“I beseech you, 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,)”
My Notes
What Does 1 Corinthians 16:15 Mean?
Paul commends the household of Stephanas—the first converts in Achaia (southern Greece)—with a remarkable descriptor: they have "addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints." The word "addicted" (etaxan, from tassō—to arrange, to appoint, to devote) means they voluntarily ordered their entire lives around serving other believers. It wasn't occasional. It was structural. They reorganized their household's purpose around ministry.
The term "firstfruits" (aparchē) means they were the initial harvest—the first people in their entire region to believe. Being first gave them no sense of entitlement or seniority. Instead, it produced a servant disposition: the first converts became the most devoted servants. Their priority was the opposite of what their position might suggest.
Paul's plea—"I beseech you"—asks the Corinthian church to submit to people like the Stephanas household: those who have demonstrated their devotion through sustained, structural service. Spiritual authority in Paul's framework isn't claimed through title. It's earned through service. The people you should follow are the people who have addicted themselves to serving you.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Have you 'addicted yourself' to serving others—restructured your life around ministry? Or is service occasional?
- 2.If the first converts became the most devoted servants, what has your time in the faith produced—entitlement or devotion?
- 3.What would it look like to arrange your household around the purpose of serving—not just fitting it in but building around it?
- 4.Paul says to follow people who are addicted to serving. Who in your life has that kind of devotion?
Devotional
"Addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints." They didn't just serve occasionally. They restructured their entire household around serving other believers. Ministry wasn't their hobby. It was their operating system. They were addicted—not to a substance but to a purpose. The first converts in their region became the most devoted servants.
The word Paul uses for 'addicted' means they arranged their lives—deliberately, structurally, permanently—around the purpose of serving. Their household didn't fit ministry into existing schedules. The schedule was built around the ministry. The service wasn't what they did on weekends. It was the reason their household existed.
Being the 'firstfruits'—the very first converts—gave them no sense of entitlement. Nowhere does Paul say they leveraged their seniority. He says they leveraged their position into service. The first became the most servant. The senior became the most addicted to helping. Priority of conversion produced priority of serving.
If you've been in the faith for a long time—if you're one of the 'firstfruits' of your community—this verse asks what your seniority has produced. Has it produced the expectation of being served? Or has it produced an addiction to serving? The Stephanas household was the first to believe and the first to serve. Time in the faith didn't produce entitlement. It produced devotion. How has your time in the faith formed you?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
I am glad of the coming of Stephanas, and Fortunatus, and Achaicus,.... Who very probably were those of the household of…
I beseech you, brethren - The construction here is somewhat involved, but the sense is plain. The words, “I beseech…
Ye know the house of Stephanas - Ye know that Stephanas and his family have addicted them to the help of the followers…
In this passage the apostle gives,
I. Some general advices; as, 1. That they should watch (Co1 16:13), be wakeful and…
the house of Stephanas See note on ch. 1Co 1:16.
the firstfruits of Achaia Not necessarily the very first converts, but…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture