A Guided Tour of Corinth
In this excerpt from Transformed in Christ, Ron Elsdon and William Olhausen provide some insight into the history and culture of Corinth. Many cities, past and present, have reputations, including the Greek city of Corinth. But was its reputation deserved? Two of Paul’s letters usually command more attention than the others. In the case of Romans, the theological content is particularly significant, but there is little content focused on the dynamic of Christian life in the city of Rome. First Corinthians is different. Here Paul addresses issues that reflect the life of Corinth and the church there. To understand 1 Corinthians, it is helpful to know something of the history of the city. It would be easy to start with Aristophanes, who coined the term korinthiazesthai (“to play the Corinthian”) to depict its immorality. After all, Paul refers to a climate of sexual immorality (7:2) and expresses horror at a report of it among members of the Corinthian church (5:1). There is also Strab