1 Corinthians 16

¹⁷If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?

¹³Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.

¹Now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the churches of Macedonia.

²In the terrible ordeal they suffered, their abundant joy and deep poverty overflowed into rich generosity.

¹²For this ministry of service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.

¹³Because of the proof this ministry provides, the saints will glorify God for your obedient confession of the gospel of Christ, and for the generosity of your contribution to them and to all the others.

¹⁰They only asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

²⁵Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem to serve the saints there.

²⁶For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.

⁹You are cursed with a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me.

¹⁰Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the Lord of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure.

¹⁰Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.

⁷On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Since Paul was ready to leave the next day, he talked to them and kept on speaking until midnight.

¹¹For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land.

¹²If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you must set him free.

¹⁸But remember that it is the Lord your God who gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers even to this day.

³But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you in this matter should not prove empty, but that you will be prepared, just as I said.

⁴Otherwise, if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we—to say nothing of you—would be ashamed of having been so confident.

⁶So we urged Titus to help complete your act of grace, just as he had started it.

⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.

¹⁸Along with Titus we are sending the brother who is praised by all the churches for his work in the gospel.

¹⁹More than that, this brother was chosen by the churches to accompany us with the gracious offering we administer to honor the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help.

³⁴If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you come together it will not result in judgment. And when I come, I will give instructions about the remaining matters.

¹In those days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Grecian Jews among them began to grumble against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

²So the Twelve summoned all the disciples and said, “It is unacceptable for us to neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.

¹⁹But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only what these arrogant people are saying, but what power they have.

²⁰For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.

¹⁹More than that, this brother was chosen by the churches to accompany us with the gracious offering we administer to honor the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help.

²⁵Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem to serve the saints there.

⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.

²¹After these things had happened, Paul resolved in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been there,” he said, “I must see Rome as well.”

¹⁹But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only what these arrogant people are saying, but what power they have.

¹⁵Confident of this, I planned to visit you first, so that you might receive a double blessing.

¹⁶I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to return to you from Macedonia, and then to have you help me on my way to Judea.

¹When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples. And after encouraging them, he said goodbye to them and left for Macedonia.

²After traveling through that area and speaking many words of encouragement, he arrived in Greece,

³Sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, recounting the conversion of the Gentiles and bringing great joy to all the brothers.

²⁴I hope to see you on my way to Spain. And after I have enjoyed your company for a while, you can equip me for my journey.

⁶They have testified to the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God.

⁷For they went out on behalf of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles.

¹²Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided to sail on, hoping that somehow they could reach Phoenix to winter there. Phoenix was a harbor in Crete facing both southwest and northwest.

¹⁶I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to return to you from Macedonia, and then to have you help me on my way to Judea.

³⁸They were especially grieved by his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.

²¹But as he left, he said, “I will come back to you if God is willing.” And he set sail from Ephesus.

¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord is willing, we will live and do this or that.”

¹⁹But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only what these arrogant people are saying, but what power they have.

¹⁰in my prayers at all times, asking that now at last by God’s will I may succeed in coming to you.

²³I know, O Lord, that a man’s way is not his own; no one who walks directs his own steps.

²¹Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the Lord will prevail.

¹When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.

¹⁶You are also to keep the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the produce from what you sow in the field. And keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather your produce from the field.

³²If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for human motives, what did I gain? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

¹⁵From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you are to count off seven full weeks.

¹⁶You shall count off fifty days until the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord.

¹⁹When they reached Ephesus, Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue there and reasoned with the Jews.

¹²Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and a door stood open for me in the Lord,

²⁷When they arrived, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them, and how He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.

³as you pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.

⁷To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of the One who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open.

⁸I know your deeds. Behold, I have placed before you an open door, which no one can shut. I know that you have only a little strength, yet you have kept My word and have not denied My name.

⁸We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the hardships we encountered in the province of Asia. We were under a burden far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.

⁹Indeed, we felt we were under the sentence of death, in order that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God, who raises the dead.

¹⁸For as I have often told you before, and now say again even with tears: Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.

⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

²We sent Timothy, our brother and fellow worker for God in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,

¹⁹Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I learn how you are doing.

²⁰I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.

¹⁷That is why I have sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which is exactly what I teach everywhere in every church.

²¹Timothy, my fellow worker, sends you greetings, as do Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my fellow countrymen.

²²He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed for a time in the province of Asia.

¹²Let no one despise your youth, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

¹⁵Speak these things as you encourage and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.

³³After spending some time there, they were sent off by the brothers in peace to return to those who had sent them.

¹⁰If Timothy comes, see to it that he has nothing to fear while he is with you, for he is doing the work of the Lord, just as I am.

⁶Perhaps I will stay with you awhile, or even spend the winter, so that you can help me on my journey, wherever I go.

⁶They have testified to the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God.

¹²What I mean is this: Individuals among you are saying, “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.”

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

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,

²⁴Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, well versed in the Scriptures.

⁴But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,

¹To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven:

⁹Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

¹³Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand.

¹⁴Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

⁹But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.

¹⁰That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

¹It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

³⁴A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.

³⁵By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”

⁸Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

⁵The goal of our instruction is the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith.

⁷Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

⁸Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

³¹But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.

¹⁷This is My command to you: Love one another.

¹⁶Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that I do not remember if I baptized anyone else.

⁵Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my beloved Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.

²⁵Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem to serve the saints there.

¹Now about the service to the saints, there is no need for me to write to you.

⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.

¹⁰As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another.

¹⁷Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch over your souls as those who must give an account. To this end, allow them to lead with joy and not with grief, for that would be of no advantage to you.

¹²But we ask you, brothers, to acknowledge those who work diligently among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you.

⁸Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth.

³Without growing weary, you have persevered and endured many things for the sake of My name.

¹²Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, women who have worked hard in the Lord. Greet my beloved Persis, who has worked very hard in the Lord.

²⁸And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, and those with gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various tongues.

³⁰because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.

⁹And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so.

¹³I would have liked to keep him with me, so that on your behalf he could minister to me in my chains for the gospel.

⁷I take great joy and encouragement in your love, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.

¹³On account of this, we are encouraged. In addition to our own encouragement, we were even more delighted by the joy of Titus. For his spirit has been refreshed by all of you.

³²so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed.

⁸I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know about us, and that he may encourage your hearts.

²⁵Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.

¹³Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his masters.

²There he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to visit them,

¹⁵Greet the brothers in Laodicea, as well as Nympha and the church that meets at her house.

¹⁰This continued for two years, so that everyone who lived in the province of Asia, Jews and Greeks alike, heard the word of the Lord.

¹Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the elect who are exiles of the Dispersion throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, chosen

²to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church that meets at your house:

²⁶And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

¹⁶Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send you greetings.

¹⁴Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

²⁶Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss.

²⁴Greet all your leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy send you greetings.

¹²Greet one another with a holy kiss.

¹³All the saints send you greetings.

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

¹⁸This greeting is in my own hand—Paul. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

¹¹See what large letters I am using to write to you with my own hand!

¹⁷This greeting is in my own hand—Paul. This is my mark in every letter; it is the way I write.

²²I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.

¹⁹I, Paul, write this with my own hand. I will repay it—not to mention that you owe me your very self.

²⁴Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

²¹Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”

¹⁹We love because He first loved us.

¹⁴For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that One died for all, therefore all died.

¹⁵And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.

¹Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves those born of Him.

⁴²Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on My own, but He sent Me.

²⁰The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

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

¹⁹Those I love I rebuke and discipline. Therefore be earnest and repent.

¹³And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’

¹⁶Otherwise, if you speak a blessing in spirit, how can someone who is uninstructed say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since he does not know what you are saying?

¹⁵And for the sake of your souls, I will most gladly spend my money and myself. If I love you more, will you love me less?

²⁰and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

¹⁴I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children.

¹⁵Even if you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.