Bible Commentaries
1 Corinthians 2

Verse 6

perfect

i.e. full grown. (See Scofield " :-") .

Verse 7

mystery (See Scofield " :-") .

ordained Predestination, trans. predestinated, Romans 8:29; Romans 8:30; Ephesians 1:5; Ephesians 1:11; Acts 4:28.

world foreordained before the ages. Cf. See margin ref., Romans 16:25; Romans 16:25 (See Scofield "Romans 16:25- :") .

Verse 12

world

kosmos = world-system. 1 Corinthians 7:31; 1 Corinthians 7:33; John 7:7. (See Scofield "John 7:7- :") .

Verse 13

words

(1) The writers of Scripture invariably affirm, where the subject is mentioned by them at all, that the words of their writings are divinely taught. This, of necessity, refers to the original documents, not to translations and versions; but the labours of competent scholars have brought our English versions to a degree of perfection so remarkable that we may confidently rest upon them as authoritative.

(2) 1 Corinthians 2:9-14 gives the process by which a truth passes from the mind of God to the minds of His people.

(a) The unseen things of God are undiscoverable by the natural man (1 Corinthians 2:9). (b) These unseen things God has revealed to chosen men (1 Corinthians 2:10-12). (c) The revealed things are communicated in Spirit-taught words (1 Corinthians 2:13). This implies neither mechanical dictation nor the effacement of the writer's personality, but only that the Spirit infallibly guides in the choice of words from the writer's own vocabulary (1 Corinthians 2:13). (d) These Spirit-taught words, in which the revelation has been expressed, are discerned, as to their true spiritual content, only by the spiritual among believers ; 1 Corinthians 2:15; 1 Corinthians 2:16; (See Scofield "1 Corinthians 2:16- :") .

Verse 14

natural man

Paul divides men into three classes: psuchikos, "of the senses" James 3:15; Jude 1:19 or "natural," i.e. the Adamic man, unrenewed through the new birth John 3:3; John 3:5 pneumatikos, "spiritual," i.e. the renewed man as Spirit-filled and walking in the Spirit in full communion with God Ephesians 5:18-20 and sarkikos, "carnal," "fleshly," i.e. the renewed man who, walking "after the flesh," remains a babe in Christ 1 Corinthians 3:1-4. The natural man may be learned, gentle, eloquent, fascinating, but the spiritual content of Scripture is absolutely hidden from him; and the fleshly, or carnal, Christian is able to comprehend only its simplest truths, "milk" 1 Corinthians 3:2.