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"For it is written..."

Text: 1 Corinthians 1:19

THE AUTHORITY OF THE SCRIPTURES

Paul cited the Scriptures as the source of his comments. The following text deserves careful study.

“For it is written:
‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.'”
1 Corinthians 1:19

1. “For it is written”

a) The Lord Jesus Himself was One who cited the authority of the Scriptures (Matthew 4:4).

b) All the apostles followed suit.

i) Peter (1 Peter 1:16)

ii) John (John 12:14)

iii) Paul (1 Corinthians 1:19)

2. “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent”

a) The way Scriptures are cited must be understood.

i) Sometimes a text is cited “wholesale” (verbatim).

ii) At other times, the meaning of a text is cited (as in this case here).

b) The text cited may be Isaiah 29:14 (See also Isaiah 44:25).

“For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”

i) The Person who is doing this is to be identified as the LORD.

ii) This equates with the pronoun “I” in 1 Corinthians 1:19.

3. The meaning of 1 Corinthians 1:19 (in the light of Isaiah 44:25)

a) There were those who prided themselves to be “wise”.

i) The so-called “diviners”.

ii) The self-styled “wise men”.

b) The Lord Himself will “destroy” (The meaning of “destroy” may be understood thus).

i) He will “frustrate the signs of the babblers”.

ii) He will “drive the diviners mad”.

iii) He will “turn the wise men backward”.

iv) He will “bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent”.