1 Corinthians 2 pulls back the curtain on how God works. Paul says God’s plan to save the world centers on “Jesus Christ and Him crucified”, and it is so unexpected that both human rulers and demons/”>demonic powers missed it. He writes, “which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Corinthians 2:8). If the enemy had understood what the cross would accomplish, they would have tried to stop it. Instead, they helped carry out the very act that sealed their defeat.
This is why the prophecies of the first coming are given in a veiled, interwoven way. They mix promises of suffering with promises of glory. God revealed enough for the faithful to recognize Jesus when He came, but not enough for the powers of darkness to predict the timing and the method. And the same pattern continues with the second coming: we are given clarity where we need it, and mystery where it protects God’s plan and keeps us watchful.
The History: Corinth and Paul’s Choice to Preach Simply
Corinth was a thriving port city and cultural crossroads. The people there loved rhetoric (polished speech, clever arguments, and verbal performance). Into that world, Paul came with a very different approach. He says he came,
“in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:3–5)
Paul’s choice was intentional. He refused to compete with the city’s love of performance. He wanted their faith anchored in God’s power, not in his skill. He knew the gospel doesn’t need decoration. It needs clarity, honesty, and the Holy Spirit’s power.
1 Corinthians 2:1–2 — A Single Focus
“And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:1–2)
Paul’s message was not a set of ideas. It was a Person and an event… Jesus and the cross. He had already said in the previous chapter that the message of the cross is “foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). He would not soften the offense of the cross or dress it in the world’s wisdom, because the cross itself is the wisdom and power of God (1 Corinthians 1:23–24).
1 Corinthians 2:3–5 — Spirit Over Performance
“My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” (1 Corinthians 2:4)
Paul’s weakness left room for God’s strength. He was not trying to win an argument; he wanted God to win hearts. Rhetoric can stir admiration, but only the Holy Spirit can bring new birth and lasting faith. Paul’s aim was clear… faith that rests on the power of God, not the charisma of a messenger.
1 Corinthians 2:6–7 — God’s Hidden Wisdom
“However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory.” (1 Corinthians 2:6–7)
Paul then speaks wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom this age prizes. He speaks with God’s hidden wisdom, a “mystery.” In the New Testament, “mystery” means a truth God planned all along but kept hidden until the right time. The cross was not Plan B. It was ordained “before the ages.” Before God said, “Let there be light,” He purposed salvation through the death and resurrection of His Son. And He did it “for our glory”, not worldly fame, but the glory of sharing Christ’s life forever (Romans 8:29–30; 1 Peter 5:10).
1 Corinthians 2:8 — Why the Rulers Missed It
“which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” (1 Corinthians 2:8)
The “rulers” include both human authorities and spiritual powers. On the human side you have Herod, Pontius Pilate, and the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:27–28). Behind them stand the spiritual forces… “principalities,” “powers,” “the rulers of the darkness of this age” (Ephesians 6:12). Satan knew a Deliverer was promised (Genesis 3:15). He knew He would come through Abraham, Judah, and David (Genesis 22:18; 49:10; 2 Samuel 7:12–16). But he did not know how the plan would unfold. The first coming would involve suffering and then glory. Without that full picture, the cross looked like Satan’s victory. However, in truth, it was the tool of his defeat.
Hebrews says that through death Jesus destroyed the one who had the power of death (the devil) and delivered those who were held in bondage (Hebrews 2:14–15). Colossians says Christ “disarmed principalities and powers” and “made a public spectacle of them” at the cross (Colossians 2:14–15). If the rulers had known what the cross would accomplish, they would never have pushed toward it. But God used their malice to accomplish His mercy (Acts 2:23; Acts 3:13–18).
Why the First Coming Prophecies Were Veiled
The Old Testament gave a mosaic of Messiah’s life… pieces of suffering and pieces of glory interwoven in a way that only made full sense after the resurrection. Jesus told the disciples,
“Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” (Luke 24:26)
Consider how the threads fit together:
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah… out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel.” (Micah 5:2)
“Out of Egypt I called My Son.” (Hosea 11:1; applied in Matthew 2:15)
“He shall be called a Nazarene.” (Matthew 2:23)
“They pierced My hands and My feet.” (Psalm 22:16)
“Behold, your King is coming to you… lowly and riding on a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9)
“The LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)
At the same time, God promised an everlasting throne and global dominion (2 Samuel 7:12–16; Psalm 2; Daniel 7:13–14). Without the Spirit, these looked conflicting. Even the prophets searched and inquired, wanting to know the timing and the manner, yet it was not fully revealed to them (1 Peter 1:10–12). God gave enough information for faithful men to recognize the Messiah, but He kept enough hidden so the enemy could not anticipate the cross.
1 Corinthians 2:9–10 — What the Spirit Reveals
“But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:9–10)
People often quote verse 9 and stop, as if these things remain unknown. Paul immediately says, “But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit.” This is not about curiosity or secret codes. It is about the Spirit opening Scripture and showing us the realities of salvation that human senses cannot discover. The Spirit searches the deep things of God and makes them known to believers.
1 Corinthians 2:11–16 — The Mind of Christ
“For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received… the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.” (1 Corinthians 2:11–12)
Only the Spirit knows God’s inner thoughts, and God has given us His Spirit so we can understand what He has freely given… justification, adoption, inheritance, and the hope of glory (Romans 5:1; Galatians 4:6–7; Ephesians 1:13–14; Colossians 1:27). Paul goes on to say,
“These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” (1 Corinthians 2:13)
Scripture interprets Scripture. The same Spirit who inspired the Word illumines the believer. This is why the natural man (unchanged by the Spirit) cannot receive the things of God:
“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
The spiritual person, who is taught by the Spirit, discerns rightly. Paul concludes,
“For ‘who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:16)
To have the mind of Christ is to see life through the lens of the cross. Through humility, obedience, truth, love, and hope. The Spirit conforms our thinking to Christ’s way (Philippians 2:5–11).
The Second Coming: Clear Enough to Obey, Concealed Enough to Keep Us Watchful
God follows the same pattern with the second coming. We are not given a calendar. Jesus said,
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” (Matthew 24:36)
We are told to watch and be ready (Matthew 24:42). We are told there will be signs and lawlessness (2 Thessalonians 2:3–8; Matthew 24:6–14). We are told the Lord will come visibly and triumphantly (Revelation 1:7; Acts 1:11). But the precise timing remains with the Father (Acts 1:7). This preserves urgency, humbles speculation, and keeps the enemy from anticipating God’s exact moves. As with the first advent, the second will arrive right on time.
How We Live This Out
Keep the cross central.
Like Paul, determine to know Christ and Him crucified. Do not let style eclipse substance. The cross saves, sanctifies, and shapes how we live (Galatians 6:14).
Expect misunderstanding. The natural mind calls the gospel foolish (1 Corinthians 2:14). Pray for the Spirit to open blind eyes (2 Corinthians 4:4–6).
Read prophecy with humility. Hold fast to what is clear; be cautious with what is not. Revelation is given for obedience, not curiosity (Revelation 1:3).
Trust in God’s timing. He was not late at the cross; He will not be late at the crown (Romans 5:6; Habakkuk 2:3). Our call is to be faithful and ready.
My Final Thoughts
1 Corinthians 2 shows us the wisdom of God at work by concealing it from the proud and revealing to the humble. The rulers of this age did not know what God was doing; if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But in that very crucifixion, God triumphed. The prophecies of the first coming were veiled until the moment arrived. The prophecies of the second coming keep us watchful without feeding speculation. And in the middle of it all, the Holy Spirit reveals to the children of God what human wisdom cannot grasp.
So we preach Christ and Him crucified. We depend on the Spirit, not performance. We read the times with sober joy. We keep our lamps burning. And we look for His appearing with steady hope. Amen.
