13 You have been put to no test but such as is common to man: and God is true, who will not let any test come on you which you are not able to undergo; but he will make with the test a way out of it, so that you may be able to go through it.
The Lord will keep me safe from every evil work and will give me salvation in his kingdom in heaven: to whom be glory for ever and ever. So be it.
The Lord is able to keep the upright safe in the time of testing, and to keep evil-doers under punishment till the day of judging;
Be serious and keep watch; the Evil One, who is against you, goes about like a lion with open mouth in search of food; Do not give way to him but be strong in your faith, in the knowledge that your brothers who are in the world undergo the same troubles.
For our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against authorities and powers, against the world-rulers of this dark night, against the spirits of evil in the heavens. For this reason take up all the arms of God, so that you may be able to be strong in the evil day, and, having done all, to keep your place.
Till now you have not given your blood in your fight against sin:
If our God, whose servants we are, is able to keep us safe from the burning and flaming fire, and from your hands, O King, he will keep us safe.
And we are conscious that all things are working together for good to those who have love for God, and have been marked out by his purpose. Because those of whom he had knowledge before they came into existence, were marked out by him to be made like his Son, so that he might be the first among a band of brothers: And those who were marked out by him were named; and those who were named were given righteousness; and to those to whom he gave righteousness, in the same way he gave glory. What may we say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not keep back his only Son, but gave him up for us all, will he not with him freely give us all things? Who will say anything against the saints of God? It is God who makes us clear from evil; Who will give a decision against us? It is Christ Jesus who not only was put to death, but came again from the dead, who is now at the right hand of God, taking our part. Who will come between us and the love of Christ? Will trouble, or pain, or cruel acts, or the need of food or of clothing, or danger, or the sword? As it is said in the holy Writings, Because of you we are put to death every day; we are like sheep ready for destruction. But we are able to overcome all these things and more through his love. For I am certain that not death, or life, or angels, or rulers, or things present, or things to come, or powers, Or things on high, or things under the earth, or anything which is made, will be able to come between us and the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Because you have kept my word in quiet strength, I will keep you from the hour of testing which is coming on all the world, to put to the test those who are on earth.
Have no fear of the things which you will have to undergo: see, the Evil One will send some of you into prison, so that you may be put to the test; and you will have great trouble for ten days. Be true till death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Because in those days there will be great sorrow, such as there has not been from the start of the world till now, or ever will be. And if those days had not been made short there would have been no salvation for any, but because of the saints those days will be made short. Then if any man says to you, See, here is the Christ, or, Here; do not put faith in him; For there will come up false Christs, and false prophets, who will do great signs and wonders; so that if possible even the saints might be tricked.
Who, by the power of God are kept, through faith, for that salvation, which will be seen at the last day. You have cause for great joy in this, though it may have been necessary for you to be troubled for a little time, being tested in all sorts of ways, So that the true metal of your faith, being of much greater value than gold (which, though it comes to an end, is tested by fire), may come to light in praise and glory and honour, at the revelation of Jesus Christ:
Take as an example of pain nobly undergone and of strength in trouble, the prophets who gave to men the words of the Lord. We say that those men who have gone through pain are happy: you have the story of Job and the troubles through which he went and have seen that the Lord was full of pity and mercy in the end.
And about this thing I made request to the Lord three times that it might be taken away from me. And he said to me, My grace is enough for you, for my power is made complete in what is feeble. Most gladly, then, will I take pride in my feeble body, so that the power of Christ may be on me. So I take pleasure in being feeble, in unkind words, in needs, in cruel attacks, in troubles, on account of Christ: for when I am feeble, then am I strong.
And I give them eternal life; they will never come to destruction, and no one will ever take them out of my hand. That which my Father has given to me has more value than all; and no one is able to take anything out of the Father's hand. I and my Father are one.
For this reason let those who by the purpose of God undergo punishment, keep on in well-doing and put their souls into the safe hands of their Maker.
If we say openly that we have done wrong, he is upright and true to his word, giving us forgiveness of sins and making us clean from all evil.
Let us keep the witness of our hope strong and unshaking, for he is true who has given his word:
This is a true saying: If we undergo death with him, then will we be living with him: If we go on to the end, then we will be ruling with him: if we say we have no knowledge of him, then he will say he has no knowledge of us: If we are without faith, still he keeps faith, for he will never be untrue to himself.
For I am conscious of my thoughts about you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you hope at the end.
Be certain, then, that the Lord your God is God; whose faith and mercy are unchanging, who keeps his word through a thousand generations to those who have love for him and keep his laws;
O Lord, you are my God; I will give praise to you, I will give honour to your name; for you have done great acts of power; your purposes in the past have been made true and certain in effect.
So that we, who have gone in flight from danger to the hope which has been put before us, may have a strong comfort in two unchanging things, in which it is not possible for God to be false;
Are they servants of Christ? (I am talking foolishly) I am more so; I have had more experience of hard work, of prisons, of blows more than measure, of death. Five times the Jews gave me forty blows but one. Three times I was whipped with rods, once I was stoned, three times the ship I was in came to destruction at sea, a night and a day I have been in the water; In frequent travels, in dangers on rivers, in dangers from outlaws, in dangers from my countrymen, in dangers from the Gentiles, in dangers in the town, in dangers in the waste land, in dangers at sea, in dangers among false brothers; In hard work and weariness, in frequent watchings, going without food and drink, cold and in need of clothing. In addition to all the other things, there is that which comes on me every day, the care of all the churches.
Who gave us salvation from so great a death: on whom we have put our hope that he will still go on to give us salvation;
If running with the fighting-men has made you tired, how will you be able to keep up with horses? and if in a land of peace you go in flight, what will become of you in the thick growth of Jordan?
The Lord who takes up Israel's cause, even his Holy One, says to him whom men make sport of, who is hated by the nations, a servant of rulers: Kings will see and get up from their places, and chiefs will give worship: because of the Lord who keeps faith; even the Holy One of Israel who has taken you for himself.
For the rod of sinners will not be resting on the heritage of the upright; so that the upright may not put out their hands to evil.
And I have said, I will take you up out of the sorrows of Egypt into the land of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, into a land flowing with milk and honey.
Our soul has gone free like a bird out of the net of those who would take her: the net is broken, and we are free.
Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens, and your strong purpose is as high as the clouds.
Women had their dead given back to them living; others let themselves be cruelly attacked, having no desire to go free, so that they might have a better life to come; And others were tested by being laughed at or by blows, and even with chains and prisons: They were stoned, they were cut up with knives, they were tested, they were put to death with the sword, they went about in sheepskins and in goatskins; being poor and in pain and cruelly attacked, Wandering in waste places and in mountains and in holes in the rocks; for whom the world was not good enough.
Simon, Simon, Satan has made a request to have you, so that he may put you to the test as grain is tested: But I have made prayer for you, that your faith may not go from you: and when you are turned again, make your brothers strong.
But I will not take away my mercy from him, and will not be false to my faith.
And the rest, some on boards and some on things from the ship. And so it came about that they all got safe to land.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 1 Corinthians 10
Commentary on 1 Corinthians 10 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 10
In this chapter the apostle prosecutes the argument at the close of the last, and,
1Cr 10:1-5
In order to dissuade the Corinthians from communion with idolaters, and security in any sinful course, he sets before them the example of the Jews, the church under the Old Testament. They enjoyed great privileges, but, having been guilty of heinous provocations, they fell under very grievous punishments. In these verses he reckons up their privileges, which, in the main, were the same with ours.
1Cr 10:6-14
The apostle, having recited their privileges, proceeds here to an account of their faults and punishments, their sins and plagues, which are left upon record for an example to us, a warning against the like sins, if we would escape the like punishments. We must not do as they did, lest we suffer as they suffered.
1Cr 10:15-22
In this passage the apostle urges the general caution against idolatry, in the particular case of eating the heathen sacrifices as such, and out of any religious respect to the idol to whom they were sacrificed.
1Cr 10:23-33
In this passage the apostle shows in what instances, notwithstanding, Christians might lawfully eat what had been sacrificed to idols. They must not eat it out of religious respect to the idol, nor go into his temple, and hold a feast there, upon what they knew was an idol-sacrifice; nor perhaps out of the temple, if they knew it was a feast held upon a sacrifice, but there were cases wherein they might without sin eat what had been offered. Some such the apostle here enumerates.-But,