1 Corinthians 10

THEY WERE STRUCK DOWN IN THE WILDERNESS
These words are formatted in caps because Paul is alluding to the handful of Old Testament texts referring to God’s deadly punishment of unbelieving Israelites in the wilderness (incl. Num 14:16, 29ff, 37; 26:65). Though they had seen, experienced, and benefitted from God’s great power and gracious provision, they nonetheless rebelled and were struck down by the Lord in the wilderness, unable to enter the promised land. Paul refers back to this serious punishment to deter believers from craving “evil things as they also craved” (v. 6). The formatting of this translation helps readers recognize that Paul is drawing on this logic from the Old Testament so that they may go back and ensure they understand what was taught there in order to better track Paul’s argumentation here.

STRUCK DOWN
The Greek verb καταστρώννυμι (katastrōnnymi) here literally has the idea of spreading or scattering something around. The graphic idea that Paul is describing here is that of corpses strewn about of those who disobeyed in the wilderness. Thus, “struck down” more accurately describes the extremity of this idea than something like “laid low.” Paul uses strong language in his example from the Old Testament to demonstrate the seriousness of disobedience and deter the believers to whom he is writing from participating in similar evil.

in sexual immorality
While some translations simply have “immorally” here, the term here refers specifically to “sexual immorality” (πορνεία; porneia) and is the term from which “pornography” is derived. It was used to describe practices of sexual perversion such as fornication, adultery, and prostitution (the related term πόρνη [pornē] means “prostitute”). As here, it referenced any sexual behavior outside the sanctity of marriage. The consistency of this term’s translation is important partly because the same root appears several times throughout this letter and is distinguished from what might be called “general immoralities” in 5:11. In the flow of Paul’s greater argument, Paul tracks with this term and clarifies how, if professing believers engage without repentance in sins that include sexual immorality, they are to be put out of the church (5:11). After all, such people will not inherit the kingdom of heaven (6:9–10). And yet, for those who are truly justified from their sins by faith in the blood of Jesus, they are genuine members of the body of Christ and set apart for a different destiny (6:11). The Corinthians themselves bear testimonies of this grace, having once been sexually immoral before conversion, and for that reason they now have the obligation to strive by grace to keep on distancing themselves from sexual immorality after their conversion (6:18). As a part of such a pursuit, Paul clarifies that a legitimate means of withstanding sexual temptation is found in a biblically healthy marriage (7:2–5). And now, in chapter 10, he exhorts his readers to avoid this sin yet again, because this is one of the same sins that resulted in the death of thousands of Israelites in earlier times. As Paul often compares Corinthian saints to members of Israel in this chapter, his warning is strengthened. After all, Paul goes on to say, these things happened in Israel for the purpose of present-day instruction (10:11). Thus, Paul’s counsel to Corinth is deeply anchored in the ways God has worked over centuries and should be heeded with great care, for the path that sexually immoral people may take has been traveled before, with deadly results.

put…to the test
While the verb (ἐκπειράζω; ekpeirazo) here has been rendered as “try” or “tempt” in other translations, the rendering “put to the test” in this translation is clearer and more consistent with other uses (Matt 4:7; Luke 4:12; 10:25). Though this verb contains the root of the term sometimes translated as “tempt” (πειράζω; peirazo; cf. Luke 4:2), the essence of the term itself refers neither to the positive connotations that can be associated with “testing” nor the negative connotations that come with “tempting,” but simply to the idea of “making proof of something” (e.g., see Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the Greek New Testament on πειράζω). The context determines the connotations, and “put to the test” best captures the essential idea of the term here. By using this word, then, Paul is saying that the Corinthians must not fall into the mistake of that older Israelite generation that distrusted God’s provision to care for them and turned to try to force God to prove Himself (cf. Numb 21:5ff). By distrusting God’s good intent to provide for them, they turned to other responses that got many of them killed. Paul therefore issues a warning to the Corinthian Christians in his day to the end that they would not likewise slip from faith and trust in God’s provision for them and act in various immoralities.

Christ
Some ancient manuscripts have “Lord” (κύριον; kyrion) rather than “Christ” (Χριστόν; christon) here (א B), but the greater weight of manuscript evidence (including the oldest manuscript, 𝔓⁴⁶) indicates that “Christ” was the correct, original reading. Some manuscripts have “Lord” probably because later scribes found it anachronistic for Paul to refer to Christ in an Old Testament context, and were thus motivated to use the less specific term. However, this offers further evidence that “Christ” was indded the original reading, and Paul has already referred to Him as such earlier in verse 4 (cf. Metzger, TCGNT, 494). Thus, Paul is saying here that when the Israelites disobeyed in the wilderness, they were putting Christ Himself to the test. Therefore the same sin which imperiled them threatens believers now as well, and Paul sternly warns against repeating the same mistake.

arrived
Many translations render the verb καταντάω (katantaō) as “come,” but the term is almost exclusively rendered as “attained” or “arrived” in this translation. Thus, the English gloss “arrived” is not only more consistent, but it also gives a greater rhetorical emphasis on the destination of the action. In 1 Corinthians, Paul uses the term twice and treats the Corinthian saints as the destination of something great that has arrived to them, but in each case, his nuance is different. Here, Paul highlights their privilege in light of how the ends of the ages have arrived upon them. Later, Paul seeks to humble these saints by asking if the word of God has only arrived to them and no one else (14:36). In this earlier context, Paul is stressing the privileged place of these saints in the span of human history in order to strengthen his call for their holiness.

prudent people
The word φρόνιμος (phronimos; “prudent”) appeared before in 1 Corinthians 4:10. Here, it is translated the same way to maintain consistency. The term “people” is added to account for the plural participial form here (φρονίμοις; phronimois), referring to multiple referents. Paul claims that he is speaking to them as if they are prudent, as if to say, “If you truly know how to think well, you will heed what I say.” They accused them of arrogantly acting as though they were prudent in contrast to him and the other apostles (4:10), and here he effectively invites them to demonstrate that they truly are prudent by heeding his instruction here. The consistent translation of φρόνιμος (phronimos) as “prudent” helps to make this connection more obvious in English.

SACRIFICE TO DEMONS AND NOT TO GOD
These words are formatted in caps because Paul is alluding to an Old Testament text found in Deuteronomy 32:17. In Deuteronomy 32, Moses frequently referred to God as “the Rock” (vv. 4, 15, 18, 30, 31), a term Paul used earlier in verse 4 referring to Christ. In Deuteronomy 32:17, the people’s sacrifices to demons are bracketed on either side by “[treating] the Rock of [their] salvation with wicked foolishness” (v. 15) and “[neglecting] the Rock who begot [them]” (v. 18). By doing this, they acted just like the nations, or Gentiles, around them, rather than remaining holy and faithful to Yahweh. Paul’s allusion to this text enforces how serious it is to meddle with meat sacrificed to idols, and thus warns about becoming sharers in demons. Thus, the Corinthian believers are to be very careful in how they think about eating meat sacrificed to idols. The formatting of this translation helps readers recognize that Paul is drawing on this logic from the Old Testament so that they may go back and ensure they understand what the Deuteronomy passage is teaching in order to better track Paul’s argumentation here.

PROVOKE THE LORD TO JEALOUSY
Refer to the discussion on verse 20 above. In this case, the allusion is to Deuteronomy 32:21, where the theme of idolatry is continued to show God’s reaction of jealousy to the people’s unfaithful actions. Reading on in Deuteronomy 32, one finds the result of God’s jealousy to be things like consuming fire, heaps of calamity, arrows of wrath, famine, plague, bitter destruction, beats, venom of crawling things, the sword, and terror (Deut 32:22–25). Thus, as Paul is demonstrating, provoking the Lord to jealousy by idolatry is a very serious and dangerous offense. His people should be all the more convinced of the necessity to “flee from idolatry” (v. 14). The formatting of this verse helps readers to make this connection back to the Old Testament and trace Paul’s logic to better understand the point he is making here.

Are we stronger…
This question opens with the Greek negative particle μή (mē), which, according to normal Greek usage, sets an expectation for a negative answer. This is why some translations structure the question, “We are not…are we?” However, to avoid adding words which do not appear in the Greek, the rhetorical question is simply translated with a familiar English structure. This way, nothing external is added to the text and the negative answer remains expected. Thus, the implied answer here is an emphatic “No!” It would be ridiculous for a believer to think that he or she could meddle with idolatry and stand up to the jealousy and punishment of God.

build up
While the word οἰκοδομέω (oikodomeō) can be translated either as “build up” or “edify,” the context lends itself to a more concrete picture of “building,” for the sake of a more vivid word picture, rather than the more abstract “edifying.” This also provides a consistent gloss for the term in this letter. Paul’s point in this part of the letter is quite expansive, and the context of this verse connects tightly to the earlier part of the chapter when he refers to the example of Israel (cf. vv. 1–12, 18, 22). There, Paul’s language of “falling” (vv. 8, 12) and being “destroyed” (vv. 9–10) serve as rhetorical counterpoints to Paul’s statement here about “building up.” For that reason, this nuance of metaphor has been maintained in the translation, and with this term, Paul is demonstrating the importance of love that builds up the greater covenant community of God’s people rather than destroys others (cf. 8:10).

other person
While some versions have “neighbor” here, the Greek word ἕτερος (heteros) here simply means “different,” “other,” or “another.” The added word “person” is clearly implied from context. Thus, Paul is emphasizing that believers are not to seek the good of self, but of the other person, advocating an others-centered mindset regarding how to use one’s Christian liberty.

as well as its fullness
Translations differ on how to render this second part of the phrase, but the Greek phrase καὶ τὸ πλήρωμα αὐτῆς (kai to plērōma autēs) could very literally translate to “and the fullness of it.” This reading corresponds more closely to the Hebrew wording of Psalm 24:1, and the parallelism of the poetry allows for the conjunctive “and” to be translated as “as well as” in order to demonstrate the symmetry between the lines. In the end, the translation “as well as its fullness” helps to highlight for the reader that all meat is lawful to eat because it is a part of God’s good creation and is not to be rejected if it is received as such (cf. v. 30; 1 Tim 4:4). The earth itself and all its fullness belong to God and He gives of this fullness to bless His creatures (cf. Acts 14:17).

consecrated
The word for “consecrated” (ἱερόθυτος; hierothytos) is different from the word for “sacrifice” (εἰδωλόθυτος; eidōlothytos) used in verse 19. This could be either the language of the pagan host or the weak believer who does not see something as a mere idol but something with supernatural or supersitious qualities. In other words, Paul is saying that when those supernatural or superstitious elements are brought into the conversation, it is loving and wise to care for the other person’s conscience by not partaking of this food, for to do so would give them a picture of a believer doing something they do not rightly understand (cf. v. 29). There may be room for a loving conversation about this topic, but merely flaunting one’s freedoms through action without any effort to help them understand is not loving and does not build others up.

other person’s
Refer to the discussion on verse 24 above.