1 Corinthians 1

¹Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, and set apart for the gospel of God—

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God in Corinth, together with all the saints throughout Achaia:

¹⁷At this, the crowd seized Sosthenes the synagogue leader and beat him in front of the judgment seat. But none of this was of concern to Gallio.

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

²¹Then He said to me, ‘Go! I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

⁷To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts,

¹⁰nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

³⁰It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.

¹⁸to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those sanctified by faith in Me.’

¹⁵But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do,

¹⁶for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

⁷For God has not called us to impurity, but to holiness.

⁷To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²according to the foreknowledge of God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

²Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁸First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being proclaimed all over the world.

²⁶But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you.

²⁶When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me.

¹⁷But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed.

¹⁴If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.

¹⁶And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever—

¹¹You will be enriched in every way to be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will produce thanksgiving to God.

⁷But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness, and in the love we inspired in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

⁹And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,

¹⁴I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, brimming with knowledge, and able to instruct one another.

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

²who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

⁸So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.

⁶who gave Himself as a ransom for all—the testimony that was given at just the right time.

¹When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.

²For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

²⁴But I consider my life of no value to me, if only I may finish my course and complete the ministry I have received from the Lord Jesus—the ministry of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

¹⁰So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who rely on the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

²⁰But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,

¹²as you anticipate and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be destroyed by fire and the elements will melt in the heat.

²⁸so also Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him.

²Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.

²¹keep yourselves in the love of God as you await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you eternal life.

¹⁹The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God.

²³Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your entire spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁴The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.

¹³so that He may establish your hearts in blamelessness and holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints. Amen.

²²But now He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy, unblemished, and blameless in His presence—

⁶being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

²⁴Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you unblemished in His glorious presence, with great joy—

²⁵to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.

³But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.

³But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.

²³Let us hold resolutely to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.

⁹Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His covenant of loving devotion for a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments.

³We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And this fellowship of ours is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

¹³No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.

⁴He is the Rock, His work is perfect; all His ways are just. A God of faithfulness without injustice, righteous and upright is He.

¹Therefore if you have any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,

²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose.

¹As a prisoner in the Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received:

²with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

²⁵so that there should be no division in the body, but that its members should have mutual concern for one another.

¹⁶Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited.

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good conduct, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

¹⁴But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth.

¹¹Finally, brothers, rejoice! Aim for perfect harmony, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

⁴he is conceited and understands nothing. Instead, he has an unhealthy interest in controversies and disputes about words, out of which come envy, strife, abusive talk, evil suspicions,

²³But reject foolish and ignorant speculation, for you know that it breeds quarreling.

²⁴And a servant of the Lord must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, and forbearing.

²⁶Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.

⁶A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.

²This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them.

²⁰idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions,

⁹And do not call anyone on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.

¹⁰Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Christ.

⁴²Andrew brought him to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which is translated as Peter).

²¹Therefore, stop boasting in men. All things are yours,

²²whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future. All of them belong to you,

⁴For when one of you says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere men?

⁵What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, as the Lord has assigned to each his role.

⁹And recognizing the grace that I had been given, James, Cephas, and John—those reputed to be pillars—gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised.

⁶Brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us not to go beyond what is written. Then you will not take pride in one man over another.

⁵one Lord, one faith, one baptism;

⁴For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the One you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it very easily.

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

⁴⁸So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for a few days.

²They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.

⁵On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.

⁸Crispus, the synagogue leader, and his whole household believed in the Lord. And many of the Corinthians who heard the message believed and were baptized.

²³Gaius, who has hosted me and all the church, sends you greetings. Erastus, the city treasurer, sends you greetings, as does our brother Quartus.

¹⁸Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.

¹⁸I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.

¹⁵Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, for to this you were called as members of one body. And be thankful.

¹⁸He who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory, but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is a man of truth; in Him there is no falsehood.

²I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

²⁸You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but am sent ahead of Him.’

²⁹The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.

¹⁵You know that Stephanas and his household were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints. Now I urge you, brothers,

¹⁷I am glad that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus have arrived, because they have supplied what was lacking from you.

¹⁵And when she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

³³At that hour of the night, the jailer took them and washed their wounds. And without delay, he and all his household were baptized.

¹When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.

¹³And this is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words.

¹⁶For we did not follow cleverly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

⁴My message and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,

⁵so that your faith would not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.

¹⁰For some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but his physical presence is unimpressive, and his speaking is of no account.”

²Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

¹⁴The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

¹⁶I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek.

¹⁰and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them.

²³but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,

²⁴but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

³And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.

²¹For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.

¹⁴Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of the wise will vanish, and the intelligence of the intelligent will be hidden.”

⁹The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped. Since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what wisdom do they really have?

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

¹²He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success.

¹³He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning.

¹¹The princes of Zoan are mere fools; Pharaoh’s wise counselors give senseless advice. How can you say to Pharaoh, “I am one of the wise, a son of eastern kings”?

³Then the spirit of the Egyptians will be emptied out from among them, and I will frustrate their plans, so that they will resort to idols and spirits of the dead, to mediums and spiritists.

²²Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools,

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

¹⁷He leads counselors away barefoot and makes fools of judges.

¹⁹For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

²⁴He deprives the earth’s leaders of reason and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.

²⁵who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who confounds the wise and turns their knowledge into nonsense,

²¹At that time Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.

²⁰For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.

²¹For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.

²⁵At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

¹⁰His purpose was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,

²⁴but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

³³O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!

¹Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.

²But He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘The weather will be fair, for the sky is red,’

³⁸Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”

³⁹Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

¹⁸On account of this, the Jews demanded, “What sign can You show us to prove Your authority to do these things?”

¹⁸Some Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others said, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was proclaiming the good news of Jesus and the resurrection.

¹⁹So they took Paul and brought him to the Areopagus, where they asked him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?

¹¹Then the Pharisees came and began to argue with Jesus, testing Him by demanding from Him a sign from heaven.

¹⁶And others tested Him by demanding a sign from heaven.

¹⁴The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

⁸and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed.

²For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

¹¹Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished.

¹⁴And He will be a sanctuary—but to both houses of Israel a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, to the dwellers of Jerusalem a trap and a snare.

¹⁵Many will stumble over these; they will fall and be broken; they will be ensnared and captured.”

¹⁸For 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.

³⁰It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.

³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

¹⁸For 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.

⁹God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

¹⁶I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek.

²⁸And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.

²⁹For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.

³³O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!

³⁴“Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?”

¹⁸For 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.

⁶So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of Hosts.

⁷What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain. Then he will bring forth the capstone accompanied by shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’”

⁴For He was indeed crucified in weakness, yet He lives by God’s power. For we are also weak in Him, yet by God’s power we will live with Him concerning you.

⁷The Lord will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and of the people of Jerusalem may not be greater than that of Judah.

⁸On that day the Lord will defend the people of Jerusalem, so that the weakest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them.

²Then the Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men for Me to deliver Midian into their hands, lest Israel glorify themselves over Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’

³Now, therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the men: ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand of them turned back, but ten thousand remained.

⁵Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him?

¹⁸Let no one deceive himself. If any of you thinks he is wise in this age, he should become a fool, so that he may become wise.

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

⁸None of the rulers of this age understood it. For if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

⁹The brother in humble circumstances should exult in his high position.

¹⁰But the one who is rich should exult in his low position, because he will pass away like a flower of the field.

²⁵At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

²⁶Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight.

²⁴Seeing the man’s sadness, Jesus said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!

²⁵Indeed, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

⁵Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him?

²⁵At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

²⁰Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

²From the mouths of children and infants You have ordained praise on account of Your adversaries, to silence the enemy and avenger.

¹⁵For I will give you speech and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.

¹⁴Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of the wise will vanish, and the intelligence of the intelligent will be hidden.”

²⁴He shatters the mighty without inquiry and sets up others in their place.

¹⁷As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the presence of God, in whom he believed, the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being what does not yet exist.

¹¹The proud look of man will be humbled, and the loftiness of men brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

¹²You will seek them but will not find them. Those who wage war against you will come to nothing.

¹⁹who is not partial to princes and does not favor rich over poor? For they are all the work of His hands.

²⁰They die in an instant, in the middle of the night. The people convulse and pass away; the mighty are removed without human hand.

¹³The nations rage like the rush of many waters. He rebukes them, and they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweeds before a gale.

¹⁴In the evening, there is sudden terror! Before morning, they are no more! This is the portion of those who loot us and the lot of those who plunder us.

²⁷Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of works? No, but on that of faith.

⁹not by works, so that no one can boast.

²³This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.

⁷For who makes you so superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?

³¹Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

¹⁷Therefore I exult in Christ Jesus in my service to God.

⁷In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace

⁹and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.

¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

²To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:

¹¹And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

²³This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.

²⁴But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, who exercises loving devotion, justice and righteousness on the earth—for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.

¹⁷Rather, “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

³For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—

³Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.

¹⁶You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the Lord; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁰Glory in His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.