New Testament scholarship during recent years has seen an explosion of books and articles which attempt to situate the documents of the New Testament in their own time and culture. Various aspects of the contemporary culture are brought to the fore with varying success in an attempt to give these texts a fresh reading. This is not in the least also the case with the first letter to the Corinthians, which so clearly addresses itself to the practical problems of a young city congregation. Although this commentary has as its stated purpose to the let the text speak for itself, the author aims to give the reader an understanding of it in its original context, so that the contemporary applicability and force of expression of Paul's writing for Christ's churches in the 21st century will be all the more evident.