Co-workers or Fellow Workers (1 and 2 Corinthians)--συνεργοί

1 Corinthians 3:9: θεοῦ γάρ ἐσμεν συνεργοί· θεοῦ γεώργιον, θεοῦ οἰκοδομή ἐστε.

Commentary: Who are the co-workers of God mentioned by Paul? In this context, he is likely talking about himself and Apollos (1 Corinthians 3:5-6). They were both ministers of God and each man had "farmed" in Corinth by planting and watering, but God caused the seed of truth to grow.

A second question I have is why Paul uses the language "God's field" (θεοῦ γεώργιον). To what does θεοῦ γεώργιον refer? Could the apostle have been comparing the Corinthian ecclesia to a field in which Jehovah God does his divine work? Granted, Jesus identified the field as the world in Matthew. However, Paul here writes that the Corinthians are the field of God. Therefore, he is more specific here.

Thirdly, why does Paul use the mixed metaphor θεοῦ οἰκοδομή in 1 Corinthians 3:9? In what sense are the Corinthians the house of God? Is there an allusion to temple language here? Both the context and Greek-English lexicons suggest the answer is affirmative. See 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; Ephesians 2:19-22.

Paul's language in 1 Corinthians 3:9 also naturally leads into 1 Corinthians 3:10-15 about Paul building with fire-resistant materials.

2 Corinthians 1:24: οὐχ ὅτι κυριεύομεν ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως, ἀλλὰ συνεργοί ἐσμεν τῆς χαρᾶς ὑμῶν, τῇ γὰρ πίστει ἑστήκατε.

Commentary: So who are the συνεργοί mentioned in this passage? Could Paul be referring to himself and Timothy? See 2 Corinthians 1:1; 3:1-4. The context of Paul's utterance is the defense of his apostolic authority.

2 Corinthians 8:23: εἴτε ὑπὲρ Τίτου, κοινωνὸς ἐμὸς καὶ εἰς ὑμᾶς συνεργός· εἴτε ἀδελφοὶ ἡμῶν, ἀπόστολοι ἐκκλησιῶν, δόξα Χριστοῦ.