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Selected Verse: 1 Corinthians 10:8 - King James
| Verse |
Translation |
Text |
| 1Co 10:8 |
King James |
Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
| A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
fornication--literally, Fornication was generally, as in this case (Num. 25:1-18), associated at the idol feasts with spiritual fornication, that is, idolatry. This all applied to the Corinthians (Co1 5:1, Co1 5:9; Co1 6:9, Co1 6:15, Co1 6:18; Co1 8:10). Balaam tempted Israel to both sins with Midian (Rev 2:14). Compare Co1 8:7, Co1 8:9, "stumbling-block," "eat . . . thing offered unto . . . idol."
three and twenty thousand--in Num 25:9 "twenty and four thousand." If this were a real discrepancy, it would militate rather against inspiration of the subject matter and thought, than against verbal inspiration. The solution is: Moses in Numbers includes all who died "in the plague"; Paul, all who died "in one day"; one thousand more may have fallen the next day [KITTO, Biblical CyclopÃ&brvbr;dia]. Or, the real number may have been between twenty-three thousand and twenty-four thousand, say twenty-three thousand five hundred, or twenty-three thousand six hundred; when writing generally where the exact figures were not needed, one writer might quite veraciously give one of the two round numbers near the exact one, and the other writer the other [BENGEL]. Whichever be the true way of reconciling the seeming discrepant statements, at least the ways given above prove they are not really irreconcilable. |
| Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834] |
Neither let us commit fornication ... - The case referred to here was that of the licentious contact with the daughters of Moab, referred to in Num 25:1-9.
And fell in one day - Were slain for their sin by the plague that prevailed.
Three and twenty thousand - The Hebrew text in Num 25:9, is twenty-four thousand. In order to reconcile these statements, it may be observed that perhaps 23,000 fell directly by the plague, and 1,000 were slain by Phinehas and his companions (Grotius); or it may be that the number was between 23,000 and 24,000, and it might be expressed in round numbers by either - Macknight. At all events, Paul has not exceeded the truth. There were at least 23,000 that fell, though there might have been more. The probable supposition is, that the 23,000 fell immediately by the hand of God in the plague, and the other thousand by the judges; and as Paul's design was particularly to mention the proofs of the immediate divine displeasure, he refers only to those who fell by that, in illustration of his subject - There was a particular reason for this caution in respect to licentiousness:
(1) It was common among all idolaters; and Paul in cautioning them against idolatry, would naturally warn them of this danger.
(2) it was common at Corinth. It was the prevalent vice there. To "Corinthianize" was a term synonymous among the ancients with licentiousness.
(3) so common was this at Corinth, that, as we have seen (see the introduction), not less than 1,000 prostitutes were supported in a single temple there; and the city was visited by vast multitudes of foreigners, among other reasons on account of its facilities for this sin. Christians, therefore, were in a special manner exposed to it; and hence, the anxiety of the apostle to warn them against it. |
| The Scofield Bible Commentary, by Cyrus Ingerson Scofield, [1917] |
fell in one day
Compare (Num 25:9).
A discrepancy has been imagined. (Co1 10:8). Gives the number of deaths in "one day"; (Num 25:9); the total number of deaths "in the plague." Some discrepant statements concerning numbers are, however, found in the existing manuscripts of the Hebrew Scriptures.
These are most naturally ascribed to the fact that the Hebrews used letters in the place of numerals. The letters for "Koph" to "Tau" express hundreds up to four hundred. Five certain Hebrew letters, written in a different form, carry hundreds up to nine hundred, while thousands are expressed by two dots over the proper unit letter: for example, the letter "Teth", used alone, stands for the number 9; with two dots over the letter, it stands for nine thousand. Errors in transcription of Hebrew numbers thus becomes easy, preservation of numerical accuracy becomes difficult. |
| Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65] |
| And fell in one day three and twenty thousand - Beside the princes who were afterwards hanged, and those whom the judges slew so that there died in all four and twenty thousand. Num 25:1, Num 25:9. |
| Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
| Fell in one day three and twenty thousand - In Num 25:9, the number is 24,000; and, allowing this to be the genuine reading, (and none of the Hebrew MSS. exhibit any various reading in the place), Moses and the apostle may be thus reconciled: in Num 25:4, God commands Moses to take all the heads (the rulers) of the people, and hang them up before the Lord against the sun; these possibly amounted to 1000, and those who fell by the plague were 23,000, so that the whole amounted to 24,000. Instead of εικοσιτρεις χιλιαδες, 23,000, two MSS., with the later Syriac and the Armenian, have εικοσιτεσσαρες χιλιαδες, 24,000; but this authority is too slender to establish a various reading, which recedes so much from the received text. I think the discordance may be best accounted for by supposing, as above, that Phineas and his companions might have slain 1000 men, who were heads of the people, and chief in this idolatry; and that the plague sent from the Lord destroyed 23,000 more; so an equal number to the whole tribe of Levi perished in one day, who were just 23,000. See Num 26:62; and see Lightfoot. |
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
9 But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.
7 Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.
14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.
10 For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol's temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols;
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
9 I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:
1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
1 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
3 And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.
4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.
5 And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor.
6 And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
7 And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand;
8 And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.
1 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
62 And those that were numbered of them were twenty and three thousand, all males from a month old and upward: for they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel.
4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.
9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.