1 Corinthians 8:1-11
New Catholic Bible
Christians and Pagan Customs[a]
The Question of Meat Sacrificed to Idols
Chapter 8
An Idol Is Not Nothing. 1 Now concerning the question of meat that has been sacrificed to idols, we are well aware that all of us possess knowledge. However, while knowledge puffs up, love builds up. 2 Anyone who believes that his knowledge about something is complete will soon discover that his knowledge is flawed, 3 but anyone who loves God is known by him.
4 Now in regard to the eating of meat sacrificed to idols, we know that idols are nothing in the world and that there is only one God. 5 Indeed, even though there are so-called gods in heaven and on earth—and there are in fact many gods and many lords— 6 for us there is
one God, the Father,
from whom all things are
and for whom we exist,[b]
and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom all things are
and through whom we exist.
Do Not Cause a Brother To Fall. 7 However, not everyone possesses this knowledge. There are some who have become so accustomed to idolatry up until now that when they consume meat that has been sacrificed to an idol, their conscience in its weakness is defiled.
8 Obviously, food cannot bring us closer to God. We do not lack anything if we do not eat, and we have no advantage if we do. 9 Just take care that your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. 10 If someone who regards you as knowledgeable observes you eating in an idol’s temple, will he not, burdened by a weak conscience, be influenced to eat food that has been sacrificed to idols?
11 Therefore, through your knowledge, this weak believer is brought to destruction, the brother for whom Christ died. 12 And when you sin against your brethren and wound their weak consciences, you sin against Christ. 13 Hence, if food can lead my brother to sin, I will never again eat meat lest I cause the downfall of one of my brethren.
Chapter 9
The Example of Paul’s Apostolate
A Missionary’s Rights. 1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? 2 Although others may not regard me as an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 To those who seek to pass judgment on me, my defense is this. 4 Do we not have the right to eat and drink? 5 Do we not have the right to be accompanied by a believing wife like the other apostles, the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?[c] 6 Are Barnabas[d] and I the only ones who do not have the right to refrain from working? 7 What soldier would ever serve in the army at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating its fruit? Or who tends a flock without consuming some of its milk?
8 I am not saying this based simply on human authority, for the Law says the very same thing. 9 In the Law of Moses it is written, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned, 10 or does he not rather say this for our sake? Without question it was written for our sake, for whoever plows should plow in hope and whoever threshes should thresh in hope, both in expectation of a share in the crop. 11 If we have sown a spiritual crop for you, is it unreasonable for us to expect from you a material harvest? 12 If others have this claim on you, do not we?
Despite this, we have never availed ourselves of any such right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than place an obstacle to the gospel of Christ. 13 Do you not know that those who perform the temple service receive their food from the temple, and that those who officiate at the altar share in the offerings? 14 In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the gospel should get their living from the gospel.[e]
15 I Have Become All Things to All. However, I have never availed myself of any of these rights, and I have not written this to influence you to grant me such treatment; I would rather die first. No one shall deprive me of this boast! 16 If I proclaim the gospel, that is no reason for me to boast, for the obligation to do so has been given to me, and woe to me if I fail to fulfill it.
17 If I proclaimed the gospel of my own volition, I would deserve a reward; but if I do not do so voluntarily, I am simply discharging the commission that has been given to me. 18 What then is my reward? It is simply that in my preaching I may offer the gospel free of charge and not make use of the rights that the gospel affords me.
19 Although I am free and belong to no man, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible. 20 To the Jews, I became like a Jew in order to win the Jews. To those under the Law, I became like one under the Law—although I myself am not under the Law—in order to win over those under the Law. 21 To those outside the Law, I became like one outside the Law—although I am not outside the Law of God but am subject to the Law of Christ—in order to win over those outside the Law. 22 To the weak, I have become weak in order to win over the weak. I have become all things to all, so that by every possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel so that I might share it with you.
Flee from Idolatry[f]
24 Discipline Yourself So As Not To Be Disqualified. You are well aware that while all the runners in the stadium compete in the race, only one wins the prize. Run in such a way as to win the prize. 25 Everyone who seeks a prize submits himself to rigorous self-discipline in every respect. They do so to win a perishable crown, while we seek an imperishable one. 26 Therefore, I do not run without purpose, nor do I fight like a man beating the air. 27 Rather, I discipline my body and bring it under control, for fear that after preaching to others I myself may be disqualified.
Chapter 10
The Lesson of Israel’s Past.[g] 1 Brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that our ancestors were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea, 2 and they were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 All ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink—for they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the desert.
6 These events occurred to offer examples for us so that we might not desire evil things as they did. 7 Do not become idolaters, as some of them did. It is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to engage in revelry.”
8 Let us not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand of them died in a single day. 9 Let us not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and they were destroyed by serpents. 10 And do not complain, as some of them did, and they were slain by the Destroyer.[h] 11 All these things happened to them to serve as an example, and they have been written down as a warning to us upon whom the end of the ages has come.
12 Therefore, if you think you are standing securely, take care that you do not fall 13 No trial has confronted you except what a person can stand. God is faithful, and he will not allow you to be tried beyond your strength. But together with the trial he will also provide a way out and the strength to bear it.
14 The Eucharist Versus Pagan Sacrifices.[i] Therefore, my dear friends, avoid idolatry at all costs.[j] 15 I am talking to you as sensible people. Judge for yourselves what I say. 16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.
18 Consider the people of Israel.[k] Are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? 19 What then am I implying? That meat sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?
20 No, I simply mean that pagan sacrifices are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to become partners with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. 22 Do we truly wish to provoke the Lord to jealous anger?[l] Are we stronger than he is?
23 Concerning Idol Offerings.“All things are lawful,” you may say—but not all things are beneficial. All things may be lawful—but not all things are constructive. 24 No one should seek his own advantage in preference to that of his neighbor. 25 You may eat whatever meat is sold in the market without raising questions on grounds of conscience, 26 for “the earth and all it contains belong to the Lord.”
27 If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you decide to accept, eat whatever is set before you without raising any questions on the grounds of conscience. 28 However, if someone says to you, “This food was offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, out of consideration for the one who informed you and for the sake of conscience— 29 I mean the other person’s conscience, not your own. For why should my freedom be governed by someone else’s conscience? 30 If I partake of the meal with thankfulness, why should I be criticized for eating food for which I give thanks?
31 Give No Offense. Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. 32 Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the Church of God, 33 just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own good but that of the many, so that they may be saved.
Chapter 11
1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
Footnotes
- 1 Corinthians 8:1 Paul is clearly convinced that as we do not allow any value to idols, neither do we allow it to meats sacrificed in honor of idols. Christians are therefore free to eat of them. But this principle holds only for a firm and enlightened faith that rises above every danger of contamination by superstition.
- 1 Corinthians 8:6 For whom we exist: another possible translation is: “toward whom we return.” Through whom all things are: this is the earliest mention in the New Testament of the role of Jesus in creation.
- 1 Corinthians 9:5 The other apostles, the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas: i.e., the missionaries or the heads of communities who were related to Jesus. It may be assumed that the married apostles, such as Peter, were accompanied by their wives.
- 1 Corinthians 9:6 Barnabas: see Acts 4:36-37; 11:25-26; chs. 13–14; 15:36-39.
- 1 Corinthians 9:14 Those who preach the gospel should get their living from the gospel: see Mt 10:10; Lk 10:7-8. This is one of the rare instances in which Paul expressly cites a saying of the Lord.
- 1 Corinthians 9:24 To take part in a sacred meal in the temples of idols is to run the risk of being seduced by idolatry. The reader should not play down this danger, which is connected with the danger of scandalizing the weak.
- 1 Corinthians 10:1 Paul calls to mind the story of the Hebrews in the wilderness, where the people were given all the gifts needed for life: the water and the manna, which symbolize Baptism and the Eucharist.
According to a tradition dear to the rabbis, the rock that Moses struck followed the Hebrews so that they might always have water. Paul uses this interpretation in order to make the point that since the time of the Exodus, Christ has been leading the people (see Num 20:8).
If the events in the life of the desert community foreshadow the reality of the Church, the behavior of the Israelites at that time must also serve as a warning that is ever actual: in order to please God, it is not enough to belong to the Church and to receive the Sacraments; Christians must also be committed to an unwavering effort to be faithful, relying on the help of the Spirit.
In this section, Paul is teaching us how to read the Old Testament in a Christian perspective. - 1 Corinthians 10:10 The Destroyer: the angel charged with inflicting divine punishments (see Ex 12:21-28).
- 1 Corinthians 10:14 Taking part in a form of worship means entering into communion with the divinity to which it is offered. Christians, who participate in the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist, are well aware of this. By emphasizing the radical opposition between the Eucharist and pagan cults, Paul makes clear the place that the Eucharistic celebration had in the early Church. This participation gives rise to the Body of Christ that is the Church, but it also requires a serious commitment to live according to the Gospel.
- 1 Corinthians 10:14 Avoid idolatry at all costs: the Christians of Corinth must do their utmost to avoid idolatry especially since they are surrounded by temples of other gods. They daily come into contact with temples for the worship of Apollo, Asclepius, Demeter, Aphrodite, and other pagan gods and goddesses. The most common temptation was that of the worship of Aphrodite with its many sacred prostitutes (which at one time numbered 1000).
- 1 Corinthians 10:18 The people of Israel: literally, “Israel according to the flesh,” that is, Jews by birth, as distinct from “the Israel of God,” to which persons belong by faith (see Rom 2:28-29).
- 1 Corinthians 10:22 Provoke the Lord to jealous anger: in the Old Testament, this points to the incompatibility of adoring God and worshiping idols.
