1 Corinthians 4:10-14 We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are honorable, but we are despised.… The Corinthian teachers were "puffed up" with conceit. Paul treats them here with — I. AN IRONIC APPEAL (ver. 10). "Ye have glory, but we have dishonour; we know nothing, you know everything; we are timid and feeble, but ye are strong and fearless; you are thought a deal of, but we are despised." How would our little penny-a-liners feel if such a man as Carlyle were to speak in this way? If they had any sense remaining, they would quiver into nothingness. How much more would those small pretentious teachers feel this stroke of satire from the grand apostle! II. A PERSONAL HISTORY. 1. Here he refers to — (1) His privations (ver. 11) — without nourishment, clothing, and the shelter of a home. (2) His labours (ver. 12). (3) His persecutions (ver. 13). (4) The spirit in which he endured the sufferings (ver. 12). 2. Why did he state all this? Not for the sake of parade, but for the sake of bringing these proud teachers to their senses. They could not fail to feel that he was a pre-eminent minister of Christ; notwithstanding this, in the world he was treated with cruelty and contempt. What, then, had they to be proud of as ministers? (D. Thomas, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised. |
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