1 Corinthians 9:8-10

1 Corinthians 9:8-10 a. μὴ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον κ. τ. λ.; “Am I saying these things as any man might do” in accordance with human practice (as just seen in 7)? κατὰ ἄνθρ., in contrast with what ὁ νόμος λέγει; cf. Galatians 3:15 ff. This dialectic use of μή, ἢ or ἢ καί, in a train of questions, is very Pauline; ἢ καὶ recommends the second alternative; cf. Romans 4:9; Luke 12:41. “The law” is abolished as a means of obtaining salvation (Romans 3:19 ff., etc.); it remains a revelation of truth and right (Romans 7:12 ff.), and P. draws from it guidance for Christian conduct; cf. 1 Corinthians 14:34; Romans 13:8 ff., and (comprehensively)Romans 8:4; Romans 8:4. The ethics of the N.T. are those of the Old, enhanced by Christ (see Matthew 5:17 ff.). Paul speaks however here, somewhat distantly, of the “law of Moses ” (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:20 f., 1 Corinthians 10:2); but of “the law of Christ ” in Galatians 6:2 (cf. John 1:17; John 8:17; John 10:34; John 15:25). Οὐ φιμώσεις κ. τ. λ., “Thou shalt not muzzle a threshing ox,” cited to the same effect in 1 Timothy 5:18, οὐ with fut [1305] reproducing the Heb. lo' with impf [1306] of emphatic prohibition. Deuteronomy 25:4, detached where it stands, belongs to a series of Mosaic commands enjoining humane treatment of animals, regarded as being in some sense a part of the sacred community: cf. Exodus 20:10; Exodus 23:12; Exodus 23:19; Deuteronomy 22:4; Deuteronomy 22:6 f., Deuteronomy 22:10. Corn was threshed either by the feet of cattle (Micah 4:12 f.), or by a sledge driven over the threshing-floor (2 Samuel 24:22). μὴ τῶν βοῶν μέλει τῷ Θεῷ κ. τ. λ.; “Is it for the oxen that God cares, or on our account, by all means, does He say (it)?” The argumentative πάντως (cf. Romans 3:9; Luke 4:23), “on every ground” slightly diff [1307] in 1 Corinthians 9:22, more so in 1 Corinthians 5:10 : not that “God is concerned wholly (exclusively) for us” in this rule; but on every account a provision made for the beasts in man's service must hold good, à fortiori, for God's proper servants; cf. Matthew 6:26 ff., also 1Co 10:31, 1 Corinthians 12:12. διʼ ἡμᾶς, emphatically repeated, signifies not men as against oxen, but nos evangelii ministros (Est.) in analogy to oxen; the right of Christ's ministers “to eat and drink” is safeguarded by the principle that gives the ox his provender out of the corn he treads. Paul's method in such interpretations is radically diff [1308] from that of Philo, who says, Οὐ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἀλόγων ὁ νόμος, ἀλλʼ ὑπὲρ τῶν νοῦν κ. λόγον ἐχόντων, De Victim. offer., § 1: Philo destroys the historical sense; Paul extracts its moral principle.

[1305] future tense.

[1306]mpf. imperfect tense.

[1307] difference, different, differently.

[1308] difference, different, differently.

1 Corinthians 9:10 b. διʼ ἡμᾶς γάρ (cf. 1 Thessalonians 2:20, for γὰρ in affirm. reply) κ. τ. λ.: “Yes, it was written on our account (cf. Romans 4:23 f.) (to wit), that the ploughing (ox) ought to plough in hope, and the threshing (ox) in hope of partaking” (ἐπʼ ἐλπίδι τοῦ μετέχειν). The explanatory ὅτι clause (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:5; 1 Corinthians 1:26; 1 Corinthians 4:9 and note) restates and amplifies the previous quotation. The Ap. is not explaining how the command came to be given (“because,” E.V [1309]), but unfolding the principle that lies in it. The right of the ox in threshing also belongs in equity to the ox at the plough; all contributors to the harvest are included, whether at an earlier or later stage. ὀφείλει, emphatic debet (Vg [1310]): the hope of participation in the fruit is due to the labourer beast or man. The moral, as applied to Christian teachers, is obvious; it embraces the successive stages of the common work (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:9; John 4:36). ἀροτριᾷν (sometimes “to sow”; so El. and some others here) contains the root of the Lat. aro and older Eng. ear.

[1309] English Version.

[1310] Latin Vulgate Translation.