1 Corinthians 10:20 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Corinthians 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. I. He prefaces his argument with an appeal to their own reason and judgment: ?I speak to wise men, judge you what I say, 1 Cor. 10:15. You are great pretenders to wisdom, to close reasoning and argument; I can leave it with your own reason and conscience whether I do not argue justly.?... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

10:14-22 So then, my beloved ones, avoid everything that has to do with idols. I speak as I would to sensible men; pass your own judgment on what I am saying. Is not this blessed cup on which we ask the blessing, a very sharing in the blood of Jesus Christ? Is not the bread which we break a very sharing in the body of Christ? Just as the broken bread is one, so we, though we are many, are one body. For we all share in the one bread. Look at the nation of Israel in the racial sense. Do not... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:20

But I say ,.... This is my sense and meaning, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice unto devils, and not to God ; reference is had to Deuteronomy 32:17 for what the Gentiles sacrificed, though they did not sacrifice intentionally to the idols of gold, silver, wood, and stone, but to God in them, as they pretended; yet inasmuch as in such worship and sacrifices they were directed, instigated, influenced, and assisted by devils, who took up their residence in these... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:20

Verse 20 20.But the things (585) that the Gentiles sacrifice. To complete the answer, a negative must be understood in this way: “I do not say that an idol is anything, nor do I imagine it to be endued with any virtue, but I say that the Gentiles sacrifice to the devil and not to gods those things which they do sacrifice, and hence I estimate the work by their wicked and impious superstition. For we must always look to the intention with which a thing is done. He, then, who connects himself... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

Wariness in Christian walk. A burning question amongst Corinthian Christians was whether they were justified in partaking of sacrifices offered to idols. With this the apostle deals in several parts of these Epistles. Note the course of his argument here. I. HE LIFTS THE VEIL FROM IDOLATRY . He is quite willing to allow that an idol is nothing in itself, and that meats offered to an idol are in themselves as though they had not been so offered. But he thrusts upon the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:14-33

Argument further enforced; fellowship with Christ by means of the communion; idolatrous feasts a communion with demons; law, expediency, conscience. "Wherefore," says St. Paul, as a deduction from the foregoing argument, "my dearly beloved," his heart kindled anew towards his brethren, "flee from idolatry." This dread of idolatry is the key to what follows. Idolatry, in those days, was a sin that included all sins, and Corinth was behind no city in the charm and splendour it threw around... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:15-22

The inherent disgracefulness of any tampering with idolatry. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:16-22

The Christian feast. "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?" etc. The text undoubtedly refers to the feast which Christ instituted the night on which he was betrayed, and the words lead us to look at that feast in two aspects. I. AS A MEDIUM FOR SPIRITUAL COMMUNION . "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" The... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:20

But . The word rejects the former hypothesis. "[No I do not admit that], but what I say is that," etc. They sacrifice to devils, and not to God . The word "demons" should be used, not" devils" ( Deuteronomy 32:17 ). The argument is that, though the idol is nothing—a mere stock or stone—it is yet the material symbol of a demon (see Psalms 96:5 ; Psalms 106:37 ; Baruch 4:7). So Milton - "And devils to adore for deities; Then were they known to men by various names, And various... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:20

But - The negative here is omitted, but is understood. The ellipsis of a negative after an interrogative sentence is common in the Classical writers as well as in the Scriptures. Bloomfield. The sense is, “No; I do not say this, but I say that there are reasons why you should not partake of those sacrifices; and one of those reasons is, that they have been really offered to devils.”They sacrifice to devils - (δαιμονίοις daimoniois, “demons”). The pagans used the word demon either in a good or... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:15-22

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:20

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:20

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:14-22

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:14-33

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:15-22

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:16-22

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Corinthians 10:20

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 Corinthians 10:20

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