Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Corinthians 12:14
For the body is not one member, but many.
14. For the body is not one member, but many ] The same leading idea is kept in view the diversity of functions, offices, gifts, but the unity of the body. No more complete or apposite illustration could be given. The body is one thing, animated by one soul, belonging to one being, yet with an infinity of various parts, each contributing by their action to the fulfilment of one and the same purpose, the life and usefulness of the man.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
For the body … – The body is made up of many members, which have various offices. So it is in the church. We are to expect the same variety there; and we are not to presume either that all will be alike, or that any member that God has placed there will be useless.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 14. For the body is not one member] The mystical body, the Church, as well as the natural body, is composed of many members.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
As the natural body is totum integrale, a whole consisting of many members; so the body spiritual, the mystical body of Christ, is not made up of one single member, but of many members.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
14. Translate, “For thebody also.” The analogy of the body, not consistingexclusively of one, but of many members, illustrates the mutualdependence of the various members in the one body, the Church. Thewell-known fable of the belly and the other members, spoken byMenenius Agrippa, to the seceding commons [LIVY,2.32], was probably before Paul’s mind, stored as it was withclassical literature.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
For the body is not one member,…. Not only one; nor is anyone member the body, though ever so eminent, as the head or eye: thus the church of Christ is not one person only, or does not consist of one sort of persons; as only of Jews, or only of Gentiles, or only of rich and freemen, or only of men of extraordinary gifts and abilities, or greatly eminent for grace and spiritual knowledge:
but many; members, as the Arabic version adds; as eyes, ears, hands, feet, c. so in the mystical body of Christ, the church, there are many members, some in a higher station, others in a lower some of greater gifts, grace, and usefulness, others of lesser; some Jews, other Gentiles; some bond, others free; yet all one in Christ the head, and all related to each other.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Is not one member ( ). The point sounds like a truism, but it is the key to the whole problem of church life both local and general. Vincent refers to the fable of the body and the members by Menenius Agrippa (Livy, II, 32), but it was an old parable. Socrates pointed out how absurd it would be if feet and hands should work against one another when God made them to cooperate (Xen., Mem. II. iii. 18). Seneca alludes to it as does Marcus Aurelius and Marcus Antoninus.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
The body. The student will naturally recall the fable of the body and the members uttered by Menenius Agrippa, and related by Livy, 2, 32; but the illustration seems to have been a favorite one, and occurs in Seneca, Marcus Antoninus, and others. 122
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “For the body is not one member.” (kai gar to soma ouk estin en mellos) “For even the body is not one member.” Not made up or composed of one member. Paul proceeds with the parallelism or comparison of the importance of harmony between and importance of function of each of the members of both the human body and the local church body.
2) “But many.” (alla molla) “But numerous (members) or parts.” The Corinth church was the body of (assembly of) Christ in Corinth made up of many members. Each member had been baptized, immersed for a special service in that congregation; and the Holy Spirit, Paul asserted, gave to each member some specific charismatic gift for service.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(14) For the body is not one member, but many.Here follows a series of suggestions as to the different parts of the body claiming independence of the body itself, which the nature of the case shows to be absurd.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
14. Body many The apostle varies the phases of the body to meet the complaints of the different cavillers. There were the weaker members met in 14-20, and the stronger in 21-27. The former would have all equal and essentially identical. But this would destroy the variety of members in the body. The whole body cannot be one limb.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, “Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body”, it is not therefore not of the body. And if the ear shall say, “Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body,” it is not therefore not of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?’
Having stressed the unity of the body Paul now distinguishes the individual members. The body is not one member, but many. There are feet and hands and ears and eyes (and head – 1Co 12:21). Each is a separate part of the one body, and the head is also but one member of the body.
He presents his picture quaintly and picturesquely as though different members of the body were trying to deny their place in it. (Which some of the Corinthians may well have been doing, thinking themselves superior). But they must recognise that they cannot, for the body needs all. All are necessary and not one must be lacking. All the members he selects are major parts and well separated from each other. And yet they are one in the body. It is clear that the body cannot do without them. They are all equally important to the whole.
In the same way, he implies, all the believers, with all their widely differing gifts, are necessary to Christ’s body. It is possible that in his selection of members, eyes, ears, hands, foot, he intends us to see that he includes those who were inspired to see and hear the truth, and those who performed the truth by going forth and doing good by hand and foot.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
1Co 12:14 ff. For the further illustration ( ) of this unity, the figure of the human body is again brought forward in order now to carry it out more minutely, and to show by it in detail on to 1Co 12:26 how preposterous it is to be discontented with the gift received, or to despise those differently gifted. On the whole passage, comp the speech of Menenius Agrippa in Livy, ii. 32, also Seneca, de ira , ii. 31; Marc. Anton. ii. 1, vii. 13; Clem. Cor. I. 37.
] because I am not hand, I am not of the body , do not belong to it.
. . [1989] ] cannot, with Erasmus, Luther, Castalio, Beza, Calvin, and most expositors, including Griesbach, Scholz, Flatt, Schulz, de Wette, Ewald, Maier, Neander, be taken as a question (which Billroth, Rckert, Hofmann, following Bengel and others, rightly reject), so that the double negative should strengthen the denial: num ideo non est corporis ? In this case, namely, would only be the ordinary interrogative, which presupposes an affirmative answer; but as such it can by no means warrant or explain an intensifying repetition. And an anadiplosis of the (Klotz, a [1990] Devar. p. 696 f.; Stallbaum, a [1991] Plat. Symp. p. 199 A) would be suitable in an earnest declaratory sentence, but not in such a question as this. We must therefore delete the mark of interrogation, as Lachmann also and Tischendorf have done, so as to make serve as a negative for the whole sentence, while the succeeding applies simply to the . We render consequently, so is he not on that account (namely, because he asserts it in that discontented expression) no part of the body ; that peevish declaration does not do away with what he is, namely, a member of the body.
Regarding with the accusative in the sense of: for the sake of, in virtue of, on account of , see Klausen, a [1992] Aesch. Choeph. 383; Krger on Thuc. i. 141. 6; so often in Demosthenes. By [1993] cannot be meant: this, that it is not the hand (Billroth and others), but only (comp Hofmann), as the logical relation of the protasis and apodosis requires: this, that it gives vent to such discontent about its position of not being the hand , as if it could not regard itself in its capacity of foot as belonging at all to the body. Erasmus in his Paraphrase happily describes the temper of the member which spoke in this way as: “ deplorans sortem suam .”
It may be added, that as early an interpreter as Chrysostom has appreciated the fact of Paul’s placing together foot and hand, eye and ear, as analogous members: , .
[1989] . . . .
[1990] d refers to the note of the commentator or editor named on the particular passage.
[1991] d refers to the note of the commentator or editor named on the particular passage.
[1992] d refers to the note of the commentator or editor named on the particular passage.
[1993] Comp. , 4Ma 10:19 ; , Jdt 8:25 .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
14 For the body is not one member, but many.
Ver. 14. Not one member, but many ] As man’s body curiously wrought, and as it were by the book, Psa 139:16 . Had God left out an eye or hand in his common place book (saith one) thou hadst wanted it.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
14. ] Analogy, by which this multiplicity in unity is justified: it is even so in the natural body , which, though one , consists of many members . The object of the continuation of the simile seems to be, to convince them that their various gifts had been bestowed by God on them as members of the Christian body, and that they must not, because they did not happen to possess the gifts of another , consider themselves excluded from the body , in which the weaker as well as the stronger, the less comely as well as the more comely members were necessary.
The student will remember the fable spoken by Menenius Agrippa to the mutinous plebs in Livy ii. 32. The passage is also illustrated by Seneca de Ira, ii. 31, ‘Quid si nocere velint manus pedibus, manibus oculi? Ut omnia inter se membra consentiunt, quia singula servari totius interest: ita homines singulis parcent, quia ad clum geniti sumus: salva autem esse societas nisi amore et custodia partium non potest:’ and by Marc [57] Antonin. ii. 1, where in his morning meditations on the duty of repressing anger through the day, he says, , , , , , . See also id. vii. 13: Clem [58] ad Cor. c. xxxvii. p. 284: and other examples in Wetstein.
[57] Marcus Monachus, 390
[58] Clement of Alexandria, fl. 194
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
1Co 12:14 recalls, under the analogy of the , the reason given in 1Co 12:12 for the diversity of spiritual powers displayed in the Church: it is not “one member,” but “many” that constitute the “body”. This thesis the rest of the illustrates.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1Co 12:14-18
14For the body is not one member, but many. 15If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 16And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.
1Co 12:14-26 Paul uses the physical body as an analogy to show the mutual relationship between the individual parts of the body necessary for the functioning of the whole. Each individual part is needed for the health and effectiveness of the whole.
1Co 12:14 This is the summary truth repeated several times in this chapter (cf. 1Co 12:12-14; 1Co 12:20; 1Co 12:25; 1Co 12:27).
1Co 12:15-16 “If. . .if” These are both third class conditional sentences, which denote potential action. These verses show the tension that existed between not only the factious groups, but their over-evaluation of certain spiritual gifts. All gifts are from God and He chooses which one for each believer (cf. 1Co 12:11; 1Co 12:18).
1Co 12:17; 1Co 12:19 “If. . .if” These are incomplete second class conditional sentences (i.e., no verb in 1Co 12:17 and no concluding clause in all three). The first part is false (i.e., the whole body is not an eye, 1Co 12:17; the whole body is not an ear, v, 17; and the whole body is not one member, 1Co 12:19, cf. A. T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament In Light of Historical Research, pp. 1015,1023 and Short Grammar of the Greek New Testament, p. 166).
1Co 12:18 “God has placed” This is an aorist middle indicative, which implies a complete and personal action. In 1Co 12:11 the Spirit is said to distribute the gifts. This is an obvious identification of the Spirit as divine! See Special Topic at 1Co 2:11.
“God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired” The reference is to creation but the analogy is to spiritual gifts (cf. 1Co 12:27). We don’t choose; God places.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
14.] Analogy, by which this multiplicity in unity is justified: it is even so in the natural body,-which, though one, consists of many members. The object of the continuation of the simile seems to be, to convince them that their various gifts had been bestowed by God on them as members of the Christian body, and that they must not, because they did not happen to possess the gifts of another, consider themselves excluded from the body,-in which the weaker as well as the stronger, the less comely as well as the more comely members were necessary.
The student will remember the fable spoken by Menenius Agrippa to the mutinous plebs in Livy ii. 32. The passage is also illustrated by Seneca de Ira, ii. 31, Quid si nocere velint manus pedibus, manibus oculi? Ut omnia inter se membra consentiunt, quia singula servari totius interest: ita homines singulis parcent, quia ad clum geniti sumus: salva autem esse societas nisi amore et custodia partium non potest:-and by Marc[57] Antonin. ii. 1, where in his morning meditations on the duty of repressing anger through the day, he says, , , , , , . See also id. vii. 13: Clem[58] ad Cor. c. xxxvii. p. 284: and other examples in Wetstein.
[57] Marcus Monachus, 390
[58] Clement of Alexandria, fl. 194
Fuente: The Greek Testament
1Co 12:14. , for even) This protasis concerning the body extends to 1Co 12:26 : and is so adjusted, that the apodosis, 1Co 12:27, is summarily added.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
1Co 12:14
1Co 12:14
For the body is not one member, but many.-The human body, like the church, is not all one member, but is composed of many different members. [The word members means a constituent part having a function of its own.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
1Co 12:12, 1Co 12:19, 1Co 12:27, 1Co 12:28, Eph 4:25
Reciprocal: Num 10:31 – instead of eyes 1Ki 5:6 – that there is not 1Co 12:29 – all apostles
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Co 12:14. It takes more than one member to constitute a human body.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Our apostle here elegantly compares the state of the mystical body, the church, with that of the natural body. As the natural body is one, so is the mystical body; as the natural body is informed and animated with one spirit or soul, so the mystical body, the church, is animated by one and the same Spirit, received from our spiritual head, Christ Jesus, and communicated to all the members of his body, to give them life and motion. As the members of the natural body are not alike, but some superior, and others inferior in excellency, yet all of indispensable use; (for the wise God hath created no member of man’s body in vain; but designed all for the mutual help and benefit of one another,) in like manner is it in the church, the mystical body; there are different gifts, others are of meaner abilities; yet all conduce to the good of the whole. One of inferior gifts must not account himself useless, (for every one that cannot be excellent may yet by useful,) for if so, what would become of the church? Therefore there must be different gifts and offices for different uses. But every one must employ his gift, and perform his office, according to the nature of it, for the service of the whole.
Learn hence, 1. That several men have their several gifts, as it pleaseth the gift-giving Spirit to give unto them.
Learn, 2. That such as have the meanest talent, either of gifts or graces, ought not to esteem themselves, or be esteemed by others, as useless or unserviceable; but to employ their talent, though ever so small, for the service and benefit of the whole church.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
1Co 12:14-20. For the body is not one member, but many All of which are necessary, that the various sorts of offices belonging to the body may be all performed: thus there must be different gifts and offices in the church of Christ, which all conduce to the advantage and perfection of the whole. If the foot One of inferior gifts and place; shall say, Because I am not the hand Do not appear in a more honourable place, and have not a more important office; I am not of the body I am separated from, or despised by it, in my low situation; is it therefore not of the body Is the inference good? Would it have reason on this account to represent or think itself an outcast? The foot here is elegantly introduced as speaking of the hand, the ear of the eye; each of a part that has some resemblance to it. So among men, each is apt to compare himself with those whose gifts some way resemble his own, rather than with those who are at a distance, either above or beneath him. Perhaps the foot may represent private Christians; the hand, active officers in the church; the eye, discerning teachers; and the ear, attentive hearers. If the whole body were an eye And a man could look, at will, through every pore; where were the hearing That important sense, which admits so much pleasing entertainment and improvement? And if the whole were hearing, where were the smelling A sense which, though less important than the former, is not destitute of its proper delight and its proper use. The sense is, If all the members of the church had the same gifts, though the most excellent, as seeing or hearing, what would become of the church? There must be different offices and gifts for different uses, and each ought to employ his gift, according to the nature of it, for the service of the whole. But now we see God The wise and great Creator; hath set the members in the body as it hath pleased him With the most exquisite wisdom and goodness. If they were all one member Or if the members were all of one form and use; where were the body How could it possibly subsist? But now they are many members Different from each other, possessed of different powers, and intended for different uses; yet but one harmonious, regular body Furnished for the various animal functions, and capable of a variety of sensations and actions. And it is a necessary consequence of this unity, that the several members need one another.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Vv. 14. The apostle impresses this idea by taking up again the figure of the body which he had used to describe the unity of the Church; to this end it is enough for him to reverse the figure. In 1Co 12:12 : many members, but one body; in 1Co 12:14 : one body, but many members.
This notion of the diversity of members is explained 1Co 12:15-26, and applied to the Church 1Co 12:27-30.
Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)
For the body is not one member, but many.
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
DIVERSITY IN UNITY AND ALL EQUALLY GLORIOUS
14-27. Here Paul sets forth the fact that every regenerated soul is a member of the body of Christ, and, so far as the mere question of membership is concerned, all equally honorable in the sight of God. He beautifully and forcibly illustrates this truth by the human body; e. g., the foot is down in the mud and, from a superficial standing, dishonorable compared with the hand, which is carried aloft and kept clean. Yet we expend ten dollars on the foot to one on the hand, and we are much more careful to keep it from exposure. I would much rather have my hand amputated than my foot. The little nerves, so fine we can not see them, impart all the power to the muscles, so they would be utterly motionless if they were paralyzed. These reflections throw a flood of light on the body of Christ. I know a presiding elder who has a cleft palate, a very serious vocal deficiency. Yet God more than compensates for it. I was introduced to a man many years ago, as the Methodist pastor, who stammered so awfully that it was a consummate bore to talk to him. I observed to a brother: Why, this man cant preach. Do you go and hear him once, and if you do not want to go again, I will excuse you. I went through Curiosity. When he began he stammered abominably. I felt exceedingly sorry for him. In five minutes I saw him getting out of the brush. In ten minutes I forgot all about his stammering and began to get deeply absorbed in his message. In twenty minutes every trace of the stammering had evanesced. Before he got through I did not know whether I was there or somewhere else. He was one of the most powerful preachers I ever heard. I heard a man tell about visiting our Congress, and seeing a little, ugly, deformed old man sitting among the members with his hat on (weak eyes), but he soon observed that he was quite a center of attraction, the great, fine-looking members frequently going to him for information. It was Alexander Stephens, of Georgia, one of the greatest statesmen of his day. If you have a deficiency in some way, look out, God will make it up with compound interest. How frequently do people who have never enjoyed a collegiate education put the cultured literate in total eclipse! Grace is the most wonderful equalizer in all the world. Are you deficient in any way? Check on God.
Fuente: William Godbey’s Commentary on the New Testament
12:14 {9} For the body is not one member, but many.
(9) He amplifies that which followed of the similitude, as if he should say, “The unity of the body is not prevented by this diversity of members, and furthermore it could not be a body if it did not consist of many members, and those being different.”
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Both bodies, the physical human body and the spiritual body of Christ, consist of many members. This fact helps us realize our limited contribution to the larger organism. A body composed of only one organ would be a monstrosity.
The modern church often uses this pericope to stress the importance of unity, which is a great need today. However, Paul’s emphasis originally was on the importance of diversity.