Apostle Paul brought up boasting in four passages in his first letter to Corinth, including the famous “Love does not boast.” (1 Corinthians 13:4). Twice in chapter 1 of this letter, boasting was mentioned. From chapter 10 onward, boasting becomes one of his main tools and remains so through the end of this section (12:13). Paul’s opening to this section, 16-20, is full of irony that utilizes foolish bragging to expose the foolishness of his opponents’ bragging.
Paul starts by declaring he is not to be taken as a fool, but since they insist on calling him that behind his back, he will become one and brag like his foolish opponents, those false apostles. Through a fool’s boasting and irony, Paul puts them and he in proper perspective.
Boasting exposes self-confidence, and self-confidence is a form of delusion. How capable can we really believe we are? We exist in an environment controlled by practically everything we have little or no ability to control. And that which we believe we can control is often proven beyond our imaginations of what can and will go wrong.
Logic, statistics, and science are limited by our understanding and perception. Yet, we are told to accept what so many do, that they are constants. Then, when they are proven not to be what we expected, we are told they are not constant. Many who become rich by propagating them continue to brag about their knowledge and understanding even though their conceptions and conclusions are proven false. Bragging is for fools, and people gladly put up with fools because they too want to believe that they also are wise.
In the end, Paul concludes these thoughts by stating that those who believe in bragging foolish liars are enslaved and exploited. They are taken advantage of. Their lying masters pushes themself forward and slap they in the face, responding, “You are so clever and wise.” When truth is presented to them, they say, “I cannot accept that because doing so will mean I need to accept the Bible is true, that God exists, and that I am wrong and need to change.”
