ACC ~ 1 Corinthians 7 v17 - 24

OVERVIEW:

Outward circumstances do not stand in the way of one’s becoming holy (THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA). Paul’s rule is that believers are to follow the life the Lord has assigned to them (AMBROSIASTER). Paul works this out in terms not only of marriage but also of circumcision and economic circumstance. Whether persons are married or single (ORIGEN) or of high or lowly status (PELAGIUS), they are to remain in the state in which they were called. God does not judge us by our external status (SEVERIAN OF GABALA), such as slave or free (AMBROSIASTER, THEODORET OF CYR). Similarly there is no reward for either circumcision or uncircumcision (SEVERIAN). Neither remove the marks of circumcision nor try to convert the uncircumcised to circumcision (PELAGIUS). Once it is cut away, flesh cannot be replaced (THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA). One enslaved by gluttony or passion can hardly be said to be free (CHRYSOSTOM). Having been bought by God, we must not become slaves of our fellow beings (AMBROSIASTER). Believers are free from real slavery (AMBROSIASTER, CHRYSOSTOM), being slaves of Christ and thus incomparably free in Christ (OECUMENIUS).

7:17 | Lead the Life Assigned

KEEPING TO GOD’S ASSIGNMENT. AMBROSIASTER: God has assigned to each person the time of his salvation, that is, the time when he might believe, and he will keep that person until then. Paul tells the Corinthians that this is his general rule, so that when they hear that others are expected to follow it, they will be more willing to do so themselves. It is always easier to do something when you see others doing the same. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

CIRCUMSTANCES DO NOT IMPEDE HOLINESS. THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: It is wrong to suppose that the circumstances which prevailed when a person was converted stand in the way of his becoming holy. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

7:18 | Circumcised or Uncircumcised

DO NOT REMOVE THE MARKS OF CIRCUMCISION. PELAGIUS: Someone who has been circumcised should not think that this is going too far, or regret it, because in its own day it was necessary. But neither should he seek to convert the uncircumcised to that practice. COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS 7.

LET HIM NOT SEEK CIRCUMCISION. THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: It is not possible to replace flesh which has been cut off in this way, although the blessed Epiphanius of Cyprus says that it is. Those who want to know more about the subject can consult what he has to say about it. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

7:19 | Keeping the Commandments

NO REWARD FOR CIRCUMCISION OR UNCIRCUMCISION. SEVERIAN OF GABALA: Circumcision means nothing by itself, but it was a command of God. On the other hand, uncircumcised is the way God made us, so there is no reward for that either. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

7:20 | The State in Which One Was Called

MARRIED OR SINGLE. ORIGEN: In itself, the state in which we are called is a matter of indifference. An unmarried man, for example, can live a life of purity, but he may also be deeply involved in sin. The same is true for a married man as well. If it were only Christians who practiced celibacy, then it would be possible to say that it was a pure and divine state. But the Marcionites also practice it, though not in the same way as Christians. Christians do it in order to please God, but the Marcionites do it in order not to succumb to the Creator. Celibacy is honorable only when it is clothed with the life and behavior of the church, with pure knowledge and truth. COMMENTARY ON 1 CORINTHIANS 3.37.35-43.

STATUS HIGH OR LOW. PELAGIUS: God does not care about our social status but about our will and mind. COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS 7.

SEVERIAN OF GABALA: Paul says this because it makes no difference to God either way. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

7:21 | Slave or Free

OUR SLAVERY AND OUR FREEDOM. ORIGEN: I am a slave of that affair and care to which I am bound. For I know that it is written that whatever one is conquered by, to that he is delivered as a slave. … Who will free me from this most unseemly slavery except him who said, “If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed”? HOMILIES 13.

A SLAVE WHEN CALLED. AMBROSIASTER: Paul encourages slaves to serve their earthy masters well, so that they may appear to them to deserve their freedom. A slave who did not do his work properly would blaspheme the name of Christ and do nothing to further God’s cause. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

DO NOT USE RELIGION AS AN EXCUSE. THEODORET OF CYR: Paul is saying that no slave should run away, using religion as his excuse. COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS 207.

7:22 | A Freedman or a Slave of Christ

CALLED IN THE LORD. AMBROSIASTER: Whoever has been delivered from sin is truly free. The ancients used to say that anyone who acts unwisely is a slave. They called all wise men free, and all the unwise were slaves as far as they were concerned. In any case, even a free believer is a slave of Christ, for to be free from God is the greatest sin of all. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

FREEDOM FROM REAL SLAVERY. CHRYSOSTOM: A slave is free because he has been set free from the passions and diseases of the mind. Legal freedom is unimportant by comparison. HOMILIES ON THE EPISTLES OF PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS 19.5.

SLAVES OF CHRIST AND FREE IN CHRIST. OECUMENIUS: Paul wants to show that slave and master are equal. We are all freedmen of Christ because he has set us free from the tyranny of Satan, and we are voluntary slaves of Christ because, having set us free, he led us into his own kingdom. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

7:23 | Not Slaves of Men

BOUGHT BACK. ORIGEN: Christ came and “bought us back” when we were serving that lord to whom we sold ourselves by sinning. So he appears to have recovered as his own those whom he created. He has redeemed a people who chose to belong to another, who sought another lord for themselves by sinning. HOMILIES ON EXODUS 6.

THE DEMONIC PLOT TO REVERSE REDEMPTION. BASIL: The price of man is the blood of Christ. “You have been bought,” it is said, “with a price; do not become the slaves of men.” The powers of the evil one are trying to render this price useless to us. They try to lead us back into slavery even after we are free. HOMILY 21.

SO HIGH A PRICE. AMBROSIASTER: We have been bought at so high a price that only Christ, who owns everything, is able to pay it. Therefore whoever is bought with a price ought to serve all the more, in an effort to pay back the buyer. Having been bought by God, we must not once again become slaves of men. Slaves of men are those who accept human superstitions. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

DO NOT BECOME SLAVES OF MEN. CHRYSOSTOM: Free men can enslave themselves by agreeing to serve others out of gluttony, greed or a desire for power. Such a person may be technically free, but in reality he is more of a slave than anyone else. HOMILIES ON THE EPISTLES OF PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS 19.5.

NO GREATER PRICE. JEROME: What greater price is there than that the Creator shed his blood for the creature? HOMILY 29.

7:24 | Remain with God

IN WHATEVER STATE CALLED. BASIL: The apostle himself practiced very meticulously what he preached to others. CONCERNING BAPTISM 12.

THE COMMAND REPEATED. AMBROSIASTER: Paul repeats what he said above in order to underline its importance. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.