Mat 16:26, Luk 9:25, 1Cor 1:20, 3:19, Gal 4:3, Col 2:8 | Barnes | STEP | Verse 26. For what is a man profited , etc. To gain the whole world means to possess it as our own--all its riches, honours, and pleasures. To lose his own soul means to be cast away, to be shut out from heaven, to be sent to hell. Two things are implied by Christ in these questions: 1st, that they who are striving to gain the world, and are unwilling to give it up for the sake of religion, will lose their souls; and 2nd, that if the soul is lost, nothing can be given in exchange for it, or it can never after be saved. There is no redemption in hell. (b) "or what"

Matthew 16:26

Verse 26. For what is a man profited, etc. To gain the whole world means to possess it as our own--all its riches, honours, and pleasures. To lose his own soul means to be cast away, to be shut out from heaven, to be sent to hell. Two things are implied by Christ in these questions:

1st, that they who are striving to gain the world, and are unwilling to give it up for the sake of religion, will lose their souls; and

2nd, that if the soul is lost, nothing can be given in exchange for it, or it can never after be saved. There is no redemption in hell.

(b) "or what" Ps 49:7,8

Luke 9:25

1 Corinthians 1:20

Verse 20. Where is the wise? Language similar to this occurs in Isa 33:18, "Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?" Without designing to quote these words as having an original reference to the subject now under consideration, Paul uses them as any man does language where he finds words with which he or his readers are familiar, that will convey his meaning. A man familiar with the Bible will naturally often make use of Scripture expressions in conveying his ideas. In Isaiah the passage refers to the deliverance of the people from the threatened invasion of Sennacherib. The 18th verse represents the people as meditating on the threatened terror of the invasion; and then, in the language of exultation and thanksgiving at their deliverance, saying," Where is the wise man that laid the plan of destroying the nation? Where the inspector-general, (see my Note on the passage in Isaiah,) employed in arranging the forces? Where the receiver, (margin, the weigher,) the paymaster of the forces? Where the man that counted the towers Of Jerusalem, and calculated on their speedy overthrow? All baffled and defeated; and their schemes have all come to nought." So the apostle uses the same language in regard to the boasted wisdom of the world in reference to salvation. It is all baffled, and is all shown to be of no value.

The wise. σοφος. The sage. At first the Greek men of learning were called wise men, σοφοι like the magicians of the East. They afterwards assumed a more modest appellation, and called themselves the lovers of wisdom, φιλοσοφοι, or philosophers. This was the name by which they were commonly known in Greece, in the time of Paul.

Where is the scribe? γραμματευς. The scribe among the Jews was a learned man, originally employed in transcribing the law; but subsequently the term came to denote a learned man in general. Among the Greeks the word was used to denote a public notary; or a transcriber of the laws; or a secretary. It was a term, therefore, nearly synonymous with a man of learning; and the apostle evidently uses it in this sense in this place. Some have supposed that he referred to the Jewish men of learning here; but he probably had reference to the Greeks.

Where is the disputer of this world? The acute and subtle sophist of this age. The word disputer, συζητητης, properly denotes one who inquires carefully into the causes and relations of things; one who is a subtle and abstruse investigator. It was applied to the ancient sophists and disputants in the Greek academies; and the apostle refers, doubtless, to them. The meaning is, that in all their professed investigations, in all their subtle and abstruse inquiries, they had failed of ascertaining the way in which man could be saved; and that God had devised a plan which had baffled all their wisdom, and in which their philosophy was disregarded. The term world here, αιωνος refers, probably, not to the world as a physical structure--though Grotius supposes that it does--but to that age; the disputer of that age, or generation; an age eminently wise and learned.

Hath not God made foolish, etc, That is, has he not by the originality and superior efficacy of his plan of salvation, poured contempt on all the schemes of philosophers, and evinced their folly? Not only without the aid of those schemes of men, but in opposition to them, he has devised a plan for human salvation that evinces its efficacy and its wisdom in the conversion of sinners, and in destroying the power of wickedness. Paul here, possibly, had reference to the language in Isa 44:25: God "turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish."

(d) "foolish" Isa 44:25

1 Corinthians 3:19

Verse 19. For the wisdom of this world. That which is esteemed to be wisdom by the men of this world on the subject of religion. It does not mean that true wisdom is foolishness with him. It does not mean that science, and prudence, and law--that the knowledge of his works--that astronomy, and medicine, and chemistry, are regarded by him as folly, and as unworthy the attention of men. God is the Friend of truth, on all subjects; and he requires us to become acquainted with his works, and commends those who search them, Ps 92:4, 111:2. But the apostle refers here to that which was esteemed to be wisdom among the ancients, and in which they so much prided themselves--their vain, self-confident, and false opinions on the subject of religion; and especially those opinions when they were opposed to the simple but sublime truths of revelation. 1Cor 1:20,21.

Is foolishness with God. Is esteemed by him to be folly. 1Cor 1:20-24.

For it is written", etc. Job 5:13. The word rendered "taketh," here denotes to clench with the fist, gripe, grasp. And the sense is,

(1.) however crafty, or cunning, or skilful they may be, however self-confident, yet that they cannot deceive or impose upon God. He can thwart their plans, overthrow their schemes, defeat their counsels, mid foil them in their enterprises, Job 5:12.

(2.) He does it by their own cunning or craftiness. He allows them to involve themselves in difficulties, or to entangle each other. He makes use of even their own craft and cunning to defeat their counsels. He allows the plans of one wise man to come in conflict with those of another, and thus to destroy one another. Honesty in religion, as in everything else, is the best policy; and a man who pursues a course of conscientious integrity may expect the protection of God; but he who attempts to carry his purposes by craft and intrigue-- who depends on skill and cunning, instead of truth and honesty-- will often find that he is the prey of his own cunning and duplicity.

(a) "it is written" Job 5:13

Galatians 4:3

Verse 3. Even so we. We who were Jews--for so I think the word here is to be limited, and not extended to the heathen, as Bloomfield supposes. The reasons for limiting it are,

(1.) that the heathens in no sense sustained such a relation to the law and promises of God as is here supposed;

(2.) such an interpretation would not be pertinent to the design of Paul. He is stating reasons why there should not be subjection to the laws of Moses; and his argument is, that that condition was like that of nonage or minorship.

When we were children, νηπιοι. Minors. Gal 4:1. The word is not υιοι--sons; but the idea is, that they were in a state of nonage; and though heirs, yet were under severe discipline and regimen. They were under a kind of government that was fitted to that state, and not to the condition of those who had entered on their inheritance.

Were in bondage. In a state of servitude. Treated as servants or slaves.

Under the elements of the world. Marg., rudiments. The word rendered elements, (sing., στοιχειον,) properly means a row or series; a little step; a pin or peg, as the gnomen of a dial; and then anything elementary, as a sound, a letter. It then denotes the elements or rudiments of any kind of instruction, and in the New Testament is applied to the first lessons or principles of religion, Heb 5:1. It is applied to the elements or component parts of the physical world, 2Pet 3:10,12. Here the figure is kept up of the reference to the infant, Gal 4:1,3; and the idea is, that lessons were taught under the Jewish system adapted to their nonage--to a state of childhood. They were treated as children under tutors and governors. The phrase, "the elements of the world," occurs also in Col 2:8,20. In Gal 4:9 of this chapter, Paul speaks of these lessons as "beggarly elements," referring to the same thing as here. Different opinions have been held as to the reason why the Jewish institutions are here called "the elements of the world." Rosenmuller supposes it was because many of those rites were common to the Jews and to the heathen--as they also had altars, sacrifices, temples, libations, etc. Doddridge supposes it was because those rites were adapted to the low conceptions of children, who are most affected with sensible objects, and have no taste for spiritual and heavenly things. Locke supposes it was because those institutions led them not beyond this world, or into the possession and taste of their heavenly inheritance. It is probable that there allusion to the Jewish manner of speaking, so common in the Scriptures, where this world is opposed to the kingdom of God, and where it is spoken of as transient and worthless compared with the future glory. The world is fading, unsatisfactory, temporary. In allusion to this common use of the word, the Jewish institutions are called the worldly rudiments. It is not that they were in themselves evil--for that is not true; it is not that they were adapted to foster a worldly spirit--for that is not true; it is not that they had their origin from this world--for that is not true; nor is it from the fact that they resembled the institutions of the heathen world--for that is as little true; but it is that, like the things of the world, they were transient, temporary, and of little value. They were unsatisfactory in their nature, and were soon to pass away, and to give place to a better system--as the things of this world are soon to give place to heaven.

(++) "bondage" "servitude" (1) "elements" "rudiments" Col 2:8,20

Colossians 2:8

Verse 8. Beware lest any man spoil you. The word spoil now commonly means, to corrupt, to cause to decay and perish, as fruit is spoiled by keeping too long, or paper by wetting, or hay by a long rain, or crops by mildew. But the Greek word here used means to spoil in the sense of plunder, rob, as when plunder is taken in war. The meaning is, "Take heed lest any one plunder or rob you of your faith and hope by philosophy." These false teachers would strip them of their faith and hope, as an invading army would rob a country of all that was valuable.

Through philosophy. The Greek philosophy prevailed much in the regions around Colosse, and perhaps also the Oriental or Gnostic philosophy. See the Intro. They were exposed to the influences of these plausible systems. They consisted much of speculations respecting the nature of the Divine existence; and the danger of the Colossians was, that they would rely rather on the deductions of that specious reasoning, than on what they had been taught by their Christian teachers.

And vain deceit. Mere fallacy. The idea is, that the doctrines which were advanced ill those systems were maintained by plausible, not by solid arguments; by considerations not fitted to lead to the truth, but to lead astray.

After the tradition of men. There appear to have been two sources of danger to which the Christians at Colosse were exposed, and to which the apostle in these cautions alludes, though he is not careful to distinguish them. The one was that arising from the Grecian philosophy; the other from Jewish opinions. The latter is that to which he refers here. The Jews depended much on tradition, Mt 15:2;) and many of those traditions would have tended much to corrupt the gospel of Christ.

After the rudiments of the world. Marg., elements. See this explained Gall 4:3.

And not after Christ. Not such as Christ taught.

(e) "lest any man" Rom 16:17, Eph 5:6, Heb 13:9 (2) "rudiments" "elements"