RSV ~ 1 Corinthians 10 Notes

1 Cor 10:1-13 | ISB Notes

Paul urges the Corinthians to learn from the mistakes of Israel. Although the Israelites received blessings comparable to Baptism (Red Sea) and the Eucharist (manna and water), they perished for experimenting with idolatry. With this in mind, the Corinthians, who have received superior blessings in the sacraments, must guard against presumption and over-confidence in the face of anything connected with idolatry (e.g., idol foods, 8:10). Paul intensifies this warning by stressing how all the Israelites were delivered from bondage (10:1-4) and yet most of them were destroyed in God’s wrath for serving other gods (10:5).

1 Cor 10:1 | ISB Notes

under the cloud: A canopy of divine protection spread over Israel (Ps 105:39). Scripture associates the firecloud of the Exodus journey with the Holy Spirit (Is 63:10-14; CCC 697).

1 Cor 10:2 | ISB Notes

baptized into Moses: The solidarity of Israel with Moses passing through the Red Sea (Ex 14:21-31) prefigures our union with Christ when we pass through the waters of Baptism (Rom 6:3; Gal 3:27). The deliverance of Israel from slavery is a type of the Church’s deliverance from bondage in sin (Rom 6:17-18).

1 Cor 10:3 | ISB Notes

supernatural food: The manna that rained down upon Israel as bread from heaven (Ex 16:4-31). It prefigures the living bread of the Eucharist, which nourishes us in the wilderness of this life (1 Cor 10:16; Jn 6:31-35).

1 Cor 10:4 | ISB Notes

supernatural Rock: The rock of Horeb that gushed forth drinking water for Israel by a miracle of Moses (Ex 17:6). Jewish tradition believed that the rock followed Israel as a constant source of refreshment on the march through the desert. It is ultimately a type of Christ, who pours out the living waters of the Spirit in Baptism (1 Cor 12:13; Jn 4:14) and the sacramental gift of himself in the Eucharist (1 Cor 10:16; Jn 6:53).

1 Cor 10:5 | ISB Notes

most . . . were overthrown: Joshua and Caleb were the only two adults of the generation that came up out of Egypt to enter the Promised Land (Num 14:20-35). • Paul is alluding to the great massacre of Israelites who rebelled against Yahweh in the wilderness as described in the Greek version of Num 14:16.

1 Cor 10:6 | ISB Notes

warnings: Or, “types”. The dangers and judgments that Israel experienced between the Red Sea and the Promised Land show us that the Christian life is a probationary period of testing that stretches between our Baptism and our final salvation. Unless we fight the temptations that badger us along the way, we will fail to reach our heavenly homeland, just as many of the Exodus generation perished without crossing over into Canaan. The premise behind this Exodus typology is that the Church relives the experiences of Israel at a spiritual level (CCC 128-30, 1094).

See word study: Type at Rom 5.

1 Cor 10:7-10 | ISB Notes

Paul draws attention to several transgressions of Israel in connection with food and drink. • In 10:7 Paul recalls how Israel worshiped the golden calf by sitting down to eat and drink in the presence of the idol and by getting up to dance in sexual revelry (Ex 32:6). In 1 Cor 10:8 Paul alludes to a similar sin at Beth Peor, where Yahweh destroyed twenty-three thousand Israelites for involvement in sexual immorality that led to eating food sacrificed to the idols of the Moabites (Num 25:1-9). In 1 Cor 10:9 Paul warns the Corinthians not to put the Lord to the test, which is a reminder from Deut 6:16 of how Israel complained of thirst and challenged Yahweh to provide water to drink (Ex 17:1-7). In 1 Cor 10:9 Paul recalls how the Israelites were bitten with serpents because they despised the manna that God had given them to eat (Num 21:4-6). These food-related episodes are pulled together to caution the “strong” Corinthians that eucharistic communion with Christ is incompatible with eating food sacrificed to idols (1 Cor 10:1422; CCC 2119).

1 Cor 10:9 | ISB Notes

put the Lord to the test: Some reliable Greek manuscripts read “Christ” instead of “Lord”.

1 Cor 10:10 | ISB Notes

the Destroyer: The angel(s) who inflicts the wrath of God upon sinners (Ex 12:23; Ps 78:49).

1 Cor 10:11 | ISB Notes

for our instruction: The OT remains a source of spiritual teaching and encouragement even for NT believers (Rom 15:4). This is because both Testaments bear witness to a unified plan of salvation that began with creation, advanced through the history of Israel, and climaxed with the redeeming mission of the Messiah.

end of the ages: All previous stages of covenant history have given way to the messianic age of the New Covenant (Heb 1:1-2). This was referred to in the OT as the “latter days” (Num 24:14; Is 2:2; Dan 2:28; Hos 3:5).

1 Cor 10:13 | ISB Notes

God is faithful: A reminder that even the most severe temptations are bearable when we turn to God for help and look for the escape route that he promises to provide for us (Mt 6:13). Paul is leaving no room for flimsy excuses, as though sin were sometimes unavoidable (CCC 2848-49).

1 Cor 10:14 | ISB Notes

worship of idols: Idolatry is the real danger facing the Corinthians who eat idol food (8:10). Not only will their behavior lead the “weak” to become again ensnared in pagan worship (8:7), but even the “strong” are setting themselves up for a fall (10:12; CCC 2112-14).

See essay: Shun Immorality, Shun Idolatry at 1 Cor 6.

1 Cor 10:16 | ISB Notes

cup of blessing: The traditional name for the third ritual cup of wine consumed at the Jewish Passover meal. It is this cup that Jesus blessed and consecrated at the Passover of the Last Supper and made the eucharistic cup of the New Covenant (11:25; CCC 1334, 1340).

participation: Eucharistic Communion unites believers with Christ and with one another. These two blessings are related inasmuch as the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood is what continues to mold us into the ecclesial Body of Christ, the Church (10:17).

1 Cor 10:20 | ISB Notes

offer to demons: A warning that unseen powers lurk behind what appear to be lifeless idols. The Corinthians who insist on eating idol food in pagan temples (8:10) are thus in danger of forging an unholy partnership with fallen spirits. •Paul’s thinking is shaped by OT passages that link idol worship with service to demons (Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37; Bar 4:7).

1 Cor 10:21 | ISB Notes

table of the Lord: The altar of the eucharistic liturgy (Heb 13:10). • The prophets of Israel referred to the bronze altar of sacrifice as the Lord’s “table” (Ezek 44:16; Mal 1:7, 12). Paul uses this same language to show that the eucharistic offering of the Church is a holy sacrifice analogous to the Temple offerings of the Mosaic age. He has already hinted at the sacrificial aspect of the Eucharist in 1 Cor 10:18 when he compared it to the eaten portions of the Levitical peace offerings(Lev 7:11-36) (CCC 1383).

1 Cor 10:22 | ISB Notes

Shall we provoke the Lord: Yahweh is a jealous God who forbids idol worship (Ex 20:4-6). • Paul’s question serves as a warning because it recalls how the Israelites provoked the Lord to anger by their idolatry in the wilderness (Deut 32:16, 21).

1 Cor 10:23 | ISB Notes

All things are lawful: A slogan used by the Corinthians to assert their freedom to eat idol food. Paul qualifies it immediately, censuring the kind of unrestrained freedom that looks to ourselves before others (10:24, 33; Phil 2:4).

1 Cor 10:25-30 | ISB Notes

Paul addresses the issue of idol meat sold in the open market after being sacrificed in a pagan temple. Objectively, his readers are free to eat and need not worry about the past history of market food (10:25) or of meals served in private homes (10:27). In these contexts, the food is safely disconnected from the context of conscious idolatry. However, his readers should abstain from eating when the food’s idolatrous origin is pointed out by another; otherwise, the informant may be scandalized and led to think that Christians have a casual attitude toward idolatry.

1 Cor 10:26 | ISB Notes

the earth is the Lord’s: A reference to Ps 24:1. • Paul cites Ps 24 to extol the sovereignty of Christ as the Lord of creation (1 Cor 8:6; 15:27). His divine ownership of all things implies that no food, in and of itself, should be rejected or despised (1 Tim 4:3-4). Later rabbis reasoned from this psalm that a mealtime blessing should be said before eating.

1 Cor 10:32 | ISB Notes

Give no offense: The overarching lesson of chaps. 810. Throughout his discussion, Paul subordinates Christian liberty to Christian love, emphasizing that genuine charity “builds up” (8:1) and “does not insist on its own way” (13:5).