1 Corinthians 16:17,18 – To rejoice oneself in the meeting

Now I am rejoicing at the presence of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, for this deficiency of yours, these men fill up, for they soothe my spirit and yours. Then be recognizing such.

Paul is looking forward to the upcoming arrival of the three men. He mentioned the name of Stephanas earlier (: 15) and from the fact that he also mentions the other two men with honor, we may infer that they belonged to Stephanas’ housemates.

Paul missed the Corinthians, but the arrival of the trio from Corinth makes up a lot for Paul. As firstfruits they represent (: 15) for Paul the ecclesia at Corinth. With their arrival they soothe his spirit.

We also see here demonstrated that forming a unit involuntarily expresses itself in the urge to meet. Letter contact is nice, but it does not replace the encounter face-to-face by a long way. This still applies today, even though we now have so many options available to see and speak to each other via the internet and all kinds of other media. It never replaces hugging and eating and drinking together. Because that’s what really touches us and soothes the spirit!

Delen: