1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea,
2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,
3 all ate the same spiritual food,
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.
5 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
moreover (v.1) — connected to chapter 9
brethren (v.1) — a loving appeal
unaware (v.1) — They weren’t unaware of the facts. He didn’t want them to be unaware of how the facts applied the them.
all (vs.1-4) — God blessed the entire nation of Israel — contrasted with “most” in v.5.
baptized (v.2) — identified with
When Paul wrote to the Corinthians about Israel’s baptism into Moses he naturally said: “all our fathers were under the cloud,” etc., for he was a Jew. But when he wrote to the Corinthian believers about themselves as a congregation, he said to them: “Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led” (1 Corinthians 12:2). — Stam, page 165.
spiritual water (v.4) — natural water with supernatural origins
drank (v.4) — 1st use — past tense: 2nd use — imperfect tense, “continued to drink”
that Rock was Christ (v.4) — was (past tense) — a type of Christ, but also an indication of His presence with Israel. The Rock was stuck, possibly as a foreshadowing of His affliction (Isaiah 53:4)
most (v.5) — Only Caleb and Joshua entered Canaan (Numbers 14:30-32)
scattered (v.5) = lit. “to strew”
And so it was with the Corinthians believers — and so it is with the Bible-believing Church today. We have all been baptized by the Spirit “into one body,” and have all been blessed with the same “spiritual blessings;” not one of us has been excluded (1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:3), but with many of us God has not been well pleased. He is pleased with us indeed as He sees us in Christ, but many Christians are forever rejoicing in their position while disgracefully neglecting their condition, spiritually and even morally. With this “God is not well pleased.” — Stam, page 169.
