NOTES for Co2 4:1-6

Paul decisively rejects any special "secret" knowledge, any "hidden" tradition. More than that, he does not even claim any special Christian interpretation, nor does he present himself as the founder of some special new school of Christian exegesis. It should be noted that in Gospel times, both in Judea and in the Jewish world generally, there were many schools and academies devoted to the study of the Torah and the tradition connected with it, and some of these schools claimed, if not esoteric status, then at least a kind of intellectual elitism.

Their representatives were convinced that, even if they did not possess some special secret knowledge, they certainly had a unique method of interpreting the sacred texts that allowed them to understand them as no one else could. Paul, by contrast, claims nothing of the kind.

He remains faithful to the best traditions of rabbinic service: no elitism, and certainly no esotericism. Knowledge of the Torah must be open to everyone who wants to know it and follow it. But for the apostle, knowledge of the Torah and following it are inseparable from his personal relationship with Christ, from his Christianity. And he immediately makes a reservation: this is not about some new rabbinic school or some new interpretations of familiar texts "for the chosen." What Paul teaches is accessible and understandable to everyone, and if it is unclear to anyone, it is only to the one who does not want to see, hear, and understand.

For Paul, the Torah is the path to Christ, the path after Christ, and the path in Christ, and he does not hide this. But there is nothing "esoteric" or elitist here. The apostle calls everyone to walk this path, and does so completely openly. Apart from Christ and the understanding of the Torah as the path in Christ, he has nothing. He is not a learned rabbi, not the founder of a new school, not a teacher of righteousness. He is a witness of Christ, and that is enough for him.