For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city.
God spoke to Paul in a night vision at Corinth to keep him there speaking openly without fear, promising His presence and support so that no one would be allowed to hurt or kill him because He had many people to be gathered in that city. Corinth was deeply idolatrous and grossly immoral yet a leading commercial center full of people from many lands, and Paul had grown weary and discouraged and was thinking of leaving it as a hopeless field for a safer and more promising one. Strengthened by the promise he remained a year and six months and raised up a large flourishing church of Jews and Gentiles, with the Gentiles more numerous and more ready to receive the truth and even some of the most dissipated becoming true converts as monuments of mercy. The same assurance belongs to God's messengers in wicked cities today, that even where unbelief and profligacy make the work look most forbidding and hopeless there are still many honest souls who will come to the light, so no city is to be given up but is to be entered and worked while time is short. The protection is personal and present, restraining those who would imprison or abuse His workers, giving timid and young witnesses words to speak at the right time and guarding them by angels so their hands cannot be laid on them to harm them.
Corinth Setting and Vision
The promise belongs to Paul's work in Corinth, a city sunk in deep idolatry and gross immorality that seriously obstructed his preaching. At the same time Corinth was a leading commercial city gathering people from many lands, making it an important place to establish memorials for God and His truth, which gives force to the declaration that He had much people in that city.
There Paul lived with Aquila and Priscilla, Jews residing in Corinth who afterward became distinguished as earnest workers for Christ. The word was spoken to him by the Lord in a night vision in their house. It came when he had grown weary of the corruption he saw and heard, doubted the wisdom of building a church out of such material, and regarded Corinth as a questionable field. Discouraged and anxious about his duty, he was contemplating leaving for a more promising, safer and more prosperous field. It was given to comfort and encourage him and to keep him from retreat, showing that the Lord is with His faithful witness, guards him, and reveals Himself on trying occasions.
The verse pledges divine presence, support, safety and success to him in that work. It guarantees protection so that no man would set upon him to hurt or kill him. It commands him not to fear but to remain in Corinth and keep speaking openly despite opposition and severe trials.
Fruit at Corinth
Paul took the promise as a command to stay in Corinth and as a guarantee that the Lord would give increase to the seed he had sown so that it would bear fruit. Strengthened and encouraged by it, he remained and labored there with great zeal and perseverance for a year and six months. That continued work raised up a large, flourishing church enrolled under Christ and composed of Jews and Gentiles.
God indeed had many people in Corinth to be gathered out of the darkness of error into the light of the gospel, and the result proved the divine character of Paul's mission. The Gentile converts were more numerous than the Jewish converts, because they were in a more favorable condition to receive the truth, not walled in by the maxims and traditions of priests and elders. Some from among the most dissipated Gentiles became true converts, standing as monuments of God's mercy and of the efficacy of Christ's blood to cleanse from sin. He was guarded from those who wanted to kill him so that he could continue his work and carry the gospel to the Gentiles.
Promise for Today
The promise belongs to messengers sent into wicked cities, that they need not fear but are to keep speaking because God is with them, and that many people in those cities can be taught to follow Jesus and receive Him as personal Saviour. Events are used to awaken people to their danger. Even when a city looks most forbidding and hopeless, given up to unbelief, skepticism, infidelity, heathenism and profligacy, God still has many honest souls there who will come to the light and accept the truth. That word, spoken to keep the apostle from retreat, applies now to Wellington, Dunedin, Christchurch, Auckland, Melbourne and the cities of Australia, which must not be given up as hopeless enterprises but must be entered and worked with means and workers because time is short. In New York, though the great city is full of wickedness, crime, injustice and every kind of depravity, God has many people there whom He would have become Bible Christians and use to tell both the wealthy and the lowly what each must do to be saved. A center is to be established there from which Bible truth in its simplicity can be given to the people, so that light shines amid the darkness of sin and error for the many through the city who are praying for light and want to understand what is truth.
God has people in a city even where prejudice is strong and only a few Sabbathkeepers are found. Those people will consider Bible truth just as it reads when their attention is fastened upon it. The Lord alone can remove unreasonable, thick prejudice, and the rays of the Sun of Righteousness are able to cut it away from the roots. The Lord has many people to be saved right around believers in their very borders, so a large work remains close to home that has only just been entered upon and not half done. Gathering from the darkness of error proved the divine character of the mission at Corinth, where a flourishing church of Jews and Gentiles was raised up and the Gentile converts were more numerous than the Jewish, being in a more favorable condition to receive the truth without being walled in by the maxims and traditions of priests and elders. That same gathering now requires stirring people to action, making missionary work part of students' education, and branching out more to make the world the field of labor rather than working for the churches only, with confidence that God is able to open the way and that gathering those nearby souls will strengthen the outposts.
When God sends a young and timid worker into danger and perils to reprove fanaticism where it has done the most evil, to rebuke those influencing others, and to comfort and encourage the timid and conscientious who are deceived, He tests faith, courage and obedience and requires going without shrinking. The danger includes imprisonment and abuse and hatred from an excited community that makes no distinction between the true and the fanatical. If the worker waits upon God with humble confidence and faith, God will give words to speak at the right time, restrain those who would do harm, keep the worker from imprisonment and abuse, and place an angel by his side to direct when and where to go. The protection is personal and physical, including distinct warning to take another road when men lie in wait on the road to seize and imprison, assurance that no man's hand will be laid on them to harm them, and freedom from ever being shut up. Divine power makes officers of justice unable to hold those they grasp, leaving them pale and giving evidence that the power of God is upon His people. Jesus calls even a sick, timid teenage girl to go and speak His message to a world in midnight darkness after the passing of the time, commanding the fearful, voiceless and weak witness to go and assuring her that hostile hands will not be allowed to injure her because He Himself protects her as her guard. Given in mercy when holding back from the call in fear left her feeling her soul was lost, the promise restores courage to stand and speak and proves true through years of preserved labor.
God spoke to Paul in a night vision at Corinth to keep him there speaking openly without fear, promising His presence and support so that no one would be allowed to hurt or kill him because He had many people to be gathered in that city. Corinth was deeply idolatrous and grossly immoral yet a leading commercial center full of people from many lands, and Paul had grown weary and discouraged and was thinking of leaving it as a hopeless field for a safer and more promising one. Strengthened by the promise he remained a year and six months and raised up a large flourishing church of Jews and Gentiles, with the Gentiles more numerous and more ready to receive the truth and even some of the most dissipated becoming true converts as monuments of mercy. The same assurance belongs to God's messengers in wicked cities today, that even where unbelief and profligacy make the work look most forbidding and hopeless there are still many honest souls who will come to the light, so no city is to be given up but is to be entered and worked while time is short. The protection is personal and present, restraining those who would imprison or abuse His workers, giving timid and young witnesses words to speak at the right time and guarding them by angels so their hands cannot be laid on them to harm them.
Corinth Setting and Vision
The promise belongs to Paul's work in Corinth, a city sunk in deep idolatry and gross immorality that seriously obstructed his preaching. At the same time Corinth was a leading commercial city gathering people from many lands, making it an important place to establish memorials for God and His truth, which gives force to the declaration that He had much people in that city.
There Paul lived with Aquila and Priscilla, Jews residing in Corinth who afterward became distinguished as earnest workers for Christ. The word was spoken to him by the Lord in a night vision in their house. It came when he had grown weary of the corruption he saw and heard, doubted the wisdom of building a church out of such material, and regarded Corinth as a questionable field. Discouraged and anxious about his duty, he was contemplating leaving for a more promising, safer and more prosperous field. It was given to comfort and encourage him and to keep him from retreat, showing that the Lord is with His faithful witness, guards him, and reveals Himself on trying occasions.
The verse pledges divine presence, support, safety and success to him in that work. It guarantees protection so that no man would set upon him to hurt or kill him. It commands him not to fear but to remain in Corinth and keep speaking openly despite opposition and severe trials.
Fruit at Corinth
Paul took the promise as a command to stay in Corinth and as a guarantee that the Lord would give increase to the seed he had sown so that it would bear fruit. Strengthened and encouraged by it, he remained and labored there with great zeal and perseverance for a year and six months. That continued work raised up a large, flourishing church enrolled under Christ and composed of Jews and Gentiles.
God indeed had many people in Corinth to be gathered out of the darkness of error into the light of the gospel, and the result proved the divine character of Paul's mission. The Gentile converts were more numerous than the Jewish converts, because they were in a more favorable condition to receive the truth, not walled in by the maxims and traditions of priests and elders. Some from among the most dissipated Gentiles became true converts, standing as monuments of God's mercy and of the efficacy of Christ's blood to cleanse from sin. He was guarded from those who wanted to kill him so that he could continue his work and carry the gospel to the Gentiles.
Promise for Today
The promise belongs to messengers sent into wicked cities, that they need not fear but are to keep speaking because God is with them, and that many people in those cities can be taught to follow Jesus and receive Him as personal Saviour. Events are used to awaken people to their danger. Even when a city looks most forbidding and hopeless, given up to unbelief, skepticism, infidelity, heathenism and profligacy, God still has many honest souls there who will come to the light and accept the truth. That word, spoken to keep the apostle from retreat, applies now to Wellington, Dunedin, Christchurch, Auckland, Melbourne and the cities of Australia, which must not be given up as hopeless enterprises but must be entered and worked with means and workers because time is short. In New York, though the great city is full of wickedness, crime, injustice and every kind of depravity, God has many people there whom He would have become Bible Christians and use to tell both the wealthy and the lowly what each must do to be saved. A center is to be established there from which Bible truth in its simplicity can be given to the people, so that light shines amid the darkness of sin and error for the many through the city who are praying for light and want to understand what is truth.
God has people in a city even where prejudice is strong and only a few Sabbathkeepers are found. Those people will consider Bible truth just as it reads when their attention is fastened upon it. The Lord alone can remove unreasonable, thick prejudice, and the rays of the Sun of Righteousness are able to cut it away from the roots. The Lord has many people to be saved right around believers in their very borders, so a large work remains close to home that has only just been entered upon and not half done. Gathering from the darkness of error proved the divine character of the mission at Corinth, where a flourishing church of Jews and Gentiles was raised up and the Gentile converts were more numerous than the Jewish, being in a more favorable condition to receive the truth without being walled in by the maxims and traditions of priests and elders. That same gathering now requires stirring people to action, making missionary work part of students' education, and branching out more to make the world the field of labor rather than working for the churches only, with confidence that God is able to open the way and that gathering those nearby souls will strengthen the outposts.
When God sends a young and timid worker into danger and perils to reprove fanaticism where it has done the most evil, to rebuke those influencing others, and to comfort and encourage the timid and conscientious who are deceived, He tests faith, courage and obedience and requires going without shrinking. The danger includes imprisonment and abuse and hatred from an excited community that makes no distinction between the true and the fanatical. If the worker waits upon God with humble confidence and faith, God will give words to speak at the right time, restrain those who would do harm, keep the worker from imprisonment and abuse, and place an angel by his side to direct when and where to go. The protection is personal and physical, including distinct warning to take another road when men lie in wait on the road to seize and imprison, assurance that no man's hand will be laid on them to harm them, and freedom from ever being shut up. Divine power makes officers of justice unable to hold those they grasp, leaving them pale and giving evidence that the power of God is upon His people. Jesus calls even a sick, timid teenage girl to go and speak His message to a world in midnight darkness after the passing of the time, commanding the fearful, voiceless and weak witness to go and assuring her that hostile hands will not be allowed to injure her because He Himself protects her as her guard. Given in mercy when holding back from the call in fear left her feeling her soul was lost, the promise restores courage to stand and speak and proves true through years of preserved labor.