1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians. By Craig Blomberg. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994, 352 pp., $21.99.

This volume is the first release in Zondervan's new NIV Application Commentary series. The primary goal of the series is to model for the reader how to bring "an ancient message into a modern context" (p. 7). The format to achieve this goal is to divide each textual treatment into three sections: Original Meaning, Bridging Contexts, and Contemporary Significance. The first section provides the commentator's exegetical treatment, the second demonstrates the process of moving original meaning into contemporary significance and the third contains the writer's application of the significance of the two to concrete contemporary situations. Blomberg methodically pursues this agenda in the commentary.

The goal and format of the commentary is its major strength. The scholar-author who often merely dispenses factual data and leaves the reader to draw conclusions is released to pursue almost anything he or she would deem appropriate. Blomberg does not hesitate to promote his personal views of texts. For example, he comments freely on areas such as the charismata (nature of gifts, pp. 248-251; cessationism as a "major theological error," pp. 262-263), divorce and remarriage (pp. 138, 142), women's issues in 1 Corinthians 11 and 14, degrees of reward in heaven (p. 78), and the "lordship salvation" debate (p. 83). The author dismisses political correctness and boldly comments on Campus Crusade (pp. 82-83), the soteriological and eternal punishment debate (pp. 81, 304, 312), masturbation (p. 130) and homosexuality (pp. 121-123). I do wonder, however, why Blomberg's negative comment about "inspiration" in reference to 1 Cor 2:6-16 does not contain a note citing a key article by Walter Kaiser on this text (cf. p. 67). One could also wish for some treatment of the Jesus Seminar when Blomberg clearly supports traditional Christology in 1 Corinthians 15. Whether the reader agrees or disagrees with Blomberg's views, it is refreshing to see current issues engaged without reservations.

This kind of commentary is particularly subject to the competence and writing skills of the author. Blomberg's composition is user-friendly and in touch with what is on the mind of the pastor and the person in the pew. He leads the reader from the past to the present with skill. Reference to first-century historical backgrounds keeps the Biblical world in front of the reader. Allusion to the history of doctrine frequently makes the reader sensitive to how the Church has thought about texts. Abundant footnotes provide the more ambitious reader with paths for further study. Correction of the linguistic misuse of the NT is also provided (e.g. giving a proper understanding of synonyms such as "another/other" or the different words for "love").

The strength of this volume is also a weakness. The exegetical section is obviously abbreviated to allow for the other two sections. Blomberg does well under such restrictions, but the reader is often teased with exegetical comments that are not unpacked. Overall, the commentary does not advance the interpretive literature on 1 Corinthians. But that is not its purpose.

A major flaw relates to the publisher's failure to provide a subject index (a Scripture index is provided). In an age of computer composition, this is a particularly disappointing omission. Pastors and church members will look to this kind of publication as a quick reference to current questions but will find themselves frustrated in their attempt to retrieve the information they seek. The reviewer notes that this need has not been addressed in the recent release of the Galatians volume in the series.

This commentary, and the series it introduces, serves several needs. It enables the modern reader to watch a skilled craftsman pursue the meaning and significance of an ancient text and render the results in a readable format. It also provides teachers of English Bible courses with a commentary that addresses the needs of that level of student while providing adequate exegetical content and sections that certainly stimulate discussion of the significance of the text for today.

Gary T. Meadors Grand Rapids Baptist Seminary, Grand Rapids, MI

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Mar 1998
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