tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8355052.post3245383493273924742..comments2024-03-28T09:52:15.415-04:00Comments on Common Denominator: Friday Paul: 5a. Disunity at CorinthKen Schenckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09745548537303356655noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8355052.post-12692029486824840392009-11-28T09:15:28.328-05:002009-11-28T09:15:28.328-05:00Richard,
Good afternoon. That Paul says 'not...Richard,<br /><br />Good afternoon. That Paul says 'not many' were of high standing but evidence does point to some being of such status; this does not present a contradiction. With all due respect: it does not even present an apparent contradiction. Logically, if 'not many' were not, that necessarily implies that 'some' were. It would only be problematic if Paul had said that 'none' in Corinth were of high standing and yet some were.<br /><br />When considered on a spectrum, with 'all' representing the spectrum itself, and a low-figure of 50 people comprising all of the Corinthian church, and if the 5 names you (initially) mentioned are distinct high standing individuals, then they only reflect 10% of the total population; thus, Paul's 'not many' is a realistic description and not contradictory. <br /><br />While I am not Ken by any stretch (he is light years ahead of me), I do hope this helps you in some way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8355052.post-6364250024437277822009-11-27T22:51:47.417-05:002009-11-27T22:51:47.417-05:00Ken,
you point to an apparent contradiction in th...Ken,<br /><br />you point to an apparent contradiction in the data: Paul tells us that not many were of high social status, but we know of Gaius, Titius Justus, Stephanas, Crispus, Chloe, and Erastus. How do you explain this contradiction?<br /><br />I argue that Stephanas (crowned) was Gaius Titius Justus renamed, and that Sosthenes was Crispus renamed. Also Chloe was surely an Ephesian who's people had visited Corinth. Chloe's people had given Paul an uncomplimentary report about the Corinthians. If chloe's people were part of the Corinthian church it would have been very untactful of Paul to reveal that they had given an unfavorable report about the church. Paul would want to protect his sources, not jeopardize their relationship with their own church.<br /><br />So, on my reconstruction, Erastus was the only wealthy believer who was in Corinth at the time that 1 Corinthians was written (Crispus-Sosthenes, Gaius-Titius-Justus-Stephanas, and Chloe were in Ephesus at the time).Richard Fellowshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06777460488456330838noreply@blogger.com