Verse 8
8. I count all things At his conversion the apostle esteemed them all loss, and now, anticipating a question as to his present judgment, he affirms that he continues to so esteem them.
The excellency The supereminence of the knowledge of Christ above blood, birth, legal zeal, and observance.
Loss of all things In those terrible three days of darkness at Damascus he absolutely forsook all in surrendering to Christ, and on going forth he found all actually gone; his earthly prospects were blasted, his high fame withered, his name covered with scorn, and his life in peril from his countrymen. And now, after years of a life of toil, suffering, and trial, he esteems them only as dung mere worthless refuse as respects their power for the salvation of the soul.
That I may win Christ Better, gain Christ, thus preserving the contrast. The for Christ, and for whom, are now explained. To receive and possess him as a Saviour, and to be joined to him in a vital union, is a gain in comparison with which all else is truly vanity.
Be the first to react on this!
