1 Corinzi 12:16 Commento

In this chapter the apostle, I. Considers the case of spiritual gifts, which were very plentifully poured out on the Corinthian church. He considers their original, that they are from God; their variety and use, that they were all intended for one and the same general end, the advancement of Christianity and the church's edification (Co1 12:1-11). II. He illustrates this by an allusion to a human body, in which all the members have a mutual relation and subserviency, and each has its proper place and use (Co1 12:12-26). III. He tells us that the church is the body of Christ, and the members are variously gifted for the benefit of the whole body, and each particular member (Co1 12:27-30). And them, IV. Closes with an exhortation to seek somewhat more beneficial than these gifts (Co1 12:31).

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS 12 In this chapter the apostle discourses concerning spiritual gifts, showing the author, nature, use, and excellency of them; compares the church to an human body, and in a beautiful manner sets forth the symmetry and subserviency of the members of it to one another, being set in different places, and having different gifts; and enumerates the several offices and gifts in the church, and yet suggests there is something more excellent than them. He intimates, that spiritual gifts are valuable things, and should be taken notice of; nor would he have the saints ignorant of them, and therefore gives the following account, Co1 12:1 and yet he would not have those that have them be proud of them, and lifted up with them; for which reason he puts them in mind of their former state in Heathenism, to make and keep them humble, Co1 12:2 and points out such who have the Spirit of God, the author of all gifts and grace; not such who call Jesus accursed, but they that call him Lord, Co1 12:3 which Holy Ghost, who is called Spirit, Lord, and God, is the author of the different gifts bestowed upon men, Co1 12:4 the end of bestowing which gifts is the profit of others, Co1 12:7 of which gifts there is an enumeration in nine particulars, Co1 12:8 of each of which the Spirit of God is the worker and giver, according to his sovereign will and pleasure, Co1 12:11 and which are all for the good of the whole community; which is illustrated by the simile of an human body, which as it consists of many members, and is but one, so Christ mystical, or the church, though it consists of divers persons, yet they are all one in Christ, and all their gifts are for the service of each other, Co1 12:12 which unity is proved and confirmed by the saints being baptized by one Spirit into one body, the church, and by drinking of him, or partaking of the same grace, Co1 12:13 and in order to show the usefulness and profit of every spiritual gift, even the meanest, to the churches of Christ, and that none might be despised, he enlarges upon the metaphor of the human body he had compared the church to, and by it illustrates the unity of the church, and the members of it, Co1 12:14 and shows that the inferior members should not envy the superior ones, or be dejected because they have not the same gifts: and conclude from hence, that they are not, or deserve not, to be of the same body, Co1 12:15 seeing it is convenient and absolutely necessary that there should be many members, and these set in different places, and have different gifts and usefulness; and particularly what should make them easy is, that God has placed them according to his will and pleasure, Co1 12:17. And, on the other hand, he shows, that the more noble, and excellent, and useful members, ought not to despise the lower, meaner, and more ignoble ones, partly because of the usefulness and necessity of them, they cannot do without them, Co1 12:21 and partly because of the honour put upon them, Co1 12:23, and all this is so ordered, that there be no schism, but that there should be a mutual care of one member for another, and that they should sympathize with each other, Co1 12:25. This simile the apostle more plainly and particularly accommodates and applies to the church, the body of Christ, and the members of it, and of one another, Co1 12:27 and gives an enumeration of the several officers and offices in the church, set there by God himself; and there are no less than eight of them, some greater than others, most of them proper and peculiar to the primitive church, though some perpetual, and which still continue, Co1 12:28 but in the times in which they were all of them in being and use, every member of the church was not possessed of them, only some, though all had more or less the advantage of them, Co1 12:29. Wherefore, he concludes with an exhortation to the saints to covet the best of those gifts; and yet observes that there was something more excellent than them, and preferable to them, which he was about to show them, Co1 12:31 and hereby he makes an easy transition to the next chapter, in which he recommends charity, and prefers it to gifts.

And if the ear shall say,.... The organ that receives sounds, and can distinguish them, and in which member is placed the sense of hearing; and may design such as are hearers of the word of God, not merely externally, but internally; who hear so as to love, savour, and relish it; so as to understand and believe it, and to act in compliance with it; and distinguish it for themselves, though they may not be able to give a distinct account of it to others, or instruct others in it: because I am not the eye: the organ of seeing, in which is seated the visive faculty, and which receives light, and uses it for the good of the body, whose superintendent it is; and may be expressive of the ministers of the Gospel, who are that to the church, as eyes are to the body; they are the light of the world, have a clear insight into the doctrines of the Gospel, and communicate their light to others; they are set in the highest place in the church, and as watchmen and overseers there, to instruct; guide, and direct the members of it: I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? it certainly is; and so such as are only hearers of the Gospel, being affectionate, believing, understanding and fruitful hearers; though they have not such large knowledge and clear light, so as to be capable of overseeing and instructing others, yet are true and useful members of the church, are highly respected by Christ the head, and to be had in esteem by their fellow members, who may be superior to them.

This however he states last; but for the present he goes to the members themselves, saying thus: "If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?" "And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?" For if the one being made inferior and the other superior, doth not allow their being of the body, the whole is done away. Do not say therefore, "I am not the body, because I am inferior." For the foot also hath the inferior post, yet is it of the body: for the being or not being part of the body, is not from the one lying in this place and the other in that; (which is what constitutes difference of place;) but from the being conjoined or separated. For the being or not being a body, arises from the having been made one or not. But do thou, I pray, mark his considerate way, how he applies their words to our members. For as he said above, "These things have I in a figure transferred to myself and Apollos," just so likewise here, to make his argument free from invidiousness and acceptable, he introduces the members speaking: that when they shall hear nature answering them, being thus convicted by experience herself and by the general voice, they may have nothing further to oppose. "For say, if you will," saith he, "this very thing, murmur as you please, you cannot be out of the body. For as the law of nature, so much more doth the power of grace guard all things and preserve them entire." And see how he kept to the rule of having nothing superfluous; not working out his argument on all the members, but on two only and these the extremes; having specified both the most honorable of all, the eye, and the meanest of all, the feet. And he doth not make the foot to discourse with the eye, but with the hand which is mounted a little above it; and the ear with the eyes. For because we are wont to envy not those who are very far above us, but those who are a little higher, therefore he also conducts his comparison thus.

Paul is saying that the person who is slightly inferior should not for that reason think that he is unnecessary to the body. Commentary on Paul’s Epistles.

He presents the members of the body as speaking and murmuring that they are diminished before the other members, in order that, having demonstrated the senselessness of the murmuring of the members, he might expose those who in the Church murmur that there are some greater than them. He puts forward two extreme members, the foot and the ear, and presents the foot as speaking not with the eye, but with the hand, which has a slight advantage over it. And the ear he presents as speaking with the eye: for we always envy usually not those who greatly surpass us, but those who are a little above us. So then, he says, if the foot should say that I am not part of the body because I do not occupy the middle place like the hand, but am below all, is it really for this reason, that is, because it is not a hand, that it does not belong to the body? For whether or not it is a member of the body depends not on its position, but on whether it is joined or not joined to the body. Likewise, if the ear should say: "since I am not an eye, I refuse entirely to be a part and member of the body," it will all the same remain in the place appointed to it from the beginning, and will fulfill its purpose. So you also, who have received, in your opinion, a lesser gift, do not murmur. For you are a member of the Church of Christ, even though you have received a lower place. But when you yourself separate from the Church and break your union with her, then you will no longer be a member. Therefore, if you wish to be a member of the Church, preserve unity with her...

Secondly, he uses as examples the members or powers which serve knowledge and he mentions the eye, which serves sight, and the ear, which serves hearing. For these two senses are the special servants of human knowledge: sight, indeed, in regard to discovery, because it reveals the many differences among things; hearing, however, in regard to doctrine, which is presented by speech. The more dignified of these senses is sight, because it is more spiritual and reveals more things; as a result the eye is more noble than the ear. He says, therefore: And if the ear, which is the more ignoble member, should say, I do not belong to the body, because I am not the eye, which is the more noble member, that would not make it any less part of the body. By the members which serve knowledge are designated in the Church those who apply themselves to the contemplative life among whom there are, as eyes, teachers who investigate truth. Hence it says in S. of S. (5:12): "His eyes are like doves beside springs of water, which live near the fullest waters." By ears are signified disciples who receive the truth by hearing their masters. Hence it says in Matt (13:9): "He that has ears to hear, let him hear." In the Church not only teachers but also disciples are necessary. Hence it says in Jb (29:11): "When the ear heard, it called me blessed."

The apostle proceeds to the question of the Corinthians concerning spiritual gifts, Co1 12:1. He calls to their remembrance their former state, and how they were brought out of it, Co1 12:2, Co1 12:3. Shows that there are diversities of gifts which proceed from the Spirit, Co1 12:4. Diversities of administrations which proceed from the Lord Jesus, Co1 12:5. And diversities of operations which proceed from God, Co1 12:6. What these gifts are, and how they are dispensed, Co1 12:7-11. Christ is the Head, and the Church his members; and this is pointed out under the similitude of the human body, Co1 12:12, Co1 12:13. The relation which the members of the body have to each other; and how necessary their mutual support, Co1 12:14-26. The members in the Church, or spiritual body, and their respective offices, Co1 12:27-30. We should earnestly covet the best gifts, Co1 12:31.

THE USE AND THE ABUSE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS, ESPECIALLY PROPHESYING AND TONGUES. (1Co. 12:1-31) spiritual gifts--the signs of the Spirit's continued efficacious presence in the Church, which is Christ's body, the complement of His incarnation, as the body is the complement of the head. By the love which pervades the whole, the gifts of the several members, forming reciprocal complements to each other, tend to the one object of perfecting the body of Christ. The ordinary and permanent gifts are comprehended together with the extraordinary, without distinction specified, as both alike flow from the divine indwelling Spirit of life. The extraordinary gifts, so far from making professors more peculiarly saints than in our day, did not always even prove that such persons were in a safe state at all (Mat 7:22). They were needed at first in the Church: (1) as a pledge to Christians themselves who had just passed over from Judaism or heathendom, that God was in the Church; (2) for the propagation of Christianity in the world; (3) for the edification of the Church. Now that we have the whole written New Testament (which they had not) and Christianity established as the result of the miracles, we need no further miracle to attest the truth. So the pillar of cloud which guided the Israelites was withdrawn when they were sufficiently assured of the Divine Presence, the manifestation of God's glory being thenceforward enclosed in the Most Holy Place [ARCHBISHOP WHATELY]. Paul sets forth in order: (1). The unity of the body (1Co. 12:1-27). (2). The variety of its members and functions (Co1 12:27-30). (3). The grand principle for the right exercise of the gifts, namely, love (Co1 12:31; Co1 13:1-13). (4) The comparison of the gifts with one another (1Co. 14:1-40). I would not have you ignorant--with all your boasts of "knowledge" at Corinth. If ignorant now, it will be your own fault, not mine (Co1 14:38).