I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)

Now I beseech you, brethren (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have set themselves to minister unto the saints),

And I beseech you, brethren, you know the house of Stephanas, and of Fortunatus, and of Achaicus, that they are the firstfruits of Achaia, and have dedicated themselves to the ministry of the saints:

But I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the first-fruits of Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the saints for service,)

I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)

And I entreat you, brethren, ye have known the household of Stephanas, that it is the first-fruit of Achaia, and to the ministration to the saints they did set themselves,

And I beseech you, brethren - you know the household of Stephanas, how they were the earliest Greek converts to Christ, and have devoted themselves to the service of God's people -

Now I make my request to you, my brothers, for you have knowledge that the house of Stephanas is the first-fruits of Achaia, and that they have made themselves the servants of the saints,

And I beg you, brothers: You know the house of Stephanus, and of Fortunatus, and of Achaicus, that they are the first-fruits of Achaia, and that they have dedicated themselves to the ministry of the saints.

I have another request to make of you, friends. You remember Stephanas and his household, and that they were the first-fruits gathered in from Greece, and set themselves to serve Christ's people.

Ye know the house of Stephanas We know, from daily experience, of what advantage it is, that those should have the highest authority, whom God has adorned with the most distinguished gifts. Accordingly, if we wish to secure the welfare of the Church, let us always take care that honor be conferred upon the good: let their counsels have the greatest weight; let others give way to them, and allow themselves to be governed by their prudence. This Paul does in this instance, when admonishing the Corinthians to show respect to the house of Stephanas. Some manuscripts add, and Fortunatus. [1] For God manifests himself to us when he shows us the gifts of his Spirit. Hence, if we would not appear to be despisers of God, let us voluntarily submit ourselves to those, on whom God has conferred superior gifts. Now, that they may be the more inclined to put honor upon that house, (for as to the other, it appears to me to be, in this place at least, a spurious addition,) he reminds them that they were the first-fruits of Achaia, that is, that the household of Stephanas were the first that had embraced the gospel. Not indeed as though the first in order of time were in every case superior to the others, but where there is perseverance along with this, it is with good reason, that honor is conferred upon those, who have in a manner paved the way for the gospel by promptitude of faith. It must be observed, however, that he dignifies with this honorable title those, who had consecrated to believers their services and resources. For the same reason, he bestows commendation a little afterwards upon Fortunatus and Achaicus, that, in proportion to a man's superiority of excellence, [2] he might be held so much the more in esteem, that he might be able to do the more good. Farther, in order that the Corinthians may be the more disposed to love them, he says, that what had been wanting on the part of their entire Church had been compensated for by their vicarious services.

Footnotes

1 - The Alex. and Copt. MSS. read -- and Fortunatus. The Vulgate reads -- Fortunatum et Achaicum; in accordance with which the rendering in Wiclif (1380) is, Ye knowen the hous of stephart and of fortunati, and acacie. The Rheims version (1582) reads -- You know the house of Ste-phanas and of Fortunatus. -- Ed.

2 - "Selon que chacun estoit plus homme de bien et vertueux;" -- "In proportion as an individual was an honorable and virtuous man."

I beseech you, brethren - The construction here is somewhat involved, but the sense is plain. The words, "I beseech you," in this verse, are evidently to be taken in connection with 1-Corinthians 16:16, "I beseech you that ye submit yourselves unto such," etc. The design is to exhort them to pay proper deference to Stephanas, and to all who sustained the same rank and character; and the remainder of 1-Corinthians 16:15 is designed to state the reason why they should show respect and kindness to the household of Stephanas.
Ye know the house - You are acquainted with the household, or family. Probably a considerable portion, or all, of the family of Stephanas had been converted to the Christian faith.
Of Stephanas - See the note at 1-Corinthians 1:16. Paul there says that he had baptized his family. That it is the first-fruits of Achaia. They were the first converted to the Christian religion in Achaia; see the note at Romans 16:5. Respecting Achaia, see the note at Acts 18:12.
That they have addicted themselves - That they have devoted themselves to the service of Christians. That is, by aiding the ministry; by showing hospitality; by providing for their needs; by attending and aiding the apostles in their journeys, etc.

Ye know the house of Stephanas - Ye know that Stephanas and his family have addicted them to the help of the followers of Christ; they have been the chief instruments of supporting the work of God in Achaia, of which work they themselves have been the first fruits. See the note on Romans 16:5.

I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of (g) Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and [that] they have (h) addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)
(g) Stephanas is the name of a man and not of a woman.
(h) Given themselves wholly to the ministry.

I beseech you, brethren,.... Entreat or exhort you as brethren in the Lord; this entreaty or exhortation is to submission to fellow helpers and labourers of the ministry, more particularly expressed in the following verse, after the apostle has given a character of the household of Stephanas, who are principally intended, and which contains reasons and arguments why they should be submitted to; and which account stands in the following parenthesis,
ye know the house of Stephanas; a person of note at Corinth, whom the apostle had baptized, together with his family, 1-Corinthians 1:16. The Vulgate Latin version, and some copies, add, "and of Fortunatus and Achaicus", persons mentioned along with Stephanas, in 1-Corinthians 1:17;
that it is the firstfruits of Achaia: this family was one of the first in the regions of Achaia, of which Corinth was the metropolis, that believed in Christ; these were some of the first instances of conversion, and who received the firstfruits of the Spirit in these parts, and by the grace of God had been enabled to persevere hitherto, and were worthy of respect: the same he says of Epaenetus, in Romans 16:5;
and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints; that is, either to minister to the wants of poor saints, whether out of their own substance, or the churches' stock, being deacons, or to minister to the saints by preaching the Gospel; which good work they desired, willingly gave up themselves to, and cheerfully engaged in, and took the oversight and care of the flock, not by constraint, but willingly; not that they thrust themselves into an office, or came into it in an irregular way, but being called into it in an orderly manner by the church, and invested with it, they applied to the execution of it with great heartiness, diligence, and zeal, and so were very deserving of due respect, as next mentioned.

first-fruits of Achaia--the first AchÃ&brvbr;an converts (compare Romans 16:5). The image is from the first-fruits offered to the Lord (Leviticus 23:10; compare 1-Corinthians 15:20). The members of this family had been baptized by Paul himself (1-Corinthians 1:16).
addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints--Translate, "Set themselves, (that is, voluntarily) to minister unto the saints" (compare 2-Corinthians 8:4).

I beseech you, brethren (ye know the house of Stephanas). Paul had baptized the household of Stephanas. See 1-Corinthians 1:16. They were his first converts at Corinth.
That ye submit yourselves to such. In view of the fact that they were devoted to the ministry.
I am glad of the coming of Stephanas. Stephanas is named in 1-Corinthians 1:16 and above in 1-Corinthians 16:15. The other two are not named elsewhere. These three doubtless brought to Paul the letter referred to in 2-Corinthians 7:1, and probably carried back the present letter.
The churches of Asia salute you. Of the Roman province of Asia, of which Ephesus was the capital. Seven of the churches of "Asia" are named in the Book of Revelation.
Aquila and Priscilla salute you. We first meet this excellent pair at Corinth (Acts 18:2); afterwards they had gone to Ephesus (Acts 18:26).
With the church in their house. The early church had no church buildings, and would be compelled to meet often in private houses. The house of Aquila and Priscilla was such a place of meeting. See note on Romans 16:23.
Greet ye one another with a holy kiss. See note on Romans 16:16.

The first fruits of Achaia - The first converts in that province.