Elsewhere Paul speaks of “the rulers [hai
archontai] of this age” (1 Cor 2:6, 8; cf. Eph 2:2, “the ruler [ho archon]
of the dominion of the air”), powers which he perhaps has in mind when he
refers to “so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth,” and to the “many
gods and many lords” (1 Cor 8:5). Compare, as well, the references in the
Fourth Gospel to “the ruler [ho archon] of this [or: the] world” (John
12:31; 14:30; 16:11) . . . (Victor Paul Furnish, II Corinthians [AB 32a;
Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1984], 220--how how this means that the Gods and Lords in 1 Cor 8:5 have ontological existence in light of Furnish's comments)