Why does Paul list three groups instead of saved and lost in 1 Corinthians 10:32?
Paul lists three groups—Jews, Gentiles, and the house of God—because 1 Corinthians 10:32 divides the population into three categories rather than the usual saved and lost. The Jew remained a distinct factor to be reckoned with when Paul wrote to the Corinthians, so the admonition addresses all three.
Les explains that 1 Corinthians 10:32 gives another admonition that fits just as well today as it did in Corinth. The verse says to give no offense to the Jew, the Gentiles, or the house of God. That threefold wording divided the population of Corinth, or any other city at that time, into three categories. We normally think in terms of only two—saved and lost—but Paul puts it in three because the Jew was still a factor to be reckoned with when he wrote the Corinthians. This follows the crux of verse 31: whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.
Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:
More Questions
Who are the three groups Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 10:32?
1 Corinthians 10:32's command to give no offense divides people into three categories — the Jew, the Gentiles, and the house of God — rather than the two categories we normally think of, saved and lost.
Why does Paul use three categories instead of two in 1 Corinthians 10:32?
Paul lists three categories in 1 Corinthians 10:32 rather than two because the Jew was still a factor to be reckoned with when he wrote to the Corinthians.