My concise commentary on 1 Corinthians is now available:

Andrew David Naselli. “1 Corinthians.” Pages 209–394 in Romans–Galatians. Vol. 10 of ESV Expository Commentary. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020.

It is part of a single volume that includes three other concise commentaries:

The volume is available from Amazon, Westminster Bookstore, and Logos Bible Software.

Recommended Resources on 1 Corinthians

(What follows is the concise annotated bibliography at the end of my commentary.)

What makes a commentary valuable is not what it concludes but how it argues. I do not agree entirely with any of the below resources, but each is helpful.

1. Ciampa, Roy E., and Brian S. Rosner. The First Letter to the Corinthians. PNTC. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2010. These scholars’ work is thoughtfully based on meticulous research, especially regarding how Paul uses the OT.
2. Fee, Gordon D. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. 2nd edition. NICNT. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2014. This is the all-around best commentary on 1 Corinthians. Fee argues clearly and thoroughly. (Warning: Fee defends an egalitarian view of 11:2–16 and argues that Paul did not write 14:34–35.)
3. Garland, David E. 1 Corinthians. BECNT. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003. This is thought-provoking, sometimes maverick-like exegesis that challenges the reader to keep looking at Scripture.
4. Hays, Richard B. First Corinthians. IBC. Louisville: John Knox, 1997. This volume evinces clear prose, edifying biblical-theological connections, and some insightful applications. Hays, a longtime professor at Duke Divinity School, writes as a theologically conservative Methodist who does not share evangelical views on inerrancy (which is evident in his excursus on 14:34–35).
5. Schreiner, Thomas R. 1 Corinthians. TNTC 7. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2018. This work traces Paul’s argument clearly. Schreiner thoughtfully and respectfully argues for the views he takes.
6. Smith, Jay E. “1 Corinthians.” In The Bible Knowledge Word Study: Acts–Ephesians, edited by Darrell L. Bock, 205–326. BKnS. Colorado Springs: Victor, 2006. This resource comments concisely on what significant words mean in their literary and historical-cultural contexts.
7. Winter, Bruce W. After Paul Left Corinth: The Influence of Secular Ethics and Social Change. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2001. This is the single most helpful resource on the historical-cultural context of 1 Corinthians.

The Story Behind My Concise Commentary on 1 Corinthians

I’m sharing this backstory in case you’re interested in what might go into a book like this.

Crossway invited me to write this commentary in October 2013. There were three basic phases between then and now:

Phase 1: Prepare to write the commentary (2014–2017).

1. Phrase 1 Corinthians. I explain my method of tracing the argument in chapter 5 of this book.
2. Memorize 1 Corinthians. It takes about an hour to read aloud.
3. Teach on 1 Corinthians, and sketch out notes as you do. I taught on 1 Corinthians during a semester of Sunday School for adults in my church, and I taught three seminary courses on the letter—one an intermediate Greek exegesis course and two of them ThM courses. The notes I sketched out were invaluable for drafting the commentary more efficiently. I wish my notes had been more extensive.
4. Continually meditate on 1 Corinthians.
5. Collect books and articles on 1 Corinthians, and organize them in Zotero. I collected over 2,000 resources to process.
6. Study in depth parts of 1 Corinthians you want to better understand. I presented three papers at ETS on 1 Corinthians in back-to-back years and turned them into articles. Here are four articles I wrote as I prepared to write the commentary:
   1. “Is Every Sin Outside the Body except Immoral Sex? Weighing Whether 1 Corinthians 6:18b Is Paul’s Statement or a Corinthian Slogan.” Journal of Biblical Literature 136 (2017): 969–87.
   2. “The Structure and Theological Message of 1 Corinthians.” Presbyterion 44.1 (2018): 98–114.
   3. “Was It Always Idolatrous for Corinthian Christians to Eat Εἰδωλόθυτα in an Idol’s Temple? (1 Cor 8–10).” Southeastern Theological Review 9 (2018): 23–45.
   4. “What the New Testament Teaches about Divorce and Remarriage.” Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 24 (2019): 3–44.

Phase 2: Draft the commentary (January–June 2018).

My school graciously granted me a sabbatical for the first half of 2018, which my family spent at Tyndale House in Cambridge, England. My main goal for researching and writing on that sabbatical was to draft this commentary, and I spent about 80% of my research and writing time on it. I poured my soul into this commentary. I had a tight word-limit (about 85,000 words), so I asked God to give me a double portion of Derek Kidner’s spirit—witty brevity!

This was my basic process while drafting the commentary:

1. Break the letter down into literary units, and draft comments on one unit at a time in order.
2. Determine what resources you plan to consult for every literary section (e.g., the most helpful commentaries). I had about 50 resources in this category.
3. Draft comments on a literary unit; do not look at secondary literature at this point; use only the Greek NT, your phrase diagram, and English translations. I placed several English translations in parallel columns in Logos Bible Software: NASB, ESV, NIV, NIrV, CSB, NET + NET notes, NLT. Carefully working through those English translations (including every translator’s footnote and cross-reference) was as helpful as (if not more helpful than) working through secondary literature. I would add comments to my working draft when I had exegetical questions so that I could come back to those later. By the time I turned to secondary literature, I had drafted about 90% of my comments on a literary unit.
4. Work through secondary literature in Zotero—both the resources you consult for every unit as well as other resources specific to that unit. For example, for 1 Cor 12–14, I worked through over 600 secondary resources. I would start by working more slowly and thoroughly through the most helpful resources (e.g., for 1 Cor 12–14, those include Fee’s commentary, Carson’s book on 1 Cor 12–14, and Grudem’s book on prophecy). After the first 10–20 resources, it starts to snowball and go much more quickly.
5. Talk to and correspond with fellow academics all along the way to discuss exegetical and theological issues. For example, Bruce Winter—one of the top evangelical experts in the world on the historical-cultural context of Corinth—was studying at Tyndale House for a few months while I was there, and he kindly conversed with me a good deal about 1 Corinthians.
6. Proofread your work, and then move on to the next section.
7. Solicit feedback from a variety of friends across the spectrum of having no formal theological training to a lot of it.

Phase 3: Finalize the commentary (late 2018 to early 2020).

Process feedback from Crossway editors—first the New Testament editors for the commentary series (my friends Jim Hamilton and Dane Ortlund, whom I love and respect), then copy-editors (who were skilled and professional as always). (I submitted my manuscript a year early.) Hats off to Crossway for producing this handsome volume.

Update: I condensed part of my introduction to 1 Corinthians for TGC: “10 Issues the Gospel Solved in the Corinthian Church,” The Gospel Coalition, 21 November 2020.