1 Corinthians 1
1 I, Paul, [am writing this letter]. Sosthenes, our fellow believer, is with [me as I write it]. [God] appointed me to be an apostle of Christ Jesus because that is what God desired.
UPhawuli, obizelwe ukuba ngumpostoli kaJesu Khristu ngentando kaNkulunkulu, kanye lomzalwane wethu uSosithene.
2 [I am sending this letter] to all you who are God’s believers in Corinth [city]. You have been set apart [by God] {[God] has set you apart} for himself because (of your close relationship with/you belong to) Christ Jesus. God has appointed you to be his people and to live in a morally pure way, just like he has appointed all the people everywhere who belong to him to live in a morally pure way. You and they have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ [MTY]. He is their sovereign Lord as well as the sovereign Lord of all of us [(inc)] who have trusted in him.
Ebandleni likaNkulunkulu eKhorinte, kulabo abangcweliswe kuJesu Khristu babizelwa ukuba ngabangcwele bakhe kanye labo bonke abasezindaweni zonke abakhuleka ebizweni leNkosi yethu uJesu Khristu, iNkosi yabo leyethu:
3 We [(exc)] desire that God, who is our [heavenly] Father, and Jesus Christ, who is our sovereign Lord, will continue to act kindly toward you and cause you to experience [inner] peace.
Umusa lokuthula okuvela kuNkulunkulu uBaba leNkosini uJesu Khristu kakube kini.
4 I very often [HYP] thank God for you because he has acted toward you kindly, acting in ways that you do not deserve. He has done this because of your (having a close relationship with/being united to) Christ Jesus.
Ngihlezi ngimbonga kokuphela uNkulunkulu wami ngani, ngenxa yomusa wakhe eliwuphiweyo kuJesu Khristu.
5 That is, [God] has [HYP] helped you spiritually very much because of your (having a close relationship with/being united to) Christ. Specifically, God has very much [HYP] enabled you to speak messages [that his Spirit revealed to you], and he has very much enabled you to know many things [HYP] that his Spirit revealed to you.
Ngoba kuye linothiswe ngezindlela zonke, ekukhulumeni kwenu konke lasekwazini konke,
6 In that way, [he] confirmed to you that what we [(exc)] proclaimed about Christ is true.
ngoba ubufakazi bethu ngoKhristu baqiniswa kini.
7 As a result, while you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to return, within your group you truly have [LIT] every ability that [God’s] Spirit gives [to believers].
Ngakho kalisileli lakusiphi isipho somoya lapho lilindele ngokutshiseka ukuba iNkosi yethu uJesu Khristu ibonakaliswe.
8 God will also cause you to steadfastly [trust Christ to the very end of your lives] [EUP]. The result will be that God will not consider you guilty [of any sin] when our Lord Jesus Christ returns to earth [MTY].
Izaligcina liqinile kuze kube sekupheleni ukuze lingabi lasici ngosuku lweNkosi yethu uJesu Khristu.
9 You can depend on God to do that. He is the one who chose you to become intimately associated with his Son, Jesus Christ, who is our Lord.
UNkulunkulu olibizele ekuhlanganyeleni leNdodana yakhe uJesu Khristu iNkosi yethu, uthembekile.
10 My fellow believers, by the authority of [MTY] our Lord Jesus Christ, I urgently appeal to all of you to agree with one another. What I mean is, stop dividing into groups. Instead, be united [MET] concerning what you understand [about spiritual matters], and be united in what you decide.
Ngiyalincenga bazalwane, ngebizo leNkosi yethu uJesu Khristu, ukuba lonke livumelane ukuze kungabi lokwehlukana phakathi kwenu kanye lokuthi libe ngabamanyeneyo engqondweni lasemcabangweni.
11 My fellow believers, [I urge this] because some members of Chloe’s household have told me that you are quarreling among yourselves.
Bazalwane bami, abanye abendlu yakoKlowe bangitshele ukuthi kulezingxabano phakathi kwenu.
12 That is, some of you say, “Paul is the one to whom we [are loyal],” and others say, “Peter is the one to whom we [are loyal],” and still others say, “Christ is the one to whom we [are loyal].”
Engikutshoyo yilokhu: Omunye wenu uthi, “Mina ngilandela uPhawuli”; omunye uthi, “Mina ngilandela u-Apholo”; omunye uthi, “Mina ngilandela uKhefasi”; omunye laye uthi, “Mina ngilandela uKhristu.”
13 [It is ridiculous that] [RHQ] [you are quarreling and] dividing up [into groups instead of being loyal to] Christ alone. Christ certainly has not divided himself into parts and distributed those parts out [to groups of people who oppose each other]! [MET, RHQ] I, Paul, certainly did not die on the cross for you! [RHQ] When you were baptized {When someone baptized you}, you certainly did not promise that you were submitting to me! [RHQ]
Kambe uKhristu wehlukene na? UPhawuli wake wabethelwa ngenxa yenu na? Labhaphathizwa ngebizo likaPhawuli na?
14 I thank [God] that Crispus and Gaius were the only ones from among you whom I baptized.
Ngibonga uNkulunkulu ngokuthi kangibhaphathizanga lamunye wenu ngaphandle kukaKhrispasi loGayiyasi,
15 As a result, no one [there in Corinth except those two] can say, “Paul baptized me so that I would become (his disciple/submissive to him).”
ngakho kakho ongathi labhaphathizwa ngebizo lami.
16 [Now I remember that] I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I do not remember baptizing anyone else [there].
(Yebo ngabhaphathiza abendlu KaStefane, ngaphandle kwalokho angikhumbuli ngibhaphathiza omunye.)
17 Christ sent me not [primarily] to baptize people but to preach the good message about him. When I do that, he does not want me to use words that human philosophers [consider] wise [IRO]. I do not want the message about [what] he [accomplished when he was nailed to] the cross [MTY] to lose its power.
Ngoba uKhristu kangithumanga ukuba ngibhaphathize kodwa ukuba ngitshumayele ivangeli, hatshi ngamazwi enhlakanipho yabantu, funa isiphambano silahlekelwe ngamandla aso.
18 Those who are perishing spiritually [because they do not believe that message consider] that the message [about what Christ accomplished when he was nailed to the] cross [MTY] [is] foolish. But to us who are being saved {whom [God] is saving} [spiritually because we believe that message], it [demonstrates that] God acts powerfully [in order to save us].
Ngoba ilizwi lesiphambano liyibuthutha kulabo ababhubhayo, kodwa kithi abasindisiweyo lingamandla kaNkulunkulu.
19 [It is like what God said that] a prophet wrote long ago, [By the things that I will do], I will show that the ideas of those who [think] [IRO] they are wise are completely useless. I will ignore the ideas that they think are [IRO] so smart.
Ngoba kulotshiwe ukuthi: “Ngizachitha inhlakanipho yabahlakaniphileyo; ukwazi kwezazi ngizakunqunda.”
20 So, do you know [what God thinks] about what [RHQ] people who [IRO] consider themselves to be wise and scholars and philosophers say? [He does not pay attention to what they say, because] [RHQ] he has shown clearly that what unbelievers [think is] [IRO] wise is [not wise at all], but is really foolish. (aiōn g165)
Ungaphi umuntu ohlakaniphileyo na? Singaphi isifundiswa somthetho na? Singaphi isazi salesisikhathi na? UNkulunkulu kenzanga ukuhlakanipha kwasemhlabeni kwaba yibuthutha na? (aiōn g165)
21 God, acting very wisely, made it impossible for unbelievers to know God by doing what they thought was [IRO] wise. Instead, he was happy to save those who trust [in Christ] as the result of their hearing [the message that] was proclaimed to them, a message that others consider to be foolish.
Ngoba ekuhlakanipheni kukaNkulunkulu, umhlaba ngokuhlakanipha kwawo kawumazanga, uNkulunkulu wathokoza ngobuthutha balokho okwatshunyayelwayo ukuze kusindise abakholwayo
22 The Jews want [people to prove, by performing] miracles, [that their message is true]. The non-Jews want to hear only messages consisting of talk that they consider to be very wise.
AmaJuda afuna izibonakaliso lezimangaliso lamaGrikhi adinga ukuhlakanipha,
23 As for us, we proclaim [the message about what] Christ [accomplished for us when] he was nailed {[when they] nailed him} to the cross. That message offends Jews [because they do not think that the Messiah will die, and] non-Jews think it is [IRO] a foolish message.
kodwa thina sitshumayela uKhristu owabethelwayo: isikhubekiso kumaJuda lobuthutha kwabeZizwe,
24 But to us whom God has chosen to belong to himself, both Jews and non-Jews, that message shows that God acted powerfully and wisely [by sending] Christ [to die] for us.
kodwa kulabo ababizwe nguNkulunkulu, amaJuda lamaGrikhi, uKhristu ungamandla lokuhlakanipha kukaNkulunkulu.
25 [Unbelievers may think] [IRO] [that] God was [acting] foolishly [by doing that], but [the truth is that] he was acting more wisely than unbelievers who [just think that] [IRO] they are wise. And unbelievers may think that God was [acting] weakly [by sending his son to die], but he was acting more powerfully than unbelievers who [just think] [IRO] [that they] act powerfully.
Ngoba ubuthutha bukaNkulunkulu buhlakaniphile kulokuhlakanipha komuntu, lobuthakathaka bukaNkulunkulu bulamandla kulamandla omuntu.
26 My fellow believers, remember what [kind of people you] were when God chose you. [Not many of you] whom he chose are people whom [unbelievers considered to be] wise. Very few of you were considered to be important. Very few of you came from families with a high social standing.
Bazalwane, khumbulani ngalokho elaliyikho ekubizweni kwenu. Kababanengi phakathi kwenu ababehlakaniphile ngesilinganiso sabantu; kababanengi ababelamandla; kababanengi ababezalwa yizikhulu.
27 Instead, it was [usually] those whom [unbelievers considered to be] foolish whom God chose. He did that in order to shame/discredit those whom [unbelievers consider] [IRO] wise. It was [usually] those [whom unbelievers] considered [IRO] unimportant whom God chose, in order to shame/discredit those whom unbelievers consider important.
Kodwa uNkulunkulu wakhetha izinto zasemhlabeni eziyizithutha ukuba ayangise izihlakaniphi; uNkulunkulu wakhetha izinto zasemhlabeni ezibuthakathaka ukuba ayangise abalamandla.
28 It was usually those who are despised and considered {whom [unbelievers] despise and consider} worthless whom God chose, in order to make completely ineffective [what unbelievers consider to be important].
Wakhetha izinto zalo umhlaba eziphansi lezinto ezeyisekayo kanye lezinto ezingekho ukuba achithe okukhona,
29 [He did that] in order that no one could boast to God about being wise or important.
ukuze kungabi lamuntu ozazincoma phambi kwakhe.
30 It is because of what God [has done] that you (have a close relationship with/belong to) Christ Jesus. God [put into effect] his wise [plan to save us] by what Christ did for us. As a result of what Christ did, God erases the record of our sins, sets us apart for himself, and frees us from our being guilty [for our sins].
Ngenxa yakhe lina likuKhristu uJesu, yena osebe yikuhlakanipha okuvela kuNkulunkulu esenzela thina, okuyikulunga kwethu, ubungcwele lokusindiswa.
31 So, it is the Lord whom we should boast about, [not about one spiritual leader being better than another]. We should do as ([a prophet/Jeremiah]) wrote [in the Scriptures that we should do]: Those who boast should boast [only] about what the Lord [has done].
Ngakho-ke, njengoba kulotshiwe ukuthi: “Lowo ozincomayo kazincome eNkosini.”
