1 Corinthians 2: 9 13 – The Spirit Of God

Target year level: Year Five

Scripture text

Introduction

Two letters that Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth (1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians) are included in the Canon of the New Testament Books. The text 2:9-13 is in Section 1 of the letter (1 Corinthians 1:10 – 6:20) dealing with scandals and divisions in the Church at Corinth. In a sub-section (1 Corinthians 1:10 – 4:21) the letter addresses the issue of factions in the Church at Corinth that militate against the unity meant to be characteristic of the followers of Christ.

World behind the text

The city of Corinth is strategically situated between two seas that join the Peloponnesus to the Greek mainland. Corinth was rebuilt by Julius Caesar in 44 BCE having been previously destroyed by the Romans in 146 BCE. The busy seaport was a highly cosmopolitan city. Its population included Roman officials, merchants, businessmen, soldiers and sailors. It had an unsavoury reputation as a ‘city of sin’. The saying in the ancient world “to live like a Corinthian” meant “to lead a dissolute life”.

Deities worshipped included Aphrodite, the goddess of love and various other gods prominent in Hellenistic culture and religion such as Demeter, Poseidon and Apollo, the sun god. There were also sanctuaries to the Egyptian goddess, Isis, and the god Serapis, the mother of the gods. In addition, there was a Jewish synagogue in Corinth and Christian churches were established in Corinth by the time Paul wrote 1 Corinthians from Ephesus (53 CE).

Corinth was a culturally and religiously diverse place. All was not well in the Corinthian Church. In part, this can be explained by the religious and cultural pluralism of the city and its morally permissive environment. Many converts to the Christian religion would have brought with them understandings and attitudes that were incompatible with the theology and morality that Paul was trying to instil: a theology that emphasised the unity of the Christian community in Jesus Christ and a high moral standard from those who would follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. For further information see the The New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), Introduction to Corinthians.

World of the text

What is referred to now as religious enthusiasm had infected the Corinthian Church. Some Christians regarded themselves as elite within the community, not subject to the constraints on others. They saw their knowledge, wisdom and virtue as exceeding that of their fellow Christians. This led to errors, excesses and the disruption of Christian unity. Factions vied with one another for pre-eminence. In 1 Corinthians 2:9-13, Paul reminds the Corinthians that the source of knowledge, wisdom and virtue is to be found not within themselves or in human philosophy but in the Spirit of God which is revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. For further reflection see Michael Fallon Commentary 195-196. (pdf)

World in front of the text

In our contemporary world, false enthusiasms abound in the religious sphere, in the economic sphere, in the political sphere and indeed in every area of society. Religious fanatics cause havoc in the lives of individuals and, at the extreme, turn to violent terrorism. In the political sphere, politicians push their ideologies in inflexible ways that ignore the realities of people’s lives and the common good. The latest ‘new thing’ gathers followers and then, just as quickly, withers and dies.

Human knowledge, human wisdom and human expertise at the service of the common good are a positive for society and so are, of course, not to be rejected out of hand. But 1 Corinthians 2:9-13 reminds us that ultimately, for the Christian, the source of our understanding and wisdom is in the Spirit of God as revealed in Jesus Christ. This is the source of knowledge, understanding and wisdom from which Christians evaluate and judge everything else.