1 Corinthians 10:18 (DRB)

Passage

Behold Israel according to the flesh. Are not they that eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 10:16 The chalice of benediction which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? And the bread which we break, is it not the partaking of the body of the Lord?

1 Corinthians 10:17 For we, being many, are one bread, one body: all that partake of one bread.

1 Corinthians 10:18 Behold Israel according to the flesh. Are not they that eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?

1 Corinthians 10:19 What then? Do I say that what is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing? Or that the idol is any thing?

1 Corinthians 10:20 But the things which the heathens sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils and not to God. And I would not that you should be made partakers with devils.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "israel", "flesh", "sacrifices", "partakers", and "altar". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "israel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "For we being many are one bread..." into verse 19's "What then Do I say that what...", so "behold" and "israel" belong inside that flow. In 1 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "behold" and "israel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.