I give praise to God that not one of you had baptism from me, but Crispus and Gaius;

And I gave baptism to the house of Stephanas; but I am not certain that any others had baptism from me.

For Christ sent me, not to give baptism, but to be a preacher of the good news: not with wise words, for fear that the cross of Christ might be made of no value.

Where is the wise? where is he who has knowledge of the law? where is the man of this world who has a love of discussion? has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

For because, by the purpose of God, the world, with all its wisdom, had not the knowledge of God, it was God's pleasure, by so foolish a thing as preaching, to give salvation to those who had faith in him.

For you see God's design for you, my brothers, that he has not taken a great number of the wise after the flesh, not the strong, not the noble:

And the low things of the world, and the things without honour, did God make selection of, yes, even the things which are not, so that he might make as nothing the things which are:

And when I came to you, my brothers, I did not come with wise words of knowledge, putting before you the secret of God.

So that your faith might be based not on man's wisdom but on the power of God.

But still we have wisdom for those who are complete in knowledge, though not the wisdom of this world, and not of the rulers of this world, who are coming to nothing:

Of which not one of the rulers of this world had knowledge: for if they had, they would not have put the Lord of glory on the cross:

But as it says in the holy Writings, Things which the eye saw not, and which had not come to the ears or into the heart of man, such things as God has made ready for those who have love for him.

But we have not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which comes from God, so that we may have knowledge of the things which are freely given to us by God.

And these are the things which we say, not in the language of man's wisdom, but in words given to us by the Spirit, judging the things of the spirit by the help of the Spirit.

For the natural man is not able to take in the things of the Spirit of God: for they seem foolish to him, and he is not able to have knowledge of them, because such knowledge comes only through the Spirit.

And the teaching I gave you, my brothers, was such as I was able to give, not to those who have the Spirit, but to those who are still in the flesh, even to children in Christ.

I gave you milk and not meat, because you were, then, unable to take it, and even now you are not able;

Because you are still in the flesh: for when there is envy and division among you, are you not still walking after the way of the flesh, even as natural men?

For when one says, I am of Paul; and another says, I am of Apollos; are you not talking like natural men?

Do you not see that you are God's holy house, and that the Spirit of God has his place in you?

But it is a small thing to me that I am judged by you or by man's judging; I am not even a judge of myself.

For I am not conscious of any wrong in myself; but this does not make me clear, for it is the Lord who is my judge.

My brothers, it is because of you that I have taken Apollos and myself as examples of these things, so that in us you might see that it is not wise to go farther than what is in the holy Writings, so that no one of you may be lifted up against his brother.

For who made you better than your brother? or what have you that has not been given to you? but if it has been given to you, what cause have you for pride, as if it had not been given to you?

I am not saying these things to put you to shame, but so that, as my dear children, you may see what is right.

For even if you had ten thousand teachers in Christ, you have not more than one father: for in Christ Jesus I have given birth to you through the good news.

Now some are full of pride, as if I was not coming to you.

But I will come to you in a short time, if it is pleasing to the Lord, and I will take note, not of the word of those who are full of pride, but of the power.

For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.

It is said, in fact, that there is among you a sin of the flesh, such as is not seen even among the Gentiles, that one of you has his father's wife.

And in place of feeling sorrow, you are pleased with yourselves, so that he who has done this thing has not been sent away from among you.

For I myself, being present in spirit though not in body, have come to a decision about him who has done this thing;

This pride of yours is not good. Do you not see that a little leaven makes a change in all the mass?

Let us then keep the feast, not with old leaven, and not with the leaven of evil thoughts and acts, but with the unleavened bread of true thoughts and right feelings.

In my letter I said to you that you were not to keep company with those who go after the desires of the flesh;

But I had not in mind the sinners who are outside the church, or those who have a desire for and take the property of others, or those who give worship to images; for it is not possible to keep away from such people without going out of the world completely:

But the sense of my letter was that if a brother had the name of being one who went after the desires of the flesh, or had the desire for other people's property, or was in the way of using violent language, or being the worse for drink, or took by force what was not his, you might not keep company with such a one, or take food with him.

How is it, that if any one of you has a cause at law against another, he takes it before a Gentile judge and not before the saints?

Is it not certain that the saints will be the judges of the world? if then the world will be judged by you, are you unable to give a decision about the smallest things?

Is it not certain that we are to be the judges of angels? how much more then of the things of this life?

I say this to put you to shame. Is there not among you one wise man who may be able to give a decision between his brothers?

More than this, it is not to your credit to have causes at law with one another at all. Why not put up with wrong? why not undergo loss?

Have you not knowledge that evil-doers will have no part in the kingdom of God? Have no false ideas about this: no one who goes after the desires of the flesh, or gives worship to images, or is untrue when married, or is less than a man, or makes a wrong use of men,

Or is a thief, or the worse for drink, or makes use of strong language, or takes by force what is not his, will have any part in the kingdom of God.

I am free to do all things; but not all things are wise. I am free to do all things; but I will not let myself come under the power of any.

Food is for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will put an end to them together. But the body is not for the desires of the flesh, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body:

Do you not see that your bodies are part of the body of Christ? how then may I take what is a part of the body of Christ and make it a part of the body of a loose woman? such a thing may not be.

Or do you not see that he who is joined to a loose woman is one body with her? for God has said, The two of them will become one flesh.

Or are you not conscious that your body is a house for the Holy Spirit which is in you, and which has been given to you by God? and you are not the owners of yourselves;

The wife has not power over her body, but the husband; and in the same way the husband has not power over his body, but the wife.

Do not keep back from one another what is right, but only for a short time, and by agreement, so that you may give yourselves to prayer, and come together again; so that Satan may not get the better of you through your loss of self-control.

But this I say as my opinion, and not as an order of the Lord.

But if they have not self-control let them get married; for married life is better than the burning of desire.

But to the married I give orders, though not I but the Lord, that the wife may not go away from her husband

(Or if she goes away from him, let her keep unmarried, or be united to her husband again); and that the husband may not go away from his wife.

But to the rest I say, and not the Lord; If a brother has a wife who is not a Christian, and it is her desire to go on living with him, let him not go away from her.

And if a woman has a husband who is not a Christian, and it is his desire to go on living with her, let her not go away from her husband.

For the husband who has not faith is made holy through his Christian wife, and the wife who is not a Christian is made holy through the brother: if not, your children would be unholy, but now are they holy.

But if the one who is not a Christian has a desire to go away, let it be so: the brother or the sister in such a position is not forced to do one thing or the other: but it is God's pleasure that we may be at peace with one another.

For how may you be certain, O wife, that you will not be the cause of salvation to your husband? or you, O husband, that you may not do the same for your wife?

If any man who is a Christian has had circumcision, let him keep so; and if any man who is a Christian has not had circumcision, let him make no change.

If you were a servant when you became a Christian, let it not be a grief to you; but if you have a chance to become free, make use of it.

It is the Lord who has made payment for you: be not servants of men.

If you are married to a wife, make no attempt to get free from her: if you are free from a wife, do not take a wife.

If you get married it is not a sin; and if an unmarried woman gets married it is not a sin. But those who do so will have trouble in the flesh. But I will not be hard on you.

But I say this, my brothers, the time is short; and from now it will be wise for those who have wives to be as if they had them not;

And for those who make use of the world, not to be using it fully; for this world's way of life will quickly come to an end.

And the wife is not the same as the virgin. The virgin gives her mind to the things of the Lord, so that she may be holy in body and in spirit: but the married woman takes thought for the things of the world, how she may give pleasure to her husband.

Now I say this for your profit; not to make things hard for you, but because of what is right, and so that you may be able to give all your attention to the things of the Lord.

But if, in any man's opinion, he is not doing what is right for his virgin, if she is past her best years, and there is need for it, let him do what seems right to him; it is no sin; let them be married.

But the man who is strong in mind and purpose, who is not forced but has control over his desires, does well if he comes to the decision to keep her a virgin.

If anyone seems to himself to have knowledge, so far he has not the right sort of knowledge about anything;

Still, all men have not that knowledge: but some, being used till now to the image, are conscious that they are taking food which has been offered to the image; and because they are not strong in the faith, their minds are troubled.

But God's approval of us is not based on the food we take: if we do not take it we are no worse for it; and if we take it we are no better.

But take care that this power of yours does not give cause for trouble to the feeble.

For if a man sees you, who have knowledge, taking food as a guest in the house of an image, will it not give him, if he is feeble, the idea that he may take food offered to images?

For this reason, if food is a cause of trouble to my brother, I will give up taking meat for ever, so that I may not be a cause of trouble to my brother.

Am I not free? am I not an Apostle? have I not seen Jesus our Lord? are you not my work in the Lord?

If to others I am not an Apostle, at least I am one to you: for the fact that you are Christians is the sign that I am an Apostle.

Who ever goes to war without looking to someone to be responsible for his payment? who puts in vines and does not take the fruit of them? or who takes care of sheep without drinking of their milk?

Am I talking as a man? does not the law say the same?

For it says in the law of Moses, It is not right to keep the ox from taking the grain when he is crushing it. Is it for the oxen that God is giving orders?

If others have a part in this right over you, have we not even more? But we did not make use of our right, so that we might put nothing in the way of the good news of Christ.

Do you not see that the servants of the holy things get their living from the Temple, and the servants of the altar have their part in the food which is offered on the altar?

But I have not made use of any of these things: and I am not writing this in the hope that it may be so for me: for it would be better for me to undergo death, than for any man to make this pride of mine of no effect.

For if I am a preacher of the good news, I have no cause for pride in this; because I am forced to do so, for a curse is on me if I do not.

But if I do it gladly, I have a reward; and if not, I am under orders to do it.

What then is my reward? This, that when I am giving the good news, I may give it without payment, not making use of my rights as a preacher of the good news.

And to the Jews I was as a Jew, so that I might give the good news to them; to those under the law I was the same, not as being myself under the law, but so that I might give the good news to those under the law.

To those without the law I was as one without the law, not as being without law to God, but as under law to Christ, so that I might give the good news to those without the law.

Do you not see that in a running competition all take part, but only one gets the reward? So let your minds be fixed on the reward.

So then I am running, not uncertainly; so I am fighting, not as one who gives blows in the air:

But I give blows to my body, and keep it under control, for fear that, after having given the good news to others, I myself might not have God's approval.

But with most of them God was not pleased: for they came to their end in the waste land.

Now these things were for an example to us, so that our hearts might not go after evil things, as they did.

Then do not go after false gods, as some of them did; as it is said in the holy Writings, After resting and feasting, the people got up to take their pleasure.

Again, let us not give way to the desires of the flesh, as some of them did, of whom twenty-three thousand came to their end in one day.

And let us not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did, and came to their death by snakes.

And do not say evil things against the Lord, as some of them did, and destruction overtook them.

You have been put to no test but such as is common to man: and God is true, who will not let any test come on you which you are not able to undergo; but he will make with the test a way out of it, so that you may be able to go through it.