1Co 15:1
15:1 Moreover, {1} brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which
     I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and
     wherein ye {a} stand;

 (1) The sixth treatise of this epistle, concerning the
     resurrection: and he uses a transition, or passing over
     from one matter to another, showing first that he brings no
     new thing, to the end that the Corinthians might understand
     that they had begun to swerve from the right course.  And
     next that he does not go about to entreat of a trifling
     matter, but of another chief point of the Gospel, which if
     it is taken away, their faith will necessarily come to
     nothing.  And so at the length he begins this treatise at
     Christ's resurrection, which is the ground and foundation
     of ours, and confirms it first by the testimony of the
     scriptures and by the witness of the apostles, and of more
     than five hundred brethren, and last of all by his own.
     (a) In the profession of which you still continue.

1Co 15:2
15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I
     preached unto you, {b} unless ye have believed in vain.

     (b) Which is very absurd, and cannot be, for they that
         believe must reap the fruit of faith.

1Co 15:5
15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the {c} twelve:

     (c) Of those twelve picked and chosen apostles, who were
         commonly called twelve, though Judas was put out of the
         number.

1Co 15:6
15:6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at
     {d} once; of whom the greater part remain unto this
     present, but some are fallen asleep.

     (d) Not at several different times, but together and at one
         instant.

1Co 15:8
15:8 {2} And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born
     out of due time.

 (2) He maintains along the way the authority of his
     apostleship, which was required to be in good credit among
     the Corinthians, that this epistle might be of force and
     weight among them. In the mean time he compares himself,
     under divine inspiration, in such a way with certain
     others, that he makes himself inferior to them all.

1Co 15:12
15:12 {3} Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead,
      how say some among you that there is no resurrection of
      the dead?

 (3) The first argument to prove that there is a resurrection
     from the dead: Christ is risen again, therefore the dead
     will rise again.

1Co 15:13
15:13 {4} But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is
      Christ not risen:

 (4) The second by an absurdity: if there is no resurrection of
     the dead, then Christ is not risen again.

1Co 15:14
15:14 {5} And if Christ be not risen, then [is] our preaching
      vain, and your faith [is] also vain.

 (5) The proof of that absurdity, by other absurdities: if
     Christ is not risen again, the preaching of the Gospel is
     in vain, and the credit that you gave to it is vain, and we
     are liars.

1Co 15:16
15:16 {6} For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:

 (6) He repeats the same argument taken from an absurdity,
     purposing to show how faith is in vain if the resurrection
     of Christ is taken away.

1Co 15:17
15:17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith [is] vain; {7} ye
      are {e} yet in your sins.

 (7) First, seeing death is the punishment of sin, in vain
     should we believe that our sins were forgiven us, if they
     remain: but they do remain, if Christ did not rise from
     death.
     (e) They are yet in their sins who are not sanctified, nor
         have obtained remission of their sins.

1Co 15:18
15:18 {8} Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are
      perished.

 (8) Secondly, unless it is certain that Christ rose again, all
     those who died in Christ have perished.  So then, what
     profit comes of faith?

1Co 15:19
15:19 {9} If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of
      all men most miserable.

 (9) The third argument which is also taken from an absurdity:
     for unless there is another life, in which those who trust
     and believe in Christ will be blessed, they are the most
     miserable of all creatures, because in this life they would
     be the most miserable.

1Co 15:20
15:20 {10} But now is Christ risen from the dead, {11} [and]
      become the {f} firstfruits of them that slept.

 (10) A conclusion of the former argument: therefore Christ is
      risen again.
 (11) He puts the last conclusion for the first proposition of
      the argument that follows.  Christ is risen again:
      therefore will we the faithful (for of them he speaks)
      rise again.  Then follows the first reason of this
      conclusion: for Christ is set forth to us to be considered
      of, not as a private man apart and by himself, but as the
      firstfruits: and he takes that which was known to all men,
      that is, that the whole heap is sanctified in the
      firstfruits.
      (f) He alludes to the firstfruits of grain, the offering of
          which sanctified the rest of the fruits.

1Co 15:21
15:21 {12} For since by man [came] death, by man [came] also the
      resurrection of the dead.

 (12) Another confirmation of the same conclusion: for Christ is
      to be considered as opposite to Adam, that as from one man
      Adam, sin came over all, so from one man Christ, life
      comes to all.  That is to say, that all the faithful, who
      die because by nature they were born of Adam, so because
      in Christ they are made the children of God by grace, they
      are made alive and restored to life by him.

1Co 15:22
15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be {g}
      made alive.

      (g) Will rise by the power of Christ.

1Co 15:23
15:23 {13} But every man in his own order: Christ the
      firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his
      coming.

 (13) He does two things together: for he shows that the
      resurrection is in such sort common to Christ with all his
      members, that nonetheless he far surpasses them, both in
      time (for he was the first that rose again from the dead)
      and also in honour, because from him and in him is all our
      life and glory.  Then by this occasion he passes to the
      next argument.

1Co 15:24
15:24 {14} Then [cometh] the {h} end, when he shall have
      delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he
      shall have put down {i} all rule and all authority and
      power.

 (14) The fourth argument with which also he confirms the other,
      has a most sure ground, that is, because God must reign.
      And this is the manner of his reign, that the Father will
      be shown to be King in his Son who was made man, to whom
      all things are made subject (the promiser being the only
      exception) to the end that the Father may afterward
      triumph in his Son the conqueror.  And he makes two parts
      of this reign and dominion of the Son in which the
      Father's glory consists: that is first, the overcoming of
      his enemies, in which some must be deprived of all power,
      as Satan and all the wicked, be they ever so proud and
      mighty, and others must be utterly abolished, as death.
      And second, a plain and full delivery of the godly from
      all enemies, that by this means God may fully set forth
      the body of the Church cleaving fast to their head Christ,
      his kingdom and glory, as a King among his subjects.
      Moreover he puts the first degree of his kingdom in the
      resurrection of the Son, who is the head: and the
      perfection, in the full conjunction of the members with
      the head, which will be in the latter day.  Now all these
      tend to this purpose, to show that unless the dead do rise
      again, neither the Father can be King above all, neither
      Christ the Lord of all.  For neither should the power of
      Satan and death be overcome, nor the glory of God be full
      in his Son, nor his Son in his members.
      (h) The conclusion and finishing of all things.
      (i) All his enemies who will be robbed of all the power
          that they have.

1Co 15:25
15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies {k} under
      his feet.

      (k) Christ is considered here as he appeared in the form
          of a servant, in which respect he rules the Church as
          head, and that because this power was given to him
          from his Father.

1Co 15:26
15:26 The {l} last enemy [that] shall be destroyed [is] death.

      (l) The conclusion of the argument, which is taken from
          the whole to the part: for if all his enemies will be
          put under his feet, then it will necessarily be that
          death also will be subdued under him.

1Co 15:28
15:28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, {m} then
      shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put
      all things under him, that {n} God may be all in all.

      (m) Not because the Son was not subject to his Father
          before, but because his body, that is to say, the
          Church which is here in distress, and not yet wholly
          partaker of his glory, is not yet fully perfect: and
          also because the bodies of the saints which are in the
          graves, will not be glorified until the resurrection.
          But Christ as he is God, has us subject to him as his
          Father has, but as he is Priest, he is subject to his
          Father together with us.  Augustine, book 1, chap. 8,
          of the trinity.
      (n) By this high type of speech is set forth an
          incomprehensible glory which flows from God, and will
          fill all of us, as we are joined together with our
          head, but yet in such a way that our head will always
          preserve his preeminence.

1Co 15:29
15:29 {15} Else what shall they do which are baptized {o} for
      the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then
      baptized for the dead?

 (15) The fifth argument taken of the end of baptism, that is,
      because those who are baptized, are baptized for dead:
      that is to say, that they may have a remedy against death,
      because baptism is a token of regeneration.
      (o) They that are baptized to this end and purpose, that
          death may be put out in them, or to rise again from
          the dead, of which baptism is a seal.

1Co 15:30
15:30 {16} And why stand we in jeopardy every hour?

 (16) The sixth argument: unless there is a resurrection of the
      dead, why should the apostles so daily cast themselves
      into danger of so many deaths?

1Co 15:31
15:31 I protest by your {p} rejoicing which I have in Christ
      Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

      (p) As though he said, "I die daily, as all the miseries I
          suffer can well witness, which I may truly boast
          of, that I have suffered among you."

1Co 15:32
15:32 {17} If {q} after the manner of men I have fought with
      beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead
      rise not? {18} let us {r} eat and drink; for to morrow we
      die.

 (17) The taking away of an objection: but you, Paul, were
      ambitious, as men commonly and are accustomed to be,
      when you fought with beasts at Ephesus.  That is very
      likely, says Paul: for what could that profit me, were
      it not for the glory of eternal life which I hope for?
      (q) Not upon any godly motion, nor casting my eyes upon
          God, but carried away with vain glory, or a certain
          headiness.
 (18) The seventh argument which depends upon the last: if there
      is no resurrection of the dead, why do we give ourselves
      to anything else, except for eating and drinking?
      (r) These are sayings of the Epicureans.

1Co 15:33
15:33 {19} Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good
      manners.

 (19) The conclusion with a sharp exhortation, that they take
      heed of the wicked company of certain ones.  And from this
      he shows where this evil sprang from: warning them to
      be wise with sobriety to righteousness.

1Co 15:35
15:35 {20} But some [man] will say, How are the dead raised up?
      and with what body do they come?

 (20) Now that he has proved the resurrection, he demonstrates
      their doltishness, in that they scoffingly demanded how it
      could be that the dead could rise again: and if they did
      rise again, they asked mockingly, what manner of bodies
      they should have.  Therefore he sends these fellows, who
      seemed to themselves to be marvellously wise and
      intelligent, to be instructed of poor rude farmers.

1Co 15:36
15:36 {21} [Thou] fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened,
      except it die:

 (21) You might have learned either of these, Paul says, by
      daily experience: for seeds are sown, and rot, and yet
      nonetheless they are far from perishing, but rather they
      grow up far more beautiful.  And whereas they are sown
      naked and dry, they spring up green from death by the
      power of God: and does it seem incredible to you that our
      bodies should rise from corruption, and that endued with a
      far more excellent quality?

1Co 15:38
15:38 {22} But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and
      to every seed his own body.

 (22) We see a diversity both in one and the self same thing
      which has now one form and then another, and yet keeps its
      own type: as it is evident in a grain which is sown bare,
      but springs up far after another sort: and also in
      different types of one self same sort, as among beasts:
      and also among things of different sorts, as the heavenly
      bodies and the earthly bodies; which also differ very much
      one from another.  Therefore there is no reason why we
      should reject either the resurrection of the bodies, or
      the changing of them into a better state, as a thing
      impossible, or strange.

1Co 15:42
15:42 {23} So also [is] the resurrection of the dead. It is {s}
      sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:

 (23) He makes three manner of qualities of the bodies being
      raised: first, incorruption, that is, because they will be
      sound and altogether of a nature that can not be corrupt.
      Second, glory, because they will be adorned with beauty
      and honour.  Third, power, because they will continue
      everlasting, without food, drink, and all other helps,
      without which this frail life cannot keep itself from
      corruption.
      (s) Is buried, and man is hid as seed in the ground.

1Co 15:43
15:43 It is sown in {t} dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is
      sown in weakness; it is raised in {u} power:

      (t) Void of honour, void of glory and beauty.
      (u) Freed from the former weakness, in which it is subject
          to such alteration and change, that it cannot maintain
          itself without food and drink and such other like
          helps.

1Co 15:44
15:44 {24} It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual
      body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual
      body.

 (24) He shows perfectly in one word this change of the quality
      of the body by the resurrection, when he says that a
      natural body will become a spiritual body: which two
      qualities being completely different the one from the
      other he straightway expounds, and sets forth diligently.

1Co 15:45
15:45 {25} And so it is written, The {x} first man Adam was made
      a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a {y} quickening
      spirit.

 (25) That is called a natural body which is made alive and
      maintained by a living soul only in the manner that Adam
      was, of whom we are all born naturally.  And that is said
      to be a spiritual body, which together with the soul is
      made alive with a far more excellent power, that is, with
      the Spirit of God, who descends from Christ the second
      Adam to us.
      (x) Adam is called the first man, because he is the root
          as it were from which we spring.  And Christ is the
          latter man, because he is the beginning of all those
          that are spiritual, and in him we are all included.
      (y) Christ is called a Spirit, by reason of that most
          excellent nature, that is to say, God who dwells in
          him bodily, as Adam is called a living soul, by reason
          of the soul which is the best part in him.

1Co 15:46
15:46 {26} Howbeit that [was] not first which is spiritual, but
      that which is natural; and afterward that which is
      spiritual.

 (26) Secondly, he wills the order of this twofold state or
      quality to be observed, that the natural was first, Adam
      being created of the clay of the earth.  And the spiritual
      follows and came upon it, that is, when the Lord being
      sent from heaven, endued our flesh, which was prepared and
      made fit for him, with the fulness of the Godhead.

1Co 15:47
15:47 The first man [is] of the earth, {z} earthy: the second
      man [is] the Lord from {a} heaven.

      (z) Wallowing in dirt, and wholly given to an earthly
          nature.
      (a) As Adam was the first man, Christ is the second man;
          and these two are spoken of, as if they were the only
          two men in the world; because as the former was the
          head and representative of all his natural posterity,
          so the latter is the head and representative of all
          the spiritual offspring: and that he is "the Lord from
          heaven"; in distinction from the first man. (Ed.)

1Co 15:48
15:48 {27} As [is] the earthy, such [are] they also that are
      earthy: and as [is] the heavenly, such [are] they also
      that are heavenly.

 (27) He applies both the earthly naturalness of Adam (if I may
      so say) to our bodies, so long as they are naturally
      conversant upon earth, that is, in this life, and in the
      grave.  And also the spirituality of Christ to our same
      bodies, after they are risen again: and he says that the
      former goes before, and that this latter will follow.

1Co 15:49
15:49 And as we have borne the {b} image of the earthy, we shall
      also bear the image of the heavenly.

      (b) Not a vain and false image, but such a one as indeed
          had the truth with it.

1Co 15:50
15:50 {28} Now this I say, brethren, that {c} flesh and blood
      cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption
      inherit incorruption.

 (28) The conclusion: we cannot be partakers of the glory of God
      unless we put off all that gross and filthy nature of our
      bodies subject to corruption, that the same body may be
      adorned with incorruptible glory.
      (c) Flesh and blood are taken here for a living body,
          which cannot attain to incorruption, unless it puts
          off corruption.

1Co 15:51
15:51 {29} Behold, I shew you a {d} mystery; We shall not all
      sleep, but we shall all be changed,

 (29) He goes further, declaring that it will come to pass that
      those who will be found alive in the latter day will not
      descend into that corruption of the grave, but will be
      renewed with a sudden change, which change is very
      necessary.  And he further states that the certain
      enjoying of the benefit and victory of Christ, is deferred
      to that latter time.
      (d) A thing that has been hid, and never known before now,
          and therefore worthy that you give good care to it.

1Co 15:52
15:52 In {e} a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last
      trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be
      raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

      (e) He shows that the time will be very short.

1Co 15:58
15:58 {30} Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast,
      unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord,
      forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in
      the {f} Lord.

 (30) An exhortation taken from the profit that ensues, that
      seeing they understand that the glory of the other life is
      laid up for faithful workmen, they continue and stand
      fast in the truth of the doctrine of the resurrection of
      the dead.
      (f) Through the Lord's help and goodness working in us.