Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Corinthians
Chapter 10: That Rock Was Christ
1 Corinthians 10 warns the confident Corinthians by the sobering example of Israel. Their fathers were 'all baptized unto Moses,' 'did all eat the same spiritual meat,' and 'drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ', yet most 'were overthrown in the wilderness.' These things are 'our examples,' that we not lust, commit idolatry or fornication, tempt Christ, or murmur; 'let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.' But 'God is faithful,' and 'will with the temptation also make a way to escape.' So 'flee from idolatry,' for the Lord's table, 'the communion of the blood of Christ,' cannot be shared with 'the table of devils.' Finally, in all matters of liberty, 'let no man seek his own,' and 'whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.' The chapter shows us Christ the Rock of the Exodus, the faithfulness of God in temptation, and a life lived wholly to His glory.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 10. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul warns by Israel's example, points to Christ the Rock and the faithfulness of God in temptation, guards the Lord's table from idolatry, and calls the believer to do all to the glory of God. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Israel in the Wilderness
Blessed with every privilege, yet most fell; a warning to the confident.
That Rock Was Christ
Christ Himself was the Rock that sustained Israel in the desert.
A Way to Escape
God is faithful and makes a way to bear every temptation.
The Communion of Christ
The Lord's table cannot be shared with the table of devils.
That Rock Was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:1-13)
Israel's fall in the wilderness, despite every privilege, warns the confident; but God is faithful to make a way of escape.
Let Him That Thinketh He Standeth Take Heed
"Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."
Word Study
"Rock," Greek petra (πέτρα). The word means a rock, a mass of solid stone. Paul says that Israel "drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." The Rock at Horeb and Kadesh, from which water flowed to save Israel in the desert (Exodus 17; Numbers 20), was more than stone; it was a figure of Christ, and Paul says plainly the Rock "was Christ." This is a stunning testimony to who Christ is: He was present with Israel in the wilderness, sustaining them, for He is the LORD who led them out of Egypt, God who was with His people, later come in flesh as Jesus. The point is confirmed a few verses on, where Paul warns, "Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted", it was Christ whom Israel tempted in the desert, that is, the one LORD (YHWH) of the Exodus. There is no second God here; the LORD who was Israel's Rock and the Christ who died for us are the one God, for in Jesus the very LORD of the wilderness came in flesh. The Rock that gave Israel water is the same Christ who gives us living water, the one God, our salvation.
Explanation
Paul warns the confident Corinthians from Israel's history. Israel had every privilege — the cloud, the sea, the manna, the water from the rock ("that Rock was Christ") — yet "with many of them God was not well pleased," and they fell in the wilderness. "These things were our examples," written "for our admonition." The lesson is humbling: "let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." But it ends in comfort: no temptation is superhuman, and "God is faithful," who "will with the temptation also make a way to escape."
Gospel Focus
The Corinthians were overconfident, sure that their knowledge and gifts made them secure. Paul sobers them with Israel's history. Their fathers had every privilege: "all under the cloud... all passed through the sea... all baptized unto Moses... did all eat the same spiritual meat... did all drink... of that spiritual Rock... and that Rock was Christ." They had, in figure, their own baptism and their own communion, Christ Himself sustaining them. "But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness." Privilege did not save them from falling. Paul lists their sins as warnings "written for our admonition": lusting after evil, idolatry ("the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play"), fornication, tempting Christ, and murmuring, each bringing judgment. Then the point lands: "let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." The very confidence that one cannot fall is the doorway to falling; humility and watchfulness are the safeguards. Yet Paul does not leave us in fear but in hope: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man." Our trials are not unique or unbearable. And best of all, "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." God sets the limits of every trial and provides, within the temptation itself, a way through. No believer can honestly say he had no choice but to sin; God is faithful to make a way. So we take heed lest we fall, not by trusting our own strength, but by leaning on the faithful God who holds us and opens the way of escape.
The Communion of the Blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:14-22)
Because the Lord's table is true communion with Christ, it cannot be shared with the table of devils; so flee idolatry.
Ye Cannot Be Partakers of the Lord's Table and the Table of Devils
"Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar? What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing? But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?"
Word Study
"communion," Greek koinonia (κοινωνία). The word means fellowship, sharing, a common participation. "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" The Lord's Supper is no empty ritual; it is a real koinonia, a genuine sharing in the benefits of Christ's broken body and shed blood, and a fellowship of believers with their Lord and with one another. That is why Paul says, "we being many are one bread, and one body," the shared bread makes visible the one body of Christ, the church united in Him. And this is precisely why the table cannot be shared with idols: to eat at a pagan sacrifice is to enter a koinonia with what stands behind the idol, with "devils, and not... God." One cannot have fellowship with Christ and with devils at once. The communion of the Lord's table is a holy participation in Christ that demands an undivided heart.
Explanation
From that warning Paul draws a command: "flee from idolatry." He points to the Lord's Supper — "the cup of blessing... is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?" — a real participation that binds believers to the Lord and to one another as "one bread, and one body." That is exactly why idol feasts are so dangerous: to share the "table of devils" while sharing the Lord's table is spiritual adultery. "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils." To try is to "provoke the Lord to jealousy."
Gospel Focus
From the warning of Israel, Paul draws a plain command: "flee from idolatry." Then he reasons "as to wise men" about why the Corinthians cannot casually join in pagan feasts. The Lord's Supper is a true communion: "the cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" To share the bread and cup is to share in Christ Himself and to be joined with all His people as "one body." The same logic held in Israel: those "which eat of the sacrifices" were "partakers of the altar," joined to the worship they shared in. Now Paul is careful: the idol itself is "nothing," a lifeless image. But behind idolatry stands a dark reality: "the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God." Pagan worship is fellowship with demons, and "I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils." So the line is absolute: "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils." There is no neutral ground; a believer cannot commune with Christ and with demons. And Paul ends with a piercing question: "Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?" The Lord is a jealous God who will not share His people's worship with idols, the very jealousy the LORD declared at Sinai, now claimed by the Lord of the table, for Jesus is that same LORD. To flirt with idolatry is to provoke Him and to imagine ourselves stronger than the Almighty, which is folly. The communion of Christ calls for an undivided heart, wholly His.
Do All to the Glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:23-33)
In matters of liberty, seek not your own good but your neighbor's, and do everything, even eating and drinking, to the glory of God.
Whether Ye Eat, or Drink, Do All to the Glory of God
"All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth. Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake. But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks? Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved."
Word Study
"glory," Greek doxa (δόξα). The word means glory, honor, the weight and splendor that belong to God. "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." This is the great governing principle of the Christian life, and it reaches even to eating and drinking, the most ordinary acts. To do a thing "to the glory of God" is to do it in a way that honors Him, displays His worth, and points others to Him rather than to ourselves. Paul has been threading a careful path between liberty and love; here he gives the compass that settles every question: not "is it lawful?" nor even "does it please me?" but "does it glorify God and help others toward salvation?" The believer's whole life, meals, work, words, choices, is to be lived for God's doxa. Nothing is too small to be an offering; the humblest act, done to God's glory, becomes worship.
Explanation
Paul balances liberty with love: "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient... edify not." So "let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth." Practically, eat what is sold in the market "asking no question for conscience sake" — the earth is the Lord's — but if a weak brother flags the meat as idol-food, abstain for his conscience. The governing rule crowns the chapter: "whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God," giving "none offence," seeking the profit of many, "that they may be saved."
Gospel Focus
Paul returns to the practical question of meat and gives balanced, love-shaped counsel. He repeats his principle: "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient... all things edify not." Liberty is real, but it is not the highest question; usefulness and building others up matter more. So "let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth", his neighbor's good. On the ordinary matter of food, the believer may be free: "whatsoever is sold in the shambles" (the meat market) "that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof." All food is God's good gift; a Christian need not investigate its history. Even at an unbeliever's feast, eat what is set before you. But there is one exception, and it is not about the food but about the other person: "if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake", not your own conscience, but his. Once the matter is named as idol food, eating it might wound another's conscience or seem to endorse idolatry, so love abstains. Paul is not surrendering his liberty to legalism, "why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?", but choosing to limit it for love's sake. Then he gives the grand rule over it all: "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." Every act, however small, is to be done for God's honor. And the aim of such love is evangelistic: "Give none offence... even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved." Paul limits his own freedom, not to please himself, but so that no one is turned from Christ and many are saved. Here is the whole balance of Christian liberty: free in all lawful things, but ruled by love and by the glory of God, so that our lives, down to our meals, point others to the Savior.
Chapter 10 in Review
1 Corinthians 10 warns the overconfident and guides the free. Israel had every privilege, baptized unto Moses, fed with spiritual meat, drinking from "that spiritual Rock... and that Rock was Christ," yet most "were overthrown in the wilderness." Their sins are "our examples," so "let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." Yet "God is faithful," and "will with the temptation also make a way to escape." Therefore "flee from idolatry," for the Lord's table, "the communion of the blood of Christ," cannot be shared with "the table of devils," lest we "provoke the Lord to jealousy." And in every matter of liberty, "let no man seek his own," but "whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
For the Apostolic reader this chapter joins deep doctrine to daily holiness. Christ was Israel's Rock and the LORD they tempted in the wilderness; He is the one God who led His people of old and came in flesh to save us, and to know that is to fear the sin that overthrew them. God's faithfulness guarantees a way of escape in every trial, so no one need fall. The Lord's Supper is real communion with Christ and His body, and cannot be mixed with the fellowship of demons; the jealous Lord will not share His people's worship. And over all of life stands the highest rule: do everything to the glory of God, holding liberty in the hand of love, seeking not our own profit but the salvation of many. Take heed lest you fall, lean on the faithful God, keep the table of the Lord undefiled, and let your whole life, down to what you eat and drink, be lived to His glory.
- Israel's fall, despite privilege, warns us: "take heed lest he fall" (10:12).
- "That Rock was Christ": the Lord of the Exodus is the one God come in flesh (10:4, 9).
- "God is faithful... will with the temptation also make a way to escape" (10:13).
- The Lord's Supper is real "communion of the blood of Christ" and His body (10:16).
- "Ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils" (10:21).
- "Do all to the glory of God," seeking the profit of many, that they may be saved (10:31-33).
Questions for Reflection
- Where might overconfidence be setting you up for a fall?
- Do you trust that God will make "a way to escape" every temptation?
- Is there any "table of devils," any divided loyalty, you need to flee?
- What would change if you did everything, even eating and drinking, "to the glory of God"?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Israel's wilderness example and warnings: 1 Corinthians 10:1-12; Exodus 13:21-22; 14:22; 32:6; Numbers 14; 21:5-6; 25:1-9. Christ the Rock, the LORD of the Exodus: 1 Corinthians 10:4, 9; Exodus 17:6; Numbers 20:11; Deuteronomy 32:4, 15; John 8:58. God faithful to make a way of escape: 1 Corinthians 10:13; 2 Peter 2:9; 1 Corinthians 1:9; Hebrews 4:15-16. The communion of the body and blood of Christ; the Lord's jealousy: 1 Corinthians 10:14-22; Matthew 26:26-28; Deuteronomy 32:21; Exodus 20:5. Liberty ruled by love and the glory of God: 1 Corinthians 10:23-33; Psalm 24:1; Romans 14:19-21; Colossians 3:17. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Israel's example and the Rock that was Christ; the faithful God: 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Exodus 17:6; John 8:58.
- The communion of Christ versus the table of devils: 1 Corinthians 10:14-22; Matthew 26:26-28; Deuteronomy 32:21.
- Liberty, love, and doing all to the glory of God: 1 Corinthians 10:23-33; Psalm 24:1; Colossians 3:17.