The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (184 page)

1:30 the source of your life:
Every spiritual blessing comes to us from the Father (Eph 1:3; Jas 1:17; CCC 2813). We must acknowledge this to avoid senseless boasting (1 Cor 1:29) and the delusion of self-sufficiency (4:7). 
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1:31 Let him who boasts:
A paraphrase of the Greek version of Jer 9:24. • Jeremiah challenged the wise, mighty, and rich of Israel to stop boasting about their worldly advantages and to start giving the glory to Yahweh (Jer 9:23). Paul has this passage in mind when he makes the same appeal to the Corinthians. Although few of them were "wise", "powerful", and "noble" in the world's eyes (1 Cor 1:26), they were boasting of their spiritual gifts without giving due credit to the Lord (4:7). 
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2:1 When I came to you:
I.e., when Paul first evangelized Corinth (Acts 18:1-17). 
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2:3 fear and trembling:
A biblical expression for one's reaction to the power and presence of Almighty God (Ex 20:18; Ps 2:11; Ezek 12:18; Phil 2:12). 
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2:4 in demonstration of the Spirit:
Even the most dynamic proclamations of the gospel remain ineffective unless the Spirit moves the minds and hearts of the listeners to accept it (Phil 1:29). Paul implies that his own modest speaking ability was a weakness that enabled God's power to work more perfectly through him (2 Cor 12:9). The idea running throughout this passage is that God saves the world through what is foolish and weak so that he alone can be praised for the result (1 Cor 1:2129). See word study:
Unskilled
at 2 Cor 11. 
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2:6 the mature:
Or, "the perfect". Paul differentiates between Christians who have reached spiritual adulthood and those who are merely "infants" (3:1). Ironically, the immature Corinthians are the ones who consider themselves the most wise and spiritually advanced. 
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2:7 a secret and hidden wisdom:
The divine plan to save the world through a crucified Messiah was once concealed from the Gentiles and only dimly reflected in the OT. 
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2:8 rulers of this age:
The Jewish and Roman authorities who collaborated to execute Jesus were culpable for their crimes and yet ignorant of God's plan to redeem the world through his death (Acts 3:17; 4:27-28; CCC 591, 597). 
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2:9 What no eye has seen:
A paraphrase of Is 64:4. • Isaiah marvels that no one has ever seen or heard a God like Yahweh, who is always faithful to deliver those who hope in him. The final words of this quotation are not from Isaiah but seemingly from Sir 1:10, where God's unsearchable wisdom is a gift promised to
those who love him.
Paul draws Isaiah and Sirach together to stress that what God has long prepared in secret he has now made known to the world through the Spirit (CCC 1027). 
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2:10 the Spirit searches everything:
The Spirit is uniquely qualified to probe the mind of God and make known his wise plans (Dan 4:9). As an interior guide for believers, the Spirit enlightens us about the spiritual gifts and truths that God has given in Christ (1 Cor 2:12-13; CCC 687, 2038). 
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2:14 unspiritual man:
The unredeemed man who lacks both the Spirit and spiritual discernment. 
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2:15 spiritual man:
The mature Christian who has both the Spirit and spiritual wisdom (2:6). 
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2:16 For who has known:
A reference to Is 40:13. • Isaiah's rhetorical question anticipates a negative answer, i.e., no mortal man has access to the mind of God or is capable of informing him of truths he does not already know. Paul concludes from this that divine wisdom is beyond the reach of human understanding and can be known by men only if it is
revealed
by God himself (Wis 9:13-18; CCC 1998). 
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3:1 men of the flesh:
Immature Christians who possess the Spirit but are enslaved to worldly ways of thinking. The "jealousy and strife" (3:3) exhibited in Corinth was proof that many of them were spiritual
infants.
Real Christian maturity produces the fruits of love and unity (Gal 5:22-23; Col 3:12-15). 
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3:5-23
Paul stresses that success in ministry is primarily the work of God. Teachers of the flock must recognize that
(1)
God alone gives life and growth to the Church and that
(2)
God will test the work of every laborer on the Day of Judgment. Consequently, the faithful must not overestimate the importance of their teachers but see them as "[s]ervants" (3:5) and "fellow workers" (3:9) of the Lord. Paul illustrates this with two analogies, one agricultural (3:5-9; CCC 755) and one architectural (3:10-17; CCC 756). 
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3:6 I planted, Apollos watered:
Paul first established the Church at Corinth (Acts 18:1-17), while Apollos came afterward to foster the spiritual growth of the community (Acts 18:24-19:1). 
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3:10 skilled master builder:
Or "wise architect". Paul laid the foundation of the Church in numerous cities by evangelization, leaving it to subsequent leaders to build up the congregations in faith and love (Rom 15:19-20). For him, the only stable
foundation
to build upon is the gospel of Christ (1 Cor 3:11). • Architects in the OT were endowed by the Spirit with the wisdom and technical skills necessary to build the wilderness Tabernacle (Ex 35:30-33) and the Jerusalem Temple (1 Kings 4:29; 7:13-14). King Solomon, in particular, was a wise architect who laid the foundation of the Temple (1 Kings 5:17-18) and imparted his wisdom to Israel and the nations alike (1 Kings 10:24; Prov 1:1-2). Paul views himself as a spiritual Solomon who oversees the building of another Temple, the Church, and proclaims the greater wisdom of the gospel to "Gentiles" and the "sons of Israel" (Acts 9:15). 
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3:12 Now if any one builds:
Spiritual leaders are like artisans commissioned to build believers into the Temple of God (3:16-17). The quality of their workmanship is portrayed by a list of building materials ranging from the most valuable to the least—the first three
(gold, silver, stones)
are expensive and durable, while the second three
(wood, hay, straw)
are cheap and flammable. The fiery Day of Judgment will reveal whether they have labored diligently or carelessly, since all substandard work will be consumed in the flames of divine scrutiny (3:15). Although Paul is speaking directly to ministers of the gospel, his words apply to all Christians inasmuch as all are called to "build up" the Church in love (14:4; Eph 4:11-16; 1 Thess 5:11; CCC 2045). • Paul's list of building supplies is similar to those given in the OT for building the Tabernacle (Ex 31:2-5) and the Temple (1 Chron 29:2). Hay and stubble, however, are absent from these lists—a fact that accentuates their unworthiness as structural materials. 
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3:14 reward:
The same Greek term is translated "wages" in 3:8. It refers to spiritual compensation for apostolic work. • In the back of Paul's mind stands King Solomon, who contracted the laborers of Hiram of Tyre to receive "wages" for building the Jerusalem Temple under his supervision (1 Kings 5:5-6).
See note on 1 Cor 3:10
. 
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3:15 as through fire:
Some Christian workers, whose 5 efforts are shabby and imperfect, will pass through God's fiery judgment like a man who barely escapes a burning building with his life. This prelude to salvation will involve painful spiritual consequences, which, though severe, will spare them eternal damnation. • The OT often depicts fire as a testing and refining agent (Sir 2:5; Is 4:4; 6:6-7; Zech 13:9; Mal 3:2-3). • Catholic tradition interprets Paul's teaching in the light of Purgatory, a doctrine defined at the Councils of Lyon II (1274), Florence (1439), and Trent (1563). Purgatory is a final stage of purification for those who are destined for heaven but depart from this life still burdened with venial sins or with an unpaid debt of temporal punishment incurred from past sins (i.e., mortal sins already forgiven but imperfectly repented of). Passing through fire is thus a spiritual process where souls are purged of residual selfishness and refined in God's love (CCC 1030-32). 
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