1 Corinthians 8:4–6

Context

This passage opens chapters 8–10 of Paul's letter to the church at Corinth, in which he responds to the believers' question about "things offered unto idols." The phrase refers to meat offered in sacrifice at pagan temples. In Corinth at that time, such meat was sold in the marketplace or served at banquets in temple dining halls.

In 8:1–3, Paul first states that "Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth." In verses 4–6 he then sets out the fundamentals of the faith concerning idols and the true God, and in verses 7–13 he urges consideration for the "weak" who lack this knowledge.

Interpretation

• Reading as Corinthian slogans: Many commentators regard the statements in verse 4, "an idol is nothing in the world" and "there is none other God but one," as sayings the Corinthians were promoting, which Paul quotes. On this reading, Paul agrees with the propositions themselves but, in verses 7 and following, corrects the attitude of those who used them as grounds for acting without restraint.
• Reading as a reworked Shema: The Shema is the foundational confession of Judaism, beginning with Deuteronomy 6:4, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD." This reading holds that verse 6 applies the terms "God" and "Lord" found in the Shema to the Father and to Jesus Christ, respectively. Scholars such as Richard Bauckham and N. T. Wright cite the passage as evidence that the early church included Jesus within its monotheistic faith. The phrase "by whom are all things" is read as confessing Jesus as the mediator of creation. For this reason the passage serves as a proof text for Trinitarian theology and Christology.
• Reading the Father alone as God: Groups that reject the Trinity, such as the Jehovah's Witnesses, appeal to "one God, the Father" to argue that the Father alone is the true God and that Jesus is a lesser being. Trinitarian denominations respond that, by the same logic, the Father would not be "Lord." They maintain that the passage distinguishes the Father and the Son while uniting them within a single confession of faith.

Questions of Application

There is no major doctrinal dispute over this passage among the principal Protestant denominations. Several questions, however, are discussed in connection with it.

• One question is whether the "gods many, and lords many" of verse 5 actually exist. In 10:20 Paul also says that "the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils." Some interpreters therefore hold that although the idol itself is nothing, a spiritual reality lies behind it.
• Another question is how to balance the freedom that comes from right knowledge with consideration for a weaker neighbor.

In the Korean Church

In discussions of ancestral rites and memorial services, the passage is often cited, along with the rest of chapters 8–10, in debates over whether Christians may eat food from ancestral rites or gosa rice cakes offered in traditional rituals. Those who hold that such food may be eaten point to the statement that "an idol is nothing." Those who hold that it should be avoided point to the warnings of chapter 10 and to consideration for the weak. Both positions appeal to this text.

Related Passages

• Deuteronomy 6:4
• 1 Corinthians 10:19–21
• 1 Corinthians 10:23–24
• Colossians 1:15–17
• Romans 14:5–6