For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy
He lets them know it was not so much on his own account, or at
all with any selfish views, or for any secular interest of his
own, that he was so concerned, but it was "a godly jealousy", or
a "zeal of God"; which he was inspired with by God, and which was
for the honour and glory of God, even Jesus Christ, who is God
overall; and for their real good and spiritual welfare, as a
church of Christ, that possessed him, which put him upon saying
what he was about to do; and what affected him the more was, when
he considered himself as a friend of the bridegroom, who had been
concerned in the betrothing of them to Christ:
for I have espoused you to one husband;
by whom is meant Christ, as the following clause explains it:
Christ stands in the relation of an husband to the church
catholic and universal; to the whole general assembly and church
of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven; even to all
the elect of God, that ever were, are, or shall be; and so he
does to particular congregated churches, as he did to this church
at Corinth, and so he does to every individual believer: which
character he responds to, by loving them with a love prior to
theirs, a love of complacency and delight, which is single,
special, and peculiar, strong and affectionate, wonderful and
inconceivable, constant, and what will last for ever; by
sympathizing with them under all their afflictions, temptations,
desertions, and exercises of every kind; by nourishing and
cherishing them, which phrases are expressive of the spiritual
food and clothing he provides for them, of that intimate
communion he admits them to, and of that whole care he takes of
them; by paying all their debts, supplying all their wants,
supporting them with his right hand, protecting them against all
their enemies, giving them grace here, and glory hereafter; and,
last of all, by interesting them in his person, and all that he
has, in all the blessings and promises of the covenant in his
wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. The act of
espousing, the apostle here, with respect to this church, takes
to himself, though in another sense, and which is the principal
one, it is ascribed to Christ himself, who betroths all his to
himself in righteousness, in judgment, in lovingkindness, and
tender mercies; he saw them in his Father's purposes and decrees,
in all the glory they were designed to be brought unto, when he
loved them as his Father did, and desired them for his spouse and
bride, which was granted to him; and then secretly in covenant
betrothed them to himself, and ever after looked upon them as in
a conjugal relation to him; wherefore though they fell in Adam,
and became guilty and filthy, he gave himself for them as his
church and bride, to sanctify and cleanse them, that he might
present them to himself, just such a glorious church he had seen
them before. In consequence of this, the Spirit of God attends
the ministration of the Gospel, to the conversion of each of
these souls, when they become willing to be the Lord's, and give
their free and full consent to have him for their husband; and
this is the day of their open espousal to him, and in this the
apostle had, and other ministers of the Gospel have a concern; he
was a means, in the hands of the Spirit, of their regeneration, a
minister by whom they believed, an instrument in directing their
souls to Christ, by setting forth his unsearchable riches, the
glory of his person, and fulness of his grace: as Abraham's
servant set forth the greatness of his master, and the large
possessions his son was heir to, and brought out his bracelets
and ear rings, his jewels of gold and silver, and thereby gained
his point, a wife for Isaac; so the Spirit of God going along
with the ministration of the apostle so wrought upon these
Corinthians, as to give up themselves to the Lord, and take him
for their head and husband, Saviour and Redeemer. This was the
concern the apostle had herein, and his view, desire, and hope
were, to set them before Christ their husband, pure and
incorrupt:
that I may present you as a chaste virgin to
Christ;
that is, single in their love to, him, strictly adhering to him,
and him only, as standing in such a relation to them; pure in the
principles of faith, sincere and upright in their worship, and
holy in their lives and conversations; nothing was more desirable
to him than this, that he might thus present them to Christ at
the great day; whereby it would appear, that his labour was not
in vain in the Lord: now having been concerned in this affair of
espousing them to Christ, and they not yet presented to him, or
took home by him, he could not, as things were circumstanced, but
entertain a godly jealousy over them in his own breast, lest the
false apostles should draw them aside in any degree from their
love to Christ, and faith in him.