The word of the cross [1:18] takes the center stage in St. Paul's epistle to the Corinthians. Canonically undisputed, the letter is aimed at a converted gentile audience and deals with the host of issues faced by the young church. In this original translation and commentary, Rev. Dr. Gregory J. Lockwood focuses on the themes of the church's unity that Paul presents in the epistle. In addition to a thorough exegesis of the entire letter, Lockwood provides additional material on the geography, history, religious landscape, and moral culture of the city of Corinth at the time of the epistle. He also takes up topics such as the Lord's Supper, the Office of the Ministry, and marriage as they appear in 1 Corinthians and delineates their treatment both in the early church and today. Additional EssaysModern Denominations Christian Maturity Spiritual Gifts in 1 Corinthians Worship Practice Today On the Ordination of Women About the series The Concordia Commentary Series: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture is written to enable pastors and teachers of the Word to proclaim the Gospel with greater insight, clarity, and faithfulness to the divine intent of the Biblical text. The series will cover all the canonical books of the Old and New Testament, with an original translation and meticulous grammatical analysis of the Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek of each text. The foremost interpretive lens centers on the unified proclamation of the person and work of Christ across every Scriptural book. The Commentary fully affirms the divine inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture; Each passage bears witness to the confession that God has reconciled the world to Himself through the incarnation, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ His Son. Authors expose the rich treasury of language, imagery, and thematic content of the Scripture, while supplementing their work with additional research in archaeology, history, and extrabiblical literature. Throughout, God's Word emanates from authors careful attention and inculcates the ongoing life of the Church in Word, Sacrament, and daily confession.