to the church of God at Corinth, to those who are consecrated in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, as well as to all who, wherever they may be, invoke the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord no less than ours:

For you have grown rich in everything through union with him??n power of expression and in capacity for knowledge.

So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

I give thanks to God that no one of you did I baptize, except Crispus and Gaius --

that no one may say that I have baptised unto my own name.

And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.

For Christ did not send me [as an apostle] to baptize, but [commissioned and empowered me] to preach the good news [of salvation]—not with clever and eloquent speech [as an orator], so that the cross of Christ would not be made ineffective [deprived of its saving power].

For Scripture says-'I will bring the philosophy of the philosophers to nought, and the shrewdness of the shrewd I will make of no account.'

Where now is your philosopher? Your scribe? Your reasoner of today? Has not God made a fool of the world's wisdom?

For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

Now Jews ask for [miraculous] signs and Greeks [i.e., Gentiles] are looking for wisdom,

but we proclaim a Christ who was crucified??n idea that is revolting to Jews and absurd to the heathen,

Now consider how you were when you were called, brothers. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were from prominent families.

But God has selected [for His purpose] the foolish things of the world to shame the wise [revealing their ignorance], and God has selected [for His purpose] the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong [revealing their frailty].

and the things which the world regards as base, and those which it sets utterly at nought--things that have no existence--God has chosen in order to reduce to nothing things that do exist;

That no flesh should glory in his presence.

For my own part, Brothers, when I came to you, it was with no display of eloquence or philosophy that I came to tell the hidden purpose of God;

For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

And in my preaching there were no honeyed words of wisdom, but I was dependent on the power of the Spirit to make it clear to you:

Now we do speak wisdom among the mature, but wisdom not of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are perishing,

but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the wisdom once hidden [from man, but now revealed to us by God, that wisdom] which God predestined before the ages to our glory [to lift us into the glory of His presence].

Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

But as it is written:

What eye did not see and ear did not hear,
and what never entered the human mind—
God prepared this for those who love Him.

Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

And this is what we discuss, using language taught by no human wisdom but by the Spirit. We interpret what is spiritual in spiritual language.

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

for who did know the mind of the Lord that he shall instruct Him? and we -- we have the mind of Christ.

However, brothers and sisters, I could not talk to you as to spiritual people, but [only] as to worldly people [dominated by human nature], mere infants [in the new life] in Christ!

I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.

You are not able even now, for you are still unspiritual. While there is among you jealousy and strife, are you not still unspiritual, and behaving like worldlings?

Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.

According to the [remarkable] grace of God which was given to me [to prepare me for my task], like a skillful master builder I laid a foundation, and now another is building on it. But each one must be careful how he builds on it,

For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;

but in every case the nature of his work will come out; the Day will show what it is, for the Day breaks in fire, and the fire will test the work of each, no matter what that work may be.

If the structure which one builds is burned up, he will get no pay; and yet he himself will be saved, but just as one who goes through a fire.

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.

and again, 'The Lord doth know the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain.'

Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;

Now it is required of servant managers that each one should prove to be trustworthy.

With me, however, it counteth for the very smallest thing, that, by you, I should be examined, or by a human day. Nay! I am not even examining myself,

For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.

So do not go on passing judgment before the appointed time, but wait until the Lord comes, for He will both bring to light the [secret] things that are hidden in darkness and disclose the motives of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?

Now ye are full, now ye are rich, ye have reigned as kings without us: and I would to God ye did reign, that we also might reign with you.

Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;

being defamed, we entreat: we are made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things, even until now.

It is with no wish to shame you that I am writing like this; but to warn you as my own dear children.

For you can have 10,000 instructors in Christ, but you can’t have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Now I conjure you, be followers of me.

Now some are puffed up, as though I would not come to you.

But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power.

Which do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod [of discipline and correction], or with love and a gentle spirit?

Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

I wrote unto you in my epistle to have no company with fornicators;

By no means [did I mean] the sexually immoral people of this world or the greedy people and swindlers or idolaters, since then you would have to depart out of the world.

But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

For it is no business of mine to be judging those who are outside; but it is yours to be judging those who are among you;

Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

If then ye have to judge things pertaining to this life, do ye set them to judge who are of no account in the church?

I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?

Nay, brother goeth to law with brother, and that before unbelievers.

Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?

Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.

Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,

And all this describes what some of you were. But now you have had every stain washed off: now you have been set apart as holy: now you have been pronounced free from guilt; in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit of our God.

All things are lawful unto me: but all things are not profitable. I may do all things: but I will be brought under no man's power.

Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.

Now God raised up the Lord, and will also raise us up by his power.

Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.

What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.

flee licentiousness. no other sin that a man commits does affect the church as a body: but the licentious commits a fraud against the whole body to which he belongs.

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

for ye have been bought with a price: glorify now then God in your body.

Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.

Now I wish all men to be even as myself: but every one has his own gift of God: one man thus, and another thus.

Now I say to the unmarried and to the widows: [It is] good for them if they remain as I [am].

But if they have no self-control they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn.

Now I command married people, although it is [really] the Lord's command [See. Mark 10:2-12]: A wife should not separate from her husband. [Note: This act implies the intention of pursuing a legal and permanent breach of the marriage relationship by divorce. "Separate" and "divorce" appear to be used interchangeably in this section. See verses 11-15].

Now to the rest I say--not the Lord--if any brother has an unbelieving wife and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.

For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.

If, however, the unbeliever is determined to leave, let him or her do so. Under such circumstances the Christian man or woman is no slave; God has called us to live lives of peace.

For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?

Only whatever be the lot in life to which God has assigned each one??nd whatever the condition in which he was living when God called him??n that let him continue. Such is the rule I give in all the churches.

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.

Being circumcised or not being circumcised has no value, but keeping God's commands is important.

Wast thou called being a bondservant? Care not for it: nay, even if thou canst become free, use it rather.

For the person who was a slave when called by the Lord is [now] the Lord's freed person. In the same way, the person who was free when he was called [by the Lord] is [now] Christ's slave.

Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful.

I think then that because of the impending distress [that is, the pressure of the current trouble], it is good for a man to remain as he is.

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.