1 Corinthians 9:27

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 9:27

But I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage: lest by any means, after that I have preached to others, I myself should be rejected.Buffet my body ... is metaphorical and does not refer to any type of flagellation such as was practiced by ascetics as a means of religious discipline. It indicates that every Christian, as Paul did, should exercise the sternest self-control over the body, its desires and appetites being a powerful source of temptation in all people.I myself should be rejected... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Corinthians 9:27

27. keep under—literally, "bruise the face under the eyes," so as to render it black and blue; so, to chastise in the most sensitive part. Compare "mortify the deeds of the body," :-; also 1 Peter 2:11. It is not ascetic fasts or macerations of the body which are here recommended, but the keeping under of our natural self-seeking, so as, like Paul, to lay ourselves out entirely for the great work. my body—the old man and the remainders of lust in my flesh. "My body," so far as by the flesh it... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Apostolic exhortation and example 9:24-27This passage is transitional, concluding Paul’s defense of his apostolic authority (1 Corinthians 9:1-23) and returning to the argument against participating in cultic meals (ch. 8). Metaphors from the athletic games fill the pericope. Philosophers and other orators in Paul’s world frequently used athletic metaphors to describe their labors. [Note: Keener, pp. 81-82.] read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Corinthians 9:27

In another sense Paul viewed his flesh as his enemy. He recognized the need to exercise strict self-discipline. Obviously Paul was not speaking of self-discipline in the physical realm alone. He also had in mind moral discipline and discipline in the amoral areas of his life including voluntary curtailment of personal rights and liberties (cf. ch. 8; 1 Timothy 4:8). [Note: See Jerry M. Hullinger, "The Historical Background of Paul’s Athletic Allusions," Bibliotheca Sacra 161:643 July-September... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Corinthians 9:1-27

(b) Food offered to Idols(ii) St. Paul’s own ExampleSt. Paul has appealed to the ’enlightened’ converts at Corinth to give up for the sake of others a practice which they might otherwise have had no hesitation in indulging. He now strengthens this appeal by pointing to his own example of self-denial. As an Apostle he had the right to maintenance from the Church, but had refrained from exercising it, lest he might be suspected of preaching for gain.Since his opponents declared that he maintained... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - 1 Corinthians 9:27

(27) But I keep under my body.—Better, but I bruise my body. The word is very strong, and implies to beat the flesh until it becomes black and blue. The only other place the word occurs is in Luke 18:5. The body is spoken of as his adversary, or the seat of those lusts and appetites which “war against the mind” (Romans 7:23; Galatians 5:17).Bring it into subjection.—Better, and make it a slave. The idea is carried on that the body is not only conquered, but led captive. We must remember that... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - 1 Corinthians 9:1-27

1 Corinthians 9:15 You find these heroic words in 1 Corinthians 9:15 . I purposely cut the text short here, and leave every man to fill up the concluding sentence for himself. Paul tells us the reason, but Paul's reason may not be ours. We have a great principle laid down here, and it is for each man in his own sphere and in his own way to apply that principle. I want every man who is here to take this as a motto, a living principle, a perpetual rule of life. 'It were better for me to die than... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Chapter 14NOT ALL WHO RUN WININ the preceding part of this chapter Paul has proved his right to claim remuneration from those to whom he preached the Gospel, and he has also given his reasons for declining to urge this claim. He was resolved that no one should have any ground for misapprehending his motive in preaching the Gospel. He was quite content to live a bare, poor life, not merely that he might keep himself above suspicion, but that those who heard the Gospel might see it simply as the... read more

Arno Clemens Gaebelein

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - 1 Corinthians 9:1-27

6. Paul’s Gracious Example. CHAPTER 9 1. The Apostle’s rights. (1 Corinthians 9:1-14 ). 2. He waives his rights for the Gospel’s sake. (1 Corinthians 9:15-23 ). 3. The race-course and the crown. (1 Corinthians 9:24-27 ). The great principle laid down in the previous chapter to forego one’s Christian liberty, the Apostle Paul enforced by his own example. He was an Apostle and had seen the Lord Jesus, from whom he had received his apostleship (Galatians 1:1 ). From the second verse we learn... read more

John Calvin

Geneva Study Bible - 1 Corinthians 9:27

9:27 But I keep under my {t} body, and bring [it] into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be {u} a castaway.(t) The old man which strives against the Spirit.(u) Or, "reproved". And this word "reproved" is not contrasted with the word "elect", but with the word "approved", when we see someone who is experienced not to be such a one as he ought to be. read more

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