“Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.”
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God — all judgment is reserved for Christ's coming (parusia). Until then, premature judgment is presumption. At the final day, 'what is hidden in darkness' (krypta tēs skotias, secret deeds) and 'motives' (boulē kardias) will be revealed. Then each receives 'praise' (epainos)—perhaps ironic, or genuine recognition of faithfulness.
Church Fathers on 1 Corinthians 4:5
Together with all other ills, I know not how, there has come upon man's nature the disease of restless prying and of unseasonable curiosity, which Christ Himself chastised, saying, Matthew 7:1 “Judge not, that you be not judged.” A kind of thing, which has no pleasure as all other sins have, but only punishment and vengeance. For though we are ourselves full of ten thousand evils, and bearing the “beams” in our own eyes, we become exact inquisitors of the offenses of our…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a reflection on this verse
No reflections on this verse yet. Be the first to write one!