Some remarks on 1 Cor. 2:1-5 BY LARS HARTMAN

As is well known, Paul begins 1 Cor. with an assessment of the struggles within the Corinthian church. The following pages are an attempt to shed some light over a part of that assessment. I shall try to demonstrate how the argument of 2:1-5 pursues what Paul has written in the preceding passage of Chapter 1, and not least how Paul in 2:1 ff. applies, regarding his own mission, the OT quotation that concludes the discussion in 1:26-31. In so doing, he contrasts himself to such people who boast of "human wisdom", and it seems to me that in so doing he consciously makes use of the terms and ideas connected with the work and appearance of a trained rhetor. It might well be that these terms and ideas somehow could be related to the adver­saries in Corinth whom Paul is addressing in his letter.

Like most of Paul's discussions in 1 Cor. and in his other letters, 1 Cor. 1-4 too is firmly connected to the situation of the author and his addressees. Not only does a concrete problem make Paul give a principal and generalized answer, but the con­crete situation gives a special flavor to the whole argument. Thus, to my mind, N. A. Dahl has demonstrated how Paul's assessment of the Corinthian schisma to a very large extent meant a defense of his apostolate; the struggle had to do with an opposition against Paul. But when Paul took his stand, he discussed trivial "church politics" with a principal, theological argument.! In one way or another, the Corinthian opposition to the apostle was associated with "wisdom". The exact meaning of this "wisdom" and its historical background are still under debate: how much of Jewish wisdom tradition (Wuellner)2 ought we to imagine behind

1 N. A. Dahl. Paul and the Church at Corinth according to I Corinthians 1:10-4:21, in Christian History and Interpretation (in hon. J. Knox, 1967), 313-335. 2 W. Wuellner, Haggadic Homily Genre in I Cor. 1-3, JBL 89 (1970), 199-204.

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it; how much of stoicism (Wilckens),3 of sophist philosophy (Munck),4 of "gnostic" Judaism (Koester)5 or of "gnosticism" (Schmithals)?6 And how similar or dissimilar is the situation to that - or rather to those behind 2 Cor. - if we assume, with D. Georgi and others, that 2 Cor. is composed of severalletters?7

We need not attempt to answer these questions here, although these "remarks" may point to some details which could be taken into account were we to do so.

The article by professor Dahl, just quoted, has been taken as the starting-point for a study by W. Wuellner where he has sug­gested that I Cor. 1-4 represents a kind of Midrashic genre. 8

By citing some characteristics of the kind of homiletic Midrash analysed by P. Borgen,9 he has applied the same pattern to these chapters. The same phenomena can also be found in the cynic­stoic diatribe, but we need not draw too distinct a border line between these two groups of literature, as there are indications that the cleft between them was not too wide. 10

Even though I have found it necessary to question some points in professor Wuellner's article, it would further our orientation of the context of 2: 1-5 by following a part of his discussion. Thus, he finds the introducing quotation of the "homily" in I: 1911 which has a counterpart towards the end in the dual quotation in 3: 19 f. 12 The introductory quotation presents the main theme of the homily, viz. God's judgment of human wisdom. In 1:20-25, this theme is developed together with allusions to other OT pas­sages.t3 These verses constitute the first phase of the argument,

3 U. Wilckens, Weisheit und Torheit (1959). 4 J. Munck, Paulus und die Hei/sgeschichte (1954), 127-161. 5 H. Koster, review article of Wilckens, op. cit., in Gnomon 33 (1961), 593 ff. 6 W. Schmithals, Die Gnosis in Korinth (19652 ).

7 D. Georgi, Die Gegner des Paulus im 2. Korintherbrief(l%4). 8 W. Wuellner, art. cit. 9 For a critical discussion of Borgen's thesis on this point, cf. the review by J. Jervell in Norsk Teo/. Tidsskr. 67 (1966), 233 ff. 10 See W. D. Davies, Reflexions on Tradition: The Aboth Revisited, in Christian History and Interpretation (in han. J. Knox, 1967), 138-151. 11 Is. 29: 14 plus echoes from Ps. 32(33): 10. 12 Job 5:12f. plus Ps. 93(94):11. 13 Is. 19:12; 33:18; 44:25, and maybe Job 12:17. To use the term "haphtarah" about these prophet passages seems a bit too vague, particularly if one makes the expression signify a lesson from the prophets in the synagogue service serving

Some remarks on 1 Cor. 2:1-5 Ill

in contrasting, on the one side, the proclamation of the cross as God's power and God's wisdom with, on the other, the wisdom of this world which regards the message of the cross as a folly.

In 1 :26--31, Paul embarks on the next step in his argument while demonstrating the point of the previous phase. He does this by referring to the circumstances of the Corinthians at the time of their conversion. Accordingly, Paul shifts to second person plural. It may be that he flavors his argument with allusions to Gn. 114 or to the Exodus-narratives, but even if this were to be so, it seems best not to build anything upon such a hypothesis. 15

In any case, here the low social status of the first Corinthian Christians proves to Paul how things really are with regard to wisdom: that which was foolish and weak was elected by God in order to put the strength to shame; no flesh can glory before God, and Christ became "wisdom to us from God" (v. 30) "in order that he who glories, let him glory in the Lord" (v. 31, from Jer. 9:23).

What follows, viz. 2:1-5, professor Wuellner terms a digression similar to such phenomena in Jewish halakic (sic!) discussions. 16

Such an assessment does not render justice to the text, however. It is obvious to me that these verses represent a natural develop­ment of the principal theme of 1:18-25 which, in 1:26--31, is clari­fied as applicable to the church of Corinth, and in 2:1-5, is elucidated by an application to Paul himself and his preachingY In 2:6 the next phase of the argument begins: there Paul elabo­rates more thoroughly what he means by "God's wisdom", i.e.

as the point of departure of a homily. See J. Mann, The Bible as Read and Preached in the Old Synagogue I (1940), the Introduction. 14 See Wuellner, JBL 89 (1970), 201. I have not been able to find the publication (in Studia Evangelica?) of a paper by Wuellner, in which he discusses in detail the role played by Gn. I :26 ff. in I Cor. I. 15 I tend to think that the uncertainty weakens Wuellner's argument considerably. It seems plausible that Paul's discussion has a structure which recalls the patterns presented by Borgen. But it appears to be somewhat too big a step from there to terming the text a midrash and to suggesting that it builds on a haphtarah which should be coupled with & seder from Gn. or Ex. Such an assumption seems to lack the textual support one finds in Mann's investigations (above, note 13), which Wuellner quotes as his support. 16 Wuellner refers to S. Sandmel, The First Christian Century in Judaism and Christianity (1969), 75, which was not availabl~ to me. 17 See e.g. J. Weiss (1910) and H. Conzelmann (1969), Comm. ad Joe.

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the one which is proclaimed among the "perfect". Then, in Chapter 3, he gives a further application to himself and Apollos in their relationship to the Church of Corinth.

Let us now turn to 2: 1-5 (and actually also to 1 :31) and begin by dealing with some external details. First, for once we meet with a couple of real problems in terms of textual criticism. Thus, in 2:1, we may read either "I proclaimed God's testimony" (!J.UQ'tlJQLOV) or "I proclaimed God's mystery" (f!1J<TtfJQLOV).

Scholars hesitate in their choice, and the problem is difficult to solve, 18 since external criticism finds equal manuscript support to both readings. 19 Nor does internal criticism lead to a unanimous result, as references to I :6 (where "testimony" occurs) and to 2:7 ("mystery") can be used as an argument in favor of either of the readings. One may conclude, therefore, that, because we have "mystery" in 2:7, we ought to read so also in 2:1. Or, one may contend that the "mystery" of 2:7 has unduly influenced a copyist to write that word also in 2:1. One could argue in very much the same manner when adducing .1 :6. Possibly, the general theme of God's hidden wisdom from 1:18 and onwards could be taken as a reason for choosing "mystery"-cf. the statement of 4:1: "Thus we ought to be regarded as ... stewards of God's mystery.' ' 20

Another problem of textual criticism is posed in 2:4. The 23rd Nestle-Aland edition still reads JtEL8oi~ omp(a~ A.6ym~.21 The problem is that we have no other instance of the adjective JtEL86~. For that reason, it was suggested long ago that the original reading be JtEL8oi 00<pta~.22 This, however, has a very

18 See e.g. Conzelmann, ad Joe. 19 Martyrion is supported above all by S (carr.) B D G 33, some it. mss and Orig., while mysterion has its main support in p46 (vid.), S (prima manus), ACboh. --Greek New Testament reads mysterion but does so with "a considerable degree of doubt". 20 On the other hand, see below, note 32. 21 With e.g. S (prima manus) B D. This reading is preferred by H. Lietzmann (19232 ) and Conzelmann, Comm. ad loc. 22 Among others by Weiss, Comm. ad Joe., G. Zuntz, The Text of the Epistles (1953), 23ff., H. Riesenfeld. Den nytestamentliga textens historia, in G. Linde­skog, A. Fridrichsen & H. Riesenfeld, Jnledning till NT (19582 ), 396f., Dahl, art. cit., 321. Cf. B. M. Metzger, A Textual Commentary on the Greek N.T. (1971), ad loc.

Some remarks on 1 Cor. 2:1-5 113

weak manuscript support. 23 The Greek New Testament presents the latter reading as equal to the former one. Material which I am going to quote later on in this article, answers very well to the difficult reading JtEL8oi ae><p(w;. In my opinion, the fact of its being difficult is a reason for its originality, as the fact that the other readings can be derived from it.

Next "external" item to be considered is the quotation in 1:31. It is taken, with some liberty, from Jer. 9:23, and we encounter it in exactly the same wording in 2 Cor. 10: 17, although there it is not introduced by a citation formula like the one in I :31, viz. tva xa8oo~ y£yQaJt"taL. As a rule, Paul quotes the OT in close or relatively close conformity with textforms with which we are acquainted (LXX-A, LXX-B, LXX-F), but nevertheless it is not so seldom that he is quoting more freely. 24 In our case, the difference between Paul and the LXX is considerable:

Jer. 9:22f.

MY] xmJxaa8w o aocpo~ tv 1:~ aocp(<t m'n01J, xai !!lJ xmJxaa8w o LOXlJQO~ tv 1:~ i',ax{n afJwu, xal, !!lJ xauxaa8w o JtAoumo~ tv 't<j) JtAOlJnj) afJ'tOl), 6.AJ. ' f] fV wunp XalJXaa8w 0 'Xa1JXW!!EVO~, mw(ELv xai yLvwaxELV on £yw El!!L 'XUQLO~ ...

1 Cor. 1:31

0 XalJXW!!EVO~ fV 'XlJQLW xmJxaa8w

The fact that the "free" quotation returns in exactly the same form in 2 Cor. 10: 17 indicates that Paul did not invent a free rendering of Jer. 9:22 f. for his immediate need when dictating I Cor. Rather, the clause had a certain stability. It could work as a sentence, without any reference to Scripture, as is the case in 2 Cor. 10, but it could also be used as an explicit Scriptural quotation as in our passage. Here, we may remind ourselves of professor Wuellner's article, where he demonstrates how the theme of this pauline "homily" fits well to Jewish tradition. 25

It is to be found in passages like Sir. 19:24: "he who has little

23 35 (prima manus), it. mss f g, indirectly p46 and G (peithois sophias). 24 See E. E. Ellis, Paul's Use of the OT (1957), 12f., 150ff. 25 Art. cit., 202.

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understanding and fears God is better than he who has much wisdom and transgresses the law of the Most High". 26 Very much the same way of thinking is represented by some Qumran texts, in which the faithful and "poor" glory in God, because He has gracefully bestowed them with insights into the divine secrets concealed to the outsiders. 27 If Paul in fact is inspired from tradi­tions like these when writing 1 Cor. I-4, it might very well be that the sentence quoted in I Cor. I :31 and 2 Cor. 10: 17 is part of the same background. 28

A last "external" detail will be briefly considered. Paul evolves the next step from the quotation in l: 31 through a xayoo. This xayoo, or rather the xa(, contained in it, seems to bear on two items in the preceding context. The first is 1 :26ff., where Paul draws attention to the circumstances at the Corinthians' conver­sion-few of them were mighty and noble. 2: I corresponds to this: "I too-l did not preach with human wisdom, when I arrived." The second item, to which, I believe, the x&yoo refers, is the quotation in I :31. Then the xO.yoo gets a kind of applica­tion nuance which could be expressed in a paraphrase like this one: "so it was also with me, when I arrived ... ". 29 A similar application nuance of a xayw seems to occur in 3: I. At the end of Chapter 2, Paul states how he can talk wisdom to "spir­itual" people who have the mind of Christ. Then 3:1 begins in this way: "so I could not address you as 'spiritual' persons either ... ".

Having this application nuance in mind, we now take a closer look at the first verses of Chapter 2. On the one hand, there we find echoes from the preceding deliberations: to the procla­mation of wisdom in 2: I cf. I: 19 f., to the proclamation of Christ

26 See also e.g. Ab. 111.12. One could also refer to Tanch. 244 b, where even Jer. 9:23 is quoted (H. Strack)- P. Billerbeck, Kommentar ... III (1928), 326). 27 See further the literature discussed by H. Braun, in Qumran und das NT 1(1966). 188f. 28 In the same direction points the discussion about the relationship between the beginning of I Cor. and Bar. 3: 16fT. which is reminiscent of a Jewish penitence homily using Jer. 8: 13-9:24. See H. St. J. Thackeray, The Septuagint and Jewish Worship (1913), 95ff.; E. Peterson, I Korinther 1:18f. und die Thematik des jlidischen Busstages (Biblica 32 (1951), 97-103). Cf. Munck, op. cit., 139 f. 29 Similarly A. Robertson & A. Plummer, Comm. (19142), ad Joe. and C. K. Barrett, Comm. (1968), ad Joe.

Some remarks on 1 Cor. 2:1-5 115

as crucified in 2:2 cf. I:23, to the weakness in 2:3 cf. I:26f., and to God's power in 2:5 cf. I :24. On the other hand, the quotation in I :3I also plays a role in the wordings of 2: Iff., viz. through the context of the quotation in Jer. 9:22 f.30 So the following details in 2:1-5 appear to be echoes from Jer. 9:22f. (for the text of Jer. 9:22f., see above): Paul's disdain of wisdom (2: I, 4 ), his wish to know only of Jesus Christ (2:2) and his appearance in weakness (2:3). 31 This observation may lend sup­port to a tentative explanation why the sentence about boasting in the Lord is presented as a scriptural quotation in our context (I :31) which is not the case in 2 Cor. 10: I7. The reason could be that, by association of ideas, Paul's thoughts went to the passage in Jer. 9 from which the sentence was in­spired, and that he then applied to himself not only the sentence but also some motifs from its immediate context in Jer. In this case too it was true that the glory was to be found in the Lord and not in his own wisdom, knowledge or power.32

So far, we have seen how Paul has maintained that his own appearance as an apostle as well as his message of the Cruci­fied also were in accordance with God's will as expressed and testified by the Scriptures. Now, I believe, Paul elaborates this argument by alluding to the behavior of a rhetor. By using some terms from the rhetoric tradition and by partly turning them up­side down Paul succeeds in saying: your faith is not built on men's wise eloquence but on the power of God (v. 5). In addi-

30 It is not too rare a phenomenon that the context of a quoted passage is present in an author's mind in such a way that his presentation is coloured by it. See C. H. Dodd, According to the Scriptures (1952); L. Hartman, Prophecy Interpreted (1966), 126 and passim. 31 The context of the quotation seems to play a role in 1:26-31 also-cf. C. Smits, Oud-testamentische citaten in het Nieuwe Testament III (1957), 427. 32 This is a topic to which Paul often returned; see, e.g., 2 Cor. 4:7; 12:9 and also Rom. I: 16. If the idea which led Paul to Jer. 9:22f. was the weakness of human wisdom in the presence of God, and if he thought of his apostolate in those terms, this might serve as the point of departure of a hypothesis bearing on the choice between martyrion and mysterion in 2: I. For, in accordance with rather normal ways of association, the theme could guide one's thoughts to Ps. 19:8: "The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple" (Heb. 'dwt ihwh n'mnh . mf!kymt pty; LXX T] 1-!<XQTUQL<X X1JQL01J mo'tfi, omp(~ouoa vipna). Of course, this is but a faint possibility. It is supported, though, by the fact that I Cor. 1:6 may be a free rendering of the same Ps.-passage: "The testimony of Christ was confirmed {tf3t:fkw:Oerl) in you."

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tion, he directs a subtle attack against people who detrimentally compare him to "the disputers of this world" (1:20).a3

In 2:4, then, Paul says about his preaching: it did not take place in persuasive argumentation (:rcnOoi: OoqJta~), produced by human wisdom, but rather with the conclusiveness brought about by God's Spirit and power (lmo6E£;et rt'VEVIJ.a'tO~ xat (hJVUIJ.EW£). Obviously, human wisdom and divine Spirit and power are put into contrast to one another. But, in addition, we can also notice a certain tension between :rcaOoo and lvtooa;t£. In rhetoric tradi­tion, the latter term signified a compelling, irresistibly conclusive demonstration, a proof which could be attained without shrewd or toilsome reasoning. 34 A statement by Quintilian is illuminating (5: 10, 7): lvt66eL;L~ est evidens probatio. Or take Cicero's defi­nition (Acad. 2:8): Argumenti conclusio, quae est Graece lvt6-0EL~u;, ita definitur: ratio quae ex rebus perceptis ad id quod non percipiebatur, adducit. 35 That which had delivered this lvtoon;t£ in Paul's preaching was God's Spirit and power. As we saw, against this was contrasted the :rcetOw oo<pCa~, i.e. the persuasive argumentation of human wisdom. rrnew, too, is an expression which, of course, we often encounter in rhetorical contexts. Allow me to quote a passage from the advice of an anonymous teacher in rhetoric:

"The statement of the case becomes persuasive (:rct9av6~) if everything that is said is judged to be like the truth. This will presumably occur if we do not present the naked case, but also produce its details and fill our statement with them. Such details of the statement concern person, action, place, manner, time, cause ... Most important of all, the cause ought to be stated for that has a very persuasive effect (t:rcaxnxwTm:ov ... :rcgo~ :rcetOw). Also the character and the emotion of the speaker bring

33 2 Cor. is a reliable witness to the fact that such attacks were launched against Paul. See especially 2 Cor. !Of. 34 See Weiss, ad Joe. It is astonishing that this insight of Weiss has not received more attention in later commentaries. My deliberations in the following will however go a bit beyond the material in his commentary. Robertson & Plummer quote Aristotle who makes a distinction between apodeixis and syl/ogismos, the latter being not SQ. persuasive as apodeixis. Wilckens, op.cit., oddly enough, makes peithos (taken as an adjective) equivalent to apodeixis. 35 For further examples, see Weiss, ad loc. and H. Lausberg, Handbuch der literarischen Rhetorik ( 1960), § 357.

Some remarks on 1 Cor. 2:1-5 117

about persuasion.36 The character does this, namely, if it appears not to be artificial, and the emotion not only persuades your audience, but it even excites it. It also has a persuasive effect to say something somewhat disadvantageous of oneself and to admit something good of the opponent. So does Aeschines, for example:37 'this man's father was a freeman, Demosthenes-for you shall not lie'. To persuasion (:n:et6oo) contributes also a vivid description, i.e. a speech which brings that which you are exhibit­ing before the eyes of your audience. Persuasion (net6oo) is also brought about by a mode of speech which is artless and seems to be extemporized ... '•as

A passage like the above provides us with a good frame of reference for Paul's vocabulary and argument in 1 Cor. 2. It indicates that he is very conscious of the kind of devices he repudiates, and his wordings underscore that ''the power may be of God, and not of us" (2 Cor. 4:7) ..

In 2:3, Paul's personal behaviour is judged in the same way as the disdained persuasion through human wisdom: xayro €v ao6EVEtQ. xat EV cp6l3<v xat Ev 't(lOf.A.C.I> :ltOAAQJ £yev6~-tl1V :lt(l~ il~-tO:~. The xayoo continues Paul's preceding application on himself. We have already noticed how "weakness" probably should be seen in the light of the passage concerning the strength of the strong in Jer. But there are other nuances in Paul's way of describing his deportment which we may apprehend if we remember how a good rhetor was expected to behave. Already the passage from the anonymous rhetor quoted above gave us a hint of the im­portance that was attached to a speaker's behavior. Let me give some further illustration of this detail in quoting a couple of passages from Quintilian: "Of all these qualities (of a rhetor) the highest is that loftiness of soul which fear cannot dismay nor uproar terrify nor the authority of the audience fetter further than the respect which is their due. For although the vices which

36 For character (ethos), including also the ability of impersonation, and emotion (pathos). as rhetorical devices, see Aristotle,Rhet. I, 2, 3ff. (1356a). 31 A famous rhetor in Athens, one of Demosthenes' contemporaries and, in addi­tjon, his mortal enemy. See Th. Thalheim, Aischines, Pauly-Wissowa, Real­Encyclopiidie I (1894), 1050-1062.

1 38 Rhetores graeci I, ed. L. Spengel (1894), 368f. For further examples, see Laus-

Lb'"·•P·'"··I257.

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are its opposites, such as arrogance, temerity, impudence and presumption, are all positively obnoxious, still without confidence and courage, art, study and proficiency will be of no avail.' ' 39

Further on in the same text Quintilian criticizes "that excess of modesty (or: fear of being criticized, verecundia) which is re­ally a form of fear deterring the soul from doing what is its duty to do, and resulting in confusion of mind, regret that our task was ever begun, and sudden silence". And some lines later on, our author discusses what we might term a stage-fright. He does not find it reprehensible, for it can produce a favorable impres­sion in the audience. Yea, if he is not infected with nervousness, the skilful speaker should even pretend to be nervous at the out­set. But, of course, eventually he shall act with calm and assur­ance, knowing that the best remedy for anxiety is confidence ifiducia, 5:4).40

With testimonies like these in our mind, there is no need for speculations as to the effect that Paul, after his philosophical failure in Athens (Acts 17), should have decided not to try his fortune as a philosopher. 41 Nor need we try to imagine how anxious Paul may have been when arriving at the big and impres­sive city of Corinth. 42 Paul may have cut a miserable figure as a preacher as measured by the standards of rhetoric, but here he turns that into a reflexion on how the contents of the message of the cross harmonized with the conditions of the message-and of the messenger. 43 Paul consciously puts his weakness and his anxiety into contrast with the confidence with which he and his addressees know that a good speaker ought to appear, and through this "anti-rhetor" God performed great things. 44

We can now connect Paul's presentation of himself as an "anti-

39 Quint. XII. 5.1. f. (trans. H. E. Butler, 1968). 40 See other examples in Lausberg, op. cit., §§499, 600, 1091. Cf. also G. Ken­nedy, The Art of Persuasion in Greece (1963), e.g. 276, 281 f. 41 Thus F. W. Grosheide, Comm. (1953). Similarly Robertson & Plummer. 42 Cf. H. Odeberg, Comm. (19532), ad Joe. 43 See Conzelmann, ad Joe. 44 Munck, op. cit., 151 f., quotes to our passage some texts concerning the thar­sos of a sophist (sic!). See also Dahl, art. cit., 321. It may be noteworthy that also the kauchasthai in 1:31 could be related to rhetoric. See R. Bultmann, kauchaomai etc., Thea/. Worterb. z. N.T. III (1957), 646; H. D. Betz, Der Apostel Paulus und die sokratische Tradition (Beitr. z. hist. Theol. 45, 1972), 74 ff.

Some remarks on I Cor. 2:1-5 119

rhetor'' to the questions in 1:20: :n:oiJ oo<p6\;; :n:mj YQUf..tf..tU"t£1)\;; :n:ou 01J~fJTIJ'tTJ\; mu al.&vo\; 'tOU't01J; it is verisimilar that Paul uses OT wordings here. 45 But irrespective of their origin, these ex­pressions ought to have specific connotations in the situation of the Corinthians-we may guess that much after what we have seen so far. Professor Conzelmann (ad Joe.) asks cautiously in a footnote to the somewhat strange word ou~fJ'tl'J'tfJ£: 46 "Klingt volksttimliche Kritik an den Philosophen an?" Such an observa­tion seems probable since the verb ou~fJ't£iv and its nomen actionis 01J~fJ'tl'JOL£ appear frequently in the rhetorical literature to denote the work of a rhetor, viz. that of disputing. 47 Con­cerning the other two nouns, viz. oo<p6c; and YQUf..tJlU"t£'i'Jc;, oo<p6; of course has a quite open denotation and can be used of different types of wisdom. But YQUJlf.tU'ttU£ is a little peculiar. Its general denotation, which dominates in the existing texts, is that of sec­retary, registrar, clerk. But in the gospels, as is well known, we encounter the noun as denoting the Jewish rabbis. Probably, the Evangelists have adopted this usage from the vocabulary of the Greek-speaking synagogue. Such an opinion is supported, I think, by the fact that the LXX uses the noun frequently ,48

both in the usual Greek sense49 and that of denoting "wise teacher", "scribe". A good example is Sir. 38:24: "A scholar's wisdom (oO<p(a YQUf.tf..tct'tewc;) comes of ample leisure: if a man is to be wise he must be relieved of other tasks" (trans. NEB). This is followed in Chapter 39 by a description of the searching and pondering of our scholar.

When Paul in 1 Cor. 1:20 deviates from Is. 33:18 (LXX yQaf.t­f..tct'ttx6c;) and uses instead the noun YQUJlf.ta'tEU£, the latter ought to have connotations like those of Sir. 38:24. But, on the other hand, I think it would mean putting too much into Paul's

45 Is. 19:11f.; 33:18. Bar. 3:16. See Conzelmann, Comm., 57, for discussion and literature. 46 1t is found only here and in Ign. Eph. 18: I. 47 See e.g. Philodemos, Rhet. II (ed. S. Sudhaus, 1896), 240. 48 Philo uses it signifying a "secretary" in In Flacc. 1, 4. Josephus is an in­direct witness to the specific Jewish usage. when he writes in Bell VI. 291: {~oyQUI!I!aTEI;. 49 See e.g. 3 Mace. 4:17.

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stilistically elegant questions50 to suggest Jewish wise men behind y(>a~~m:dJc; and Greek behind 01J~'Y)'t'Y)TTJc;. 51 Nonetheless, it seems justified to remind ourselves of the suggestions by professor Wuellner, viz. that Paul in 1 Cor. 1-4 makes use of, and applies to the Corinthian church, ideas with which contemporary Judaism could criticize foolish wisdom. And it is obvious from the context that Paul aims at both Jews and Greeks (l :22).

So much for these "remarks". I hope they have shown the manner in which Paul in I Cor. 2:1-5 provides a theological interpretation of his behavior when defending himself in the first chapters of I Cor. By being "weak", he fulfilled the words of the Scripture in Jer. 9:22 f.; at the same time he became a kind of "anti-rhetor"-everything in order that it be evident from where came the power and the effect, viz. from Him who had sent him. In addition, I believe that we can surmise from Paul's ways of expression some of the features of his Corinthian oppo­nents. Paul seems to assume that they are made up of people such that his critique will reach its goal when he makes use of ideas and terms from contemporary Greek-speaking Judaism and from contemporary Greek rhetoric. Whether these features should be regarded as belonging to one or several groups in Corinth, cannot be deduced from these remarks.

50 See R. Bultmann. Der Stil der paulinischen Predigt und die kynisch-stoische Diatribe (1910), 85f. 51 Thus Weiss. ad Joe. Also some church fathers-see Conzelmann, ad loc.