Paul’s references to eschatological loss and salvation “only as through fire” in 1 Corinthians 3:15 have long puzzled biblical scholars. The majority interpretation throughout history has understood the “suffering of loss” as receiving a lesser degree of eschatological rewards (e.g., Augustine, Schweitzer, Braun, Filson, Reicke, Sanders, Rosscup, Fuller, Ton, Piper). The phrase “but only as through fire” has thus been read as a form of salvation “by the skin of one’s teeth” (Preisker, 1967). The individual is judged according to their works and found lacking in some respect. Though they escape condemnation, they receive a diminished reward.
This paper builds on Timothy Brookins’ recent work Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Corinthians (2024), which critiques rhetorical readings of 1 Corinthians 1–4 and argues that the Corinthian problem is fundamentally theological—a matter of content rather than rhetorical form. Brookins’ thesis is crucial for my argument, as I contend that in 1 Corinthians 3:14–15, Paul addresses a departure from the gospel rather than lesser faithfulness or impure motives in ministry. Applying Brookins’ test of coherence, I argue that the majority reading of this passage fails to align with Paul’s larger argument in 1 Corinthians 1–4 and the soteriological urgency with which he exhorts the Corinthians. Rather than referring to degrees of reward, Paul’s language of reward signifies vindication in Christ on the Day of Judgment for those who receive and proclaim his gospel—the message of Christ crucified as the true means of salvation.
Furthermore, 1 Corinthians 3:10–15 parallels judgment sayings in the Old Testament and early Jewish writings that use honor and shame language to depict final judgment. Building on Matthew Pawlak’s research (Sarcasm in Paul’s Letters, 2022), I argue that several contextual and linguistic signals support a sarcastic reading of 1 Corinthians 3:15. This interpretation better accounts for Paul’s argument and his use of shaming rhetoric throughout the letter, by which he undermines so-called human wisdom and calls the Corinthians back to his apostolic message. Rather than describing a diminished eschatological reward, the phrase “salvation but only as through fire” functions as biting irony, exposing the eschatological shame that awaits those who reject Paul’s gospel in favor of human wisdom.