Thursday, February 18, 2010

1 Corinthians 10:24

Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth (KJV)

Then: Of course Paul doesn't mean money. He means the good, or treasures of a fellow human being's soul. Henry puts it in terms of another person's welfare. Baker (p. 151) shows Paul's desire for the Corinthians to regard the needs of others above their own personal rights and liberties. It is an enforcement of the teaching from 6:12 and takes it even further. Before it was a matter of lawful deeds causing harm; here lawful deeds should be relinquished in deference to the good of the body (vs 24 next) and another individual.

Now: The teaching here correlates with the second greatest commandment to love your neighbor as yourself. Today's Christians need to do the same as the Corinthians. They need to remember to put another's welfare above their own. The verse shows the ever present need of understanding a verse in context. By itself it could be twisted to justify taking the wealth of another rather than seeking your own--the complete opposite of Paul's intent.

Extra source: Commentary on the Whole Bible (Acts to Revelation) by Matthew Henry, online see
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/henry/mhc6.iCor.xi.html
Cornerstone Biblical Commentary 1 Corinthians (William Baker), 2 Corinthians (Ralph Martin & Carl Toney), ed. by Philip Comfort. Carol Stream: Tyndale House Publishers, c2006.

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