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Ambrosiaster

Nicene & Post-Nicene · AD 325–500 · 1,043 passages across 16 books

Commentary

201–220 of 1,043
1 Corinthians 14:16

Else when thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest?

The confirmation of the prayer comes about when people say “Amen” to it. The words spoken are confirmed in the minds of the hearers by the confession of truth.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:20

Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.

Paul wants them to be mature intellectually so they will grasp accurately what is needed for the upbuilding of the church. In this way they will leave behind malice and errors, striving instead for the things which are conducive to the good of the brotherhood.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:21

In the law it is written, With men of other tongues and other lips will I speak unto this people; and yet for all that will they not hear me, saith the Lord.

The Lord said this about those whom he knew in advance would not believe in the Savior. For to speak in other tongues and with other lips is to preach the New Testament.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:22

Wherefore tongues are for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that believe not: but prophesying serveth not for them that believe not, but for them which believe.

The utterances of God are hidden beneath the veil of an unknown tongue, so that they should not be seen by unbelievers. Paul was saying that tongues are useful for hiding ideas from unbelievers.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:25

And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.

When he sees that God is being praised and that Christ is being adored and that nothing is disguised or being done in secret, as happens among pagans, he will understand clearly that this is true religion.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:26

How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Particular effort should be made to ensure that unlearned people will benefit. Nothing should be done to hide things from them because of their lack of learning.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:27

If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret.

Paul does not want these people to take up the whole day and leave insufficient time for expounding the Scriptures.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:29

Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.

Paul allowed others to ask questions about ambiguous matters, so that they might be elucidated by clearer discussion.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:30

If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace.

In particular, the higher-ranking person should give way to the lower. It is simply not the case that every privilege can be granted to a single individual. Nor can it be that anyone, however low in the hierarchy, should have nothing given to him. No one is without the grace of God.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:31

For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.

It is a tradition of the synagogue which Paul is asking us to follow, whereby the people dispute while seated in chairs, on benches or on the floor, according to their rank. If a revelation has been given to someone sitting on the floor, he should be allowed to speak and not be despised because of his low rank.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:32

And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.

The Spirit is said to be subject so that he may facilitate the good efforts which he prompts.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:33

For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

Those who are called in peace ought to aim for patience, so that the laws of peace are not broken.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:35

And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

It is shameful because it is contrary to discipline for them to presume to speak about the law in the house of God, who has taught that they are subject to their husbands, when they know that men have the primacy there and that for them it is more fitting to be free to pray while holding their tongues. If they dare to speak in church, it is a disgrace, because they are veiled in order to appear humble. Moreover, women like this show that they are immodest, which is a disgrace to their husbands too. For when women are insolent, their husbands receive the blame as well.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:36

What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only?

Paul issued the Corinthians with this reproof because they were so elated with vanity. The suggestion was that if they did not obey the words of the faith, there would be no one who would believe.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:37

If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.

Paul is alluding to the false apostles mentioned above, by whom they had been misled. They were teaching things which people wanted to hear but which were not of God. By saying that he was handing on nothing of his own, Paul was trying to indicate that what he was saying came from God and not from men. He therefore preaches consistently, with a clear conscience because he does not desire to please men but God.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:39 · 2 passages

Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues.

In order to console them after all his rebukes, Paul calls them brothers and encourages them to have a desire to prophesy, so that by frequent discussion and exposition of the divine law they may become better equipped to be able to learn that what the false apostles were teaching was perverse.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

Anyone who does not recognize that what the apostle says is from God will not be recognized on the day of judgment.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 14:40

Let all things be done decently and in order.

Something is done decently when it is done peacefully and with discipline.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 15:1

Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;

Paul is showing the Corinthians that if they have been led away from his teaching, especially from belief in the resurrection of the dead on which it is based, they will lose everything they have believed.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

1 Corinthians 15:3

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

The prophet Isaiah said: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter” [Is 53:7] and so on. Revelation [13:8] adds that he was slain from before the foundation of the world. And Deuteronomy [28:66] says: “You will see your life hanging before your eyes, yet you will not believe.” This is expressed in the future tense, to prevent the wicked from claiming that it does not apply to Christ.

COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES

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