increase. But, whatever new doctrines they might pretend to receive, from their magnified, new apostle, yet no man could lay any other foundation, in a christian church, but what he St. Paul, had laid, viz. that "Jesus is the Christ;" and, therefore, there was no reason to glory in their teachers: because, upon this foundation, they, possibly, might build false, or unsound doctrines, for which they should receive no thanks from God; though, continuing in the faith, they might be saved. Some of the particular hay and stubble, which this leader brought into the church at Corinth, he seems particu larly to point at, chap. iii. 16, 17, viz. their defiling the church, by retaining, and, as it may be supposed, patronizing the fornicator, who should have been turned out, chap. v. 7-13. He further adds, that these extolled heads of their party were, at best, but men; and none of the church ought to glory in men; for even Paul, and Apollos, and Peter, and all the other preachers of the gospel, were for the use and benefit, and glory of the church, as the church was for the glory of Christ. Moreover, he shows them, that they ought not to be puffed up, upon the account of these their new teachers, to the undervaluing of him, though it should be true, that they had learned more from them, than from himself, for these reasons: 1. Because all the preachers of the gospel are but stewards of the mysteries of God; and whether they have been faithful in their stewardship, cannot be now known: and, therefore, they ought not to be some of them magnified and extolled, and others depressed and blamed, by their hearers here, until Christ their Lord come; and then he, knowing how they have behaved themselves in their ministry, will give them their due praises. Besides, these stewards have nothing, but what they have received; and, therefore, no glory belongs to them for it. 2. Because, if these leaders were (as was pretended) apostles, glory, and honour, and outward affluence here, was not their portion, the apostles being destined to want, contempt, and persecution. 3. They ought not to be honoured, followed, and gloried in, as apostles, because they had not the power of miracles, which he intended shortly to come, and show they had not. TEXT. 1 AND I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. PARAPHRASE. 1 AND I, brethren, found you so given up to pride and vain-glory, in affectation of learning and philosophical knowledge, that I could not speak to you as spiritualf, i. e. as to men not wholly depending on philosophy, and the discoveries of natural reason; as to men, who had resigned themselves up, in matters of religion, to revelation, and the knowledge which comes only from the Spirit of God; but as to carnal ‡, even as to babes, who yet retained a great many childish and wrong notions about it: this hindered me, that I could not go so far, as I desired, in the mysteries of the christian religion; but was fain to content myself 1 * Vid. ch. i. 22, and iii, 18. NOTES. + Here Eatinòs, spiritual, is opposed to capxixos, carnal, as ch. ii. 14, it is to yixos, natural, or rather animal: so that here we have three sorts of men, 1. Carnal, i. e. such as are swayed by fleshly passions and interests. 2. Animal, i. e. such as seek wisdom, or a way to happiness, only by the strength and guidance of their own natural parts, without any supernatural light, coming from the Spirit of God, i. e. by reason without revelation, by philosophy without scripture. 3. Spiritual, i, e. such as seek their direction to happiness, not in the dictates of natural reason and philosophy, but in the revelations of the Spirit of God, in the holy scriptures. 1 Here aapkins, carnal, is opposed to veμxTixos, spiritual, in the same sense, that yixos, natural, or animal, is opposed to veμatino's, spiritual, chap, ii. 14, as appears by the explication, which St. Paul himself gives here to σxpxixès, carnal: for he makes the carnal to be all one with babes in Christ, v. I. i. e. such as had not their understandings yet fully opened to the true grounds of the christian religion, but retained a great many childish thoughts about it, as appeared by their divisions; one for the doctrine of his master, Paul; another for that of his master, Apollos; which, if they had been spiritual, i. c. had looked upon the doctrine of the gospel to have come sosely from the Spirit of God, and to be had only from revelation, they could not have done. For then all human mixtures, of any thing derived, either from Paul or Apollos, or any other man, had been wholly excluded. But they, in these divisions, professed to hold their religion, one from one man, and another from another; and were thereupon divided into parties. This, he tells them, was to be carnal, and weρinate xxтà vρwov, to be led by principles purely human, i. e, to found their religion upon men's natural parts and discoveries, whereas the gospel was wholly built upon divine revelation, and nothing else; and from thence alone those, who were weμatino, took it. H 2 |