John Calvin Commentary 1 Corinthians 11:22

"What, have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and put them to shame that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you? In this I praise you not." — 1 Corinthians 11:22 (ASV)

Do you not have houses? From this we see that the Apostle was utterly dissatisfied with this custom of feasting, even though the abuse formerly mentioned had not existed. For, though it seems allowable for the whole Church to partake at one common table, yet this, on the other hand, is wrong — to convert a sacred assembly to purposes foreign to its nature. We know for what exercises a Church should assemble — to hear doctrine, to pour forth prayers, and sing hymns to God, to observe the sacraments, to make confession of their faith, and to engage in pious observances, and other exercises of piety. If anything else is done there, it is out of place. Every one has his own house appointed for eating and drinking, and therefore that is an unseemly thing in a sacred assembly.

What shall I say to you? Having appropriately stated the case, he now calls them to consider whether they are worthy to be praised, for they could not defend an abuse that was so obvious. He presses them still further by asking — “What else could I do? Will you say that you are unjustly rebuked?” Some manuscripts connect the words in this with the verb that follows — in this way: Shall I praise you? In this I do not praise you. The other reading, however, is more widely accepted among the Greeks, and it fits better.