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Judges 9

Abimelech, son of Jerubbaal, went to his mother’s kin in Shechem,^a and said to them and to the whole clan to which his mother’s family belonged,

2“Put this question to all the lords of Shechem: ‘Which is better for you: that seventy men, all Jerubbaal’s sons, rule over you, or that one man rule over you?’ You must remember that I am your own flesh and bone.”^b

3When his mother’s kin repeated these words on his behalf to all the lords of Shechem, they set their hearts on Abimelech, thinking, “He is our kin.”

4They also gave him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith, with which Abimelech hired worthless men and outlaws as his followers.

5He then went to his father’s house in Ophrah, and killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. Only the youngest son of Jerubbaal, Jotham, escaped, for he was hidden.

6Then all the lords of Shechem and all Beth-millo came together and made Abimelech king by the terebinth at the memorial pillar in Shechem.

7When this was reported to Jotham, he went and stood at the top of Mount Gerizim and cried out in a loud voice:

“Hear me, lords of Shechem,

and may God hear you!

8One day the trees went out

to anoint a king over themselves.

So they said to the olive tree,

‘Reign over us.’

9But the olive tree answered them,

‘Must I give up my rich oil,

whereby gods and human beings are honored,^*

and go off to hold sway over the trees?’

10Then the trees said to the fig tree,

‘Come; you reign over us!’

11But the fig tree answered them,

‘Must I give up my sweetness

and my sweet fruit,

and go off to hold sway over the trees?’

12Then the trees said to the vine,

‘Come you, reign over us.’

13But the vine answered them,

‘Must I give up my wine

that cheers gods^* and human beings,

and go off to hold sway over the trees?’

14Then all the trees said to the buckthorn,

‘Come; you reign over us!’

15The buckthorn answered the trees,

‘If you are anointing me in good faith,

to make me king over you,

come, and take refuge in my shadow.

But if not, let fire come from the buckthorn

and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’^c

16“Now then, if you have acted in good faith and integrity in appointing Abimelech your king, if you have acted with good will toward Jerubbaal and his house, and if you have treated him as he deserved—

17for my father fought for you at the risk of his life when he delivered you from the power of Midian,

18but you have risen against my father’s house today and killed his seventy sons upon one stone and made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant,^d king over the lords of Shechem, because he is your kin—

19if, then, you have acted in good faith and integrity toward Jerubbaal and his house today, then rejoice in Abimelech and may he in turn rejoice in you!

20But if not, let fire come forth from Abimelech and devour the lords of Shechem and Beth-millo, and let fire come forth from the lords of Shechem and Beth-millo and devour Abimelech.”

21Then Jotham fled and escaped to Beer, where he remained for fear of his brother Abimelech.

22When Abimelech had ruled Israel for three years,

23God put an evil spirit^e between Abimelech and the lords of Shechem, and the lords of Shechem broke faith with the house of Abimelech.

24This was to repay the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal and to avenge their blood upon their brother Abimelech, who killed them, and upon the lords of Shechem, who encouraged him to kill his brothers.

25The lords of Shechem then set men in ambush for him on the mountaintops, and they robbed all who passed them on the road. It was reported to Abimelech.

26Now Gaal, son of Ebed, and his kin came, and when they passed through Shechem, the lords of Shechem put their trust in him.

27They went out into the fields, harvested the grapes from their vineyards, trod them out, and held a festival. Then they went to the temple of their god, where they ate and drank and cursed Abimelech.

28^f Gaal, son of Ebed, said, “Who is Abimelech? And who is Shechem that we should serve him? Did not the son of Jerubbaal and his lieutenant Zebul serve the men of Hamor, father of Shechem?^g So why should we serve him?

29Would that these troops were entrusted to my command! I would depose Abimelech. I would say to Abimelech, ‘Get a larger army and come out!’”

30When Zebul, the ruler of the city, heard what Gaal, son of Ebed, had said, he was angry

31and sent messengers to Abimelech in Arumah to say, “Gaal, son of Ebed, and his kin have come to Shechem and are stirring up the city against you.

32So take action tonight, you and the troops who are with you, and set an ambush in the fields.

33Promptly at sunrise tomorrow morning, make a raid on the city. When he and the troops who are with him come out against you, deal with him as best you can.”

34During the night Abimelech went into action with all his soldiers and set up an ambush outside of Shechem in four companies.

35Gaal, son of Ebed, went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate. When Abimelech and his soldiers rose from their place of ambush,

36Gaal saw the soldiers and said to Zebul, “There are soldiers coming down from the mountaintops!” But Zebul answered him, “It is the shadow of the hills that you see as men.”

37But Gaal went on to say, “Soldiers are coming down from the region of Tabbur-haarez, and one company is coming by way of Elon-meonenim.”

38Zebul said to him, “Where now is your boast, when you said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Are these not the troops for whom you expressed contempt? Go out now and fight with them.”

39So Gaal went out at the head of the lords of Shechem to fight against Abimelech;

40but when Abimelech went after him, he fled from him. Many fell slain right up to the entrance of the gate.

41Abimelech returned to Arumah, and Zebul drove Gaal and his kin away so that they could no longer remain at Shechem.

42The next day, the army marched out into the field, and it was reported to Abimelech.

43He divided the troops he had into three companies, and set up an ambush in the fields. He watched until he saw the army leave the city and then went on the attack against them.

44Abimelech and the company with him rushed in and stood by the entrance of the city gate, while the other two companies rushed upon all who were in the field and attacked them.

45That entire day Abimelech fought against the city. He captured it, killed the people who were in it, and demolished the city itself, sowing it with salt.^{* h}

46When they heard of this, all the lords of the Migdal-shechem went into the crypt of the temple of El-berith.

47It was reported to Abimelech that all the lords of the Migdal-shechem were gathered together.

48So he went up Mount Zalmon with all his soldiers, took his ax in his hand, and cut down some brushwood. This he lifted to his shoulder, then said to the troops with him, “Hurry! Do just as you have seen me do.”

49So all the soldiers likewise cut down brushwood and, following Abimelech, placed it against the crypt. Then they set the crypt on fire over them, so that every one of the people of the Migdal-shechem, about a thousand men and women, perished.

50Abimelech proceeded to Thebez, encamped, and captured it.

51Now there was a strong tower in the middle of the city, and all the men and women and all the lords of the city fled there, shutting themselves in and going up to the roof of the tower.

52Abimelech came up to the tower and fought against it. When he came close to the entrance of the tower to set it on fire,

53a certain woman cast the upper part of a millstone^* down on Abimelech’s head, and it fractured his skull.ⁱ

54He immediately called his armor-bearer and said to him, “Draw your sword and put me to death so they will not say about me, ‘A woman killed him.’”^j So his attendant ran him through and he died.

55When the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all left for their homes.

56Thus did God repay the evil that Abimelech had done to his father in killing his seventy brothers.

57God also brought all the wickedness of the people of Shechem back on their heads, for the curse of Jotham, son of Jerubbaal, overtook them.

Judges 10

Tola.

1After Abimelech, Tola,^* son of Puah, son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, rose up to save Israel; he lived in Shamir in the mountain region of Ephraim.

2When he had judged Israel twenty-three years, he died and was buried in Shamir.

Jair.

3Jair the Gileadite came after him and judged Israel twenty-two years.

4^a He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys^* and possessed thirty cities in the land of Gilead (these are called Havvoth-jair to the present day).^b

5Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

Oppression by the Ammonites.

6^c The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, serving the Baals and Ashtarts, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. Since they had abandoned the LORD and would not serve him,

7the LORD became angry with Israel and he sold them into the power of the Philistines and the Ammonites.

8For eighteen years they afflicted and oppressed the Israelites in Bashan, and all the Israelites in the Amorite land beyond the Jordan in Gilead.

9The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin and the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was in great distress.

10^d Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, “We have sinned against you, for we have abandoned our God and served the Baals.”

11^e The LORD answered the Israelites: Did not the Egyptians, the Amorites,^f the Ammonites, the Philistines,

12the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Midianites^g oppress you? Yet when you cried out to me, and I saved you from their power,

13you still abandoned me and served other gods. Therefore I will save you no more.^h

14Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen; let them save you in your time of distress.

15But the Israelites said to the LORD, “We have sinned. Do to us whatever is good in your sight. Only deliver us this day!”

16And they cast out the foreign gods from their midst and served the LORD, so that he grieved over the misery of Israel.

17The Ammonites were called out for war and encamped in Gilead, while the Israelites assembled and encamped at Mizpah.

18The captains of the army of Gilead said to one another, “The one who begins the war against the Ammonites shall be leader of all the inhabitants of Gilead.”ⁱ

Judges 11

Jephthah.

1Jephthah^a the Gileadite was a warrior. He was the son of a prostitute, fathered by Gilead.

2Gilead’s wife had also borne him sons. When they grew up the sons of the wife had driven Jephthah away, saying to him, “You shall inherit nothing in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.”

3So Jephthah had fled from his brothers and taken up residence in the land of Tob.^b Worthless men had joined company with him, and went out with him on raids.^c

4Some time later, the Ammonites went to war with Israel.

5As soon as the Ammonites were at war with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob.

6“Come,” they said to Jephthah, “be our commander so that we can fight the Ammonites.”

7“Are you not the ones who hated me and drove me from my father’s house?” Jephthah replied to the elders of Gilead, “Why do you come to me now, when you are in distress?”

8^d The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “This is the reason we have come back to you now: if you go with us to fight against the Ammonites, you shall be the leader of all of the inhabitants of Gilead.”

9Jephthah answered the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me back to fight against the Ammonites and the LORD delivers them up to me, I will be your leader.”

10The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The LORD is witness between us that we will do as you say.”

11So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the army made him their leader and commander. Jephthah gave all his orders in the presence of the LORD in Mizpah.

12Then he sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites to say, “What do you have against me that you come to fight with me in my land?”

13The king of the Ammonites answered the messengers of Jephthah, “Israel took away my land from the Arnon to the Jabbok and the Jordan when they came up from Egypt.^e Now restore it peaceably.”

14Again Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites,

15saying to him, “This is what Jephthah says: ‘Israel did not take the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites.^f

16For when they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh.

17Israel then sent messengers to the king of Edom saying, “Let me pass through your land.” But the king of Edom did not give consent.^g They also sent to the king of Moab, but he too was unwilling. So Israel remained in Kadesh.^h

18Then they went through the wilderness, and bypassing the land of Edom and the land of Moab, they arrived east of the land of Moab and encamped across the Arnon.ⁱ Thus they did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon is the boundary of Moab.^j

19^k Then Israel sent messengers to the Amorite king Sihon, who was king of Heshbon. Israel said to him, “Let me pass through your land to my own place.”

20But Sihon refused to let Israel pass through his territory. He gathered all his soldiers, and they encamped at Jahaz and fought Israel.

21But the LORD, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and his entire army into the power of Israel, who defeated them and occupied all the land of the Amorites who lived in that region.

22They occupied all of the Amorite territory from the Arnon to the Jabbok and the wilderness to the Jordan.^l

23Now, then, it was the LORD, the God of Israel, who dispossessed the Amorites for his people, Israel. And you are going to dispossess them?

24Should you not take possession of that which your god Chemosh^* gave you to possess, and should we not take possession of all that the LORD, our God, has dispossessed for us?

25Now, then, are you any better than Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel or make war against them?^m

26Israel has dwelt in Heshbon and its villages, Aroer and its villages, and all the cities on the banks of the Arnon for three hundred years.ⁿ Why did you not recover them during that time?

27As for me, I have not sinned against you, but you wrong me by making war against me. Let the LORD, who is judge, decide this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites!’”

28But the king of the Ammonites paid no heed to the message Jephthah sent him.

Jephthah’s Vow.

29The spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah.^o He passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and through Mizpah of Gilead as well, and from Mizpah of Gilead he crossed over against the Ammonites.

30^* Jephthah made a vow to the LORD.^p “If you deliver the Ammonites into my power,” he said,

31“whoever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return from the Ammonites in peace shall belong to the LORD. I shall offer him up as a burnt offering.”

32Jephthah then crossed over against the Ammonites to fight against them, and the LORD delivered them into his power.

33He inflicted a very severe defeat on them from Aroer to the approach of Minnith—twenty cities in all—and as far as Abel-keramin. So the Ammonites were brought into subjection by the Israelites.

34When Jephthah returned to his house in Mizpah, it was his daughter who came out to meet him, with tambourine-playing and dancing. She was his only child: he had neither son nor daughter besides her.

35When he saw her, he tore his garments and said, “Ah, my daughter! You have struck me down and brought calamity upon me. For I have made a vow^* to the LORD and I cannot take it back.”^q

36“Father,” she replied, “you have made a vow to the LORD. Do with me as you have vowed, because the LORD has taken vengeance for you against your enemies the Ammonites.”

37Then she said to her father, “Let me have this favor. Do nothing for two months, that I and my companions may go wander in the mountains to weep for my virginity.”

38“Go,” he replied, and sent her away for two months. So she departed with her companions and wept for her virginity in the mountains.

39At the end of the two months she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. She had not had relations with any man.

It became a custom in Israel

40for Israelite women to go yearly to mourn the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days of the year.

Judges 12

The Shibboleth Incident.

1The men of Ephraim were called out, and they crossed over to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you go to fight with the Ammonites without calling us to go with you?^a We will burn your house on top of you.”

2Jephthah answered them, “My soldiers and I were engaged in a contest with the Ammonites. They were pressing us hard, and I cried out to you, but you did not come to save me from their power.

3When I saw that you were not coming to save me, I took my life in my own hand and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the LORD delivered them into my power. Why, then, should you come up against me this day to fight with me?”

4Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The men of Gilead defeated Ephraim,

5and Gilead seized the fords of the Jordan against Ephraim. When any of the fleeing Ephraimites said, “Let me pass,” the men of Gilead would say to him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he answered, “No!”

6they would ask him to say “Shibboleth.”^* If he said “Sibboleth,” not pronouncing it exactly right, they would seize him and kill him at the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two thousand Ephraimites fell at that time.

7Jephthah judged Israel for six years, and Jephthah the Gileadite died and was buried in his city in Gilead.^b

Ibzan.

8After him Ibzan^* of Bethlehem judged Israel.

9^c He had thirty sons and thirty daughters whom he gave in marriage outside the family, while bringing in thirty wives for his sons from outside the family. He judged Israel for seven years.

10Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem.

Elon.

11After him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel; he judged Israel for ten years.

12Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried at Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

Abdon.

13After him Abdon, son of Hillel, the Pirathonite, judged Israel.

14^d He had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy donkeys. He judged Israel for eight years.

15Abdon, son of Hillel, the Pirathonite, died and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim in the mountain region of the Amalekites.

1 Corinthians 5

A Case of Incest.^*

1It is widely reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans—a man living with his father’s wife.^a

2And you are inflated with pride.^* Should you not rather have been sorrowful? The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst.

3I, for my part, although absent in body but present in spirit, have already, as if present, pronounced judgment on the one who has committed this deed,^b

4in the name of [our] Lord Jesus: when you have gathered together and I am with you in spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus,

5you are to deliver this man to Satan^* for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.^c

6^d Your boasting is not appropriate. Do you not know that a little yeast^* leavens all the dough?

7^* Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened. For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed.^e

8Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.^f

9^* I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people,

10not at all referring to the immoral of this world or the greedy and robbers or idolaters; for you would then have to leave the world.^g

11But I now write to you not to associate with anyone named a brother, if he is immoral, greedy, an idolater, a slanderer, a drunkard, or a robber, not even to eat with such a person.^h

12For why should I be judging outsiders? Is it not your business to judge those within?

13God will judge those outside. “Purge the evil person from your midst.”ⁱ

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The complete Book of Joshua

THE BOOK OF JUDGES

THE BOOK OF JUDGES

The Hebrew word translated “Judges” in the English title of the book refers not to specialized judicial officers or magistrates but to leaders in general. According to the biblical narrative these judges led Israel from the end of the conquest of Canaan until the beginning of the monarchy. The period of the Judges, therefore, extended from the death of Joshua (Jos 24:29–31; cf. Jgs 1:1) until the installation of Saul as Israel’s first king by the prophet Samuel, who was also the last judge (see 1 Sm 7:15–17).

The Book of Judges begins with two introductory passages. The first (chap. 1) gives a description of the situation in Canaan after the Israelite conquest. It emphasizes the continued existence of the indigenous inhabitants of Canaan in many parts of the land because of Israel’s inability to drive them out completely. The second passage (2:1–3:6) is a thematic introduction to the period of the Judges, describing a cyclical pattern of infidelity, oppression, “crying out,” and deliverance (see note on 2:10–19).

The main part of the book (3:7–16:31) consists of a series of stories about thirteen leaders whose careers are described in greater or lesser detail. The exploits of six of these—Othniel, Ehud, Deborah, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson—are related at length, and all are shown to have delivered Israel from oppression or danger. They are customarily called “major judges,” whereas the other six—Shamgar, Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon—who appear only in brief notices, are designated “minor judges.” The thirteenth, Abimelech, is included in neither group, since his story is essentially a continuation of that of Gideon and his career is presented as deplorable, a cautionary tale of royal ambition.

The final section of the book consists of two episodes, one about the migration of the tribe of Dan (chaps. 17–18) and the other about an intertribal war directed against the tribe of Benjamin (chaps. 19–21). These stories illustrate the religious and political disorder that prevailed at the time when, as yet, “there was no king in Israel” (see note on 17:6).

The principal contribution of the Deuteronomistic historian to the Book of Judges is the thematic introduction to—and theological evaluation of—the period of the Judges in 2:1–3:6, as well as editorial comments structuring the narrative throughout, e.g., 3:7; 4:1; etc. The historian drew the stories of the judges themselves from older sources, which could have existed in written form but derive ultimately from oral tradition.

Thus the principal divisions of the book in outline are as follows:

1. The Situation in Canaan Following the Israelite Conquest (1:1–3:6)
2. Stories of the Judges (3:7–16:31)
3. Further Stories of the Tribes of Dan and Benjamin (17:1–21:25)

The book of 1 Corinthians

THE FIRST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

Paul’s first letter to the church of Corinth provides us with a fuller insight into the life of an early Christian community of the first generation than any other book of the New Testament. Through it we can glimpse both the strengths and the weaknesses of this small group in a great city of the ancient world, men and women who had accepted the good news of Christ and were now trying to realize in their lives the implications of their baptism. Paul, who had founded the community and continued to look after it as a father, responds both to questions addressed to him and to situations of which he had been informed. In doing so, he reveals much about himself, his teaching, and the way in which he conducted his work of apostleship. Some things are puzzling because we have the correspondence only in one direction. For the person studying this letter, it seems to raise as many questions as it answers, but without it our knowledge of church life in the middle of the first century would be much poorer.

Paul established a Christian community in Corinth about the year 51, on his second missionary journey. The city, a commercial crossroads, was a melting pot full of devotees of various pagan cults and marked by a measure of moral depravity not unusual in a great seaport. The Acts of the Apostles suggests that moderate success attended Paul’s efforts among the Jews in Corinth at first, but that they soon turned against him (Acts 18:1–8). More fruitful was his year and a half spent among the Gentiles (Acts 18:11), which won to the faith many of the city’s poor and underprivileged (1 Cor 1:26). After his departure the eloquent Apollos, an Alexandrian Jewish Christian, rendered great service to the community, expounding “from the scriptures that the Messiah is Jesus” (Acts 18:24–28).

While Paul was in Ephesus on his third journey (1 Cor 16:8; Acts 19:1–20), he received disquieting news about Corinth. The community there was displaying open factionalism, as certain members were identifying themselves exclusively with individual Christian leaders and interpreting Christian teaching as a superior wisdom for the initiated few (1 Cor 1:10–4:21). The community lacked the decisiveness to take appropriate action against one of its members who was living publicly in an incestuous union (1 Cor 5:1–13). Other members engaged in legal conflicts in pagan courts of law (1 Cor 6:1–11); still others may have participated in religious prostitution (1 Cor 6:12–20) or temple sacrifices (1 Cor 10:14–22).

The community’s ills were reflected in its liturgy. In the celebration of the Eucharist certain members discriminated against others, drank too freely at the agape, or fellowship meal, and denied Christian social courtesies to the poor among the membership (1 Cor 11:17–22). Charisms such as ecstatic prayer, attributed freely to the impulse of the holy Spirit, were more highly prized than works of charity (1 Cor 13:1–2, 8), and were used at times in a disorderly way (1 Cor 14:1–40). Women appeared at the assembly without the customary head-covering (1 Cor 11:3–16), and perhaps were quarreling over their right to address the assembly (1 Cor 14:34–35).

Still other problems with which Paul had to deal concerned matters of conscience discussed among the faithful members of the community: the eating of meat that had been sacrificed to idols (1 Cor 8:1–13), the use of sex in marriage (1 Cor 7:1–7), and the attitude to be taken by the unmarried toward marriage in view of the possible proximity of Christ’s second coming (1 Cor 7:25–40). There was also a doctrinal matter that called for Paul’s attention, for some members of the community, despite their belief in the resurrection of Christ, were denying the possibility of general bodily resurrection.

To treat this wide spectrum of questions, Paul wrote this letter from Ephesus about the year 56. The majority of the Corinthian Christians may well have been quite faithful. Paul writes on their behalf to guard against the threats posed to the community by the views and conduct of various minorities. He writes with confidence in the authority of his apostolic mission, and he presumes that the Corinthians, despite their deficiencies, will recognize and accept it. On the other hand, he does not hesitate to exercise his authority as his judgment dictates in each situation, even going so far as to promise a direct confrontation with recalcitrants, should the abuses he scores remain uncorrected (1 Cor 4:18–21).

The letter illustrates well the mind and character of Paul. Although he is impelled to insist on his office as founder of the community, he recognizes that he is only one servant of God among many and generously acknowledges the labors of Apollos (1 Cor 3:5–8). He provides us in this letter with many valuable examples of his method of theological reflection and exposition. He always treats the questions at issue on the level of the purity of Christian teaching and conduct. Certain passages of the letter are of the greatest importance for the understanding of early Christian teaching on the Eucharist (1 Cor 10:14–22; 11:17–34) and on the resurrection of the body (1 Cor 15:1–58).

Paul’s authorship of 1 Corinthians, apart from a few verses that some regard as later interpolations, has never been seriously questioned. Some scholars have proposed, however, that the letter as we have it contains portions of more than one original Pauline letter. We know that Paul wrote at least two other letters to Corinth (see 1 Cor 5:9; 2 Cor 2:3–4) in addition to the two that we now have; this theory holds that the additional letters are actually contained within the two canonical ones. Most commentators, however, find 1 Corinthians quite understandable as a single coherent work.

The principal divisions of the First Letter to the Corinthians are the following:

1. Address (1:1–9)
2. Disorders in the Corinthian Community (1:10–6:20)
   1. Divisions in the Church (1:10–4:21)
   2. Moral Disorders (5:1–6:20)
3. Answers to the Corinthians’ Questions (7:1–11:1)
   1. Marriage and Virginity (7:1–40)
   2. Offerings to Idols (8:1–11:1)
4. Problems in Liturgical Assemblies (11:2–14:40)
   1. Women’s Headdresses (11:3–16)
   2. The Lord’s Supper (11:17–34)
   3. Spiritual Gifts (12:1–14:40)
5. The Resurrection (15:1–58)
   1. The Resurrection of Christ (15:1–11)
   2. The Resurrection of the Dead (15:12–34)
   3. The Manner of the Resurrection (15:35–58)
6. Conclusion (16:1–24)