The Collection, Exhortations, and Greetings
Issues Concerning the Collection for the Saints (16:1-16:11)
We come to the final chapter and the sixth and final issue Paul is going to address in this letter: the collection for the saints.
The Collection for the Saints (1-4)
Paul was involved in raising a collection for the Jerusalem church which had been experiencing some huge bouts with lack complicated by famines and the want which had arisen from the normal persecution associated with following Christ.
Paul spends the first four verses answering their question concerning the collection for the Jerusalem church.
They were to follow the same procedure Paul had laid out for the first churches he had planted in Galatia, Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, and Pisidian Antioch (1).
Paul assured the Corinthian church that he was not leading them to do something different from what he had directed other churches to do.
All along, Paul had wanted the Gentile churches to feel a touch indebted to the Jerusalem saints for their role in receiving God's Kingdom (Romans 15:26-27). The commitment Paul wanted them to make was to take something from the main offerings gathered on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; Revelation 1:10), put it aside, and store it up.
He wanted an amount set aside in proportion to how the Lord had blessed the church's weekly offering. Paul's goal was to avoid a “one big push for money” kind of campaign when he arrived (2).
Regarding the carrying of the money to Jerusalem, Paul was in no way going to carry it himself to Jerusalem. The plan was to have their offerings carried by Corinthian men selected from among the Corinthian church along with letters of recommendation signed by Paul (3). Paul offered to travel with those who had care of the money, but only if the Corinthians agreed (4).
Plans (5-9)
Paul takes a moment to lay out his personal plans. Paul would stay in Ephesus until after Pentecost and then pass through Macedonia, coming to Corinth with the hope of paying them a visit and winter with them instead of just passing through. His travel plans, of course, were submitted to what the Lord would permit and with the hope of the Corinthians sending him on his way (5-7).
Paul announced to the Corinthians that he would remain in Ephesus until Pentecost. He wanted to remain in Ephesus because even though the long tour had met with persecution and adversaries, there was also an effective work in the gospel he was being allowed to do that the opposition had not been able to thwart (8-9).
Encouragements (10-18)
Paul encouraged the Corinthians to take certain actions:
They were to make Timothy feel welcome when he arrived; they were not to intimidate him (10).
No one was to look down on Timothy because he came instead of who they really wanted, Apollos (Acts 18:24-28).
They were to help Timothy with his trip back to Corinth with a blessing and with companions (11-12).
They were to pray and stand fast in gospel faith (13).
They were to act with the strength of courageous men (13).
They were to let every action be done from the motive of love (14).
They were to be subject to Stephanas, the senior pastor of the church who was devoted to serving and working for their good (15-16).
They were to give recognition to others who were devoting themselves to servant leadership.
Paul then gave thanks for Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus who were giving service to Paul in place of what the Corinthians had not been able to do (17-18).
Greetings (19-24)
Paul then sent greetings from Aquila and Priscilla (Acts 18:2-3), the church in their home, and the brothers and sisters at Ephesus. Paul urged them to greet each other with a holy kiss, or the greeting of an affectionate close relative (19-20).
Paul sent along a personal greeting written by his own hand (21).
Then, in the midst of Paul's greetings, he asked for the participating members of the church to be accursed if they did not love Jesus as the Lord. This is how important the motive of love was to the survival of the gospel and the church the gospel was building. Paul followed by asking the Lord to come quickly and carry out the curse (22). Because of Paul's concern for those who would infiltrate the fellowship and seek to deceive by not being filled with love, he brought their hearts under the all-seeing eyes of God.
Paul closed with the impartation of grace and the abiding love of Christ (23-24).
Sabbath Song
Psalm 92 is a “Thanksgiving Psalm,” designated as a song. While the author is unknown, there is reason to believe it was written during the Babylonian captivity for Synagogue worship on the Sabbath, perhaps by Ezra (see superscription).
It was written to be descriptive of the ultimate and final Sabbath, when we are transplanted from desert and wilderness, mountains and badlands, into the courts of Yahweh. Rest is found in Yahweh, whose name is mentioned seven times within the Psalm.
This Psalm easily divides into three parts:
The sounds of praise (1-4)
The show of power (5-9)
The satisfaction of protection (10-15)
(Based on an outline by Dr. William D. Barak)
The Sounds of Praise (1-3)
It is believed this Psalm was sung in the morning when the first sacrificial lamb was being offered (Exodus 29:28-29).
The Psalm declares thanks to Yahweh and yields praise to His name as the MOST HIGH. His name is worthy of thanks and praise and is declared MOST HIGH, for only Yahweh expresses perfect, steadfast, covenant love.
The morning praise anticipates a day full of the present faithful love of Yahweh; the evening looks back on the present faithful love of Yahweh. All this praise will be accompanied by instruments made for worship (1-3).
The Psalm next declares that the created work of God, which God deemed “good,” had made the Psalmist “glad.” Raptured in gladness by God’s goodness, the worshiper enters Sabbath by singing for joy in melody and with the instruments (4).
The Show of Power (5-9)
God’s works are great and good because God’s thoughts are as deep as His “hesed,” or covenant-keeping love (5). The fool seeks to understand the world outside of God, within the context of his lustful musings and preconceived, religious notions. The fool is generally one who sprouts quickly, seems to flourish, and then spirals into dark moods and shades of despair seemingly impossible to shake (6-7). Contrasted with the despairing fool who seeks to thrive apart from God is Yahweh, who dwells on high forever. This verse is central to the Psalm—Yahweh sees from on high; He watches over it all (8). Yahweh watches over the demise of the wicked, giving His faithful ones His eyes to see. “Look,” He says, “look,” the enemies perish; the enemies are scattered (9).
The Satisfaction of Protection (10-15)
While the enemies of Yahweh are like perishing grass sprouts, the worshiper is on a whole different plane. The worshiper is empowered with strength, as in the phrase, “exalted my horn,” and renewed in that energy, “poured fresh oil over me.” From the vantage point of the Most High, the worshiper sees the downfall and doom of his or her evil opponents (10-11).
The worshiper is transplanted as a palm tree and cedar tree from the wasteland to the garden land of God’s own courts. The palm tree bears 600 pounds of fruit, while the cedar is perpetually green and aromatic. The roots of both trees run deep and sustain them in hard times, especially against the aging process (12-14).
These worshipers were formed by the works of God’s hand (4), and they have come to Sabbath in Yahweh by declaring Yahweh righteous, loyal, a covenant-keeping God, a Rock of fidelity with no hint of disloyalty (15).
Purpose: to show us how to pray when needing peace in life and rest from strife, looking to Yahweh as our Sabbath rest.