Commentary on 1 Corinthians 15:19-26

For the joyous, celebratory day of Easter, the lectionary returns us to Paul’s letter to believers in Corinth. Remember that among them was an irritating group with an attitude of spiritual superiority (see the commentary for Maundy Thursday). The good news for us is that as Paul addresses one of the issues they raised, we get to “overhear” his reminders of the enormous impact of Jesus’ resurrection, which is the focus of all of 1 Corinthians 15. The lectionary directs our attention to the middle of his discussion.

Context: Trouble over “resurrection of the dead”

Let’s first note that Paul’s concern in this chapter is the “resurrection of the dead.” In the verses prior to today’s reading we discover Paul asserting that the Corinthians believed in Jesus’ resurrection (15:1–11). Even so, some of them claimed there was “no resurrection of the dead” (15:12), suggesting that the issue was their own resurrections. The important context to know is that in the first-century Greco-Roman world, there was little hope of life after death.¹

In such a context, some Corinthian Christ-followers may have accepted Jesus’ resurrection since he was the Son of God, but not their own. Perhaps they believed instead that Jesus’ resurrection enabled them somehow to be already resurrected spiritually, which contributed to their sense of spiritual superiority. Paul responds to them by expounding on the key importance of resurrection from the dead, his understanding of God as the one who raised Jesus from the dead, what God is doing in creation via Jesus, and what is possible for believers as a result.

Just prior to our text, Paul links Christ’s resurrection and ours. If Corinthian believers accepted that Christ is resurrected, then how can they say there is no resurrection of the dead (verse 12)? For if there’s no resurrection of the dead, then Christ can’t have been resurrected (verse 16). And if Christ isn’t resurrected, then our faith is futile, according to Paul (verse 17). Let’s be clear: Paul’s understanding of the renewal God had launched via Jesus centers on resurrection.

First fruits

Our text begins in verse 19 with Paul declaring: “If for this life only” he has hoped in Christ, then he is pitiable. That is, if the life he’s currently living is all he has, then he should be doing everything possible to prolong it rather than putting it at risk by getting into the same kind of trouble that got Jesus killed (see, for example, 2 Corinthians 4:7–12). “But now,” Paul says as verse 20 begins, “Christ has been raised from the dead,” which he’s already said the Corinthians believe. That’s not the end of the story, as some Corinthian believers may have insisted, however, because Christ wasn’t raised only for himself or only because he is God’s Son.

Instead, Christ’s resurrection is the “first fruits” of the resurrection of all of us (verse 20). In Jewish tradition, the “first fruits” of every harvest were offered to God in recognition that the whole harvest comes from God (see Exodus 23:16, 19). So the first fruits represent the whole. Jesus’ resurrection as first fruits thus affirms the coming resurrection from the dead of all of us, a point he reiterates in verses 21–22 by comparing Adam (through whom death came) and Christ (through whom resurrection came).

Resurrection as a revolutionary claim

This emphasis on resurrection from the dead for all of us because of Jesus’ resurrection was a revolutionary hope in Paul’s time, for it enabled Paul and all believers to live as those who belonged to God’s kingdom, not Caesar’s. Here’s why.

In Caesar’s empire people were ranked and evaluated according to Roman standards, creating a hierarchical order in which a privileged few ruled over everyone else. As a result, groups competed with each other for place and status in the Roman hierarchy and treated each other as adversaries, creating hatred and fear of anyone “not like us.” Rome’s interests were served since people fighting each other weren’t likely to unite to resist Roman oppression.

By contrast, in God’s realm all people are welcomed and valued as beloved children (see 1 Corinthians 12:12–13) because love is the enlivening power at work (see 1 Corinthians 13). Consequently, believers need not be concerned about superiority or inferiority, for those concepts are irrelevant in a realm where all are beloved and everyone serves as Jesus served (see the commentary on Maundy Thursday and also Mark 10:35–45).

As Jesus demonstrated, living in and belonging to God’s kingdom threatens the order created by Rome. Their greatest weapon for forcing conformity to their order was “We will kill you if you don’t.” If this life is all one has, then the threat of death is huge. No wonder that in Paul’s apocalyptic timetable, death is “the last enemy” to be destroyed (verse 26), but destroyed it will be (verses 26–28).

Thus, trust in the God who raised Christ Jesus from the dead (a favorite way for Paul to refer to God; see, for example, Romans 8:11; Galatians 1:1) and hope for resurrection enable believers to belong to God’s kingdom, live in God’s love with one another, participate in God’s renewal despite Rome’s threat, and share in the ultimate fulfillment of God’s purposes when “God will be all in all” (verse 28). While I can’t explain Paul’s poetic language precisely, I am clear that Paul would have understood God as “all in all” to include living in faith, hope, and love (see 1 Corinthians 13:13). Revolutionary vision indeed!

Some Corinthian believers, however, had not yet realized the renewal of life via God’s love and the power of the resurrection as Jesus had revealed and demonstrated for us. They continued to elevate themselves, denigrate others, and create discord, a scenario that likely sounds familiar to many of us. In our time we often treat resurrection as only relevant when we die. On this Resurrection Day, may we see more clearly Paul’s revolutionary vision of resurrection as the power that can renew our living as beloved children of God even now, and also when we die.

Notes

1. If you’re interested, see N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God (Fortress Press, 2003), for detailed discussion of the lack of hope for life after death in the first-century Greco-Roman world.