Jesus was a curse if not loved

JESUS WAS A CURSEIF NOT LOVED
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
1 Corinthians16:22 If anyone does not love the Lord,
let him be under a divine curse. Come, O Lord!
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
The Absence Of Love To Christ
1 Corinthians 16:22
J.R. Thomson
There are those who, not having known Christ, have had no opportunity of
loving him. But of all who have heard and read of Christ, we may say that the
one testof their characterand their position lies in their feeling with regard to
him, with all which that feeling involves. The apostle's warm heart could
tolerate no indifference, no neutrality, here. The Lord Jesus must be not only
respected, but loved. And not to love him proves that the nature is insensible
to all that is goodand Divine - involves its own condemnation and curse and
misery.
I. THE ABSENCE OF LOVE TO CHRIST. Where there is no love to the
Lord Jesus there appears to be:
1. A want of appreciationof his perfect moral character. If Jesus be known by
a holy and sympathetic nature, he will appear to such a nature "the chief
among ten thousand, the altogetherlovely." Who can gaze upon the sinless
and pure, the just and kind, the meek and patient Jesus, and be unaffectedby

the spectacle?Only those for whom moral excellence andbeauty have no
charms.
2. A deep sensibility to his infinite compassion. Forit must be borne in mind
that the Saviour's disposition and ministry, and especiallyhis sacrifice, have a
personalrelation to ourselves. It was for us men and our salvation that he
lived a life of poverty and contempt, that he deigned to die a death of agony
and shame. To withhold the heart's best love from One who endured the cross
for us argues a callousness ofnature beneath the level of common humanity.
3. A base ingratitude for all he has done and is doing on our behalf. Even
those who are indifferent to the Lord Jesus owe him a vast debt for the
benefits which, by his mediation, he has conferred upon the human race, and
for the forbearance with which they have individually been treated. If
ingratitude to earthly friends and benefactors be base, how shall the
heinousness be described of ingratitude to the Son of man?
II. THE CURSE AND CONDEMNATION INVOLVED IN INDIFFERENCE
TOWARDS CHRIST.
1. We can trace this in the moral degradationwhich such insensibility
occasions.Notto love the worthiest and the best is to debase our nature.
Characteris largelymoulded by love; and they who turn awayfrom the love
of Immanuel choose death.
2. The condemnation of conscienceis inevitable. Its voice may be stifled for a
season, but it will be heard, and that voice must needs utter a censure of no
feeble or ambiguous kind. The judge is within, and cannot be escaped;that
judge will charge the sinner with hating him who was and is supremely
worthy to be loved, and the accusationis self evidencing and brings its curse.
3. The judgment of the Lord may tarry, but it will surely come. The Lord
himself is at hand, to deliver those who love him, but to execute a righteous
sentence upon the unbelieving, the unloving, the unspiritual. - T.
Biblical Illustrator

If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.
1 Corinthians 16:22
Love to Christ
C. Hodge, D. D.
(Ephesians 6:24 and Text): — Though so dissimilar, both texts teachthe same
truth, viz., that love to Christ is the indispensable condition of salvation.
I. WHY IS LOVE TO CHRIST THUS NECESSARY? Because —
1. Christ is God — Godin the clearestform of manifestation — the sum of the
Divine perfections. All that there is in God to command the supreme duty of
loving Him is in Christ, therefore it is impossible to love God without loving
Christ, and not to love Christ is not to love God.
2. Christ is God in our nature, and is thus invested with specialattractions,
because —(1)Possessedofanother kind of excellence.(2)Broughtinto a
relation to us He sustains to no other order of beings.
3. Christ loved us and given Himself for us. To be insensible of this claim on
our affectionis indicative of the greatestmoral depravity.
4. By His love and death Christ has opened a wayto us from degradationand
misery to eternallife and glory.
5. We are shut up to the necessityofloving Christ or Satan. There are but two
sovereigns, andyou must choose betweenthem.
II. WHAT IS IT TO LOVE CHRIST, AND HOW CAN WE TELL
WHETHER WE LOVE HIM OR NOT? Where this love is there will be —
1. A feeling of reverence and complacencywhich prevents us from ever
treating Him with neglector indignity, and which makes His society
delightful.
2. Zeal for His honour. Any disrespectshownHim is painful to us, and
anything which promotes His glory is a source of delight to us.

3. A desire to please Him, to do His will.
(C. Hodge, D. D.)
The importance of love to Christ
S. Lavington.
I. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS TRULY AND EMINENTLYLOVELY,
AND IS THEREFORE TO BE LOVED. Consider the nature and actings of
this grace.
1. If Christ be consideredas able to do that for us, and communicate that to
us, which we want, love is evincedby desire. The believer cannotbe satisfied
without Him.
2. If He be consideredas having already manifested Himself to the soul, then
love exerts itself in a way of delight. "Whom having not seen, ye love," etc.
3. As Christ has an interestto be carried on in the world, love displays itself in
zeal for His honour. "If ye love Me, keepMy commandments."
4. If we considerChrist as offended with our sins, and having suffered for
them, love manifests itself in grief and sympathy. "I am crucified with
Christ," says the apostle, "and I could not do less."
5. If we considerChrist as glorified in heaven, love expressesitselfin joy and
triumph.
II. NOTWITHSTANDING ALL THIS AMIABLENESS IN CHRIST,
THERE ARE SOME WHO NO NOT LOVE HIM. Such persons have —
1. No real esteemfor the Saviour. "Unto you that believe, He is precious."
2. No true faith in Christ.
3. No obedience and subjection to Christ. " If a man love Me, he wilt keepMy
words."

III. ALL WHO LOVE NOT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, ARE
CHARGEABLE WITH AGGRAVATED GUILT, AND EXPOSE
THEMSELVES TO THE SEVEREST DISPLEASUREOF GOD. Because —
1. He is so dearly beloved of God.
2. He is so lovely and desirable in Himself.
3. He has given the most astonishing proofs of His love to
sinners.Consequently the want of love to Christ will be destructive of religion
here, and happiness hereafter. This one defectdestroys the excellencyand life
of all religion. Without love, faith is dead, repentance legal, fearslavish; and
all duties void of this principle are vain. As to future happiness, heaven is a
place of love; and to entertain one person there who is not a lover of Christ,
would disturb the order and break the harmony of that blessedsociety.
Conclusion: —
1. Love to Christ may be easilydiscovered.(1) By the current of your thoughts.
What persons love, they think much upon; and the pleasantimage is
continually before them.(2) By the care of your lives. Can you say that to you
to live is Christ? Now, then, let conscience do its office, and it will easily tell
you whether you love Christ or not.
2. Notto love Christ is a crime of tremendous guilt, which is attended with
dreadful aggravations;for —(1) It is a sin without cause. It admits of no
reasonor excuse.(2)It is also a sin againstmany causes.(3)It is the cause of
many other sins.
(S. Lavington.)
Loving Christ and the penalty of neglecting it
G. Osborn, D.D.
Note the position which this verse occupies.
1. This Epistle was dictated to an amanuensis, and now Paul adds "The
salutation of me Paul with my own hand": a form immediately followed, in

most of his Epistles, by the apostolic benediction: but here he interposes the
text. I think this shows us the state of his heart, which was full of Christ: he
could not suppress the strong affectionhe entertained for the Saviour, and
here he overflows.
2. Interposedas it is betweenthe signature and the benediction, he intends it
to have all the weight which apostolicalauthority can give it. Note —
I. THE DUTY ENJOINED.
1. Its object.(1)The old law was comprehended in two commandments, of
which the first was greatest, "Thoushaltlove Jehovahthy God," etc. The New
Testamentputs forward a similar claim on behalf of Christ; and it were easy
to argue from this, that Christ is the one Jehovahfor whom the old law
challenges oursupreme and undivided love. Indeed, this very name is here
applied to Him. He is set before us, while claiming our affections, as "the
Lord."(2) He who claims our love bears not only the incommunicable name,
but a name common to many of His fellow-men: Jesus.(3)Bears another
name, or rather title — Christ, or Anointed; because He sustains those offices
into which men were commonly inducted by anointing, and which, as God-
man, He sustains on behalf of mankind — Prophet, Priest, and King. God,
Man, MediatorbetweenGod and men — whoeverdoes not presentHim in
these three aspects robs Him of a part of that which essentiallybelongs to
Him: whoeverdoes not exhibit Him under this threefold characterdoes not
show you the Christ of the Scriptures, but some idol of his own invention.
2. The love which is claimed in His behalf must be —(1) Sincere. You find a
distinction made in the Scriptures betweenloving our Lord Jesus Christin
sincerity, and pretending to love Him.(2) Supreme. "If any man will come
after Me" — "if any man will be My disciple," he must be prepared to "hate
father, mother," etc. At the time when this was spoken, there went great
multitudes after Him: but this was the doctrine by which He proved them.
There are multitudes who will come after Him still, if He will be content to
follow in the train of some beloved pursuit, or lust. Religionwould be the most
popular thing in the world, and would carry the whole world before it, if it
were at liberty to waive this point. But Christ will have the first place in our

affections:whateverstands opposed to Him we must hate; whatever is in
harmony with Him, and dependent upon Him, must be loved in subordination
to Him.(3) Ardent. The Scriptures are wont to illustrate this subject by a
comparisontakenfrom fire. There may be a spark, and if that spark is blown,
it may rise to a vehement flame which many waters cannotquench. You have
only to neglectit, and it will expire. But you are told that you must stir up the
gift of God.(4)Constant; and that because He is always the same;that is due
to Him at one time is due to Him at all times.(5)Practical. "This is the love of
God. that we keepHis commandments."
3. The evidences of this love. I cannot help thinking, that in the case ofevery
human objectof affection, the love which there was need to try by many signs,
would hardly be counted worth having; that where there is so much
uncertainty whether we love Christ or no, one thing is certain — that we do
not love Him very much: but still, for the sake ofthose who love, and who
searchafter the signs and marks, let me give you one or two.(1)The love of
the brethren, i.e., the brethren of Christ, as well as ours: and it is in that light
that they are principally to be regarded. If a man feels his heart expanded
towards all Christians — if he is willing to bear with their weaknesses, and
relieve their necessities,forChrist's sake — he loves Christ. But on the other
hand, if he will stand alooffrom them, does he love Christ? If he says he does,
Christ Himself says he is a liar. He tells you they are His representatives, and
whoeverdoes not to them as he would to Christ, if Christ stoodin person
before him, does not love Christ as he ought. "By this shall all men know that
ye are My disciples, if ye love one another."(2)Whoeverloves Christ, rejoices
in the return of the Lord's Day. You have days of meeting among friends; and
the offering of every expressionof joy is appropriate to such meetings. This is
the day which Christ sets apart to meet His friends. Do you love His Sabbath,
and do you rejoice in its return? Do you honour the Lord and keepHis
ordinances? If so, there is ground to hope you love Christ. But if the Sabbath
is a weariness, yourlove to Christ is yet but a name — there is no substance in
it.(3) The Bible is Christ's love-letterto His people. Who loves to read and
honour it? Who comes to it with a relish, as a friend reads a letter from a
loved friend? He loves Christ: this is a sign which cannot be mistaken.

II. THE PENALTY DENOUNCED. Whoeverwill not stand this test, what is
to become of him? "Let him be accursed:our Lord is coming." This form of
expressionis said to be taken from the practice in the synagoguesin
excommunicating offenders. They had three forms of excommunication, in the
last or highest of which they used this expression, and this was always
understood to imply the sentence offinal and irrevocable ruin. Now, says the
apostle, this is the doom of all who do not love Christ.
2. The curse does not fall now: the lovers of Christ and those who do not love
Him go on, perhaps, very much with equal steps through life. But "the Lord is
coming";and at His coming He is to separate betweenthose who love Him
and those who do not love Him. The tares and the wheat grow togethertill the
harvest; we cannot separate the hypocrite from the sincere until some overt
actionincontestably proves that the professionis false. The day of separation
is at the end of the world; and to this St. Paul alludes, "The Lord is coming,"
to discern betweenthe true professorand the false.
3. The Lord delayeth His coming: but why? Not out of weakness,notout of
forgetfulness, but that in the interval the curse may be averted.
4. I know that you cannot command your affections, but I tell you what you
can do — you can go to the throne of grace and pray that the Holy Ghost may
shed it abroad in your hearts.
(G. Osborn, D.D.)
Want of love to Christ is
W. Cadman, M A.
I. REBELLION AGAINST THE HIGHEST AUTHORITY. "This is My
beloved Son, hear ye Him." Want of love is therefore transgressionofthe will
of God and rebellion againstHim.
II. CONTEMPT OF THE HIGHEST EXCELLENCE. Whetheryou consider
the, Divine nature of our Lord, or His human nature, or His mediatorial
character, there is in Him everything calculatedto attract. "He is altogether

lovely"; therefore not to love Him is to have a degraded mind, and to throw
contempt on the highest manifestation of human excellenceand Divine love.
III. INGRATITUDE TO THE HIGHEST BENEFACTOR. Considerwhatwe
owe Him in connectionwith His incarnation, death, intercession. Think of the
sinfulness of rejecting Him in the light of the truth that those who despise Him
live because ofHis intercession. Conclusion:Is there anything to be saidin
extenuation of this guilt? The greatestargument for love is love. "We love
Him because He first loved us." You cannotforce the slave to love his master;
but what do you think of the child that, after receiving increasing kindness,
refuses to love a parent? One sees the guilt in such a case. Godis not a hard
Master;Christ does not treat us as slaves. Oh, if His love is not in our hearts
we are indeed hard, unfeeling, thankless, justly under the anathema of God.
(W. Cadman, M A.)
Not loving Christ and its consequences
A. Roberts, M.A.
I. WHAT ARE THE CLAIMS OF CHRIST UPON OUR LOVE?
1. He is God. If this were the only ground, He would surely have every right to
expectour love. He who is the Author of every mercy therefore demands our
love.
2. And yet, having failed of obtaining it as Creator, having had His laws
insulted and His majesty dishonoured, He hath soughtto win our love by such
an act of love as even exceeds the mercies of creation, viz., redemption.
Whateveryou require for your admissioninto heaven, His love hath done it
all. And now He offers His salvation freely.
3. Now, is this Friend of our lostsouls unreasonable whenHe asks ourhearts
of us? We give them to our friends on earth.
II. WHO ARE THE MEN THAT "LOVE NOT" THAT LOVER OF THEIR
SOULS?

1. The world. Here are a greatvariety of characters, but all are alike in this,
they "love not the Lord Jesus Christ." They live without Him, neglectHis
Word, discountenance His cause, love and follow practices whichare His
abomination.
2. Hypocritical professors, Christ's owndefinition of those who "love Him
not" is "He that loveth Me not keepethnot My sayings." True, they may say
high things of Him, yet all this is like the kiss of Judas, whilst they are doing
all things in their life and practice to dishonour and affront Him. They love
sin.
III. THE GUILT THESE MEN INCUR. Who can fathom the depth of their
ingratitude! To have forgottenthe mercies of creationis an awful blot upon
our nature; but when He dies for our iniquities, and calls us to His pardoning
mercies, who shall estimate the blackness ofhis guilt who treats this Saviour
lightly? "If I had not come and spokento them they had not had sin"; all our
other sins look nothing when compared to this.
IV. THE AWFUL DOOM OF ALL THOSE WHO "LOVE NOT THE LORD
JESUS CHRIST." "Letthem be accursedatthe secondcoming of the Lord."
There is a curse which rests upon the head of every man by nature as a
breakerof the law of God (Deuteronomy27:26); and to deliver our souls from
this was the greatend of our Redeemer's death(Galatians 3:13). To those
therefore who receive Him and rely upon Him this curse is turned into a
blessing (Romans 8:1). But they who "love not the Lord Jesus Christ" remain
under that curse from which He died to setthem free (John 3:36; 1
Corinthians 15:17). To rejecta Saviour, as it is a more aggravated sin than to
rejectthe law, so will it meet with a more aggravatedcondemnation(Hebrews
10:28, 29). "The curse of the law" is terrible; but "the wrath of the Lamb"!
what will that be?
(A. Roberts, M.A.)
The sin and doom of the loveless
J. Eadie, D.D.

I. WHY IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST TO BE LOVED? This love was the
pervading emotion of early times, and its fervour quailed not at martyrdom.
The memory of the Cross was fresh, and faith wrought by love. That love was
a distinct and personalattachment, and is so still. For this love is a rational
affection. It is not an emotion which springs up, none can tell how or why. Nor
is it any caprice or feverish excitement. It rests on a sure foundation — on a
"tried corner-stone," viz., the knowledge ofChrist's person and claims.
1. Is He not "the chiefestamong ten thousand" as a man? and were He not
more than man, you cannot but love Him. "Thou art fairer than the sons of
men." The sexes divide betweenthem the elements of perfection, and a perfect
man or woman might not be a perfect being. But all that is tender and
gracefulin woman, and all that is noble and robust in man, met togetherin
Jesus. Nature is never prodigal of her gifts. Birds of gay plumage have no
song;strength is denied to creatures endowedwith swiftness. As one man is
generallydistinguished by the predominance of one class ofvirtues, and
another man by another, so the union of both might realise perfection. Had
the peculiar gifts of John and Paul been blended, the result might have been a
perfect apostle. Were the intrepidity of Luther, the tenderness of Melancthon,
and the calm intellect of Calvin combined in one person, you would have the
model of a faultless reformer. But every grace that adorns humanity was in
Jesus in fulness and symmetry. No virtue jostled anotherout of its place. None
rose into extravagance — none pined in feeble restriction. Perfectin every
relation of life, wise in speech, pure in conduct, large in compassion, intense in
beneficence, replete with everything that charms into attachment and rapture,
He was the incarnation of universal loveliness.
2. But Christ's humanity was assumedinto a personalunion with a higher
nature. To take a nature so low, to save a race so guilty, and by an agonyso
awful, was the effectof a love that could only dwell in the bosomof Jehovah.
And oh what a labour He accomplished!He securedfor us the best of boons,
and delivered us from the worstof evils. And surely we must "love Him,
because He first loved us."
II. HOW JESUS IS TO BE LOVED. If our creedbe, there is none like Christ,
then the language ofour heart will be — None but Christ! His claims are

paramount, and therefore love to Him must not only be ardent, but supreme.
Now, it is not of the absence oflove in the Church we complain so much as of
its lukewarmness. In many love only warms towards Christ on the first day of
the week, andfalls into slumber on the other six days. The plant could not
maintain its life by the enjoyment of air, soil, and water once a week, andthe
animal would drag out an enfeebled existence if it depended on a similar
periodical nutrition. No; it is of the nature of love to give its object an
immediate and permanent existence in the heart. If Christ were loved, His
image would ever dwell within us; and were He loved supremely, that image
would gather in upon itself our deepestattachment, and exercise an undivided
swayover thought, purpose, speech, and action.
III. THE SIN AND DANGER OF NOT LOVING CHRIST. It implies —
1. Ignorance ofHis person, claims, and work. The more men know Him, the
more does their heart burn with this gracious and absorbing affection. And
surely ignorance of Him must bring a merited anathema. Forsuch ignorance
is wholly inexcusable, with the Bible before it and the Cross in its view.
2. Unbelief. "Faith workethby love." But if absence oflove imply absence of
faith, what a curse must follow" "He that believeth is saved, but he that
believeth not is condemned already." Severedfrom Christ. the soulis lostfor
ever.
3. Unlikeness to God. And if, on a point so tender, he is unlike God, will not
God frown upon the sinner and punish him?
4. Unfitness for heaven. Heaven is a regionwhere love to Jesus predominates
— where it gladdens every bosom, and gives music to every anthem. But the
unloving mind is not allowedto join in these warblings, for none but the new
heart can sing the new song. Without love to Him, because unconscious ofany
salvationfrom Him, it would feel no reasonto bless Him.
5. The certainty of the curse — "Our Lord cometh." The Church rejoices in
that motto, but it is the terror of the wicked. The cloud that guided Israel
consumed and terrified the amazed Egyptian. And He comes for the very
purpose of making inquisition — of ascertaining who have respondedto His

love, and confided in His atonement. Norcan He be deceived. His eye, as it
looks upon the mass, scans everyindividual and looks downinto his heart.
Nay, the heart without love will at once discoveritself by its tremor. Nor can it
escape. Subterfuge and evasionare alike impossible. But not only does the
awful formula certify the curse, it also embitters it — Our Lord cometh — He
whom men are bound to love as Saviour pronounces the dead anathema.
From other lips it would not be so awful; but surely such an anathema from
the lips of Love must arm itself with a burning and unbearable terror.
(J. Eadie, D.D.)
A negative crime and a positive punishment
D. Thomas, D. D.
This expressionmay be regarded —
1. As a grand characteristicofBiblical appeal. It appeals to the heart, and
seeks the reformation of the world by the reformation of the individual, and
the reformation of the individual by the reformation of the heart.
2. As an incidental argument of the Godhead of Christ. The Bible claims for
Him supreme love, but supreme affection belongs to God. Paul makes our
destiny depend upon love to Christ. Would he make our destiny depend upon
mere love to man, to Abraham, David, Isaiah, or John?
3. As a solemn testof a true character. The essenceofa true characterconsists
not in ideas or mere actions, but in love, and in love for Christ. "Lovestthou
Me?" saidChrist to Peter. The text contains —
I. A NEGATIVE CRIME. This state of mind in relation to Christ is —
1. Unreasonable. There is everything in Him to callout the highest love. There
are three kinds of love of which we are susceptible — gratitude, esteem, and
benevolence. The first requires manifestationof kindness; the second, of
moral excellence;the third, a purpose for the common good. Christ manifests
all these, and therefore deserves our highest love. There may be men who have

powerto excite in our natures, in some degree, love in some of these forms;
but Christ alone has powerto excite all in the highest degree.
2. Ascertainable. We cansoonascertainwhether we love Christ or not. The
chief objectof love will always be —
(1)The most engrossing subjectofthought.
(2)The attractive theme of conversation.
(3)The source ofthe greatestdelightin pleasing.
(4)The most transforming power of character.
(5)The most identified with our consciouslife.
3. Deplorable. This love is the only true regulative powerof the soul. Where
this is not, or where it is misdirected, all the powers of our nature are
misemployed, and all is confusion. Then, indeed, the life of the soulis dead to
virtue and to happiness. Our happiness consists in supreme affection, and our
supreme affection, to yield happiness, must be directed to an objectabsolutely
perfect, reciprocative, and ever enduring. Such an objectis Christ, and such
only is He.
II. A POSITIVE PUNISHMENT.
1. Its nature. "Let him be Anathema." The word primarily means anything
that is laid up, or set apart for some particular purpose. The secondaryand
generalmeaning is "accursed,"devotedto ruin (cf. Galatians 1:7, 8; Romans
9:3). It is one of Paul's strong words to express a terrible evil. Cut off the
planet from the sun, and it rushes to ruin; the river from the fountain, and it
is gone;the branch from the tree, and the limb from the body, and they die.
The soul, cut off from Christ — its centre, fountain, root, life — is destroyed.
2. Its certainty. "Maran-atha," "the Lord will come." Christ will come to
execute judgment upon those who love Him not. Paul had written the other
part of his letter by an amanuensis, but to write these terrible words he takes
up the pen himself. Men are accursed, notmerely because they hate Christ,

rebel againstHis authority, profane His ordinances, but because they do not
love Him; whateverelse they do in philanthropy, etc.
(D. Thomas, D. D.)
Anathema
G. Whitefield.
I. THE CRIME SUPPOSED. Notto love Christ supremely is —
1. Unreasonable — He is supremely lovely.
2. Ungrateful — He has loved us.
3. Unjust — He has a right to our love.
II. THE PUNISHMENT THREATENED.
1. The punishment.
2. The time.
3. The certainty. Application —
(1)It is the duty of all men to love Christ.
(2)Christ knows those who love Him.
(G. Whitefield.)
Anathema and grace
A. Maclaren, D.D.
1. Terrorand tenderness are strangely mingled in this parting salutation. Paul
has been obliged, throughout the whole Epistle, to assume a tone of
remonstrance, and here he traces all their vices to their fountain-head — the
defectof love to Jesus Christ — and warns of their fatal issue.

2. But he will not leave these terrible words for his last. The thunder is
followedby gentle rain, and the sun glistens on the dewdrops (ver. 23). Nor for
himself will he let the last impression he one of rebuke or evenof warning
(ver. 24). Is not that beautiful? And does it not go deeperthan the revelation
of Paul's character? Maywe not see in these terrible and tender thoughts a
revelation of the true nature both of the terror and the tenderness of the
gospelwhich Paul preached? Note —
I. THE TERROR OF THE FATE OF THE UNLOVING. "Anathema" means
an offering, or a thing devoted. In the story of the conquestof Canaan, e.g., we
read of places, persons, orthings that were "accursed," i.e., devotedor put
under a ban. And this "devotion" was ofsuch a sort as that the subjects were
doomed to destruction. So Paul tells us that the unloving, like those cities full
of uncleanness, whenthey are brought into contactwith the infinite love of the
coming Judge, shrivel up and are destroyed. "Maran-atha" is a separate
sentence. It means "our Lord comes,"and was perhaps a kind of watchword.
The use of it here is to confirm the warning of the previous clause, by pointing
to the time at which that warning shall be fulfilled.
1. "The Lord comes." Paul's Christianity gatheredround two facts and
moments — one in the past, Christ has come;one in the future, Christ will
come. For memory, the coming by the cradle and the Cross;for hope, the
coming on His throne in glory. And betweenthese two moments, like the solid
piers of a suspensionbridge, the frail structure of the present hangs swinging.
There have been many comings in the past, besides the coming in the flesh.
One characteristic is stamped upon them all, and that is the swift annihilation
of what is opposed to Him. The Bible has a setof standing metaphors by
which to illustrate this thought — "A flood," "a harvest," the waking of God
from slumber, etc. The secondcoming will include and surpass all the
characteristicswhichthese lesserand premonitory judgment days presented
in miniature.
2. The coming of the Lord of love is the destruction of the unloving — not the
cessationoftheir being, but a death worse than death, because a death in life.
Suppose a man with all his past annihilated, with all its effort crushed, with all
its possessions gone,and with his memory and his conscience stung into clear-

sighted activity, so as that he looks back upon his former and into his present
self, and feels that it is all chaos, would not that fulfil the word, "Let him be
Anathema"? And suppose that such a man, in addition to these thoughts, and
as the root and the source of them, had ever the quivering. consciousnessthat
he was in the presence ofan unloved Judge!The unloving heart is always ill at
ease in the presence ofHim whom it does not love. The unloving heart does
not love, because it does not trust nor see the love. Therefore, the unloving
heart is a heart that is only capable of apprehending the wrathful side of
Christ's character. So there is no cruelty, no arbitrariness in the decree that
the heart that loves not when brought into contactwith the infinite Lord of
love must find in the touch death and not life, darkness and not light, terror
and not hope.
3. Paul does not say "he that hateth," but he that does not love. The absence of
love, which is the child of faith, the parent of righteousness, the condition of
joy in His presence, is sufficient to ensure that this fate shall fall upon a man.
II. THE PRESENTGRACE OF THE COMING LORD. "Our Lord cometh."
"The grace," etc. (ver. 23).
1. These two things are not contradictory, but we often deal with them as if
they were. But the real doctrine says there is no terror without tenderness,
and there is no tenderness without terror. You cannot have love which is
anything nobler than facile goodnature and unrighteous indifference, unless
you have along with it aspects ofGod's characterand government which
ought to make some men afraid. And you cannotkeepthese latter aspects
from being exaggeratedand darkened into a Molochof cruelty unless you
remember that underlying them and determining them are aspects ofthe
Divine nature, to which only child-like confidence and love rightly respond.
The terror of the Lord is a garb which our sins forces upon the love of the
Lord.
2. Note what the present grace is. A tenderness which gathers into its embrace
all these imperfect, immoral, lax, hereticalpeople in Corinth, as well as
everywhere else — "with you all." And surely the love which gathers in such
people leaves none outside its sweep. Let nothing rob you of this assurance,

that the coming Lord is present with us all, and all we need, in order to getits
full sunshine into our hearts, is that we trust Him utterly, and, so trusting,
love Him back againwith that love which is the fulfilling of the law and the
crownof the gospel.
III. THE TENDERNESS,CAUGHT FROM THE MASTER HIMSELF OF
THE SERVANT WHO REBUKES (ver. 24). There is no other instance where
he introduces himself and his own love at the end, after he has pronounced the
solemn benediction. But here, as if he had felt that he must leave an
impression of himself on their minds which correspondedto the impressionof
his Masterthat he desired to leave, he deviates from his ordinary habit, and
makes his last word a personalword — "My love be with you all in Christ
Jesus." Paulembraces allwhom he has been rebuking in the warm embrace
of his proffered love, which was the very cause of his rebuke. The healing
balm of this closing messagewas to be applied to the wounds which his keen
edgedwords had made, and to show that they were wounds by a surgeon, not
by a foe. Becausethe gospelis a gospel, it must speak plainly about death and
destruction to the unloving. The danger signalis not to be blamed for a
collision. "Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men."
(A. Maclaren, D.D.)
Loving Jesus Christ
J. Donne.
First, love Christ so far as to lay down the pleasures ofthis life for Him, and
so far as to lay down the life itself for Him.
2. Love Him, then, as He is presentedto thee here: love the Lord, love Christ,
love Jesus. As He is the Lord, thou wilt fear Him; but no man fears God truly,
but that that fear ends in love. Love Him as He is the Lord, that would have
nothing perish that He hath made. And love Him as He is Christ, that hath
made Himself man too, that thou mightest not perish. Love Him as the Lord
that could show mercy, and love Him as Christ who is that wayof mercy
which the Lord hath chosen. I have found Him, and found that He, who by

His incarnation was made able to save me (so He was Christ), by His actual
passionhath savedme, and so I love Him as Jesus. When I conceit, whenI
contemplate my Saviour thus, I love the Lord, and there is a reverent
adorationin that love; I love Christ, and there is a mysterious admiration in
that love; but I love Jesus, and there is a tender compassionin that love, and I
am contentto suffer with Him and to suffer for Him rather than see any
diminution of His glory by my prevarication. And he that loves not thus, that
loves not the Lord God, and God manifested in Christ, Anathema,
Maranatha, which is our next and our last part. Whether this Anathema be
denounced by the apostle by way of imprecation, that he wished it so, or
pronounced by wayof excomnmnication, that others should esteemthem so
and avoid them, as such persons, is sometimes debatedamongst us in our
books. But we rather take this in the text to be an excommunication
denounced by the apostle, than an imprecation. Now the excommunication is
in the Anathema, and the aggravating thereofin the other words, Maranatha.
The word Anathema had two significations:that which for some excellencyin
it was separatedfrom the use of man to the service ofGod, or that which for
some greatfault in it was separatedfrom God and man too. From the first
kind men abstainedbecause they were consecratedto God, and from the other
because they were aliened from God. By the light of nature, by the light of
grace we should separate ourselves from irreligious and from idolatrous
persons, and that with that earnestnesswhichthe apostle expressesin the last
words, Maranatha. It is superabundant perverseness to resistChrist now, now
that He hath appeared already and establishedto Himself a kingdom in the
world. And so St. seems to take it too. "Christ is come already," says he. If
any excuse could he pretended before, yet since Christ is come, none canbe,
But that is not all that is intended by the apostle in this place. It is not only a
censorious speech, it is a shame for them, and an inexcusable thing in them, if
they do not love the Lord Jesus Christ; but it is a judiciary speech, thus much
more, since they do not love the Lord. "The Lord judge them when He
comes." "I," says the apostle, "take awaynone of His mercy when He comes,
but I will have nothing to do with them till He comes;to me He shall be
Anathema, Maranatha, separatedfrom me till then; then the Lord, who
shows mercy in minutes, do His will upon him." To end all, if a man love not

the Lord, if he love not God, which is, which was, and which is to come, what
will please him, whom will he love?
(J. Donne.)
Affection ungratefully withheld
Sharpened Arrows.
After Joanof Arc had won the great victory at Orleans, and made clearthe
way for Charles the Seventh to be crownedking, she was takenprisoner, and
subjectedto the most brutal treatment at the hands of her enemies;still her
ungrateful king refusedto make a single move to liberate the one who had
freed his subjects, and made him heir and king. My unsaved friend, you are
doing the same thing. As you read the simple narrative, you doubtless will say,
"King Charles was ungrateful, and deserved punishment." Yet Jesus Christ
left His heavenly home, came down to earth, suffered, and died that you might
be crownedthe "child of a King," and you refuse to even acknowledge Him.
Should the anger of God consume you, could you say aught in your defence?
(Sharpened Arrows.)
The sin of not loving Christ
Dr. Vinet.
"To refuse to love Jesus Christ, I affirm, is to do Him all the evil which an
open enemy could, or at leastwould do. If Jesus Christhad come into the
world, as a king into a revolted province, in order to extinguish rebellion, and
cause the silence of terror to reign in it, He might be satisfiedwith a trembling
submission, and care nothing for the evil we do Him. But such a submission
He did not desire, nor can desire. That alone which He desired, that alone for
which He descendedto the earth, the end to which He directed all His toils,
was the conquest of our heart. Separate from that triumph, every other is
nothing to Him.

(Dr. Vinet.)
Want of love to Christ a fatal sin
T. L. Cuyler.
How greatis the sin of not loving your Lord and your Saviour! "Oh! but you
see, sir, that is a mere negative thing. It is what we do that we are accountable
for to God; it is our positive actions that we must render an accountfor at the
last." Is that so? Is there no sin in not doing what you ought to do? If your
neighbour's house were in flames to-night, and you saw them belching out of
the windows, would it be no sin for you to sit calmly in your own dwelling, and
not go at midnight to raise the family from their fatal sleep? Would you think
so if to-morrow morning you lookedat their skeletonsamid the charred and
blackenedruins? Suppose there is some man in this chapelto-night, who lives
in a comfortable and luxurious mansion, but his ownmother is in an
almshouse, I say to him, "Where is your old mother?" He says, "In the
poorhouse." "Do youknow, sir, that you are practising a diabolical cruelty?"
"Oh! but I am doing nothing to my mother." "It is your not doing; it is your
living in luxury, and she lying there on that hard bed of poverty and neglect
that stamps you, sir, with that most damnable sin of breaking God's fifth
commandment. It is what you do not do that stamps you as an ingrate to her
that bore you." Oh! my friends, yet out of Christ, it is the sin of not loving
Christ that makes you guilty before God. Not loving Him is pronounced in all
casesa positive and fatal sin.
(T. L. Cuyler.)
How he came to sayit
T. De Witt Talmage, D. D.
How came the tender-hearted Paul to throw those red-hot words at the
Corinthians? Not to love Christ is —

I. UNREASONABLE AND UNNATURAL. Tradition tells us that He was the
most infinitely beautiful being that ever walkedour small earth, and to a
lovely exterior He joined all loveliness ofdisposition. The sunshine of His love
mingling with the shadows ofHis sorrows, crossedby the crystalline streamof
His tears and the crimson of His blood, make a picture worthy of being called
the masterpiece ofthe eternities. He was altogetherlovely — always lovely,
and lovely in everything. Lovely in His sacrifice. Why, He gave up everything
for us, and He took everybody's trouble. Now suppose that, notwithstanding
all this, a man cannothave any affectionfor Him. Why "After all this, 'if a
man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maran-atha.'"
II. UNJUST. Just look at the injustice of not loving Him. There is nothing that
excites a man like injustice. If there ever was a fair and square purchase of
anything, then Christ purchased us. If anything is purchasedand paid for,
ought not the goods to be delivered? And you will go to law for it, and, if need
be, hurl the defaulter into jail. Such injustice as betweenman and man is bad
enough, but betweenman and God it is reprehensible and intolerable. After
all thin purchase "if any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be
Anathema Maranatha."
III. SUICIDAL. If a man gets into trouble, and he cannot getout, we have
only one feeling towards him, sympathy and a desire to help him. But suppose
the day before he failed, W. E. Dodge had come into his store and said: "My
friend, I hear you are in trouble. I have come to help you," and suppose the
man were to say, "I don't want it; I would rather fail than take it; I don't even
thank you for offering it." Your sympathy for that man would cease
immediately. Now Christ hears of our spiritual embarrassments. He finds the
law saying, "Payme what thou owest."Pay? We cannotpay a farthing of all
the millions of obligation. Well, Christ comes in and says, "Youcan use My
name." Now suppose the soul says, "O Christ, I want not Thy help. Go away
from me." You would say, "After all this ingratitude and rejection, 'if any
man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maran-atha.'"
IV. CRUEL. The meanestthing I could do for you would be needlesslyto hurt
your feelings. Now, Christ is a bundle of delicacyand sensitiveness. Oh, what
rough treatment He has receivedsometimes from our hands! Every time you

rejectedthe Lord you struck Him. How you have broken His heart! Do you
know there is a crucifixion going on now? You say, "Where?" Here!When a
man refuses to love Christ and rejects Him, the apostle intimates that. He
"crucifies the Lord afresh." By our sins we have done this. When I think of all
this, my surprise at the apostle ceases.
(T. De Witt Talmage, D. D.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(22) If any man love not the Lord Jesus.—Fromallthe argument and
controversywhich form the main portion of the Epistle, the Apostle with his
own hand brings back the thoughts of the Corinthians to the true test of their
Christianity. Do they love the Lord Jesus? The wordhere used for love
signifies not merely affectionate regard, but personaldevotion.
Let him be Anathema Maran-atha.—BetterLethim be Anathema.
Maranatha. There is no connectionbetweenthese two words. Anathema
signifies “accursed.” The absence oflove to Christ is condemnation. The word
Maranatha is a Syriac expression—“the Lordis at hand,” or “the Lord is
come;” probably the former. The uncertainty of the moment when the Lord
may come is the most solemnthought with which to remind them of the
importance of being one with Christ. Stanley gives the following interesting
Note:—“The name Maronite is sometimes explained by a tradition that the
Jews in their expectationof the Messiahwere constantlysaying, Maran
(Lord). To which the Christians answered, Maranatha (The Lord is come),
why do you expectHim? Hence the name, ‘Maronite’is applied to the Jews,
especiallySpanishJews and Moors who confessedMaran, but not
Maranatha.”
BensonCommentary

1 Corinthians 16:22. If any man love not the Lord Jesus — In sincerity, but is
secretlyalienatedfrom him in heart, while he calls himself his servant,
preferring some secularinterestof his own to that of his Divine Master;if any
one be an enemy to Christ’s person, offices, doctrines, or commands; let him
be Anathema Maranatha — Anathema signifies a thing devoted to
destruction, and it seems to have been customary with the Jews of that age,
when they had pronounced any man anathema, to add the Syriac expression,
Maranatha, that is, the Lord cometh; namely, to execute vengeanceupon him.
See note on Romans 9:3. We may add further here, “Anathema Maranatha,
were the words with which the Jews begantheir greatestexcommunications,
whereby they not only excluded sinners from their society, but delivered them
to the divine Cherem, or Anathema; that is, to eternal perdition. This form
they used, because Enoch’s prophecyconcerning the coming of God to judge
and punish the wicked, beganwith these words, as we learn from Jude, who
quotes the first sentence ofthat prophecy, 1 Corinthians 16:14. Wherefore,
since the apostle denouncedthis curse againstthe man, who, while he
professedsubjectionto Christ, was secretlyalienatedfrom him in his heart, it
is as if he had said, Though such a person’s wickednesscannotbe discovered
and punished by the church, yet the Lord, at his coming, will find it out, and
punish him with eternal perdition. This terrible curse the apostle wrote in his
epistle to the Corinthians, because many of the faction, but especiallytheir
leader, had showngreat alienationof mind from Christ. And he wrote it with
his ownhand, to show how serious he was in the denunciation;” and he
inserted it betweenhis salutationand solemn benediction, that it might be the
more attentively regarded. “Estius says, from his example, and from the
anathemas pronounced Galatians 1:8-9, arose the practice of the ancient
generalcouncils, of adding to their decisions, ordefinitions of doctrine,
anathemas againstthem who denied these doctrines.” Be this as it may, let it
ever be remembered that professing Christians, who do not sincerelylove
their Master, lie under the heaviestcurse which an apostle could pronounce,
or God inflict. Let the unhappy creatures take the alarm, and labour to obtain
a more ingenuous temper, ere the Lord, whom they neglect, and againstwhom
they entertain a secretenmity, descendfrom heaven with unsupportable
terror, and pronounce the anathema with his own lips, in circumstances which

shall for evercut off all hope, and all possibility of its being reversed! See
Macknightand Doddridge.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
16:19-24 Christianity by no means destroys civility. Religionshould promote a
courteous and obliging temper towards all. Those give a false idea of religion,
and reproachit, who would take encouragementfrom it to be sour and
morose. And Christian salutations are not mere empty compliments; but are
real expressions ofgood-willto others, and commend them to the Divine grace
and blessing. Every Christian family should be as a Christian church.
Wherever two or three are gatheredtogetherin the name of Christ, and he is
among them, there is a church. Here is a solemn warning. Many who have
Christ's name much in their mouths, have no true love to him in their hearts.
None love him in truth, who do not love his laws, and keep his
commandments. Many are Christians in name, who do not love Christ Jesus
the Lord in sincerity. Such are separatedfrom the people of God, and the
favour of God. Those who love not the Lord Jesus Christ, must perish without
remedy. Let us not rest in any religious professionwhere there is not the love
of Christ, earnestdesires for his salvation, gratitude for his mercies, and
obedience to his commandments. The grace ofour Lord Jesus Christ has in it
all that is good, for time and for eternity. To wish that our friends may have
this grace with them, is wishing them the utmost good. And this we should
wish all our friends and brethren in Christ. We canwish them nothing
greater, and we should wish them nothing less. True Christianity makes us
wish those whom we love, the blessings of both worlds;this is meant in
wishing the grace of Christ to be with them. The apostle had dealt plainly with
the Corinthians, and told them of their faults with just severity; but he parts
in love, and with a solemn professionof his love to them for Christ's sake.
May our love be with all who are in Christ Jesus. Let us try whether all things
appear worthless to us, when comparedwith Christ and his righteousness.Do
we allow ourselves in any known sin, or in the neglectof any knownduty? By
such inquiries, faithfully made, we may judge of the state of our souls.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible

If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ - This is a most solemnand
affecting close ofthe whole epistle. It was designedto direct them to the great
and essentialmatterof religion, the love of the Lord Jesus;and was intended,
doubtless, to turn away their minds from the subjects which had agitated
them, the disputes and dissensions which had rent the church into factions, to
the greatinquiry whether they truly loved the Saviour. It is implied that there
was danger, in their disputes and strifes about minor matters, of neglecting
the love of the Lord Jesus, orof substituting attachment to a party in the place
of that love to the Saviour which alone could be connectedwith eternal life.
Let him be anathema - On the meaning of the word anathema, see the note at
1 Corinthians 12:3. The word properly means accursed, or devotedto
destruction; and the idea here is, that he who did not believe in the Lord
Jesus, and love him, would be, and ought to be, devoted to destruction, or
accursedofGod. It expresses whatought to be done; it expresses a truth in
regard to God's dealings, not the desire of the apostle. No matter what any
man's endowments might be; no matter what might be his wealth, his
standing, or his talent; no matter if he were regardedas a ruler in the church,
or at the head of a party; yet if he had not true love to the Lord Jesus, he
could not be saved. This sentiment is in accordancewith the declarationof the
Scripture everywhere. See particularly, John 3:31; Micah6:16, and the note
on the latter place.
Maran-atha - These are Syriac words, MoranEtho - "the Lord comes;" that
is, will come. The reasonwhy this expressionis added may be:
(1) To give the greatersolemnity to the declarationof the apostle;that is, to
give it an emphatic form.
(2) to intimate that, though there were no earthly power to punish a lack of
love to the Saviour; though the state could not, and ought not to punish it; and
though the church could not exclude all who did not love the Lord Jesus from
its bosom, yet they could not escape.For, the Lord would himself come to take
vengeance onhis enemies;and no one could escape.Though, therefore, those
who did not love the Lord Jesus couldnot be punished by people, yet they
could not escape divine condemnation. The Lord would come to execute

vengeance himself, and they could not escape. It is probable (see Lightfoot in
loco)that the Jews were accustomedto use such a form in their greater
excommunication, and that they meant by it, that the person who was thus
devoted to destruction, and excommunicated, must be destroyed; for the Lord
would come to take vengeance onall his enemies. "It certainly was not now,
for the first time, used as a new kind of cursing by the apostle;but was the
application of a current mode of speechto the purpose he had in
contemplation. Perhaps, therefore, by inspecting the manners of the East, we
may illustrate the import of this singular passage.The nearestapproachto it
that I have been able to discoveris in the following extract from Mr. Bruce;
and though, perhaps, this does not come up to the full power of the apostle's
meaning, yet, probably, it gives the idea which was commonly attached to the
phrase among the public. Mr. Bruce had been forced by a pretended saint, in
Egypt, to take him on board his vessel, as if to carry him to a certain place -
whereas, Mr. Bruce meant no such thing; but, having sethim on shore at
some little distance from whence he came, 'we slackedourvesseldown the
stream a few yards, filling our sails, and stretching away.
On seeing this, our saint fell into a desperate passion, cursing, blaspheming,
and stamping with his feet;at every word crying "SharUllah!" that is, "May
God send and do justice!" This appears to be the strongestexecrationthis
passionate Arab could use, that is, To punish you adequately is out of my
power: I remit you to the vengeance ofGod.' Is not this the import of
anathema maranatha?" - Taylor in Calmet. This solemn declaration, or
denunciation, the apostle wrote with his own hand, as the summary of all that
he had said, in order that it might be attentively regarded. There is not a more
solemn declarationin the Bible; there is not a more fearful denunciation;
there is no one that will be more certainly executed. No matter what we may
have - be it wealth, or beauty, or vigor, or accomplishment, or adorning, or
the praise and flattery of the world; no matter if we are elevatedhigh in office
and in rank; no matter if we are honored by the present age, or gain a
reputation to be transmitted to future times; yet if we have not love to the
Saviour, we cannot be saved.
We must be devoted to the curse;and the Lord Jesus will soonreturn to
execute the tremendous sentence on a guilty world. How important then to ask

whether we have that love? Whether we are attachedto the Lord Jesus in
such a manner as to secure his approbation? Whether we so love him as to be
prepared to hail his coming with joy, and to be receivedinto his everlasting
kingdom - In the close ofthe notes on this Epistle, I may ask anyone who shall
read these pages whetherhe has this love? And I may press it upon the
attention of eachone, though I may never see their faces in the flesh, as the
greatinquiry which is to determine their everlasting destiny. The solemn
declarationstands here, that if they do not love the Lord Jesus, they will be,
and they ought to be, devoted to destruction. The Lord Jesus will soonreturn
to make investigation, and to judge the world. There will be no escape;and no
tongue canexpress the awful horrors of an eternal curse pronounced by the
lips of the Son of God!
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
22. A solemn closing warning added in his own hand as in Eph 6:24; Col 4:18.
the Lord—who ought to be "loved" above Paul, Apollos, and all other
teachers. Love to one another is to be in connectionwith love to Him above all.
Ignatius [Epistle to the Romans, 7] writes of Christ, "My love, has been
crucified" (compare So 2:7).
Jesus Christ—omitted in the oldest manuscripts.
let him be Anathema—accursedwith that curse which the Jews who call Jesus
"accursed"(1Co 12:3)are bringing righteously on their own heads [Bengel].
So far from "saluting" him, I bid him be accursed.
Maranatha—Syriac for, "the Lord cometh." A motto or watchwordto urge
them to preparedness for the Lord's coming; as in Php 4:5, "The Lord is at
hand."
Matthew Poole's Commentary
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ: love is an affectionof the heart, but
discernible by overt acts:the meaning is: If any man, by any notorious acts,
declareththat he loveth not the Lord Jesus, whetherhe be a hypocrite, owning
the name of Christ, but living in a contempt of and disobedience to his

commandments; or an apostate, who showethhis want of love to Christ by
denying him in an hour of dangerand persecution, or an open enemy and
persecutorof Christ and his gospel.
Let him be Anathema Maran-atha; let him be accursed, let him be looked
upon as a detestable and abominable person. Some tell us, that the Jews
having three excommunications, this word signifieth their highest degree, by
which the person was given up to the judgment and vengeance ofGod; but
others say, there is no such term to be found among them, and that the term
Maran-atha signifies no more than: The Lord is come. Let the Jews and other
vain persons saywhat they will, the Lord is come;and if any love him not, let
him be lookedon as a detestable person.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ,.... The Vulgate Latin, and the
Syriac and Ethiopic versions, read "our Lord". The apostle here does not so
much mean profane and unregenerate sinners, who are destitute of love to
Christ, from ignorance of him; nor such who, from the same principle, might
persecute him in his members, for such are to be even prayed for, and wished
well unto; and oftentimes such are calledby grace, andbecome true and
sincere lovers of Christ; and the apostle himself was an instance of it: some
think the Jews are intended, who were the mortal enemies of Christ; hated his
name and person, his Gospeland interest, and maliciouslypersecutedthe
same;they called Jesus accursed, andtherefore deservedan anathema to be
pronounced on them; it was prophesied of them, that their name should be
left for a curse; and it was threatened to them, in case ofnon-repentance,
upon the coming of John the Baptist, in the spirit of Elijah, that the Lord
would come and smite their land with a curse;which had its accomplishment
in the destruction of Jerusalem;see Isaiah65:15;others think the Gnostics
are intended, one of whose tenets was, that it was lawful not to confess Christ
in a time of persecution, in order to save themselves;and such might be truly
said not to love our Lord Jesus, and on whom such an anathema as after
mentioned might rightly be denounced: though it should seem rather, that

some persons in this church, or that infested it, are referred to as the false
teachers, andthose who sided with them, who made factions and divisions in
the church of Christ; allowedthemselves in the commissionof fornication and
incest, and such like impurities; had no regardto the peace ofthe consciences
of weak brethren, but laid stumblingblocks in their way; behaved in a very
irreverent manner at the Lord's table, and gave in to very pernicious errors
and heresies, particularlydenying the resurrectionof the dead; and by their
many bad principles and practices plainly showedthat they did not in deed
and in truth love our Lord Jesus:wherefore of every such an one the apostle
says,
let him be anathema. The word anathema, answers to the Hebrew and is
rendered by it here in the Syriac version; and signifies anything separatedand
devoted to holy uses;and so it is used by the Septuagint, in Leviticus 27:28,
and in the New Testament, Luke 21:5, and which, if alienatedto any other
purposes, entailed a curse on persons; hence it is often translated "accursed",
as Romans 9:3 1 Corinthians 12:3, and here it signifies, that such persons that
love not the Lord Jesus, should be rejectedby the saints, and separatedfrom
their communion; and so the Arabic versionrenders it, "let him be
separated";that is, from the church; let him be castout of it, and cut off from
it; as, so living and dying without love to Christ, he will be accursedby him at
the lastday, and will have that awful sentence denouncedon him, "go ye
cursed". The apostle adds another word, about which there is some difficulty,
maranatha; some make this to be the same with "anathema";the one being
the Syriac, the other the Greek word, as "Abba, Father";and think that
"maranatha" is put for "maharamatha";others think that it is the same with
"maharonatha", whichsignifies "from wrath to come";and being joined with
the other word, intends an anathematizing or devoting persons to wrath to
come:others take it to be the last, and worse sortof excommunication among
the Jews;and observe, that the first sort was called"Niddui", which was a
separationfrom company and conversation, to which reference may be had in
Luke 6:22; the secondsortwas calledCherem, to which "anathema" answers,
and was a separation, attendedwith curses and imprecations; and a third sort
was called"Shammatha", and is thought to answerto "maranatha", giving
the etymologyof it, as if it was, , "the name", i.e. "Godcometh", as

"maranatha" read as two words, signify "our Lord cometh": but this is not
the etymologythe Jews give of "Shammatha" (g); they ask,
"whatis "Shammatha?" says Rab, , "there is death"; and Samuel says, ,
"desolations shallbe";''
but of the other etymologythere is no mention made among them; nor is ever
the word "maranatha" usedby them for excommunication; the sense ofwhich
certainly is, "our Lord cometh"; and the Ethiopic version, joining it with the
former word, renders the whole thus, "let him be anathema in the coming of
our Lord", which seems to be pretty much the sense of the apostle:it is bestto
considerthis word, or rather these two words, "maran atha", "our Lord
cometh", as added by the apostle, to put persons in mind of the coming of
Christ; either at the destruction of Jerusalem, to take vengeanceonthe Jews,
who did not love, but hated him, and maliciously persecutedhim, and his; or
of the secondcoming of Christ to judgment, when all the wickedof the earth
shall be accursedby him, and all such that love him not will be bid to depart
from him.
(g) T. Bab. MoedKaton, fol. 17. 1.
Geneva Study Bible
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema {m}
Maranatha.
(m) By these words are meant the severesttype of curse and excommunication
that was among the Jews:and the words are as much as to say, As our Lord
comes. So that his meaning may be this, Let him be accursedeven to the
coming of the Lord, that is to say, to the day of his death, even for ever.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
22. If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ] The word here translatedlove
applies to the intimate and familiar personalaffection subsisting between
individuals, rather than the wider and more generalfeeling of love usually
enjoined in the N. T. It is the word used when our Lord for the third time asks

St Peterthe question ‘Lovest thou me?’ (St John 21:17). Christians are to
cultivate a feeling of personalloyalty and affection for Jesus Christ, such as a
soldier feels for his general, ora disciple for his master. And this though they
have never seenHim. As the natural precedes the spiritual (ch. 1 Corinthians
15:46), so the love for Christ as Man must precede, and leadup to, the love for
Him as God. See notes on ch. 1 Corinthians 15:23; 1 Corinthians 15:28.
let him be anathema]The word is derived from two Greek words signifying to
setapart, and is equivalent to the Hebrew cherem, which denotes something
devoted to destruction for God’s honour’s sake, as the city and spoil at
Jericho, Joshua 6:17. See also Leviticus 27:28-29.
Maran-atha]Two Syriac words Maran, atha, signifying either (1) our Lord is
come, or (2) our Lord is coming. If the former, the meaning is ‘our Lord is
come, beware how you treat Him.’ If the latter, it will be ‘our Lord is coming,
and He will judge those who have set Him at nought.’ Cf. Php 4:5; James 5:8-
9. Lightfoot cites Malachi4:6, the lastwords of the lastprophet, ‘Lest I come
and smite the earth with a curse’(cherem). It is difficult to accountfor the
Aramaic form of the word, unless we suppose with some that the utterance of
the formula in the Apostle’s own language was likelyto be more impressive.
For this and the foregoing wordconsult Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible.
Bengel's Gnomen
1 Corinthians 16:22. Ἔι τις οὐ, if any man not) Paul loves Jesus, do ye also all
love Him.—φιλεῖ) loves with the heart: kissesvirtually by his conduct: the
corresponding word to φιλεῖ is φιλήματι, with a kiss, 1 Corinthians 16:20;for
φιλεῖν is used in the sense of kissing, Luke 22:47; and to kiss is used for to
love, Psalm 2:12.—τὸνΚυρίον, the Lord) He is to be preferred even before all
the brethren, nay even before Paul and Apollos.—ἤτω ἀνάθεμα, μαρὰνἀθά,
let him be anathema Maranatha)So far from wishing him health [saluting
him], I would rather bid him be accursed. The words Maranatha add weight
to the anathema; and this phrase, expressedin an idiom familiar to the Jews

indicates, that he who loves not Jesus will partake with the Jews, who call
Jesus anathema with bitter hatred, 1 Corinthians 12:3, in that curse most
righteously falling upon themselves, for he uses this language to softenthe
odiousness ofthe phrase [by Euphemism] instead of the expression, if any
man hate Jesus. Μαρὰνἀθὰ, i.e. the Lord cometh; μαρὰν in Syriac, our Lord,
or simply the Lord. Hesychius says, μαραναθὰ,ὁ Κύριος ἦλθεν, κ.τ.λ. As in
French monseigneuris the same as seigneur., Μαρὰνἀθὰ seems to have been
a frequent symbol [watchword]with Paul, the meaning of which the
Corinthians had either already known, or now, when they were to be seriously
affectedby it, might learn from others.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 22. - If any man love not, etc. This sentence (as in Colossians 4:18;
Ephesians 6:24) is part of the autographsalutation. The verb here used for
"love" (philo) was perhaps suggestedby the word for "kiss" (philema). The
word generallyused for "love of God" is agapae (Ephesians 6:24), which
implies less warmth, but deeperreverence. But this passageis full of emotion.
Let him be Anathema. The word only occurs elsewherein 1 Corinthians 12:3;
Acts 23:13;Romans 9:3; Galatians 1:8, 9 (comp. Matthew 26:74, "to curse").
It is the equivalent of the Hebrew cherem, a ban (Leviticus 27:29;Joshua
6:17, etc.). I cannotpretend to understand what St. Paul means by it, unless it
be "Let personallove to Christ be the essentialofChristian fellowship, and let
him who has it not be regarded as apart from the Church." Commentators
call it "an imprecation," or "malediction," and say that it means "Let him be
devoted to God's wrath and judgment." That language is, indeed, very like the
language ofreligious hatred and religious usurpation in all ages, but it is the
very antithesis to the generaltone of the apostle. If this were the meaning, it
would seem to resemble the very spirit which Christ himself severelyrebuked
as the Elijah spirit, not the Christ spirit. But I do not believe that, even in a
passing outburst of strong emotion, St. Paul had any such meaning. For

(1) the Jews usedcherem, not only of the severerform of excommunication
(shem atha), but even of the milder and by no means severe temporary form
(nidui); and
(2) it cannotbe more severe than "handing overto Satan" (1 Corinthians 5:5;
1 Timothy 1:20), which was merciful in its purpose. Maran-atha; two words,
the Lord cometh; like the Jewishshem atha, "the Name cometh," or, "the
Lord comes." It seems to be an appeal to the judgment of Christ, and may
possibly have been an allusion to Malachi4:6, the words with which the Old
Testamentends (see Jude 1:14, 15).
Vincent's Word Studies
Maran-atha
Not to be joined with anathema as one phrase. Rev., properly, a period after
anathema. Maranatha means the Lord cometh. It was a reminder of the
secondcoming. The reasonfor the use of the Aramaic phrase is unknown. It is
found in "The Teaching ofthe Twelve Apostles," ch. x., at the conclusionof
the post-communion prayer. Compare Revelation22:20.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
WILLIAM BURKITT
Verse 22
This is, if any man do either oppose Christ and his gospel, orapostatize and
backslide from his holy profession, and thereby discoverhe had no sincere
love for Christ, let him be accursedtill the Lord comes to judgment; and when

he comes to judgment, let him without repentance lie under a dreadful, yea,
an eternal curse.
Observe here, How that those who do not sincerelylove our Lord Jesus
Christ, are under the heaviestand bitterest of divine curses.
Note, 1. The ground or cause of this curse, the not loving of Jesus Christ; he
doth not say, If any man hate Christ, or reproachand blaspheme him, or
persecute and injure him; but, if he doth not love him. The bare want of this
affectionto Christ, is enougheternally to separate us from Christ.
Note, 2. The nature of this curse:Let him be Anathema Maran-atha. The
apostle pronounces the curse in two languages, Greekand Syriac, to denote
both the vehemencyof his own spirit in speaking, and the certainty of the
thing spoken:or perhaps to show that men of all nations and languages who
love not Christ, are under a curse, and that they are deservedlycursed among
all nations.
The Greek word, Anathema, signifies execrable;the Syriac word, Maran-
atha, is a compound of Maran, Lord, and atha, he cometh. These words were
used anciently in the most dreadful sentence of excommunication; as if they
had cited the person to the tribunal of Christ, at his coming to judge the
world, or left him bound under the curse of that sentence until the coming of
Christ.
Note, 3. The extent of this curse, If any man; as if he had said, Let him be who
he will that loves not Christ, Jew or Gentile, bond or free, male or female, rich
or poor, young or old, prince or peasant, king or beggar, who have
oportunities to know Christ and yet do not love him, let him be accursedby
him to eternal ages;let him be fully separatedfrom the societyof Christians
here in this world, and from all fellowship and communion with Christ finally
in the world to come.
The sum is, That those who love not our Lord Jesus Christ, much more those
who wilfully hate and oppose him and his holy laws, are accursedpersons in
this life, and devoted to destruction here: but when they shall stand before
that impartial judge of the world, they shall receive from his mouth a final

malediction, an irreversible execration, which shall be immediatedly
succeededwith the anguish and torments of eternity.
CALVIN
Verse 22
22.If any man love not the Lord Jesus The close of the Epistle consists ofthree
parts. He entreats the grace ofChrist in behalf of the Corinthians: he makes a
declarationof his love towards them, and, with the severest threatening, he
inveighs againstthose that falselytook upon themselves the Lord’s name,
while not loving him from the heart. Forhe is not speaking of strangers, who
avowedlyhated the Christian name, but of pretenders and hypocrites, who
troubled the Churches for the sake oftheir own belly, or from empty boasting.
(176)On such persons he denounces an anathema, and he also pronounces a
curse upon them. It is not certain, however, whether he desires their
destruction in the presence ofGod, or whether he wishes to render them
odious — nay, even execrable, in the view of believers. Thus in Galatians 1:8,
when pronouncing one who corrupts the Gospelto be accursed, (177)he does
not mean that he was rejectedor condemned by God, but he declares that he
is to be abhorred by us. I expound it in a simple way as follows:“Let them
perish and be cut off, as being the pests of the Church.” And truly, there is
nothing that is more pernicious, than that class ofpersons, who prostitute a
professionof piety to their own depraved affections. Now he points out the
origin of this evil, when he says, that they do not love Christ, for a sincere and
earnestlove to Christ will not suffer us to give occasionof offense to brethren.
(178)
What he immediately adds — Maranatha, is somewhatmore difficult. Almost
all of the ancients are agreed, that they are Syriac terms. (179)Jerome,

however, explains it: The Lord cometh; while others render it, At the coming
of the Lord, or, Until the Lord comes. Every one, however, I think, must see
how silly and puerile is the idea, that the Apostle spoke to Greeks in the Syriac
tongue, when meaning to say — The Lord has come. Those who translate it, at
the coming of the Lord, do so on mere conjecture;and besides, there is not
much plausibility in that interpretation. How much more likely it is, that this
was a customaryform of expressionamong the Hebrews, when they wishedto
excommunicate any one. For the Apostles never speak in foreign tongues,
exceptwhen they repeatanything in the person of another, as for example,
Eli, Eli, lammah sabathani, (Matthew 27:46,)Talitha cumi, (Mark 5:41,) and
Ephphata, (Mark 7:34,) or when they make use of a word that has come into
common use, as Amen — Hosanna. Let us see, then, whether Maranatha suits
with excommunication. Now Bullinger, (180) on the authority of Theodore
Bibliander, has affirmed, that, in the Chaldee dialect, Maharamata has the
same meaning as the Hebrew term ‫,םרח‬ cherem, (accursed,)(181)and I was
myself at one time assuredof the same thing by Wolfgang Capito, (182)a man
of blessedmemory It is nothing unusual, however, for the Apostles to write
such terms differently from the wayin which they are pronounced in the
language from which they are derived; as may be seeneven from the instances
brought forward above. Paul, then, after pronouncing an anathema on those
who do not love Christ, (183)deeply affectedwith the seriousnessofthe
matter, as if he reckonedthat he had not said enough, added a term that was
in common use among the Jews, and which they made use of in pronouncing a
sentence ofanathema — just as if, speaking in Latin, I should say, “I
excommunicate thee,” but if I add — “and pronounce thee an anathema,” this
would be an expressionof more intense feeling. (184)
THOMAS CONSTABLE
Verse 22

Normally Paul used the Greek word agape forlove (except in Titus 3:15).
Here he used phileo. Consequentlythis may have been a saying believers used
in the congregationalworshipof the churches. "Maranatha"(NASB)is an
Aramaic expressionmeaning "Our Lord, come." Probably Paul did not
translate it into Greek because believers commonlyspoke it in Aramaic in the
services ofthe early church (cf. Revelation22:20). Since it was Aramaic it
probably originated in Palestine where people spoke that language. They
exported it to the Greek-speaking congregationsthat retained its form.
"It is strange to meet with an Aramaic phrase in a Greek letter to a Greek
Church. The explanation is that that phrase had become a watchwordand a
password. It summed up the vital hope of the early Church, and Christians
whispered it to eachother, identified eachother by it, in a language whichthe
heathen could not understand." [Note:Barclay, The Letter . . ., p188.]
"It would appear, then, that the fixed usage of the term "Maranatha" by the
early Christians was a witness to their strong belief in the imminent return of
Christ. If they knew that Christ could not return at any moment because of
other events or a time period that had to transpire first [i.e, the Tribulation],
why did they petition Him in a way that implied that He could come at any
moment?" [Note:Showers, p131. Cf. Revelation3:11; 22:7 , 12 , 17 , 20.]
ANATHEMA MARANATHA
Dr. W. A. Criswell
1 Corinthians 16:21-24

2-19-56 7:30 p.m.
This is the lastmessage tonighton the first Corinthian letter. You know how
long I been preaching on Corinthians? I lookedit up. You know how long?
Does anybody know? Tonightis the last of a solid year that I have preached
on the first Corinthian letter. This is a year. You wouldn’t think it, would
you? This is a year that I’ve been preaching in First Corinthians. I close the
year tonight, and this is the lastmessage.
All right. I quit off this morning at the fourth verse. We’ll start at the fifth
verse and read the rest of the chapter. Do you have it? First Corinthians, the
sixteenth chapter, beginning at the fifth verse, and we’ll read to the end of it.
Now, you have some names in there: Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus.
When you come to them, if you can’t pronounce them very well, don’t worry
about that. Don’t worry about that. All right, all of us: First Corinthians 16,
beginning at the fifth verse. Now, we read:
Now I will come unto you when I shall pass through Macedonia (forI do pass
through Macedonia).
And it may be that I will abide, yea, and winter with you, that ye may bring
me on my journey, whithersoeverI go.
For I will not see you now by the way; but I trust to tarry a while with you, if
the Lord permit.
But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost.
For a greatdoor and effectualis opened unto me, and there are many
adversaries.
Now if Timotheus come, see that he may be with you without fear; for he
workeththe work of the Lord, as I also do.

Let no man therefore despise him. But conduct him forth in peace, that he
may come unto me; for I look for him with the brethren.
As touching our brother Apollos, I greatlydesired him to come unto you with
the brethren, but his will was not at all to come at this time; but, he will come
when he shall have convenienttime.
Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.
Let all things be done with charity.
I beseechyou, 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 –
That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us
and laboureth.
I am gladof the coming of Stephanas, and Fortunatus, and Achaicus, for that
which was lacking on your part they have supplied.
For they have refreshedmy spirit and yours. Therefore acknowledgeye them
that are such.
The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the
Lord, with the church that is in their house.
All the brethren greetyou. Greet ye one another with an holy kiss.
The salutationof me Paul with mine own hand.
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.
The grace ofour Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
[1 Corinthians 16:5-24]
That’s the conclusionof the letter.

Now, if I had a long time, we would start at that fifth verse and just talk
through some of these things in that chapter, wonderful chapter, concluding
his personalremarks to the church he loved so much; but I take just the last.
As you look at your Bible, do you see the twenty-first verse there? "The
salutation of me Paul with mine own hand." You see, all of the rest of the
letter, he wrote through an amanuensis. His name was Sosthenes. You find
that in the first verse of the first chapter. He dictated the letter. Paul dictated
all of his letters, but he had a habit – and he always did it – when he came to
the end of his letter, he picked up the pen himself, and he always wrote a
concluding salutation.
Now you look at that, if you have time, in the secondThessalonianletterand
the lastverses. There it is again:"The salutation of Paul with mine own hand,
which is the tokenin every epistle; so I write. The grace ofour Lord Jesus
Christ be with you all. Amen" [2 Thessalonians3:17-18]. And that’s the way
he closes the secondThessalonianletter: "The salutationof Paul with mine
own hand" [2 Thessalonians 3:17]. That’s the tokenin every epistle. That’s
the wayyou could tell it was genuine. When he gotthrough dictating it, he
picked up the pen and wrote in his own hand a concluding salutation.
Now, in the last chapter of the Galatianletter, you have it translatedlike this:
"You see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand!"
[Galatians 6:11] What Paul actually said there was this – that’s in the
eleventh verse of the sixth chapter of Galatians – "You see with what large
letters I write unto you with mine own hand." That eleventh verse, he picked
up the pen himself, and he wrote like a schoolboy. There must have been
something wrong with his eyes – practically everybody thinks there was – and
when he wrote, he wrote in great big box letters – big capitalletters – like a
first grader. So, when he picked up the pen there, writing to the churches of
Galatia, he starts off saying, "You see with what large letters I write unto you
with mine own hand!" [Galatians 6:11]
Now, that’s the thing you find here in this concluding remark in the first
Corinthian letter. He picks up the pen, and he writes:"The salutation of me
Paul with mine own hand. If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him

be Anathema Maranatha. The grace of our Lord be with you. My love be
with you all . . . Amen" [1 Corinthians 16:21-24].
Now, those two unusual, untranslated words there, Anathema Maranatha,
they belong to the dialect – the Aramaic-Syrian vernacular – of Palestine in
the day when Paul lived. You find those untranslated Aramaic words all
through the Gospels. Don’tyou remember some of them?
Jesus said, ‘"Ephphatha,’ that is, ‘be opened’" [Mark 7:34].
"And the field was calledAkel Dama, the Field of Blood" [Acts 1:19].
"Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken
Me?" [Matthew 27:46]
All through those Gospels youwill find those untranslated Aramaic words.
That’s the language in which Jesus spake. That’s the language that Paul
knew when he studied there in Jerusalem.
Now, he picks up one of those words: Maranatha. That’s an Aramaic word.
That anathema, by some peculiar turn on the part of these translators, was
left also untranslated. But they have nothing to do with one another as such.
That is, Anathema Maranatha [1 Corinthians 16:22]are not a phrase together
though the way Paul uses them here they have a tremendous import. And
that’s the messagetonight.
What does anathema mean? That’s a plain, simple English word now.
Actually, the word means "devotedcompletely" and came to refer to a thing
devoted completely by God for destruction. All of Jericho was devotedfor
destruction – all of it [Joshua 6:1-27]. All of it was accursed, and all of it was
to be completelydestroyed. The ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were
completely devoted for destruction [Genesis 18:20-19:29]. Theywere
accursed, and that word means accursed. It means damned. It means an
irrevocable final sending awayfrom God; and connectedthere with that
Maranatha, "the Lord comes,"it means a final and irremediable, an
irrevocable, an eternal damnation. To Paul it’s an awful thing to saythere:
"If any man love not the Lord Jesus, he’s accursed" [1 Corinthians 16:22].

He’s damned. He is eternally devoted to destruction and hell and damnation.
Ah, such things as you read here in the Bible.
Now, that word "Maranatha" is made up of two of those Aramaic words.
Mara means "the Lord," and atha means "He comes" – Maranatha:"the
Lord comes." Evidently, in those early primitive days, the Christian people
who were Jewish, whenthey would meet one another, they would greet each
other with that word Maranatha
like the Greeks wouldgreet one another with those Greek words achri hou
elthē: "’til He come, ’til He come." The JewishChristians greetedone
another with that word there Maranatha.
You see, there are two greatpillars upon which the testimony, the gospelof
Jesus Christ, rests. One of those pillars, one of those piers, is this: that Christ
has come and that He died for our sins [1 Corinthians 15:3]. That’s one of
them. And the other one is that He was raised[1 Corinthians 15:4], that He
lives [Hebrews 7:25], and that He’s coming againin triumph [Acts 1:9-11; 1
Thessalonians 4:16-17;Revelation1:7]. Those are the two greatpillars of the
Christian faith. In memory, the cradle and the cross in hope that He’s coming
againwith tremendous power in the clouds of glory [Matthew 24:30;
Revelation1:7] with the saints and all the holy angels of heaven[1
Thessalonians 4:14-17]. And betweenthose two greatdoctrines, like a bridge
suspended, the present, fragile present hangs suspended in between.
It’s a tragic thing that we’ve come to the day when men have lost faith in the
first – in the atoning cross ofthe Son of God – and they’ve lost expectancyof
the other: that somedayHe’s gloriouslycoming again. But howeverthe
modern faith is, and howeverthe churches of this modern life may be, the
testimony of the Bible and the faith of those first Christians was just that:
that the Lord Jesus has come, that He died for our sins [1 Corinthians 15:3],
and the other – and the Lord Jesus is coming againin glory and in triumph [1
Corinthians 16:22; 1 Peter1:13; Revelation22:20]. Maranatha:"and the
Lord comes."
Now, you look at that final salutation how it’s put together. You’ll find there
a very plain illustration of the whole fabric of the gospelof Christ. One is

terror and the other is tenderness, and they’re right there together. Look at
it. "The salutationof me Paul with mine own hand. If any man spurns
Christ" – the overtures of love and mercy, the grace of Jesus – "if any man
spurns Christ, let him be Anathema" [1 Corinthians 16:21-22]. That’s not an
implication. It’s not a wish. It’s a prophetic warning! If any man turns from
Christ, damnation awaits him! Hell waits him! The torment of fire and
destruction awaits him if any man turns aside from Christ [Matthew 22:1-14;
Revelation20:15].
And then right in the next verse, in the next breath, in the next syllable, in the
next sentence, there it is: "Maranatha" [1 Corinthians 16:22] – He’s coming.
"The grace of our Lord be with you. My love be with you all in Christ.
Amen" [1 Corinthians 16:23-24]. Justlike that. The terror and the
tenderness of the gospelmessageofJesus.
It’s that way all the way through. When a man preaches just about heaven
and just about the atoning work of Christ and just about all of the sweet
things of the Christian gospeland he preaches just that, he is in no wise
approaching the whole counsels of God. For when a man preaches that Book
and preaches the whole gospelof Christ, there are things in that Book that
make your soul tremble. Horrible things, terrible things – things of hell and
destruction and damnation – they’re in that Book.
Right in the next verse, in the next syllable, there will be the most pouring out
of the compassionate heartof God. Brings you to tears. The sweetpleadings
of the Holy Spirit – there they are in the Book right side-by-side. That’s the
gospelmessage. "Ifany man love not the Lord Jesus, lethim be Anathema"
[1 Corinthians 16:22]. Let him be accursed. He’ll be damned forever. That’s
in the gospelmessage. Look atit here. Look at it here. In the second
Thessalonianletter, listen to Paul as he says:
To you who are troubled, rest with us when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed
from heaven with His mighty angels,

In flaming fire taking vengeance onthem that know not God, and that obey
not the gospelof our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who shall punish with everlasting destructionfrom the presence ofthe Lord
and from the glory of the power,
When He shall come to be glorified in His saints and be admired in all them
that believe
– among you that are [believers] –
in that final, in that great, and in that awful day.
[2 Thessalonians1:7-10]
"Ah, Preacher, Idon’t believe in any such thing. I don’t believe in hell, and I
don’t believe in damnation, and I don’t believe in the fires of punishment. I
don’t believe in the judgment wrath of the Almighty God." The only thing
about the Bible is this: that the same revelationthat spake to us about hell
[Revelation20:11-15]is the same one that speaks to us about heaven
[Revelation21:1-22:5]. The same one that speaks ofthe love of God [John
3:16] speaks ofthe wrath and the judgment of Almighty God [John 3:36].
And if one’s not true, then the other’s not true. If there’s not any fire and
torment in hell [Revelation20:10, 14-15], there are no golden streets and no
pearly gates and glory [Revelation21:21]. If there’s not any Satan, there’s not
any Jesus Christ[Matthew 4:1-11]. If there’s not any devil, there’s not any
God [John 8:42-44]. If there’s not any salvation, if there’s not anything to be
savedfrom, there’s no need for a man to preach[1 Corinthians 15:12-18].
It’s because ofthe awful judgment of God, because ofthe wrath of God, it’s
because ofthat everlasting torment, it’s because ofthe reality of an anathema
that Jesus came into the world [Matthew 1:21; Luke 19:10;1 Timothy 1:15].
There’s a reasonfor His being here. There’s a reasonfor His suffering and
death. It’s because we’re lost;it’s because we’re damned; it’s because we’re
not saved;it’s because we face the wrath and judgment of God.

If a man’s not in Christ, he’s anathema [1 Corinthians 16:22]. He’s cursed.
And that thing is always side-by-side. "The grace ofour Lord be with you.
My love be with you" [1 Corinthians 16:23-24]:right side-by-side. And
whereveryou have the true gospelpreached, they’ll be right together:hell and
heaven right side-by-side. This is hell. This is it. This is the fire and the
torment. This is heaven. This is it. This is the wayto God and to glory.
The same Lord Jesus that took little babes in His arms and blessedthem
[Mark 10:13-16], thatsame Lord Jesus took a whip in His hand and drove out
the money changers and denounced hypocrisy of the Pharisees [Matthew
21:12-13, 23:13-26;John 2:14-16]. Same Lord. Same Lord. That same story
that tells us about Lazarus over there in the bosom of Abraham. He’s in
heaven. That same story tells us about dives [the rich man] who’s tormented
in hell. It’s in the same book. It’s in the same story. It comes from the Lord
Jesus [Luke 16:19-31].
In that secondCorinthian letter that we’re coming to next Sunday, it says
there is a savour of life unto life to those who believe, and there’s the savourof
death unto death to those who don’t believe [2 Corinthians 2:16]. When a
man hears the gospelofthe Son of God, if he repents and if he turns and if he
trusts and if he believes, he’ll be saved. But if that man hears the gospelof
Christ, he’s doubly lostand doubly damned and doubly doomed. This
messageis a two-fold message alwaysand always.
"Well, Preacher, isn’t that a harsh thing for God to do, to tell us about those
things and write ’em in the Book? And isn’t that an awful thing for a man to
preach?"
Yes, it is. It’s a terrible thing.
"Well, then why does God do it?"
Simply because the gospelis the gospel. It’s true. It faces reality. It’s a
merciful revelation of God that there’s a reality in hell, and a man must
escape withhis life or he’s lostand damned forever. The Bible is the most
realistic book in this earth, and it points out those terrible dangers and those
horrible days that lie ahead for the soul without God and without Christ.

I say it’s a merciful revelation. It’s something God has done because He loves
us. Wheneveryou see a railroad track, there’s an electric sign, and that
thing’ll come on and it says, "Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop!" It isn’t because the
railroad company hates the people that cross over their property. It’s because
they know the dangerwhen those greathigh-speed freights come roaring by.
The man on the track is inviting death if he doesn’tstop, and the railroad
company puts it there: "Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop!"
That’s the way with God. God says, "This road leads to hell" [Matthew 7:13].
And the Lord Jesus Christinterposes blood: "This road leads to hell, and I’m
dying to save you [Matthew 7:13-14;John 14:6; Romans 5:8]. Don’t go that
way. Don’tgo that way." And the prayers of God’s people: "This road leads
to hell! Turn and be saved! Turn and be saved." And the compassionate
hearts of all who love you and care for you: "Thatroad leads to hell. Don’t go
that way."
Don’t go out that door without God. Don’t go outside without Christ. Don’t
spurn these overtures, these pleadings of compassionand mercy and love.
Hell’s that way. Deathis that way. Damnation is that way. It’s that two-fold
plea always. If a man is preaching the true gospel, then love is that way.
Rebuke. Rebuke is the voice of love [Proverbs 27:6]. Pleading againstwrong
and unrighteousness is the voice of somebody who cares. Are any of you men
here fathers? When your son does wrong, what do you do with the boy?
Don’t you call in the boy and sit him down by your side and say, "Son, that
road leads to damnation. Don’t go that way, son. Don’t go that way"
[Proverbs 1:8-10, 13:24;Hebrews 12:7]. Are any of you mothers here? Do
you have a daughter? Don’t you call in your daughter and sit down by her
side and say, "Honey, that way is an awful way, and it leads down and down
and down. O precious child, don’t go that way. Don’t go that way." Isn’t that
because you love them? Isn’t it? Isn’t that what prompts it? Isn’t that what
you’re doing? You love that boy; you love that girl; and you don’t want to see
them fall into the abyss. You don’t want to see them fall into hell. You don’t
want to see them go down that road. And love pleads and begs and
importunes and cries and prays and intercedes, allday and all night and all in
betweentime, and it never gets awayfrom you – never gets off of your heart.

When your children are out there somewhere, ifyou’re a goodmother, the
chances are you don’t sleep until they get back in. "Well, that’s a silly thing
to do," you say. But that’s mother for you. That’s love for you. That’s the
way God is. "This road leads to hell! This is the way of damnation! That’s
Anathema!" [1 Corinthians 16:22] And in the next verse, "Oh the grace of
the Lord and my love be with you" [1 Corinthians 16:23-24]. That’s whatit
is. That’s what it is. Don’t go that way. Don’t be that way. Don’t choose that
way. Don’t. That’s the tenderness of God. That’s the love of the Lord Jesus
Christ.
I have to quit. May I just point out this one thing? What kind of folks were
these that Paul is talking about? Well, just by resumÃ©, do you remember?
They were as partisan as they could be. One would stand up and say, "I’m of
Paul," another, "I’m of Apollos," another, "I’m of Cephas. Plague onall the
rest of you" [1 Corinthians 1:12, 3:4].
Notonly that, there were some in that church – one fellow, especially, he
describes beside a multitude of others – that one fellow living with his father’s
wife! [1 Corinthians 5:1] Paul said that was a heinous, foul iniquity not even
named among the Gentiles. Eventhose wicked, iniquitous Gentiles didn’t
even have a name for a fellow that did that, living with his father’s wife – with
his stepmother. That was over there in that church.
And then, not only that, but in that church, there were those that when they
came to the Lord’s Supper, some of them gormandized [1 Corinthians 11:26-
34]. They just made gluttons of themselves at the Lord’s Table, and some of
them got drunk at the Lord’s Table, and Paul was aghast.
And there were men in that church that stoodup and said, "There’s no such a
thing as a resurrection. There’s no such a thing as the doctrine of the
resurrection. There’s no such a thing as the resurrectionof Jesus Christ" [1
Corinthians 15:12-19]. There was everything in that church.
All right. What does he sayabout them? "The grace ofour Lord Jesus
Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen" [1
Corinthians 16:23-24]. That’s the gospel. A fellow can be just as vile and
iniquitous as he can be, but God puts His arms around him, and the Apostle

puts his arms around him, and loves him just the same. Fouland dirty and
iniquitous – doesn’tmatter. Love ’em all.
And here’s a man who’s heretical, and here’s a man who’s partisan, and
here’s a man that breaks your heart, and there’s one that disappoints your
soul. "Well, we calldown the wrath of God on ’em!" [Luke 9:53-54] No, we
don’t. They just face the greatand inevitable judgment of God upon the
choices that they make, but we cry over them and love them and plead with
them just the same – just like God does [Luke 9:55-56, 15:20;Romans 9:1-3,
10:1].
"All." Do you look at that word there? "My love be with you all" [1
Corinthians 16:24]. "My love be with you all." He put his arms around the
whole church. Some of them disappoint him. Some of them deny the very
gospelthat he’s preaching. Some of them, everything else but what they ought
to be. But he picks up his pen, "My love be with you all" [1 Corinthians
16:24]. That’s the gospel. That’s the gospel.
I don’t guess there’s any finer picture of the gospelthan a man with his arm
around a fellow that needs Jesus, loving him into the kingdom, praying over
him for Jesus’sake. That’s the gospel. I don’t care what the man is or what
he’s done! The gospelis the Christian’s down on his knees with his arms
around a fallen and needy brother asking God to save him. That’s the gospel.
If a man’s outside of Jesus, it’s anathema [1 John 5:11-12]. It’s anathema.
It’s anathema.
"The grace of the Lord be upon us. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus.
Amen" [From 1 Corinthians 16:23-24]. Just’cause He loves us: telling us,
pleading with us, begging us, warning us. The most importunate of all the
pleas in this world is the plea of God. Maranatha:the Lord comes. Are you
ready? Are you ready? Maranatha:the Lord comes. Canyou pray the
prayer of the apostle? "Evenso, come, Lord Jesus" [Revelation22:20]. "I’m
ready. Come now, and it’s ready: my soul, my life, my house – all is in order,
ready. Or in the morning, or at noontime, or at midnight – anytime, Lord,
just knock atmy door; just knock at my door." Maranatha:"and He comes."
Amen. Let Him come. "Even so, come, Lord Jesus"[Revelation22:20].

Ah, bless the people that listen to this message thatall of us could answer,
"Lord, and I’m ready. And I’m ready. And I’m ready – ready for the
judgment day; ready for death; ready for life; ready whateverGod shall
choose. Here I am, Lord. My faith is in Thee. My trust is in Thee. So help
me, God, I’m ready. I’m ready."
And that’s why we’re preaching. Somebodyyou, somebody you, give his
heart to the Lord: "Preacher, I’ve said ‘no’ to Jesus for my last time. From
now on, it’s ‘Yes. Yes, Lord, yes. I’ll take you as my Savior. I’ll follow you as
my Master. I’ll give you my life. Yes, Lord, yes.’"
Does He sayyou ought to be baptized? Then you come down that aisle.
"Preacher, God’s Booksays I ought to be baptized [Acts 2:38], and I want to
be baptized. God’s Book says I ought to publicly confess my faith in Him
[Romans 10:9-10]. Publicly, I want to confess my faith in Jesus. Godsays we
ought to be in His church [Hebrews 10:25], baptized into His body. I want to
be in the church. Whatever God shall say, here I am, Lord, and here I come;
and I’ll make it now."
While we sing this song, anywhere, you, in the balcony around, in this great
press of people on this lowerfloor: "Pastor,I’m coming tonight. I’m coming
tonight," some by confessionoffaith, some by baptism, some by letter, some
by reconsecrationoflife. However God shall saythe word, come, come.
Come, while we stand and while we sing.
BOB DEFFINBAUGH
Lest anyone think this is just a “warmfuzzy” closing, letthem take note of the
somber words of verse 22:“If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be
accursed.” Paulvery clearly distinguishes betweensaints and unbelievers. The
difference he indicates here is that saints “love the Lord,” and (by inference)
the restdo not. Upon those who do not “love the Lord,” Paul pronounces a

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