1 Coríntios 12

Ambrosiaster · Comentário Patrístico (catena)

1 Coríntios 12:2

Now that he is about to give them spiritual teaching, Paul recalls their former way of life. His intention is that, just as they have been worshipers of idols in the shape of statues and used to be led about by the will of demons, so now, as worshipers of God, they may walk according to the model of the law, so as to be pleasing to God. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:3

Any truth spoken by anyone is spoken by the Holy Spirit. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:6

Paul is emphatic in asserting that the distribution of gifts is not to be attributed to human causes as if they were achievable by men. The varied gifts of the Holy Spirit and the grace of the Lord Jesus are the work of one and the same God. The grace and the gift cannot be divided according to the persons of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit but must be understood as constituting the one work of the undivided unity and nature of the Three. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:7

Each person receives a gift so that, governing his life by divine constraints, he may be useful both to himself and to others while presenting an example of good behavior. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:8

In other words, he is given knowledge not by book learning but by the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:9

Paul says this to encourage the person concerned to suppress his shyness and receive the ability to profess and lay claim to faith. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:10

To interpret is to interpret faithfully by God's gift the sayings of those who speak in tongues or in writing. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:11

Paul is here attributing to the Holy Spirit what he earlier attributed to all three persons. Because they are of one nature and power, the Three do what the One does. There is only one God, whose grace is distributed to individuals as he wishes, not according to the merits of any particular person but for the upbuilding of his church. All those things which the world wants to imitate but cannot, because it is carnal, may be seen in the church, which is the house of God, where they are granted by the gift and instruction of the Holy Spirit. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:13

Paul is teaching that we should not treat anyone with contempt, nor should we regard anyone as perfect. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:14

The unity of the body consists in the fact that its many members supply the things which the other parts lack. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:15

This means that a weak brother cannot say that he is not a part of the body simply because he is not strong. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:16

Paul is saying that the person who is slightly inferior should not for that reason think that he is unnecessary to the body. Commentary on Paul's Epistles.

1 Coríntios 12:19

If everyone in the church were equal, there would be no body, because a body is governed according to the difference in the functions of its members. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:20

The diversity in the members of the body unites for the purpose of ensuring that the body fulfills its potential. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:21

The person who is greater in rank or dignity cannot do without those who are lower. For there are things which a humbler person can do which an exalted one cannot, just as iron can do things which gold cannot. Because of this, the feet perform an honorable function for the head. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:22

No matter how elevated a person may be, if he has no one under him, his rank is worthless. The greatest emperor still needs an army. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:23

Because our feet are lowly and lacking in dignity, we adorn them with shoes. It is clear that our private parts, which are thought to be shameful, cover themselves with respectability by avoiding public display, so as not to obtrude irreverently. Likewise, some of the brothers who are poor and unseemly in their dress are nevertheless not without grace, because they are members of our body. They go about in dirty little garments and barefoot. Though they may look contemptible, they are more to be honored because they usually lead a cleaner life. What men find despicable, God may find quite beautiful. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:24

We do not have to add anything to those whose eagerness for expertise and respectability is obvious—the honor due to them is given already. But an exhortation is necessary regarding the despised and lowly, to ensure that due honor is given to them, so that they may be seen as useful. Otherwise, if these people are despised, they will become more negligent about themselves. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:25

Paul is saying that the human body is so organized that all its members are necessary, and because of this, all are concerned for one another. One cannot exist without the other, and parts which are thought to be inferior are usually more necessary. No one ought to be despised as useless. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:28

Paul has placed the apostles at the head of the church. They may be identified with bishops, as Peter said of Judas: "Let another take his bishopric." There are two types of prophets, those who predict the future and those who interpret the Scriptures. The apostles are also prophets, because the top rank has all the others subordinated to it. Even a wicked man like Caiaphas uttered prophecies on the strength of his rank, not for any virtue he might have possessed. Teachers are those who instructed boys in the synagogue, a practice which has come down to us as well. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:29

A church has only one bishop, and prophecy is not given to everybody. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

1 Coríntios 12:31

The graces of the Lord which are seen in persons do not relate to the merit of the individual but to the honoring of God. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES