Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians contains a plethora of information that was vital to the body of believers gathered in that ancient city so long ago. It was a time of intense cultural pressure with the ever present issue of how that gathering of believers would respond as people who are to be faithful to God in all aspects of life to those issues that pressed on them from all angles. Moreover, the issues faced by the Corinthian Church are eerily similar to what the modern church faces as cultural pressures and the need for sound theology on matters such as the Church and the Christian life are just as important today as they were back in Paul’s day. Dr. Mark Taylor, in his commentary on 1 Corinthians, unpacks what Paul has to say to the Church at large, clearly demonstrating that contained in the pages of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians are vital truths for us still today.
The New American Commentary series from B&H Publishing has long been one of my favorite commentary series and Taylor’s effort on 1 Corinthians continues the sound biblical exegesis and scholarly approach to Scripture while remaining accessible to the layman that many have come to expect from this particular commentary series. Since there is much to enjoy from Taylor’s efforts, I will spend some time examining a few notable highlights of this commentary.
First, this commentary is very well laid out in terms of subject matter and how the author approaches each chapter of 1 Corinthians. Taylor begins his discussion of 1 Corinthians with a helpful introductory section where he expertly lays out important historical facts regarding the City of Corinth with particular attention given to Corinth during the time of Paul’s writing of this Epistle. He also provides needed elucidation of why Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth to include the main themes Paul addressed concluding this introductory discussion with a helpful outline of the entire epistle. While such issues may seem unnecessary or boring for some readers, grasping the history and issues behind the writing of a letter provides the individual studying Paul’s interaction with a church such as the one at Corinth gives one a birds-eye view into why Paul wrote this letter and why it is important for us to study as believers.
The remainder of the commentary is a very in-depth analysis and exegesis of each section of 1 Corinthians. Each particular section of the commentary portion provided by Taylor initiates with a short outline of what he will address followed by a very sound and informative discussion of that section. I must note at this point the absolutely excellent footnotes throughout this book. Footnotes are sometimes overlooked by readers, a habit that quite frankly should be broken especially when it comes to a commentary such as this one. Scholars such as Taylor provide these footnotes as a means of additional clarification on many issues as well as giving the reader a valuable treasure trove of additional resources to study on that particular aspect of the Epistle. One should definitely take note of the footnotes in this commentary as they are many and they are extremely helpful.
Arguably, one of the more controversial elements among scholars today is Paul’s discussion of spiritual gifts found in 1 Corinthians 12. Both those who affirm the continued use of spiritual gifts and those who aver that many if not all of the spiritual gifts discussed by Paul in that chapter have ceased use 1 Corinthians 12 as a springboard for their viewpoint. Taylor does an excellent job of reminding the reader of the greater purpose of why Paul addressed these spiritual gifts noting “Paul reminds the Corinthians that it is only by the Holy Spirit that believers confess Jesus as Lord in the first place, that all believers are gifted individually by the Spirit for the common good, and that love, the more excellent way, is the only proper context for the exercise of the gifts.” Such an approach, namely the reality that any gifting of the believer is through the work of the Holy Spirit for the edification of the body and the glory of God ably roots Paul’s word in sound exegesis and application, something so often sorely needed when it comes to this particular topic.
Of additional note is Taylor’s examination of I Corinthians 15 where Paul discusses the resurrection from the dead and the faith believers can have that the grave has no sting based on Christ’s victory over the grave. Taylor rightly states that Paul’s statements on the resurrection “suggests that the problem in Corinth was not an outright denial of Jesus’ resurrection but rather a denial of resurrection generally, which probably derived from the prevailing Greek philosophical worldview that held to the immortality of the soul rather than the resurrection of a dead body…Paul establishes the premise that Christ’s resurrection is central to the gospel that was preached from the very beginning” to include the future resurrection of the dead for the elect.
One final element of note regarding this excellent commentary by Mark Taylor is the extensive bibliography it contains. A solid and useful commentary will not just provide the author’s thoughts but will also enable the reader to have access to additional works to seek out in order to further study the topic at hand. Taylor provides a wonderful bibliography of valuable commentaries and journal articles that will keep the reader quite busy for many years to come should they choose to utilize that resource.
I highly recommend this commentary for not just pastors and Bible College or Seminary students. This is a commentary that should be used by any believer desiring to dig deeper into the riches found in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. Replete with sound biblical exegesis and valuable study aids, this edition from the New American Commentary series from B&H Publishing will be a great Bible study tool for many years to come.
I received this book for free from B&H Publishing Group for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”