David Prior, in this fresh and gripping exposition, writes first of all as a pastor. His conviction is that 1 Corinthians is uniquely a tract for our times. His aim is that churches will recognise the problems and tensions inherent in being God's people in the increasingly urban world today, and not be ignorant of the true spirituality that is the work of the Holy Spirit. He wishes for each of them as a body to grow to express the total lordship of Christ.

Upwardly mobile Christians facing radically diverse ethnic, religious, economic and social conditions. The church divided over issues of leadership and authority, sexual morality, gender and worship, marriage and divorce. Sound familiar? First-century Corinth and its challenges were not so different from our own. Yet in the midst of this detailed, practical letter is found one of the greatest paeans to love ever written. And, of course, love is just what is needed to address these complex human issues whether in the first century or the twenty-first.

This series of commentaries takes each Bible book section by section, drawing out its main themes. It comments on individual verses and problems of interpretation. Additional notes give a fuller discussion of particular difficulties, showing the true meaning of the text and its message.

Gordon Fee's work on I Corinthians is a contribution to The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Prepared by some of the world's leading scholars, the series provides an exposition of the New Testament books that is thorough and fully abreast of modern scholarship yet faithful to the Scriptures as the infallible Word of God.

Since its appearance nearly 35 years ago, Black's New Testament Commentary Series has been hailed by both scholars and pastors for its insightful interpretations and reliable commentary. Each book in the series includes: an insightful introduction to the important historical, literary, and theological issues; key terms and phrases from the translation highlighted in the commentary where they are discussed; explanations of special Greek or foreign terms; references to important primary and secondary literature; and a Scripture index.