1 Corinthians 1

1 To the church of God in Corinth, to those who have been consecrated by union with Christ Jesus and called to become his people, and also to all, wherever they may be, who invoke the name of our Lord Jesus Christ – their Master and ours,

Paul, called by Christ Jesus to be an apostle by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

2 from Paul, who has been called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and from Sosthenes, our fellow follower of the Lord.

to the church of God at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, who are called to be holy people. We are also writing to all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, their Lord and ours.

3 May God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ bless you and give you peace.

May grace and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

4 I always thank God for you. I thank him for the blessing bestowed on you in Christ Jesus.

I always give thanks to my God for you because of the grace of God that Christ Jesus gave to you.

5 For through union with him you were enriched in every way – in your power to preach, and in your knowledge of the truth;

He has made you rich in every way, in all speech and with all knowledge,

6 and so became yourselves a confirmation of my testimony to the Christ.

just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed as true among you.

7 There is no gift in which you are deficient, while waiting for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.

Therefore you lack no spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

8 And God himself will strengthen you to the end, so that at the day of our Lord Jesus Christ you may be found blameless.

He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9 God will not fail you, and it is he who called you into communion with his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

God is faithful, who called you into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

10 But I appeal to you, my friends, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to agree in what you profess, and not to allow divisions to exist among you, but to be united – of one mind and of one opinion.

Now I urge you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree, and that there be no divisions among you. I urge that you be joined together with the same mind and by the same purpose.

11 For I have been informed, my friends, by the members of Chloe’s household, that party feeling exists among you.

For it has been made clear to me, my brothers, by Chloe's people that there are factions among you.

12 I mean this: that every one of you says either ‘I follow Paul,’ or ‘I Apollos,’ or ‘I Cephas,’ or ‘I Christ.’

I mean this: Each one of you says, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” or “I am with Cephas,” or “I am with Christ.”

13 You have torn the Christ in pieces! Was it Paul who was crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?

14 I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,

I thank God that I baptized none of you, except Crispus and Gaius.

15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name.

This was so that no one would say that you were baptized into my name.

16 I baptized also the household of Stephanas. I do not know that I baptized anyone else.

(I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know if I baptized any others.)

17 My mission from Christ was not to baptize, but to tell the good news; not, however, in the language of philosophy, in case the cross of the Christ should be robbed of its meaning.

For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel. He did not send me to preach with words of human wisdom, so that the cross of Christ should not be emptied of its power.

18 The message of the cross is indeed mere folly to those who are on the path to ruin, but to us who are on the path of salvation it is the power of God.

For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are dying. But among those whom God is saving, it is the power of God.

19 For scripture says – ‘I will bring the philosophy of the philosophers to naught, and the shrewdness of the shrewd I will bring to nothing.’

For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will frustrate the understanding of the intelligent.”

20 Where is the philosopher? Where the teacher of the Law? Where the disputant of today? Has not God shown the world’s philosophy to be folly? (aiōn g165)

Where is the wise person? Where is the scholar? Where is the debater of this world? Has not God turned the wisdom of the world into foolishness? (aiōn g165)

21 For since the world, in God’s wisdom, did not by its philosophy learn to know God, God saw fit, by the ‘folly’ of our proclamation, to save those who believe in Christ!

Since the world in its wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.

22 While Jews ask for miraculous signs, and Greeks study philosophy,

For Jews ask for miraculous signs and Greeks seek wisdom.

23 we are proclaiming Christ crucified! – to the Jews an obstacle, to the Gentiles mere folly,

But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Greeks.

24 but to those who have received the call, whether Jews or Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God!

But to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, we preach Christ as the power and the wisdom of God.

25 For God’s ‘folly’ is wiser than people, and God’s ‘weakness’ is stronger than people.

For the foolishness of God is wiser than people, and the weakness of God is stronger than people.

26 Look at the facts of your call, friends. There are not many among you who are wise, as people reckon wisdom, not many who are influential, not many who are high-born;

Look at your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise by human standards. Not many of you were powerful. Not many of you were of noble birth.

27 but God chose what the world counts foolish to put its wise to shame, and God chose what the world counts weak to put its strong to shame,

But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame what is strong.

28 and God chose what the world counts poor and insignificant – things that to it are unreal – to bring its ‘realities’ to nothing,

God chose what is low and despised in the world. He even chose things that are regarded as nothing, to bring to nothing things that are held as valuable.

29 so that in his presence no one should boast.

He did this so that no one would have a reason to boast before him.

30 But you, by your union with Christ Jesus, belong to God; and Christ, by God’s will, became not only our wisdom, but also our righteousness, holiness, and deliverance,

Because of what God did, now you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God. He became our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.

31 so that – in the words of scripture – ‘Whoever boasts should boast of the Lord!’

As a result, as scripture says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”