THE FIRST LETTER OF PAUL TO THE
CORINTHIANS
1
Greeting
1 Paul, called to be an apostle of *Jesus Christ ¦ Christ Jesus NA SBLJesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, 2 to the church of God in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be saints, together with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and †ours ¦ yours PCKours: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving
4 I always give thanks to ‡my ¦ — WHmy God for you because of the grace of God that has been given to you in Christ Jesus. 5 For you have been enriched in him in every way, in all speech and all knowledge, 6 just as the testimony of Christ was confirmed among you, 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift as you eagerly await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Divisions in the Church
10 Now I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be knit together in the same mind and in the same purpose. 11 For it has been disclosed to me about you, my brothers, by those of Chloe's household, that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul,” while another says, “I follow Apollos,” or, “I follow Cephas,” or, “I follow Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you, or were you baptized into the name of Paul? 14 I give thanks §to God ¦ — SBL TH WHto God that I baptized none of you, except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one may say that *I baptized into my own ¦ you were baptized into my CTI baptized into my own name. 16 (I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not recall if I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, and not with cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be deprived of its power.
Christ the Power and Wisdom of God
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the intelligence of the intelligent I will nullify.”
20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of †this ¦ the CTthis world foolish? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of our proclamation to save those who believe. 22 For Jews ask for ‡a sign ¦ signs CTa sign and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to §Greeks ¦ Gentiles CTGreeks, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
26 Consider your calling, brothers, that not many of you were wise according to the flesh, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose what is lowly and despised in the world, things that are regarded as nothing, to nullify the things that are regarded as something, 29 so that no flesh might boast before God. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God, and in whom we have righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”