Epiphany Season · Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany · Year B
1 Corinthians 8:1-13
Food Sacrificed to Idols
January 31, 2027
Overview & Insights
“Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” (1 Corinthians 8:1)
Paul now takes up the next question posed by the Corinthians in their letter (cf. 7:1).1Moving from the larger question of human relationships, with a special focus on marriage, divorce, and singleness, he now takes up another pertinent question that relates directly to the domestic situation of the Corinthian believers, which includes relatives, friends, and co-workers. What about the meat Christ followers were served at dinner parties? Were Christians allowed to eat whatever they could buy in the marketplace? (See the “Additional Insights” following this unit.) Interpretive Insights 8:1 We know that “We all possess knowledge.” Still speaking as a pastor, Paul immediately steps away from the specific case-in-point issue to deal with the underlying social issues of pride, prominence, and personal rights.
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Commentary
1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Working Preacher
Luther Seminary on Paul's argument that love builds up where knowledge puffs up, in the dispute over food sacrificed to idols.
1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Center for Excellence in Preaching
A Reformed reading of how Paul subordinates freedom and knowledge to care for the weaker conscience.
1 Corinthians 8 verse by verse Precept Austin
A study hub with word studies and cross-references on the idol-meat question.
Classic commentaries on 1 Corinthians 8 BibleHub
Classic commentaries on 'meat sacrificed to idols' and the weak and the strong.
1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Enduring Word · David Guzik
An accessible verse-by-verse commentary, widely used across evangelical churches.
Background & Word Study
The Church Fathers
Questions preachers ask
What is the issue with food offered to idols?
The strong know an idol is nothing, but Paul insists that love, not knowledge, must rule: a freedom that wounds a weaker believer's conscience is a sin against Christ.
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