1 CORINTHIANS 15:32 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
“If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.”
If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, 'Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die' — Paul alludes to a near-death experience (whether literal or metaphorical) and cites Isaiah 22:13. Without resurrection, hedonism ('eat and drink') is rational. With resurrection, ascetic suffering for gospel is rational.
Church Fathers on 1 Corinthians 15:32
“If after the manner of men I fought with beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me?” What is, “if after the manner of men?” “As far as pertains to men I fought with beasts: for what if God snatched me out of those dangers? So that I am he who ought most to be in care about these things; I, who endure so great dangers and have not yet received any return. For if no time of recompense is at hand, but our reward is shut up in this present world, ours is the greater loss. For…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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