The Testing by Fire of the Builders' Works: 1 Corinthians 3.10–15

One of the most interesting passages to deal with the apostle Paul's thoughts on the Last Day and the final Judgment is found in 1 Cor 3.10–15. Far from being an excursus, a digression or an insertion, having almost nothing to do with its context, the verses are an important element in Paul's arguments on the diversity in the Christian community in Corinth in chapters 1–4. It runs partly parallel with vv. 5–9, illustrating the same point along more or less similar lines: people responsible for the growth of the Christian communities are just servants of God and will be recompensed according to their labours at the end of time.